12/24/2011
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible Verse of the Day: John 10:10 " For I came to give you life, and give it to you abundantly."
Christmas is an exciting time in a house with a 4 and 6 year old. Their excitement reaches a crescendo as the big night approaches when the gifts can finally be opened and the joy of their hearts can finally be fulfilled after a seemingly endless period of waiting. They have been counting down with their advent calendars, each day representing one step closer to the night of opening their gifts. But I have been focused on teaching them that the greatest gift that they will ever receive in their lives has already been given. It was given on Christmas because that is when God chose to send His Son into this dark world to establish a beach head for reconciling this world back to him for eternity. He sent His Son humbly into the world, born into the darkness in a manger, with a few cloths and some hay all that there was to keep him warm. The second He was born, the evil forces of darkness in this world were already trying to kill him, with the mind of King Herod already working to destroy anything that would challenge his earthly throne. When he heard that the baby King had been born in Bethlehem and that He was to become the King of the Jews , he instantly felt insecure and and threatened. The ultimate result were the first martyr's for Christ, when he ordered all boy babies who were born in Bethlehem and under the age of two to be killed. Welcome to the world Jesus, we've been waiting for you. But God had the perfect gift waiting for us, and His plan could not be thwarted, as reconciling the world back to Him had been the goal since the fall in the Garden of Eden. Sin had to be dealt with once and for all. Mankind would be the beneficiary of the greatest gift. It would be a gift that we could never deserve or earn. We weren't owed it by any means. We didn't have to receive it,we would never be forced to take it,but we could never loose it. It would never be taken back, like many of our earthly gifts that our kids don't either want or the sizes are wrong. Even though the price of the gift would be enormous, we wouldn't have to pay a dime to get it. The price for our sin would be paid in full and we would never even get a bill. Eternal life is the reward for all who will simply recognize who Christ is and what He did for us on the cross to get it. God is asking if you will receive the greatest gift of all this Christmas. It brings love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, self control and humility in a way this world could never offer. The gift is waiting to be unwrapped by all who claim it. May this Christmas be the best ever as we truly embrace the reason for the season. Don't forget that the greatest gift has already been given, and no earthly gift can ever compare. Amen!
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Friday, December 16, 2011
Home Alone
12/16/2011
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible Verse of the Day: 1 Chronicles 4:10 " Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, " Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain."
Today, I turn 47 years old. I was doing some reflection recently on my life and my path up until this point. Like all of us, there have been lots of peaks and valleys. There have been some things that I wish I could do over, say over or get another crack at, but that's not how life works. We must move on and learn from our mistakes. There have also been some things that I wish I would have tried to do, but because of my personal fears or doubts, I didn't do. Those things sting even worse. Most of my 47 years on this earth were spent without walking with the Lord. Those days, in retrospect, were lonely and fearful. I was searching for my path and was constantly aware that I didn't have the strength to measure up or to make it on my own. The pains and disappointments were too great, the failures too numerous and recent, the lack of confidence covered over by a facade of false pride. I was barely hanging on, using many different instruments to try and dull the pain and survive, wondering if I could make it one more day. I started to feel a calling on my life about 15 years ago, that there was someone or something out there that was trying to reach out to me and offer me a life line. It was a feeling in my soul and in my heart that someone was looking out for me and wanted to pull me out of my malaise. I didn't realize at the time that is was Jesus Christ, and that He truly had a better path for me. In fact,I was fighting the thought that I even needed help in my life, because on the surface everything looked fine from the world's perspective. I had a great job, made great money, had lots of great friends and life was an endless party. But deep down in the depths of my soul, I was empty and hurting. I had lived most of my adult life without a relationship with my father, and I was desperately seeking the world's approval, mostly from a performance standpoint. I wanted people to validate me and tell me I was good enough and that they cared. But the enslaving chords that wrap around you when you live for other people's validation began to eat away at me. I began to resent their approval because frankly, they didn't even know me or what I wanted or needed. I needed a dad's approval. That is when Jesus Christ broke into my life and filled all of my missing parts. He showed me the love of my Heavenly Father and how I was forgiven of all of my sins though His atoning sacrifice. He showed me what true love felt like, from an eternal perspective. His grace began to permeate my soul, and we have been on a journey together to create a new path for my life ever since. It is in fact difficult to explain, but I am sure that I have been given a new life, a life that has less pain and more love, that continues to learn and grow in leaps and bounds and that will continue to do so until the day I die. I have a path that leads to life, abundant life, as Jesus promised in John 10:10 " I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly." I have found that in my quiet time, when I am home alone