Authenticity is said to be the highest value in our postmodern culture because it aligns our lives from the inside out.Consequently, we deconstruct every person we encounter to discover whether he or she is truly authentic.

Pretense, the opposite of authenticity, misaligns our lives from the outside in. In the collector car world, we call this a cosmetic restoration-a vehicle is spruced up on the outside just enough to fool others that it is restored.

Authentic restoration begins when we surrender our pretense to the Restorer, who aligns our lives from the inside out, giving us peace. Paul wrote, “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). Are you pretending from the outside in? Surrender to the Restorer who will align your life with His from the inside out.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 1: Sand, Stone & Clay

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Something flawed inside each of us says that we can satisfy our desires by being harsh. Whether at the airline counter or the fast-food line, in the checkout aisle or the exit lane, on the basketball sidelines or on the telephone, we believe that harshness will satisfy our desires. Yet at the same time, harshness leaves our relationships damaged and unrestored.

However, Jesus said, “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5 NASB). Satisfied are the gentle. Gentleness is power under the Spirit’s control. It means getting angry at the right time with the right measure for the right reason. Jesus was “Gentle…in heart” (Matthew 11:29). Contrary to prevailing popular opinion, the God of the universe is gentle, not harsh. Paul told us that the result of the Holy Spirit’s dwelling in us is gentleness (Galatians 5:23). If the Spirit of God is alive in us, then we will be gentle in heart, not harsh.

For more, watch The Restoration with Mitch Kruse, Episode 8: Pride is the Lock on the Human Heart, Humility is the Key.

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In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus affirmed to the world that in the kingdom of heaven, the humble are “in” and the proud are “out.” His first words were, “Blessed are the poor in spirit” (Matthew 5:3). Jesus was saying, “Satisfied are the humble.” Humble means “to be lower than, or to bend the knee to.” We either proudly make ourselves “higher than” others, including God, and remain dissatisfied; or we humble our hearts and desire Christ and are satisfied.

Jesus, our ultimate example of a humble heart, said of the poor in spirit, “For theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 11:29). The kingdom of heaven demonstrates God’s restoration in Christ.

In order to humble our hearts, we must surrender our pride. Pray to God, “I can’t. You can. I can’t pay for my sin. You can. I can’t free myself from the power of sin. You can.” You will be satisfied as you walk Restoration Road.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 8: Pride Is The Lock On The Human Heart; Humility Is The Key

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What dominates your thoughts? The apostle Paul wrote: “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5). The problem is pretense that we can be god in our own lives. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God said, “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water” (Jeremiah 2:13). Clay holds water.

A heart of clay shows us that we must release the Holy Spirit in our minds. If we continue to rely on our own knowledge, we will watch as another cistern begins to crack as the Living Water escapes. “Taking captive every thought” means that we identify any destructive idea or image in our minds that flows from a licentious sand or legalistic stone cistern of pride. “Making it obedient to Christ” means that we surrender it to Him, experiencing His perspective, His mind, His wisdom. Identifying and surrendering destructive thoughts to the Restorer will transform our emotions that tend to follow our beliefs.

In order to release the water of the Holy Spirit in the clay chamber of your intellect, read the Bible everyday and allow the Word to permeate your thoughts. As you get into the Word, the Word will get into you. You will be empowered to take captive every thought and make it obedient to the Restorer as His Living Water transforms your mind.

For more, watch: Episode 20: Living Water

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Why do you initiate conversations? Is it solely for your benefit? What would happen if you initiated communication simply to know others, to learn about their needs, to understand their desires, and to build relationships rather than focus on any remuneration or return?

Community is something that money can never buy.

When you discover the satisfaction of your desire for significance in the love of Christ, you take that love to others. You initiate conversations with your customers, prospects, friends, and family. You get to know them, ask questions and listen, rather than attempt to work those relationships for your benefit. You do it just for the sake of relationships — storing up treasures in heaven rather than storing up stuff on earth (Matthew 6:19-21).

When your spouse, family, friends, associates, and those in need connect relationally through the way you serve them, then you will find satisfaction. You will be significant. You will be loved.

Seek intimacy with your customers, vendors, employees, employers, family, or friends as you pursue intimacy with God. Read a chapter in Proverbs each day corresponding to the date of the month, applying this wisdom to your tasks and relationships, including your finances.

When life is centered in Christ, as we become clay in His hands, we discover that His love is greater than our desire for significance.

