Passion moves us to speak…

                Yesterday my oldest daughter brought home several awards to top wrap up her 5^th grade year.  It is hard to believe it has been almost 11 years since we brought her home, unable to do anything on her own.  One award she did not get was the Presidents Awards.  She met the criteria, so my wife asked our daughter why she did not receive that recognition.  According to our daughters teacher it was because of an “N” in the 1^st grade.  What!!!  An “N” in 1^st grade?  Are you kidding me?

See, there is a long story here that I will try to condense.  For some reason, our daughter felt she wanted this particular teacher.  Therefore, she was excited when we got her assignment for that year, until we met the woman.  Her room was dark and there was nothing fun on the walls, just bare, dark, cinderblock.  She was immediately stern when we walked in the room, even with us, reminded me of that Ms. Trunchbold on the movie “Matilda”.

We were constantly getting notes home complaining about our daughter’s behavior.  Our daughter was always very respectful and was with everyone else, why is this one teacher different?  After leaving the school because of a move, our daughter excelled at her new school and continued on to MASTER her Standards of Learning Tests, getting the highest score possible!  Proof it was the instructor, not our daughter.

So the fact the school system would hold this against my daughter made me FURIOUS.  One “N”! Therefore, I went to Facebook to vent my frustrations, something I do not usually do but found very satisfying.  To which a friend responded, “ I hear ya! Rant on! Passion moves us to speak does it not!”  Which is another story.  He and I had a private debate on another subject in which he was very passionate.  His comment spoke to me.

The emotion of anger moved me to speak passionately about my daughter not receiving her award.  I felt ashamed though, that I don’t speak as passionately about something I HAVE received.  The gift of salvation.  The fact the Creator of the universe would humble Himself to come to earth with the goal of becoming a sacrifice for my sins.  To me, that is an unfathomable love.  I will never be able to understand why.  But I am willing to accept the gift freely given.  I should also be willing to speak as passionately about what He did for me… and YOU.

Today, if you know Christ, share your passion about what He did for us.  If not, I’d like to introduce you to the Savior of the world.  I think you’ll like Him.

How strong is your trust?

   Conversations with my oldest daughter, who is 10, are so much fun.  She is so much like me it’s crazy.  How many guys get to have a conversation with an exact female replica?  It can be very intriguing at times.

This time just as compelling, for a 10 year old.  I was replacing batteries in my electric trimmer.  This is one of those that is just big enough to trim a gentleman’s beard and / or mustache.  Not one of those large one’s you could shave your head or the dog’s with.  Now, I don’t know if you’ve seen the commercials for “No-No” the electronic hair removal system but it plays into this.

When my youngest daughter saw it for the first time, she inquired, “I didn’t know daddy had a ‘no-no'”.  Which made my wife laugh uncontrolably for a few minutes.  Then she calmly responded, “no, that’s daddy’s beard trimmer”.
“Still looks like a ‘no-no’ to me”, the “baby” said, not to be out done.

Now, while replacing the batteries, I was turning it on and off stating, “no-no”, “no-no”!  My wife thought I was telling my youngest daughter “no”, she shouldn’t be playing with that.  My oldest was sitting on the couch, playing an old-school game I’d download on for our gaming system, laughing at us.  I said, “that was me ‘playing’ with it saying no-no”.
“It wouldn’t have hurt her anyway, see” I continued while pressing the trimmer blades against my skin while engaging the unit.

My oldest questioned, “what would you have done if it would have cut you”?
“It can’t”, I stated, “the blades aren’t strong enough.  They’re too small and designed to only cut small hair.  You couldn’t shave your head or anything with it”.

I trusted, that even though I’d never tried it before, that the blades on my electric beard trimmer wouldn’t cut my skin.  Because I knew the limitations of the product and how far out the blades could go past the metal guard.  I was protected.

The enemy has limitations too.  He can’t get to us because of our “Guard”.  This is a place to find refuge.  If we are children of the true and living God, then we have protection.  Does this mean we’ll never have trouble or pain?  No.  That’s just a part of the natural world we live in.  But having trust in  our “Guard” means no matter what happens, we know we’ll come out ahead.

Find refuge in knowing that He is there.  All WE have to do is come to Him.  He’s wanting to spend eternity with you.  That’s nice to know, isn’t it.  Just accept that you’re a sinner and the face Jesus died as the ultimate sacrifice for your sins and you’ll claim your space.

Have a blessed day!

 

 

Welcome to the world. Where being nice gets you…

              “Welcome to the world.  Where being nice never gets you anywhere”.  This was graphic I saw on a couple friend’s Facebook pages.  My first thought was, “wow, is that how you really see things”?  However, I know what a couple of these friends are going through.  Life has been a little rough on them and they are plagued with medical problems.  Both have had major surgeries and are keeping a couple of doctors in business.