and spending time one on one with my Savior in prayer and relationship, that I am learning to hear His still, small voice and it is leading my steps and filling my heart with an overflowing of joy. It is the type of joy that Peter expressed in 1 Peter 1:8-9 when he says " Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls." The path that I am on now is filled with wonderment and anticipation in the hope of the glory of God. There are still many potholes, and pain in this life, but the light is now enveloping the darkness, and I know that through Him, all things are possible. I crave the time spent alone with Him, as he prepares me for my next assignment or trial. True wisdom is found in the everlasting truth of scriptures, but practical application of those truths in our lives is only found from relationship with Him on a daily basis. Without that practical application, there would be no power or chance for lasting change. The peace that surpasses all understanding is the end result of our time spent alone with Christ, but the glory is in the path that He takes us on that leads to fulfillment in our life. When we pray for big things, like the prayer of Jabez above, we must expect Him to answer it and anticipating that it will happen, but not in our time but in His perfect timing. He wants us to ask, and then we wants us to believe. James points out in James 1:6-7 that " when a man asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man shall not think he will receive anything in the Lord." Anyone plus God is an unbeatable army and through faith, is a force that can move mountains. God loves impossible odds and using underdogs to bring glory to His name. Just see David vs Goliath, or Gideon vs. the Midianites, or Moses vs. his own doubt and fears. Home alone with the Lord is where those big dreams begin, deep in a man's heart and soul, where the Holy Spirit enters in and redirects our path. My life has never been the same since I answered his knocking on the door of my heart. It was the best decision of my life and set me on the path to eternity knowing how much I am truly loved and cherished by my Creator. It has freed me up to do my best work for His Kingdom, for which he has uniquely designed me, with whatever time I have left on this earth. Amen!
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible Verse of the Day: 1 Chronicles 4:10 " Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, " Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain."
Today, I turn 47 years old. I was doing some reflection recently on my life and my path up until this point. Like all of us, there have been lots of peaks and valleys. There have been some things that I wish I could do over, say over or get another crack at, but that's not how life works. We must move on and learn from our mistakes. There have also been some things that I wish I would have tried to do, but because of my personal fears or doubts, I didn't do. Those things sting even worse. Most of my 47 years on this earth were spent without walking with the Lord. Those days, in retrospect, were lonely and fearful. I was searching for my path and was constantly aware that I didn't have the strength to measure up or to make it on my own. The pains and disappointments were too great, the failures too numerous and recent, the lack of confidence covered over by a facade of false pride. I was barely hanging on, using many different instruments to try and dull the pain and survive, wondering if I could make it one more day. I started to feel a calling on my life about 15 years ago, that there was someone or something out there that was trying to reach out to me and offer me a life line. It was a feeling in my soul and in my heart that someone was looking out for me and wanted to pull me out of my malaise. I didn't realize at the time that is was Jesus Christ, and that He truly had a better path for me. In fact,I was fighting the thought that I even needed help in my life, because on the surface everything looked fine from the world's perspective. I had a great job, made great money, had lots of great friends and life was an endless party. But deep down in the depths of my soul, I was empty and hurting. I had lived most of my adult life without a relationship with my father, and I was desperately seeking the world's approval, mostly from a performance standpoint. I wanted people to validate me and tell me I was good enough and that they cared. But the enslaving chords that wrap around you when you live for other people's validation began to eat away at me. I began to resent their approval because frankly, they didn't even know me or what I wanted or needed. I needed a dad's approval. That is when Jesus Christ broke into my life and filled all of my missing parts. He showed me the love of my Heavenly Father and how I was forgiven of all of my sins though His atoning sacrifice. He showed me what true love felt like, from an eternal perspective. His grace began to permeate my soul, and we have been on a journey together to create a new path for my life ever since. It is in fact difficult to explain, but I am sure that I have been given a new life, a life that has less pain and more love, that continues to learn and grow in leaps and bounds and that will continue to do so until the day I die. I have a path that leads to life, abundant life, as Jesus promised in John 10:10 " I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly." I have found that in my quiet time, when I am home alone and spending time one on one with my Savior in prayer and relationship, that I am learning to hear His still, small voice and it is leading my steps and filling my heart with an overflowing of joy. It is the type of joy that Peter expressed in 1 Peter 1:8-9 when he says " Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls." The path that I am on now is filled with wonderment and anticipation in the hope of the glory of God. There are still many potholes, and pain in this life, but the light is now enveloping the darkness, and I know that through Him, all things are possible. I crave the time spent alone with Him, as he prepares me for my next assignment or trial. True wisdom is found