For more, watch:
Episode 10: Restoring Our Four Desires (Significance & Contentment)
Episode 11: Restoring Our Four Desires (Control & Security) with Tony Dungy
Episode 27-30: God’s Ins, Outs, Ups, and Downs of Resources (Part 1-4)

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Have you compartmentalized God? We often limit God to a particular worship style, in a specific building, during one hour, on a certain day of the week, or even a quiet time, a Bible study, or a small group. Then we take control of the other 167 hours of the week. Mankind has been doing this since the first sin. However, the spiritual was not fashioned for religion, but for relationships. God created a different design for His people, one that allowed the Holy Spirit to saturate all of our hearts all 168 hours a week:

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9).

Today, memorize these verses and recite them twice a day, the pattern of its original audience, a pattern that was maintained for millennia. God will release the Holy Spirit in your spiritual life, as you give Him every moment that encapsulates every act as a spiritual one.

For more, watch: Episode 20: Living Water

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Desires are not for our gratification, nor their negation, but for our transformation. They are intended to point us toward desiring God and lead us to restoration, so that we become carriers of this life-altering message. These are desires that can only be satisfied in full surrender to the Restorer.

Amidst our travels on Desperation Road to gratify our desires, the Restorer draws us to Himself in order to free us from our addictions that come in many forms: a bottle, a syringe, a plate, a screen, a green rectangle sheet of paper, or even uniquely fashioned flesh. God desires that we surrender these addictions to pursue hearts filled with wisdom so that we discover freedom from our enslavement and find transformation in Him.

Solomon offered the location of wisdom’s satisfying source: “For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding” (Proverbs 2:6). He elaborated, regarding wisdom’s value: “She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her” (Proverbs 3:15).

Through the Master Key of full surrender to the Restorer, you will discover wisdom that can only be found on Restoration Road.

For more, watch:
Episode 10: Restoring Our Four Desires (Significance & Contentment)
Episode 11: Restoring Our Four Desires (Control & Security) with Tony Dungy

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Have you forgotten God? Read carefully what God said to His people through Moses: “Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God…You may say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.’ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today” (Deuteronomy 8:11, 17-18).

God blesses us financially, yet we often forget Him. We tend to measure success and failure all in terms of money: our accomplishments and our shortfalls as well as our profits and our losses. Consequently, we hinder the Holy Spirit’s work, putting us in a position to lose everything. However, on our dirt road toward restoration, God calls us to release our financial resources for the advancement of His kingdom.

Today, remember God and surrender your heart to Him, including your financial decisions. He will make you new, again.

For more, watch:
Episode 27: God’s Ins, Outs, Ups, and Downs of Resources, Part 1
Episode 28: God’s Ins, Outs, Ups, and Downs of Resources, Part 2
Episode 29: God’s Ins, Outs, Ups, and Downs of Resources, Part 3
Episode 30: God’s Ins, Outs, Ups, and Downs of Resources, Part 4

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A study of Proverbs shows us five stages of foolish behavior from the Hebrew language. First is the gullible, or simple fool (Proverbs 14:15). The second level of hardening is the stupid fool who repeats his gullible behavior (Proverbs 26:11). The third stage is the stubborn fool who despises wisdom and discipline (Proverbs 1:7). Fourth is the scorning fool who is a mocker and destroyer of organizations (Proverbs 21:24; 9:7-8). The fifth and final stage is the hardened secular fool who is godless (Proverbs 30:32).

This list represents a cycle of increasing hardness of heart, from gullible to godless. A good analogy of this pride is cement. When it is poured, it is wet and formable, but afterward it begins a hardening process that cures and turns to stone-cold, immoveable, fixed, and unchanging. The gullible fool is still formable, but the godless fool has no hope unless he fully surrenders his foolish heart to the Restorer.

How have you played the fool? Surrender the sand and stone in your heart to the Restorer today.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 7: A Fool’s Sin and the Restorer’s Grace.

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Four primary God-given desires reside in each one of us. Every choice, every thought, every prayer, every feeling is connected with every investment of time, talent, and treasure by the heartbeat to satisfy these desires. It’s why we click, buy, sell, or act. We see them in the very first book of the Bible.

The first primary God-given desire is significance, which comes from being created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27). The second desire is contentment from being blessed by God to be fruitful, multiply, and subdue (to bring contentment to) the earth (Genesis 1:28). The third desire is control from being empowered by God to rule over the earth (Genesis 1:28). The fourth desire is security from being provided with every seed-bearing plant and fruit-bearing tree (Genesis 1:29-30).