This follows right in line with one of the messages God has given me.  “What’s Your Point of View”?  With it, I go back to the Old Testament and the story of Joseph.  A little side note, my youngest brother’s name is Joseph.  It’s, of course, a Hebrew name meaning “Jehovah Increases”.  Now, you want to talk about a dude with a dysfunctional family life, Joseph of the Bible would be it!

Joe was a good looking guy and favored by his father.  His brothers didn’t like that fact, so when He was a teen, they wanted to kill him.  Rather than do that, they threw him in a pit and sold him into slavery.  The worst thing my brother ever did to me was take one of my teenage girl friends.  So I didn’t have it that bad.  But Joseph chose to look at things a certain way and continued to trust in God.  Eventually Joe was the head of his master’s house.

At that point, Joseph was in his twenties and a handsome man.  His master’s wife thought so too.  She even tried to seduce Joe.  When he refused on the basis of, “How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God”?  What a statement!  So what was his reward?  Jail!  She told her husband, Joseph’s master that Joe tried to seduce HER.

In prison, Joseph met a couple of Pharaoh’s employees.  Talk about a harsh work environment.  Most bosses don’t like your work they just give you a pink slip.  Pharaoh threw his guys in jail.  Nevertheless, it was at this point little Joe started interpreting dreams.

In the end, Joe became a supreme power in Egypt helping save his family during a time of famine.  ALL BECAUSE he chose how he looked at things.  He never gave up and never stopped trusting God.  Now this was a couple of decades in the making.  However, Joseph never gave up!

Oh, and by the way; Joseph was “nice” to his brothers who had sold him into slavery when they came to him for help.  They didn’t recognize Joseph at the time but he knew who they were.  Joseph predicted this would happen but because Joe was “nice”, he was eventually reunited with his family.

Joe had every right by our standards to be angry.  He went from slave, to prisoner, to ruler, partly because of his brothers’ jealousy.  I’d like to think it was MOSTLY because God had a bigger plan than any of them could imagine.  Joe was able to accomplish that plan because he was obedient to God and CHOSE how he would look at his situation.

You know, sometimes God uses adversity to bring us closer to Him.  His goal all along has been to have a personal relationship with His creation.  Maybe He is calling you closer to Him if you’d just listen.

I encourage you to look to God and trust in His promises.  And try to be nice to someone today.  You might actually like it.

Please click the “contact” button above or connect with us on Facebook or Twitter.  I’d love to stay in-touch and hear what “nice” things God is doing for you.

What do you practice?

It’s the middle of the night and I’m wide awake.  My mind won’t rest, so it’s hard for my body to fall asleep.  Sometimes, this when I have the best conversations with God.  So I open my Bible app and it’s on Mark 10.  I don’t remember what I was reading before that left me at Mark 10 but I’m glad it did.  There’s a lot of great stuff in just that one chapter.

First, there’s a lot of chatter about President Obama coming out in favor of gay marriage.  In a Christian Post article, he’s quoted as saying he and Michelle are “practicing Christians”.  Dictionary.com defines practicing as, “the action of doing something“.  Christian means, “of Jesus Christ, His teachings, ect“.  So he’s saying he “acts according to the teachings of Jesus Christ“.  Read Mark 10.  Jesus was teaching another multitude when some Pharisees stuck there nose in and tried to trick Him with a question about divorce.  This is what he said: “6 But from the beginning of the creation, God made them male and female. 7 For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, 8 and the two shall become one flesh; so then they are no longer two, but one flesh.”
God made them “male and female”.  So, let’s go back to the beginning.  God saw that man needed a companion comparable to him.  At that point, if God thought another man was appropriate, that’s what He would have created.  He didn’t, He created a woman.

Then some children tried to approach Jesus and the disciples pushed them away.  Part of that decision was because of the culture of the day.  But Christ quickly told them to let the children come to Him.  Can you just imagine being a child then and the Son of God wanted you near Him?  What an awesome moment that must have been!  Then Jesus used the children as an example.  “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. 15 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.”

Jesus practiced what He preached.  More often He practiced more than He preached.  Showing us rather than telling us how we should act.  If we are truly “practicing Christians” we should try to be “like Christ”.  He never turned anyone away, He always had time for them but He really paid close attention to those that followed Him for Him, NOT what they could get out of Him, which so many do.

Let’s truly practice being Christ-like and honor the unions that He created.

And pray our leadership does too.

What does she really want?

My mother 1950 – 1985.

Forget the flowers, candy,  and even jewelry, mom doesn’t want that!  A Market Watch survey says 75% of mothers would rather have a hand-made card than jewelry.  One third would like the day to themselves.  Don’t wake her up for an early breakfast either, she’d rather sleep… trust me.  Over half say if they had an hour to themselves during the day, they’d spend it at the spa.  Which confirms another website’s top ten gifts for mom.  Massage and spa treatment were on top with flowers at the very bottom.