in the everlasting truth of scriptures, but practical application of those truths in our lives is only found from relationship with Him on a daily basis. Without that practical application, there would be no power or chance for lasting change. The peace that surpasses all understanding is the end result of our time spent alone with Christ, but the glory is in the path that He takes us on that leads to fulfillment in our life. When we pray for big things, like the prayer of Jabez above, we must expect Him to answer it and anticipating that it will happen, but not in our time but in His perfect timing. He wants us to ask, and then we wants us to believe. James points out in James 1:6-7 that " when a man asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man shall not think he will receive anything in the Lord." Anyone plus God is an unbeatable army and through faith, is a force that can move mountains. God loves impossible odds and using underdogs to bring glory to His name. Just see David vs Goliath, or Gideon vs. the Midianites, or Moses vs. his own doubt and fears. Home alone with the Lord is where those big dreams begin, deep in a man's heart and soul, where the Holy Spirit enters in and redirects our path. My life has never been the same since I answered his knocking on the door of my heart. It was the best decision of my life and set me on the path to eternity knowing how much I am truly loved and cherished by my Creator. It has freed me up to do my best work for His Kingdom, for which he has uniquely designed me, with whatever time I have left on this earth. Amen!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Knee Mail over email
12/14/2011
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible Verse of the Day: Ephesians 6:18 " And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."
We live in a highly distracted world. Busyness seems to be an important element of feeling good about ourselves in this technology driven world. We feel justified that life is going good when we are busy. We don't have time to worry about all the things that are wrong in our lives when we are busy. Email is a constant reminder of how much we have to do and how "busy" we are. It is also a great cause of so much stress, as we never seem to have enough time to do it all and still leave time for ourselves and the pleasure we deserve. I believe that busyness is the devil's way of distracting us from God's power and purpose in our lives. When we are distracted, we are not engaged in the things that God most desires for us, and that is a blossoming relationship with Him. Instead of Email, we should be focusing on Knee Mail! Time spent in prayer with our Lord is the key to being renewed, refreshed and reinvigorated. Our souls are in need of rest,and that can only come through the source of the unremitting water found in the living God, Jesus Christ, tapped into through prayer. We can toil around under our own efforts, trying to act busy, but in the end that will only lead to weariness and futility. This was clearly illustrated in the Psalm 127:1-2, when it states " Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stand guard in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat- for He grants sleep to those he loves." We can be so much more productive when we are in tune with the Lord through prayer rather than when we are trying to look busy for the accolades of man. Praying is key for many different reasons, but mostly because when we are close to the wisdom of God, we get thoughts that we wouldn't necessarily get on our own. Good thoughts are possible on our own, but God thoughts come only through prayer. Prayer helps us to catch the opportunities that God throws our way. Living in prayer mode is the difference between seeing coincidences and Providences in our lives. When we pray, Providences happen. When we don't pray, they don't happen. It is really that simple. One of the amazing gifts of the Holy Spirit through prayer is that we don't have to manufacture opportunities. He just helps to bring them our way. It is a great part of God's portfolio. He prepares God ordained opportunities that are awaiting us when we tap into them through prayer. God opportunities is His gift to us. What we do with them is our gift to Him. Our job is to seize those opportunities that He presents to us. I believe there are some keys to an effective prayer life and most of them are quite obvious. We must take time out of our day to spend time alone with God. If we need to get up early or stay up late, than that is what we should do. It is in quiet time with God that we learn to hear his still, small voice that leads us. We don't need to prepare a whole list of agenda items, but we need to just be still with him and let Him lead us. Sometimes, we should just come to Him and say, Lord I don't know what to say to you to you right now, but trust that You know what I need to hear. Please let me seek your wisdom and have you reveal it to me. We must trust in the Lord's answers when we pray to Him. Sometimes the answers we get may not be what we want to hear, but they will always be the best way for us. He sometimes will tell us no, but when He does we must trust that it is for our protection and out of His love. That is one of the hardest things to get our arms around. We always want things in our time and with our plans, but many times that would lead to a less than optimal outcome. We need to completely put our trust and faith in Him. C.S Lewis once said that " I am sure that someday I will be more grateful for my prayers that didn't get answered rather than the ones that did." That is simply because some of our prayers are misguided and would be damaging to us if answered. Sometimes are prayers are simply out of alignment with God's will. We pray for comfort instead of character. We pray for the easy way out of a situation, instead of the strength to make it through. We pray for no pain, when the result would be no gain, and maybe rob us of the opportunity to glorify Him in the end. Maybe we should stop asking God to get us out of difficult circumstances and start asking Him what He wants us to get out of the difficult circumstances we are