God has given us these desires for a purpose: to be satisfied in Him and to bring a saving knowledge of that satisfaction to others. Too often, we pursue the satisfaction of these desires apart from God, leaving us dissatisfied.

Today, ask God to show you any insignificance, discontentment, lack of control, or insecurity from pursuing life apart from Him and surrender it to the Restorer.

For more, watch:
Episode 10: Restoring Our Four Desires (Significance & Contentment)
Episode 11: Restoring Our Four Desires (Control & Security) with Tony Dungy

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What is God’s will for your life?

King David described the process of knowing God’s will in a psalm: “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4). “Delight,” anag in Hebrew, means “to make one’s heart pliable.” In essence, it is a surrendered heart that is humble toward God, like clay in the Potter’s hands. “Give” is translated from nathan in Hebrew, meaning “to orchestrate.” Thus, when our hearts become malleable in God’s hands, He makes our desires to be like His. This is how we experience God’s will in our lives.

Today, offer your heart to God, like clay in the Potter’s hands. He will shape your desires to be like His, and you will begin to experience His will for your life.

For more, watch:
Episode 14: Restoring Living Hope: Jim & Linda Pearson (Part 1)
Episode 49: Finding God’s Vision with George Del Canto
Episode 50: The Kingdom Racing Story with George Del Canto

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Known for his great building programs, including the rebuilding of the Temple (a sign of his desire for contentment), Herod the Great built his first of a series of palace fortresses three miles southeast of Jesus’ birthplace in Bethlehem. Herod remained discontent. He killed his favorite of ten wives, three of his sons, and decreed to kill boys age two and younger after the Magi inquired about the birth of Jesus.

In the end, Herod died discontent.

Contrastingly, Jesus and His father Joseph were most likely stone masons in Nazareth. They might have worked at a stone amphitheater in Sephora known as the “Ornament of Galilee,” only three to four miles away from Herod’s familiar grand structures.

Jesus died content, satisfied in theRestorer’s peace, forgiving those who were crucifying him: “Jesus said, ‘Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.’ And they divided up his clothes by casting lots” (Luke 23:34).

Discover true contentment in the peace of God found only in Christ.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 8: Pride Is The Lock On The Human Heart; Humility Is The Key

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Herod the Great built a series of palace fortresses that were designed to give him safe asylum if forced to flee the country to his homeland of Idumea (a sign of his desire for security). Indicative of his heart, he saw security in his fortresses and locked doors, keeping others out.

In the end, Herod died insecure.

Jesus offered an alternative to the lock of pride and the unrestoration of harshness. He was humble and gentle (Matthew11:29). He was a liberator who authoritatively freed people, healed them, gave them life, and access to a different kind of power. He searched out others, moving toward them in relationship to uncover the love of the Father in them.

Contrastingly, Jesus died secure, satisfied in the Restorer’s truth, offering that security to others including the repentant thief on the cross: ”Jesus answered him, ‘I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise’” (Luke 23:43).

Discover your security in the truth of God in Christ.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 8: Pride Is The Lock On The Human Heart; Humility Is The Key

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I haven’t missed an Indy 500 since 1972. When I was nine years old, I convinced my parents during the race to allow me to go to the gift shop by myself. I wanted a purchase that blue tie-dyed T-shirt in remembrance of this historic day. I had barely reached the shop when race officials called the race due to bad weather.

The storm presented me with two problems. First, I was lost with no way to communicate with my parents. Second, 400,000 people now stood between us. Step-by-step, tear-by-tear, I walked my way back to my mom and dad. Unfortunately, that’s how I saw my relationship with God. I thought that I had earned my way back to my heavenly Father. It took me about twenty years to understand that God is a God of grace. He chases down lost sinners so that we might have eternal life (Luke15:20).

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 4: The Dirt Road: “If I Can Get You Convinced, I Can Get Them Convinced.”

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Have you ever played the fool? King Solomon was the wisest mortal to ever live. Many of his wise sayings are captured in the biblical book of Proverbs where he had much to say about the destructiveness of being a fool. Solomon’s work focused more on the fool than, say, the liar, the cheat, or the murderer. He taught that the fool is the broader category because it represents the condition of a proud heart.

Pride is antithesis of humility and wisdom, which is to be prized above all else. Consequently, we want to avoid the role of the fool at all costs. Solomon warned, “Before his downfall a man’s heart is proud, but humility comes before honor” (Proverbs 18:12). Today, ask God to remove any hardness in your heart so that you may avoid playing the fool and its subsequent downfall. He will lift you up.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 7: A Fool’s Sin and the Restorer’s Grace

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Have you noticed that the most valuable commodities in the world are locked in boxes? I was visiting a customer of mine who lived in a European castle with a bombproof box crafted below ground and secured with an elaborate combination lock. As my anticipation grew, he unlocked the door, revealing the world’s two most expensive secretary desks, purchased for $2 million each and neatly displayed in his climate-controlled box.