“All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother.” Abraham Lincoln

Hopefully, at this point, you’ve gotten her gift already.  If not, stay away from last-minute, store-bought flowers.  That was on list of worst gifts for mother’s day. Some of the others include the same awful gift 5 years in a ROW, (oven mits) reptiles, a loaf of bread, (really?) and anything having to do with weight loss, household chores, and power tools!

The gifts are all about one thing though.  Showing thanks.  Thanks for numerous peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut into squares with the crust cut off.  Long nights spent by your side in the emergency room, praying you’d get better.  Doing without, often putting her life and dreams on hold  without the promise of ever accomplishing them to make sure you had what you needed and sometimes just wanted.  Anna Jarvis who started Mother’s Day celebrations also filed a lawsuit to stop the over commercialisation of Mother’s Day. She lost her fight. Anna wanted a day of reflection and quiet prayer by families, thanking God for all that mothers had done.

Read Proverbs 31.  If you had a mother like that, be thankful.  Show her how much she means to you. There are some who don’t have their mothers with them today that would love the opportunity.  God gave us mothers to be a refuge.

Yes, it’s easy for me to say this.  I had a mother who essential gave her life for her two boys.  She wasn’t supposed to have any children for health reasons.  Still, she didn’t abandon us before birth, even though she knew the possible consequences.  It wasn’t even a consideration.  If your mother wasn’t there, for whatever reason, know that your Father always is.  He’s waiting to wrap His arms around you and love you.  In Mark 10:13, children were trying to approach Jesus and the disciples pushed them away.  Jesus took exception to this and said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. 15 Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it“.

If you had a Godly, loving, mother.  Cherish her, lavish her with love, show her you appreciate her.  Thank Him for your blessings.  If you didn’t.  Trust that it was in His plan to make you the man or woman you are today.  Choose to learn from her mistakes and make the most of your life.  Leave a legacy.  Find refuge and guidance in the Word.

Happy Mother’s Day!

 

President Obama Supports Gay Marriage…

© whitehouse.gov

I never thought I’d see this day.  Although, I can’t say I’m surprised.  The President, leader, man in charge of the United States of America, says he supports gay marriage.  Is it getting that tough on him?  That he has to make sure he has their vote to win?  If he is re-elected, what will he do next?  THAT is what frightens me MOST.

Remember in the Bible it says no leader is put into position that isn’t ordained by God?  What could God be setting this country up for?  If the leader is not shy about supporting homosexuals getting married when the Bible very clearly states in more than one section that it’s wrong.

Lev. 18:22-24, Jud. 19:22-24.

Of course, the argument I’ve always heard is that it’s not mentioned in the New Testament.

Rom. 1:24-27,  1Cor. 6:9-10.

What could the Father be setting us up for?  Although, it’s not His fault.  God is love.  He also can not tolerate sin.  This isn’t a time to fear though, if you know Christ.  This is a time to be cautious, diligent, and stay close to God.  Temptation may be at its worst but don’t give in.  Misery loves company and the king of all misery wants as much company as possible.

Now don’t use this as an excuse to mistreat people who are homosexual.  Remember we as Christians are supposed to love everyone.  Yes, we can hate the sin.  We shouldn’t hate the person.  Welcome the person with open arms, with love, and understanding.  Love the sinner not the sin.

Is homosexuality any worse a sin that any other?  No.  Ouch… that hurt, didn’t it.

But we can find refuge in the fact that if we come to Christ, admit our sins, ask for the forgiveness that has already been paid for, we will be forgiven.

1 Pet. 1:3-5, “3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,5 who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

He IS our refuge.

It’s not WHAT you have… it’s WHAT you do with it!

A friend’s Facebook post got me to thinking today.  See, it was the anniversary of his father’s death.  A father he never knew.  He was never there to play catch, teach him about girls, or teach him how to drive.  Ironically, my father was one of the few male influences in his life, except for what he saw on television.  Which we all know, isn’t always the best.  For the longest time it was just my friend and his mother.  She worked a lot to make sure they had what they needed.  But I think part of his life growing up made him the man he is today.

He served our country in the Navy.  He’s a father to three beautiful children.  If you’re a parent, you know how hard that can be.  He works hard every day to provide for them.

Although he didn’t have a father here with him, he’s always had a Father to look after him.  A friend that sticks closer than a brother.  Maybe my friend didn’t have a car until he was 18.  I think he had to buy it himself, I’m not sure.  Maybe he didn’t have a lot of friends.  I know I wasn’t there as much as I could and should have been.  Nevertheless, my friend took what he was given and decided to make the best of it.  Did he always make the right decision?  Probably not.  Do any of us?  But it’s being willing to listen to that still, small, voice that is willing to guide us if we let it.  We have to ask for that guidance though.  Because the Father says he’ll never interfere.  It has to be our choice.