in. There are many practical aspects of the benefits of prayer. When we are praying, we take our attention of off of us, and put it onto God. This instantly helps relieve stress in our lives because it changes our perceptions from what is wrong with us, to what is right with God. We find that most of our problems are not circumstantial, but perceptual. We re-frame our problems and it is like hitting the refresh key on our computers. When we pray for others and their needs, we align ourselves with the humility of Christ. We put others first in our thoughts and that selflessness is a sign of humility that God appreciates. Prayer helps us to be less self conscious and more God conscious. As Paul states in the Bible verse above, we should learn to pray on all occasions as this brings glory to God, who seeks a continual, interactive relationship with us through Christ Jesus. When we are happy, we should praise God. When we are going through difficult moments, we should seek God. When we are in quiet moments, we should worship God. When we are going through painful times, we should trust God and in every moment of our days and our life, we should thank God, for who He and how much He has revealed His love for us in Jesus Christ. What keeps us from an effective prayer life? What inhibits us from time alone with God? I believe the biggest one is our feelings of guilt and unworthiness. We just don't think that God would care about us because of all of the sin in our lives. But if that were the case, than there would be no one praying on earth, because we are all sinners. However, for our prayers to be effective, we must come before God cleansed from our sins. We must simply ask for Him to reveal those areas of our lives where we have fallen short and ask Him to clean us from those sins, and then we can stand before Him cleansed and He can hear our prayers free from the inhibition of our sins. Isaiah warns us that our sins can keep Him from hearing us and our prayers from being effective in 59: 1-2 when he says " Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear to dull to hear, but your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that He will not hear." I believe we also must concentrate on our praying. We must put down our mobile devices and our busyness, and learn to grasp God's power, love, omniscience and holiness. We must stay focused on Him and give Him room for His glory in our lives. We also are inhibited by our fears of praying wrong. Our over-analysis leads to paralysis in our prayer life. It is ok that we don't know how to pray or what to pray for at certain times as Romans 8:26 promises that the Spirit will intercede on our behalf, " We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." the Lord understood our weaknesses and provided us with the Holy Spirit to allow us access to directly communicate with our Heavenly Father. Most people lack anticipation and faith in their prayer life, which leads to a lack of passion around it. I have certainly been struggling with this for many years, as I want instant gratification for my prayers, like the Lord is some type of cosmic vending machine, where my prayers go in His his slot, and my answer comes out of the other slot. It takes endurance and hope and faithfulness to have a meaningful prayer life. That is how God teaches us and tests us through our endurance. Impatience is a prayer killer. Endurance and faith leads to our prayers being answered in His perfect timing and in His perfect, loving way. May we all learn to make more time for Knee Mail, at the expense of time on email. May our busyness make way for the rest of our souls that we so need and desire. May we find true wisdom in God's ideas from time humbly spent on our knees in awe of Him. May His abundance bring a harvest of blessings in the areas of our lives where we are perfectly aligned with His will for our lives and for His way to accomplish it. Amen!
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible Verse of the Day: Ephesians 6:18 " And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."
We live in a highly distracted world. Busyness seems to be an important element of feeling good about ourselves in this technology driven world. We feel justified that life is going good when we are busy. We don't have time to worry about all the things that are wrong in our lives when we are busy. Email is a constant reminder of how much we have to do and how "busy" we are. It is also a great cause of so much stress, as we never seem to have enough time to do it all and still leave time for ourselves and the pleasure we deserve. I believe that busyness is the devil's way of distracting us from God's power and purpose in our lives. When we are distracted, we are not engaged in the things that God most desires for us, and that is a blossoming relationship with Him. Instead of Email, we should be focusing on Knee Mail! Time spent in prayer with our Lord is the key to being renewed, refreshed and reinvigorated. Our souls are in need of rest,and that can only come through the source of the unremitting water found in the living God, Jesus Christ, tapped into through prayer. We can toil around under our own efforts, trying to act busy, but in the end that will only lead to weariness and futility. This was clearly illustrated in the Psalm 127:1-2, when it states " Unless the Lord builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stand guard in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat- for He grants sleep to those he loves." We can be so much more productive when we are in tune with the Lord through prayer rather than when we are trying to look busy for the accolades of man. Praying is key for many different reasons, but mostly because when we are close to the wisdom of God, we get thoughts that we wouldn't necessarily get on our own. Good thoughts are possible on our own, but God thoughts come only through prayer. Prayer helps us to catch the opportunities that God throws our way. Living in prayer mode is the difference between seeing coincidences and Providences in our lives. When we pray, Providences happen. When we don't pray, they don't happen. It is really that simple. One of the