God has placed a box inside each one of us that holds within it a treasure much more precious than those valuable desks. It’s the box of the spiritual heart. The Bible tells us that God is the highest bidder for the contents of our inner boxes (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). It also says that the box of the spiritual heart is either (1) locked and unrestored, or (2) unlocked and restored. Pride is the lock on the human heart; humility is the key.

Will you humble yourself to Christ and allow him to unlock and restore your heart today?

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 8: Pride Is The Lock On The Human Heart; Humility Is The Key

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The New Testament writers used several Greek words for sin. However, those most frequently used can be summed up in four predominant terms. Each can be illustrated using a basketball free-throw analogy.

First, missing the mark (hamartia) is attempting to make the shot, but missing it. Second, twisting a wrong to make it right (adikia) is missing the shot, then going ahead and telling everyone that we made it anyway. Third, missing on purpose (anomia) is obviously shooting to miss. Finally, leaving good undone (paraptoma) is not shooting at all. We step up to the line with the basketball in our hands, knowing what to do, and never release it toward the goal.

How are you approaching your attempts at the line of life? Are you missing the mark, twisting a wrong to make it right, missing on purpose, or leaving good undone? King Solomon taught: “He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy” (Proverbs 28:13). Surrender your sins to the Restorer who will rebound your misses and score for His kingdom.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 7: A Fool’s Sin and the Restorer’s Grace

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Anomia is a Greek word for sin that literally means “no law.” It is breaking the law, or committing a transgression-which is stepping over the line. Using a basketball illustration, this is missing on purpose, similar to the first sin in the Garden. Adam knew what was wrong, he understood the consequences, and he sinned anyway.

In the face of our intentional sin, the need for God’s grace becomes crystal clear. Quoting David who experienced God’s grace when he missed on purpose, Paul wrote, “Blessed are they whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered” (Romans 4:7; cf. Psalm 32:1). The word “transgressions” is also translated from anomia. God forgives our purposeful misses with His boundless grace in Christ when we trust in Him (Romans 4:5). This trust leads us to a saving repentance (2 Corinthians 7:10).

Have you been missing on purpose? Do you know what is wrong? Do you understand the consequences, and are you sinning anyway? Trust Christ and repent.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 7: A Fool’s Sin and the Restorer’s Grace.

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Would a little extra money satisfy any of your desires? Money is pride’s measurement of our giftedness (time, talent, and treasure). Wisdom is humility’s measurement of our godliness (Christ in us). Money, in and of itself, is not evil, and owning stuff is not from the devil. Rather, our problem occurs when the stuff owns us.

Ironically, we don’t really desire money. We desire something much deeper.

What we really desire is Christ. He is “gentle and humble in heart” (Matthew11:29) and the “wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24). Humility toward Christ is the beginning of His wisdom in our lives. Solomon noted, “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom” (Proverbs 11:2).

Attempting to satisfy our desires by gaining wealth measured by money will never be enough to satisfy us. It will always leave us dissatisfied. Wisdom not only satisfies our desires, but it also leads to our restoration.

Today, surrender your pride to Christ and ask for His humble and wise heart. He will make you new.

For more, watch:
Episode 10: Restoring Our Four Desires (Significance & Contentment)
Episode 11: Restoring Our Four Desires (Control & Security) with Tony Dungy
Episode 27-30: God’s Ins, Outs, Ups, and Downs of Resources (Part 1-4)

To share this devotional visit our email archive.

    

What is your outlet? At first, you might describe a hobby or a hideaway, if anything at all, but God designed us to have outlets for His restoration to flow to others.

Everything in the Dead Sea dies because it has no outlet. Contrasted, the Sea of Galilee brings life because its outlet allows it to experience flow. God designed the same for our lives. The apostle Peter wrote: “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms” (1 Peter 4:10).

A couple decades ago, I was invited to view our local homeless shelter’s new facility. The first person who greeted me was a four year-old girl playing on the floor. She was the same age as my daughter. For the first time in my life, I realized that a child in DeKalb County could be homeless. After my tour, I went back to my office and wrote a check to the shelter that stretched my sacrificial cardiac muscles. I experienced the flow of the Holy Spirit’s water, that day.
When our clay hearts recognize God as the inlet of our financial resources, we seek ways to help those in need.