I pray today that you’ll decide to take what you have, and with the help and guidance from the Holy Spirit, make the most of it today.  Will he speak in an audible voice?  Certainly.  Maybe it’ll be a friend giving you advice.  Maybe it will be something you read.  Could be a passage of scripture.  Just be willing to listen and follow the guidance.  Find refuge in the Word.  The refuge for life’s struggles is there.  You just have to go for it.  Think about it like coming in out of the rain.  If there’s shelter, it’s raining, and you don’t want to get wet, what will you do?

I hope that you get under it!

…to find meaning in the suffering.

I saw this post on a relatives Facebook page and it got me thinking.

“See, to live is to suffer. But to survive – well, that’s to find meaning in the suffering“.

She said it was a DMX song.  Needless to say, I had to “google” DMX.  I had heard of him but wasn’t familiar with his music.  He’s a hard-core rap artists but the statement makes a lot of sense.

In this life we do suffer.  Of course you probably ask, “why”?  Well, I’ll be honest with you.  Because we live in a sinful world.  There’s no getting around it.  Since the incident in the garden way back when, we’ve been cursed.  And suffering was part of that curse.  But there’s an escape clause.

This makes me think of the young Jewish man in his mid 30’s who new His destiny was to suffer.  He was to live to suffer.  But He survived, knowing the meaning of His suffering.  To give eternal life to His creation.  Wow.  I just don’t understand that kind of love.  To allow yourself to be punished for a universe of sins when You had never commited one.  He wasn’t forced, although he prayed at the last minute to be spared if there was anyway possible.  But end the end, He wanted to please the Father and He knew the meaning of His suffering.  He volunteered.

So as we go through our day, let’s remember the suffering Christ chose to do for us just so we could be with Him forever if we choose.  It kind of makes worrying about what your so-called friend said to you a little pointless, huh?  Yeah, we have challenges paying our bills and people we love hurt us. But when you think about the overall picture, it doesn’t seem so bad.

Do We Need it as a Holiday?

Today is recognized as the National Day of Prayer.  Now I appreciate what this day is supposed to do.  But I have to ask, “do we really need a holiday”?  It’s like Valentines.  Do I love my wife more that one paticular day of the year than the rest?  No.  Although I do love her more everyday. 

Praying is something we should do everyday.  Remember when you were in love for the first time?  You wanted to talk to that person every chance you’d get.  On the phone all hours of the night with conversations that lasted hours.  You were happy just being with them whether you did anything or not.  Just being in their presence and communicating with them is all you wanted.  Part of growing your relationship was regular communication.

You know, we should be the same way with God.  Happy to just be in His presence, talking with Him about what’s going on in our lives and appreciating Him.  Spending endless hours in prayer, talking with Him, spending time is His Word, and trying to find out what makes Him happy.  Although that is very plainly laid out in the Bible.  That’s all God wants anyway.  A personal relationship with His creation.

So, hopefully, the National Day of Prayer can bring others into the realization that they need God.  But for Christians, it should simply be just another day that we communicate with our Father and find refuge with Him and in His Word.

 

 

If you run with dogs…

That’s something my grandmother would say all the time. “Son, if your run with dogs, you’re gonna catch fleas”. So I was afraid of dogs. I didn’t want fleas. Often I did find myself with the wrong crowd though.

My excuse for not attending church was always, “I don’t need to go to church, I can talk to God in my living room”. Which is true. I can talk to Him in my car, in the kitchen, or at the office. He is everywhere. But talking to God is not the primary reason for attending a house of worship. Sometimes I’d say, “I don’t go because that church is full of hypocrites”. Well, come on in there’s always room for one more.

We are judge by the company we keep. We are also influenced by the company we keep. If you think back to why you started smoking, drinking, doing drugs, or anything thing else, you’ll notice everyone else around you was doing it. Maybe you were influenced to be with someone you were dating before marriage. Maybe not verbally, but the general consensus in your group or clique was it was okay.

We all need people. That’s how we’re designed. And who we associate with can influence our decisions no matter how strong or dominate a personality we are. In the Word we’re encouraged to fellowship with other believers. Now, I’m not saying never to speak to anyone outside of church. How else are we going to share with the them the joy we’ve found in Jesus. We are in the world but we are not to be of the world.

Let’s let the light of Jesus shine through us and be an influence rather than allow ourselves to be influenced by others outside the church. Get together with like minded Christians who really want the world to see the difference Jesus in them. But make sure you invite and welcome with open arms as many as you can into you group.

Then we can all take a flea bath together!!

Be blessed!