amazing gifts of the Holy Spirit through prayer is that we don't have to manufacture opportunities. He just helps to bring them our way. It is a great part of God's portfolio. He prepares God ordained opportunities that are awaiting us when we tap into them through prayer. God opportunities is His gift to us. What we do with them is our gift to Him. Our job is to seize those opportunities that He presents to us. I believe there are some keys to an effective prayer life and most of them are quite obvious. We must take time out of our day to spend time alone with God. If we need to get up early or stay up late, than that is what we should do. It is in quiet time with God that we learn to hear his still, small voice that leads us. We don't need to prepare a whole list of agenda items, but we need to just be still with him and let Him lead us. Sometimes, we should just come to Him and say, Lord I don't know what to say to you to you right now, but trust that You know what I need to hear. Please let me seek your wisdom and have you reveal it to me. We must trust in the Lord's answers when we pray to Him. Sometimes the answers we get may not be what we want to hear, but they will always be the best way for us. He sometimes will tell us no, but when He does we must trust that it is for our protection and out of His love. That is one of the hardest things to get our arms around. We always want things in our time and with our plans, but many times that would lead to a less than optimal outcome. We need to completely put our trust and faith in Him. C.S Lewis once said that " I am sure that someday I will be more grateful for my prayers that didn't get answered rather than the ones that did." That is simply because some of our prayers are misguided and would be damaging to us if answered. Sometimes are prayers are simply out of alignment with God's will. We pray for comfort instead of character. We pray for the easy way out of a situation, instead of the strength to make it through. We pray for no pain, when the result would be no gain, and maybe rob us of the opportunity to glorify Him in the end. Maybe we should stop asking God to get us out of difficult circumstances and start asking Him what He wants us to get out of the difficult circumstances we are in. There are many practical aspects of the benefits of prayer. When we are praying, we take our attention of off of us, and put it onto God. This instantly helps relieve stress in our lives because it changes our perceptions from what is wrong with us, to what is right with God. We find that most of our problems are not circumstantial, but perceptual. We re-frame our problems and it is like hitting the refresh key on our computers. When we pray for others and their needs, we align ourselves with the humility of Christ. We put others first in our thoughts and that selflessness is a sign of humility that God appreciates. Prayer helps us to be less self conscious and more God conscious. As Paul states in the Bible verse above, we should learn to pray on all occasions as this brings glory to God, who seeks a continual, interactive relationship with us through Christ Jesus. When we are happy, we should praise God. When we are going through difficult moments, we should seek God. When we are in quiet moments, we should worship God. When we are going through painful times, we should trust God and in every moment of our days and our life, we should thank God, for who He and how much He has revealed His love for us in Jesus Christ. What keeps us from an effective prayer life? What inhibits us from time alone with God? I believe the biggest one is our feelings of guilt and unworthiness. We just don't think that God would care about us because of all of the sin in our lives. But if that were the case, than there would be no one praying on earth, because we are all sinners. However, for our prayers to be effective, we must come before God cleansed from our sins. We must simply ask for Him to reveal those areas of our lives where we have fallen short and ask Him to clean us from those sins, and then we can stand before Him cleansed and He can hear our prayers free from the inhibition of our sins. Isaiah warns us that our sins can keep Him from hearing us and our prayers from being effective in 59: 1-2 when he says " Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear to dull to hear, but your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that He will not hear." I believe we also must concentrate on our praying. We must put down our mobile devices and our busyness, and learn to grasp God's power, love, omniscience and holiness. We must stay focused on Him and give Him room for His glory in our lives. We also are inhibited by our fears of praying wrong. Our over-analysis leads to paralysis in our prayer life. It is ok that we don't know how to pray or what to pray for at certain times as Romans 8:26 promises that the Spirit will intercede on our behalf, " We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." the Lord understood our weaknesses and provided us with the Holy Spirit to allow us access to directly communicate with our Heavenly Father. Most people lack anticipation and faith in their prayer life, which leads to a lack of passion around it. I have certainly been struggling with this for many years, as I want instant gratification for my prayers, like the Lord is some type of cosmic vending machine, where my prayers go in His his slot, and my answer comes out of the other slot. It takes endurance and hope and faithfulness to have a meaningful prayer life. That is how God teaches us and tests us through our endurance. Impatience is a prayer killer. Endurance and faith leads to our prayers being answered in His perfect timing and in His perfect, loving way. May we all learn to make more time for Knee Mail, at the expense of time on email. May our busyness make way for the rest of our souls that we so need and desire. May we find true wisdom in God's ideas from time humbly spent on our knees in awe of Him. May His abundance bring a harvest of blessings in the areas of our lives where we are perfectly aligned with His will for our lives and for His way to accomplish it. Amen!