Today, thank Christ for being your inlet of resources and ask Him for guidance to discover your outlet.

For more, watch:
Episode 20: Living Water

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In order to humble our hearts, we must continue to surrender our pride. In a great story tucked in the Gospel of Luke, Jesus contrasted the temple prayer of a proud Pharisee with that of a humble tax collector. The respected Pharisee exalted himself while the disrespected tax collector stood at a distance, refused to look up to heaven, and beat his breast–three acts of humility. The tax collector finally made an attempt to put into words the condition of his heart, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner” (Luke 18:13). Jesus said that the tax collector, not the Pharisee, went home justified before God. He summed it up this way, “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:14).

Have you exalted yourself? Bend the knees of your heart to God and with everyone you encounter. Then watch as God’s mercy restores your relationships.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 8: Pride Is The Lock On The Human Heart; Humility Is The Key

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The prodigal son in Jesus’ parable jumped at the chance to live free from the rules of his father; his pride fueled his decision. He survived for a while by his own giftedness and survival skills, but his foolish choices perpetuated a tug of war between pride and humility. Pride won temporarily. With his heart scattered like grains of sand on a beach, the farther he traveled away from home, the more compact his heart became.

The prodigal son had a sand heart, one that required a storm to shape it, and as his resources dwindled, he stood on the verge of a tsunami. It was the natural consequence of the foolish way he had abused his resources from his lack of humility, especially toward his father. Perhaps the prodigal would have reflected on Solomon’s warning, “An inheritance quickly gained at the beginning will not be blessed at the end” (Proverbs 20:21).

If your sand heart has presented you with a low pressure system that is about to scatter your resources in the wind, would you consider the prodigal son’s example and return to your heavenly Father? He will restore you with a heart of clay.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 2: Something of Value is Lost

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Everyone wants wisdom, but what is it really, and where do we find it? Wisdom is God’s heart combined with street smarts, the vertical intersecting with the horizontal. Wisdom applies our relationship with God to our relationships with others, including our tasks. We were designed to have a heart for wisdom (Proverbs 3:5-6; 22:17-18), to desire wisdom (Proverbs 3:15), and to pursue wisdom with our time, talent, and treasure (Proverbs 4:7).

But where do we find it? Wisdom begins with a humble, malleable, clay-like heart toward God, the author of wisdom (Proverbs1:7, 11:2; 22:4).

Foolishness, the antithesis of wisdom, is derived from a proud heart,one that breaks apart the vertical from the horizontal. The result is a four-walled imprisonment in legalism or license that leaves us unrestored and dissatisfied. That prison gate is unlocked with the cross-shaped Master Key of full surrender to Christ the Restorer.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 1: Sand, Stone & Clay

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Often times we sin by leaving good undone. Using a basketball illustration, we step up to the line with the basketball in our hands, knowing what to do, and refuse to take the shot. James noted, “Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins” (James 4:17).

When we operate on our own agendas apart from God, we do not execute the good we were designed to do. Paul wrote, “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins” (Ephesians 2:1). Transgressions stems from the Greek word paraptoma, meaning “to fall away.” When presented with an opportunity to do something good, we fall away from it and do nothing.

Are you leaving good undone? Examine your heart and life and fully surrender them to God. Confess your sins. Repent and believe in God’s grace. Walk with the forgiving God Who walks with you.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 7: A Fool’s Sin and the Restorer’s Grace

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Too often, our thoughts, feelings, choices, and prayers flow from our fallen perspectives that see ourselves in pretense. This is due to our own self-restoration programs that attempt to unlock ourselves from the prison of pride from the outside in. The Restore Your Heart Chart is a tool for us to see ourselves, not with the clouded perspectives of others, nor from our own clouded perspectives, but from God’s authentic, crystal clear perspective of 20/20 vision.

You can remember it easily. Divide a journal page into five columns: Time, Thoughts, Feelings, Choices, and Prayers. Underneath Time, record the reading of the clock when you encounter a destructive thought. Under Thoughts, write down the destructive thought. Under Feelings, write the emotions that resulted from that thought. Underneath Choices, write down the choice you made regarding the specific thought and its corresponding emotion. Finally, under Prayers, take that thought captive and make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). Pray, “I can’t. You can.” Experience God’s restoration of your heart.

For more, watch The Restoration with Mitch Kruse, Episode 9: Restoring the Four Chambers of our Hearts.

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Are you attempting to restore yourself? Have your efforts left you dissatisfied and unrestored?

