Author Archives: Andy Stoddard

Andy Stoddard ~ Keep on Moving: Perfect in Love

One of the things that I know most about faith is that we are going somewhere. We are on the move. We have a direction and a purpose.

Now that somewhere, in time, is heaven. One day, for those of us that believe, we will cross over into eternity and we will forever be with the Lord. That’s something to hope in, believe in, and rejoice in.

But that’s not just what I’m talking about it. Listen to what we read today in Hebrews 6: 1-3:

Therefore let us go on toward perfection, leaving behind the basic teaching about Christ, and not laying again the foundation: repentance from dead works and faith toward God, instruction about baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And we will do this, if God permits.

We are going on to perfection. That’s scary. We don’t like the sound of that. Perfection? None of us are anywhere near that!

And you know what? That’s exactly true. None of us are anywhere near perfection. But just because we aren’t anywhere near it doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t be moving towards it. We aren’t perfect. That’s right.

But you know what? We are working to be faithful. And that’s always the first step, the first key.

And second, we have to understand what it means to be perfect.

Let me ask you this: what is the aim or goal of our faith? What are we after? What are we doing? We are seeking, by his grace, to be more like God.

And what is God? Holy and Love. That’s his character. So how does Jesus tell us to be like him? He says the greatest commandment is to love the Lord our God with all that we are, and love our neighbor as ourselves.

That’s what true obedience looks like.

That’s what true holiness looks like.

That’s what perfection looks like. John Wesley didn’t talk about perfection in action. He talked about perfection in love.

That’s what we are chasing. That’s our aim. Perfect in love.

Today, let’s keep moving. Let’s keep being faithful. Let’s keep working. Let’s keep growing. Let’s move toward being perfect in love. And let’s see what God does with it!

Read more reflections at www.revandy.org.

Andy Stoddard ~ Why We Rejoice

One of the great blessings in life is to celebrate the ways that God works and moves. Sometimes, in our bid to stay humble, we can forget to give testimony to what God has done. Now, we do want to be careful, making sure that God gets the glory for whatever good happens in life, but we need to stop and realize what God has done.

It says in Revelation 12:11 that the devil is defeated by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony.

In our lives, we should, as often as we can, stop and testify and thank God for what he has done and is doing.

So today in our text, something surprising happens. Listen to what we see in Luke 10: 17-20:

The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!” He said to them, “I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

But don’t rejoice because of that. Rejoice because your name is written in heaven.

We don’t rejoice today because of what we’ve done. Or what God has done through us. We don’t rejoice because of any of these things.

We rejoice because we are his.

We rejoice because he has given us life, life now, and life for all eternity.

We rejoice because we know the source of our life and our hope.

We rejoice because God has made us his very own.

Our identity is not found in what we do. Our identity is found in who we are. We are his. That’s where our joy comes from.

May we never forget that!

Read more from Andy Stoddard at www.revandy.org.

Andy Stoddard ~ Know Thyself

One of the best things in the world that we can do is know ourselves. Know our strengths. Know our weaknesses. There’s an old saying – know thyself. That’s a good thing. Because when we know ourselves, we know what to be on the lookout for. What are things that could cause us trouble.

What are the things in our lives, in our past, in our present, that could trip us up? Tempt us? Cause to get ourselves in trouble? Do we know ourselves?

One of the things I really believe is that the Bible is the revelation of God’s truth for us, it points us to Jesus who is the author and perfecter of our faith. But it also points us to how to live, and for us it is just true. The Bible points us over and over again to truth. In fact, that old saying really be better understood in the light of James 1: 12-15:

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

James tells us, when you are lead into tempted, don’t say – God is tempting me. Know where your temptations come from. Within us. Our flesh. Our desires. Our stuff.

That’s why we have to know ourselves.

What tempts you? Where are you weak? Where are you easily knocked off course? Where does trouble come for you?

When you know where your weak spots are, you’ll know where to be on the watch. You’ll know what to avoid. Where to be careful.

We aren’t all tested by the same thing. We have different weak spots. Different temptations. Different struggles. Different histories. Different everythings.

What tempts me may not tempt you, and vice versa. But I need to be aware of what tempts me.

That way I can (1) avoid it and (2) guard my heart against it when it can’t be avoided. When I know myself, and you know yourself, we can (through God’s grace) better stand.

Today, what tempts you? What is it that gets you? Know that, and be aware. And, when we know our weakness, we have a better shot of being faithful. We have a better chance of being salt and light!

Reprinted with permission from www.revandy.org.

Don’t Be Afraid

Today is April 16. Every year I write something in memory of my Mama Sarah and in honor of my mom, Maxine Stoddard. On this day 37 years ago, my Mama Sarah was murdered by my biological father; at that point, many lives were forever changed. She was murdered on my mom’s birthday (April 16) and buried on mine (April 18). You can read all the details of this day and some of the effects it’s had on me and my family through the years in any of the linked posts, but the thing I always cling to in this, and any tragedy or moment I am afraid, is the truth found in Genesis 50:20:

“As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.”

And Romans 8:28:

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

God is at work in all things. And the power of God is not that he always stops bad things from happening. The power of God is that he can (and will) bring good out of everything.

So, today, this is where my mind is going. I think about the fear that must have been in my Mama Sarah’s heart as she walked out of the house with me in her arms before she was shot. I think about the fear that must have been in hearts of Maxine and Connie Stoddard with the loss of their daughter and now the unknown future of adopting their two-year-old grandson.

That fear that they faced could have paralyzed them. It could have kept them from moving or doing anything. It could have caused their world to crumble.

But you know what? They looked the fear that they faced in that moment, they looked it in the face and did the right thing anyway. They chose to not give into fear. They chose to do the right thing in spite of the fear in their heart. They trusted even in the darkness.

This is not to say that everyone in my story is perfect. That’s far from true. I’m not, Mama Sarah was not, my parents are not. But I do know this. In the midst of uncertainty and danger and fear, they chose not to give into the fear. They chose to do the right thing, even when they were afraid. They chose to trust that God had a plan, even in the midst of human brokenness.

They chose trust and obedience over fear.

So must we today. I have no idea what you are facing today. You may be very, very afraid. The future may be unknown. There may be great pain in your life. There may be things in your life that you have no control over. Things that make you very, very afraid.

It’s ok. We all are afraid at times. We are. But don’t give into it. Don’t. Faith is bigger than fear. Trust in the fact that there is a God bigger and smarter and wiser than you. That has a plan. Trust. God will bring something good out of it, even if you don’t understand what.

He will. That’s what He does.

Don’t be scared. No matter what you face. One of my favorite quotes from my favorite the shows, “Doctor Who,” is this: the main character, The Doctor says, “Courage isn’t just a matter of not being frightened, you know. It’s being afraid and doing what you have to do anyway.”

You may be afraid today. I understand. I learned at very young age everything I hold precious could be taken from me. Relationships can be ended; harm can come. I always have that fear in my belly. Always.

But I can’t give into it. I have to (by God’s grace) be strong and lean on God’s grace. I have to have faith, not fear. Because fear never wins; faith does. It always does.

So, today, don’t be scared. Have faith. God has a plan. Trust. Obey. Move. Don’t give into the fear. All things will work for our God and his glory: I know that.

Don’t be afraid; it’s going to be okay.