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
We are Sheep and He is the Shepherd
12/07/2011
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible Verse of the Day: Isaiah 53:6 " We all like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all."
As a kid I always hated it when I would get blamed for something I hadn't even done. I guess I was a victim of circumstance, running with a less than savory crowd, with one of the ill-conceived plans,I would always get the blame. They would point at me and say he did it. Well, I will admit that I was guilty by association, but many times I had been just an innocent bystander to the shenanigans of the day and yet had been left in the lurch. Well, whatever I felt was really not that big of a deal as it never left too big of a mark on me and eventually I began to get myself out of the group that was pulling me down. The old saying that a mentor of mine likes to say, " show me your friends, and I will show you your future 100% of the time" sure was true as I look back on my life. Whoever I was hanging with at various times in my life, my identity was found in that group. Whether it be smart nerds, sports jocks, or party rats, I was able to quickly assimilate into that group's identity and to start to take on the group's characteristics. We all were like sheep, following each in whatever direction we were heading, whether good or bad. We found safety in the flock. That's what sheep do. They try to stay close together and not think too much on their own, for when they do that they are relatively safe as a member of a larger group. But at any given moment someone, or some sheep, could leave the herd and find themselves quite vulnerable. They loose their identity when they leave the herd. Isaiah points out in the scripture above that we all, like sheep, have gone astray at one time or another. We have tried to go our own way, apart from our good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, and have become weakened and vulnerable. We humans tend to act very much like sheep at various times in our lives. We are fearful, not that smart, and slow to embrace change. We tend to over think things when things are going well and under think the consequences of our actions when we are being sinful. Sheep, like us, easily fall pray to their enemies both internal and external when they try to go it alone. Many times, the Sheppard must lead them to food, or they will starve to death. It is the same thing with us as Christians when we go astray from our Good Shepherd and He must lead us to our spiritual food for the nourishment of our souls. Thank God that Jesus is the one who is the Good Shepherd, and is always there to restore us when we get off course, nudging us back onto the path that is best suited for us. Without Him, we would surely lead ourselves right off a cliff. Jesus patiently searches for His lost sheep and when He finds us and we return to Him, he greatly rejoices. He never grows tired or lackadaisical in His pursuit of us. Revelations 3:20 assures us, " behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and him with me." When we find ourselves back in the care of our Good Shepherd, we are repaired and restored. In the scripture above from Isaiah 53:6, we see that all of our sins were heaped upon Him who was totally blameless, so that God could reconcile all of the lost sheep back to Him for eternity. The pain Jesus had to withstand to accomplish the Father's mission was excruciating and beyond our realm of comprehension. Imagine how Jesus must have felt when the reality of the weight of the world's sin was cast upon Him. What an unimaginable blessing that the Good Shepherd loved His sheep so much that He was willing to lay His life down, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order that we may rejoin His flock forever. Just like the Prodigal Son, we once were lost, but now we're found. The Good Shepherd cares about each one of His sheep individually enough to search for us until He finds us and returns us home safely. Amazing Grace indeed!
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible Verse of the Day: Isaiah 53:6 " We all like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all."