Paul wrote about the futility of self-resoration and the hope discovered in the only true Restorer: “At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life” (Titus 3:3-7).

Jesus Christ lived, died, was buried, resurrected, ascended into heaven, and provided His Spirit to live through those who fully surrender their hearts and lives to Him. God never intended for us to restore ourselves by making hardened, cracked cisterns. Rather, He designed all of life as an opportunity to release the Spirit of Christ in us as we drink from the Spring of Living Water. Flow has always been the design of the Designer.

Today, surrender your self-restoration attempts to the One who can wash you clean, make you new, and give you hope.

For more, watch: Season 1 : Episode 20 : Living Water

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The intellect is the spiritual heart chamber of our minds, or our thoughts. In order to unlock the gate to wisdom, we must humble our minds to God. The humbled intellect is a light that illuminates our hearts. King Solomon said, “The fear of the LORD teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honor” (Proverbs 15:33). “The fear of the LORD” is humility toward God. When we humble our intellects to God, we learn wisdom.

Jesus is the Word, or the expression, of the mind of God (John 1:1). Jesus surrendered His mind to the Father (Matthew 22:37). Likewise, Paul said that we should take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). This restores us from pretense to authenticity because when we humble our intellects to God, we have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16).

Begin filling your intellect with wisdom by reading a chapter of Proverbs each day. God’s wisdom will restore your mind.

For more, watch The Restoration with Mitch Kruse, Episode 9: Restoring the Four Chambers of our Hearts.

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The will is the spiritual heart chamber of our choices. Nearly every action is preceded by a choice. In order to experience wisdom in our lives, we must surrender the will, or our choices, to God (Proverbs 8:10). In essence, it is the flip of a switch.

Jesus surrendered His will to the Father. Just before His arrest and subsequent crucifixion, Jesus said, “Father if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42). Surrendering His will to the Father gave Jesus the wisdom to accomplish the Father’s desires.

God is asking us to flip the switch and choose to make wisdom the measurement of success in our lives. What about you? Will you humbly flip the switch of your heart and choose wisdom? The answer begins when, like Jesus, you choose to bend the knees of your heart to the Father’s will.

For more, watch The Restoration with Mitch Kruse, Episode 9: Restoring the Four Chambers of our Hearts.

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In the Parable of the Prodigal Son, the father committed four acts atypical of a Middle Eastern patriarch. First, the father gave an unwarranted inheritance. Second, he ran to a prodigal son outside the city gates. Third, he restored him to authenticity, regardless of the cost. Fourth, he pleaded with an older son who attempted to shame him in front of the whole community.

In the same way, God graciously gives us life. He runs toward us in spite of our sin. He restores us to authenticity to reflect His original design. He pleads with us to not only be restored, but to joyfully help others to do the same.

Allow the Restorer to unlock the gate of your heart and arrive at His destination of life-giving restoration (Matthew 11:28).

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 2: Something of Value is Lost

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Have you tried compartmentalizing your life with cisterns: the physical pursuit, the willful drive for financial security, the mental exercise for more intellectual knowledge, the spiritual treadmill of good works, or the socio-emotional experiment for more surface relationships? The flow of the Spirit of Christ is the answer. Only He can satisfy our thirsty hearts.

God said, “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water,” (Jeremiah 2:13). The Restorer’s blood paid the price for those sins. When we fully surrender our hearts to Him, He transforms our lives of black and white to living color by releasing the Holy Spirit in us. The Restorer flows through us and changes a culture thirsting for authenticity, the design of the Designer.

Surrender to the flow of His water of life to continually satisfy your thirsty heart, allowing the Spirit of the Restorer in you to bring satisfaction to others who desire to be restored to authenticity.

For more, watch: Season 1 : Episode 20 : Living Water

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Significance  comes from being created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27).

However, pride seeks significance from money. Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth” (Matthew 6:19). We store up treasures on earth to find significance, which is “expressed meaning, purpose, importance, or value.” Notice that the first four letters of significance comprise the word “sign” which says, “Look at me.”

The result is insignificance. Jesus continued, “…where moth and rust destroy and thieves break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19). The more we pursue stuff on earth as the satisfaction of our desires, the more we thirst for more. The result is a never-ending cycle of dissatisfaction.

Contrastingly, humility stores up relationships. Jesus said, “Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal” (Matthew 6:20). Relationships are the only treasure that we can store up in heaven because they are eternal.