As a kid I always hated it when I would get blamed for something I hadn't even done. I guess I was a victim of circumstance, running with a less than savory crowd, with one of the ill-conceived plans,I would always get the blame. They would point at me and say he did it. Well, I will admit that I was guilty by association, but many times I had been just an innocent bystander to the shenanigans of the day and yet had been left in the lurch. Well, whatever I felt was really not that big of a deal as it never left too big of a mark on me and eventually I began to get myself out of the group that was pulling me down. The old saying that a mentor of mine likes to say, " show me your friends, and I will show you your future 100% of the time" sure was true as I look back on my life. Whoever I was hanging with at various times in my life, my identity was found in that group. Whether it be smart nerds, sports jocks, or party rats, I was able to quickly assimilate into that group's identity and to start to take on the group's characteristics. We all were like sheep, following each in whatever direction we were heading, whether good or bad. We found safety in the flock. That's what sheep do. They try to stay close together and not think too much on their own, for when they do that they are relatively safe as a member of a larger group. But at any given moment someone, or some sheep, could leave the herd and find themselves quite vulnerable. They loose their identity when they leave the herd. Isaiah points out in the scripture above that we all, like sheep, have gone astray at one time or another. We have tried to go our own way, apart from our good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, and have become weakened and vulnerable. We humans tend to act very much like sheep at various times in our lives. We are fearful, not that smart, and slow to embrace change. We tend to over think things when things are going well and under think the consequences of our actions when we are being sinful. Sheep, like us, easily fall pray to their enemies both internal and external when they try to go it alone. Many times, the Sheppard must lead them to food, or they will starve to death. It is the same thing with us as Christians when we go astray from our Good Shepherd and He must lead us to our spiritual food for the nourishment of our souls. Thank God that Jesus is the one who is the Good Shepherd, and is always there to restore us when we get off course, nudging us back onto the path that is best suited for us. Without Him, we would surely lead ourselves right off a cliff. Jesus patiently searches for His lost sheep and when He finds us and we return to Him, he greatly rejoices. He never grows tired or lackadaisical in His pursuit of us. Revelations 3:20 assures us, " behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and him with me." When we find ourselves back in the care of our Good Shepherd, we are repaired and restored. In the scripture above from Isaiah 53:6, we see that all of our sins were heaped upon Him who was totally blameless, so that God could reconcile all of the lost sheep back to Him for eternity. The pain Jesus had to withstand to accomplish the Father's mission was excruciating and beyond our realm of comprehension. Imagine how Jesus must have felt when the reality of the weight of the world's sin was cast upon Him. What an unimaginable blessing that the Good Shepherd loved His sheep so much that He was willing to lay His life down, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order that we may rejoin His flock forever. Just like the Prodigal Son, we once were lost, but now we're found. The Good Shepherd cares about each one of His sheep individually enough to search for us until He finds us and returns us home safely. Amazing Grace indeed!
Sunday, December 4, 2011
At What Cost?
12/4/2011
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible Verse of the Day: Luke 9:25 " For what shall it profit it a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul?"
I have been thinking a lot lately about what success means to me. What would I do with my life if money wasn't an object, and I could do whatever I wanted? I feel like once I can concretely answer that question in my own heart, than I will have found the answer to my life's dream.What unique gifts has God given me that can help me fulfill my part in His eternal mosaic? I have been introspective about how I am living my life, what my goals and ambitions are, and what would I do to leave a mark on this world if I could do anything I wanted. It has been a winding road, trying to find the path with which I want to live the rest of my days out on this planet. One thing that I have become painfully aware of is that every one of my actions will have an impact on the legacy that I will leave behind for eternity and I want to thoughtfully consider each action before diving headlong into it. In other words, I want to be aware of the costs of each of the decisions I make, because every decision does entail a cost. What is the cost of someone who is so driven to get ahead in his career that he works 100 hours a week and never has the time or energy to enjoy himself? It could be depression caused by burnout. It could be his family suffers, or his health, or his inner beauty begins to fade as he sees everyone around him as an impediment to what he wants to achieve. What is the cost to someone who makes it big financially and gets all of his dreams answered, only to find out that he doesn't have the internal makeup and root structure in place to handle his success? It could be that he blows his money on a lifestyle of drugs, alcohol and women that leads to his demise and downfall. What is the cost to a person who is so competitive that he literally can't tolerate losing in any facet of his life? It may be total loneliness or pent up rage. There is always a cost to our actions and our decisions. When we take time to deeply reflect on what is truly important to us, then we will put a structure in place in our lives that prioritizes the things we value most. I have lived for most of my adult life believing that success was tangible, that it could be measured. I have recently come to understand that at least in my life, my personal definition of success is more intangible; It is to be measured by things that aren't easily measured in our world's eyes. Time spent with my family is a major priority. My children's happiness and contentment with their lives is a major priority. Helping people who are less fortunate than me is a priority. Using my God given gifts to glorify the One who created me is important. I can't drive those things, I can't sell them on Craig's List, but I can make decisions that take into account how those things are effected by my decisions. Let's face it, we live in a world where people are willing to do or say almost