Our treasures reveal the object of our desires. Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). Valuing relationships over remuneration is what God designed for our lives. Whereas a proud heart searches for significance from money, a humble heart discovers significance in a relationship with the Restorer and shares that relationship with others.

The result is the love of God in Christ (John 3:16).

For more, watch:
Episode 10: Restoring Our Four Desires (Significance & Contentment)
Episode 11: Restoring Our Four Desires (Control & Security) with Tony Dungy
Episode 27-30: God’s Ins, Outs, Ups, and Downs of Resources (Part 1-4)

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The first sin was followed by the world’s first self-restoration program. I call it “sin’s trifecta”: (1) Adam and Eve were ashamed because they had been swayed (Genesis 3:7), (2) they hid because they were afraid (Genesis 3:12-13), and (3) they blamed because they disobeyed (Genesis 3:12-13). Adam and Eve ate of the forbidden tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and from that point, we have determined for ourselves what is right and wrong, a move that has imprisoned us in sin’s trifecta (Genesis 3:1-6).

Have you attempted to satisfy your desires by setting yourself up as god in your own self-made kingdom? Have you trusted in your giftedness rather than His godliness? God the Designer is graciously offering you the opportunity to be restored to authenticity when you surrender to Him (Genesis 3:15, 22). Surrender sin’s trifecta and freely receive His forgiveness and restoration today.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 1: Sand, Stone & Clay

    

What’s your definition of success? Often, we keep score by power, prestige, or profit. Author and speaker, John Maxwell, defined his measurement of success as: “Those who know me best will love and respect me the most.” How would embracing this definition transform your relationships?

Years ago, when I owned an auction business, I decided to make this my benchmark of success. As a recovering workaholic and money addict, I began to prioritize the most sacred relationships that I had neglected, searching for ways that I could travel less or even schedule my family to accompany me on business trips. We became the beneficiaries of the Holy Spirit realigning and restoring our relationships to His original design.

Solomon taught, “A greedy man brings trouble to his family, but he who hates bribes will live” (Proverbs 15:27). Is it time for you to start living? Change your definition of success from power, prestige, or profit to one that prioritizes your relationships with your family. God will restore them to His original design.

For more, watch:
Finding God’s Vision with George Del Canto
The Kingdom Racing Story with George Del Canto

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As I called my first auction, my voice cut through the public address system, echoing into the air. On the block was an old curio cabinet. “One hundred dollars. Now one-fifty.” Hundreds of bidders watched as Grandpa Russell shouted to stop me from dropping the hammer at too low of a price, “Wait, Mitchell! Is there anything else you can say about this curio that might enhance the bid?”

Conducting my on-the-job training in front of the crowd, he communicated something that radically altered my perspective when he said, “Mitchell, if I can get you convinced, I can get them convinced.” After selling the curio cabinet for ten-fold my original bid price, I reflected on Grandpa Russell’s words.

God is saying the same thing to us. If we could become convinced of His restorative grace and wisdom, then He could use us to advance His kingdom in others (1 Peter 3:15). If I can get you convinced, I can get them convinced.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 4: The Dirt Road: “If I Can Get You Convinced, I Can Get Them Convinced.”

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God said, “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water” (Jeremiah 2:13). A financial cistern represents the damming of the will. This hardening of the will stops the flow of the Holy Spirit in our financial world.

An example of choosing to compartmentalize God from our finances occurs when we decide to arbitrarily give him ten percent of our gross income. This places God and our finances in a neat and tidy box. However, willfully surrendering our finances is not that simple. God has intended something totally different than neat and tidy boxes that dam the flow of the Holy Spirit in our financial resources. Instead, He calls clay hearts to give one hundred percent of our time, talent, and treasure to release the Holy Spirit in our lives. How could you release the flow of the Holy Spirit in your financial world?

For more, watch The Restoration with Mitch Kruse, Episode 20: Living Water.

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God said, “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water” (Jeremiah 2:13). A mental cistern compartmentalizes God from our minds. We seek knowledge for knowledge’s sake apart from God, so we can make decisions apart from Him.

Thoughts become a very safe place for a Christian to sin, to lust for someone who is not our spouse or to desire a life we do not have. These will eventually affect our words and our steps. Consequently, we must release the Holy Spirit in our thoughts. Paul offered a solution to mental cisterns: “We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).

Is your mind thirsty for God? Drink from the flow of the Living Water and memorize 2 Corinthians 10:5 today.

For more, watch The Restoration with Mitch Kruse, Episode 20: Living Water.

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God said, “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water” (Jeremiah 2:13). A social cistern contains friends, business associates, spouses, and children to be leveraged for our benefit only.

John offered a different way, one that would allow the flow of the Holy Spirit to all of our relationships. It’s called love: “We love because he first loved us. If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For any one who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother” (1 John 4:19-21). God calls us to the flow of self-sacrificial love.

Reclaim all your thirsty relationships for God with the quenching flow of the Living Water.

For more, watch The Restoration with Mitch Kruse, Episode 20: Living Water.

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The final stage of foolishness is the secular fool who exalts himself rather than God (Proverbs 30:32). The godless fool has hardened his heart with the image of his own handprint impressed so solidly in his inner being that he is unsatisfied by spiritual things (Proverbs 30:22). Consequently, he brings no joy to his earthly father (Proverbs 17:21). Nabal was a godless fool (1 Samuel 25:25) whose state of mind did not work out so well for him; God struck him dead.

Carefully consider your heart. Is there any area inside you in which you have exalted yourself above God? Are you living your life on autopilot, apart from Him? Are your desires truly satisfied in Christ, or do you need more and more of your fix of choice to advance your own earthly kingdom at the expense of His? If so, you might be coming dangerously close to playing the secular fool. Surrender your hardened heart to the Restorer, today.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 7: A Fool’s Sin and the Restorer’s Grace

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The third stage of foolishness is the stubborn fool who is right in his own eyes. Solomon noted, “The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice” (Proverbs 12:15). The stubborn fool is so sure of himself that he declines sound advice. He is confounded by wisdom (Proverbs 24:7) and despises it along with discipline (Proverbs 1:7). He is quick to quarrel and blame others, leaving a trail of relational wreckage. Consequently, he lacks understanding and insight into others’ perspectives (Proverbs 10:21).

Take Proverbs’ stubborn fool test. Are you always right? Rather than listen to advice, do you resist it? Do you despise wisdom and discipline? Is your heart so hard that you show your annoyance immediately, refusing to overlook an insult? Are you characterized by unreconciled relationships? Do you mock at making amends for your sins? If the answer to any of these questions is “Yes,” then it is time for a heart change.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 7: A Fool’s Sin and the Restorer’s Grace

    

Do you have a family heirloom passed down from one generation to the next? On his deathbed, my great-great grandfather passed down his wedding ring to his sixteen year-old grandson, my grandfather, who passed it down to me with the same message he had received: “Keep it, and pass it on to future generations.”

When passing down the Ten Commandments to Moses, God said that He would show love to a thousand generations of those who love Him (Exodus 20:6). The Hebrew word for “generations” is the same word used for “circle”-dor-, the shape of a ring. Made from precious metal, a ring is symbolic of the abundant value of love. Being circular, a ring is also symbolic of the eternal value of love. It illustrates God’s love that is both abundant and eternal. Today, purposefully live inside His ring of love. Keep it, and pass it on to future generations.

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 5: The Deal Maker : The Greatest Auction

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After being blessed with God’s glory on Mount Sinai, Moses spoke to God in a way that showed his heart of confession, repentance and belief in God’s grace: “O Lord, if I have found favor in your eyes, then let the Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked people, forgive our wickedness and our sin, and take us as your inheritance” (Exodus 34:9).

The word “go” is translated from the Hebrew word halak, which means “walk.” In spite of their sin, God graciously walked with the Israelites, just as Jesus walked with the disciples. We learn four important truths from Moses’ response to grace. First, Moses examined his heart and surrendered it to God; second, he confessed his sin; third, he repented and believed in God’s grace; and finally, he walked with God. All four of Moses’ moves toward God were empowered by God’s grace. Today, will you humbly walk with God?

For more, watch The Restoration Road with Mitch Kruse, Episode 7: A Fool’s Sin and the Restorer’s Grace

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As a recovering perfectionist, I have attempted to control every outcome in my life. Consequently, I’ve learned that I need to yield my heart to God in order to yield the outcomes to Him. Joshua said it this way: “Throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the LORD” (Joshua 24:23).

In order to yield ourselves to God, we need to ask the Holy Spirit to eliminate any desire for life apart from God, any sin that separates us from a heart of clay and manifests itself in a foreign god. Each of us must ask Him, “What god am I white knuckling?” It might be money, an illicit relationship, improper use of the internet, a career, or anything we see or hold in our hands that is not God. It might be a position in the church where we desire to find satisfaction in ministry, but not in God. It might even be perfectionism.

For more, watch The Restoration with Mitch Kruse, Episode 9: Restoring the Four Chambers of our Hearts.

To share this devotional please visit our email archive.