anything to get ahead. But what does get ahead mean in our society today? In most cases, people view obtaining wealth as the measure of success by which they want to be measured AND MANY WILL DO ANYTHING REQUIRED TO GET IT, INCLUDING LIE, CHEAT OR STEAL. Others seek power or influence. They view success as the end goal and the means will justify the end goal in a way that they don't really care about all of the baggage they accumulate on their way to their goal, as long as they get there. Just look at the mess most of the top politicians in this country have made of their personal lives in their quest for power and influence. Scandals seem to always be right there by their side. Extra-marital affairs are commonplace. Deceitfulness is prevalent in their lives as they try to hide from the truth of what they have become. They are willing to forfeit their souls to get what their heart desires. Many times though, I have heard people say they have gotten exactly what they wished for, only to find out that it left them without the fulfillment they had planned on. They soon realize that the rush that the world promises never lives up to the hype. In fact, many times it left them even more empty when they had to reflect back on all they had given up in order to obtain their desires. When we back away from God and try to be our own kings, what we quickly find is that the enslaving chords of this world begin to grip around us and capture us, and begin to chip away at our own personal beauty. We become slaves to the things that we worship. We must be very careful about what we allow to be our master, for we all become what we worship. God repeatedly warns us about getting caught up in our own plans, and striving so hard to obtain them. He tells us to stop striving and to put our trust in Him. A Pastor friend of mine said something this week that was so poignant to me. He said " If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plan." Proverbs 3:5-6 instructs us to " Trust in the Lord, with all of our hearts and lean not on our own understanding, and in all our ways acknowledge him, and he will make our paths straight." We have choices every day, and every choice has consequences. It has caused me a lot of pain in my life by not thinking about the consequences of my actions before I did something. Only afterward, when the pain had been inflicted in many different ways, would I say, well that sure was a stupid thing to do. I sure wish I hadn't done that. We can rely on our own wisdom and plans, choose to be our own kings, put our heads down and plow ahead to what we think will bring us success and contentment. Many times our way may bring us short term pleasure, but often times it will lead to long term pain. We tend to have a problem with this thing called sin, which the results of tend to stay longer than we want them to stay and cost us more than we want to pay. Have you ever made a mistake and just wished that the ramifications of that mistake would just go away? I made a grievous error in judgement a few years ago when out of pure impetuousness and greed I purchased two investment homes in Arizona. I had not done lots of thorough research on the areas in which I purchased, nor the required thought process of why exactly I was buying these houses, only that the rates were low and they required little down payments, and I would make a quick buck and sell them. Well, it turns out that was right at the top of the real estate market and just before the big crash we have endured. Well, almost 5 years later, I can honestly say that the pain has been severe, both financially and emotionally, and I wish I had never sought the glory of being a " real estate magnate." We don't have to trust in our wisdom, we can put all of our trust in God's. Psalm 1:5 says that if we delight in the law of the Lord and meditate on it day and night, that we can " be like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season, and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." The cost of following God and seeking His righteousness is ALWAYS less than following our own wisdom. Every decision we make has a cost. We never get the time back to change what has already been done. Those consequences are already written in stone. Thanks to Jesus Christ we can be forgiven of our sins and have them permanently removed from our records, but we can never undue the consequences of our actions. If I go have a beer with a friend after work instead of seeing my son's baseball game, I can never erase that decision and the pain I caused him when I didn't show up when he expected me to. He may forgive me, but I can't undo what has been done already. I want my life to reflect that which I hold dear to me, based on the decisions I make. I know now I need God's strength and power to make the right decisions. When we sink our roots deep down into the Lord, He will provide us with an unremitting source of living water, even during those drought periods of our lives. True peace is found there.
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible Verse of the Day: Luke 9:25 " For what shall it profit it a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul?"
I have been thinking a lot lately about what success means to me. What would I do with my life if money wasn't an object, and I could do whatever I wanted? I feel like once I can concretely answer that question in my own heart, than I will have found the answer to my life's dream.What unique gifts has God given me that can help me fulfill my part in His eternal mosaic? I have been introspective about how I am living my life, what my goals and ambitions are, and what would I do to leave a mark on this world if I could do anything I wanted. It has been a winding road, trying to find the path with which I want to live the rest of my days out on this planet. One thing that I have become painfully aware of is that every one of my actions will have an impact on the legacy that I will leave behind for eternity and I want to thoughtfully consider each action before diving headlong into it. In other words, I want to be aware of the costs of each of the decisions I make, because every decision does entail a cost. What is the cost of someone who is so driven to get ahead in his career that he works 100 hours a week and never has the time or energy to enjoy himself? It could be depression caused by burnout. It could be his family suffers, or his health, or his inner beauty begins to fade as he sees everyone around him as an impediment to what he wants to achieve. What is the cost to someone who makes it big financially and gets all of his dreams answered, only to find out that he doesn't have the internal makeup and root structure in place to handle his success? It could be that he blows his money on a lifestyle of drugs, alcohol and women that leads to his demise and downfall. What is the cost to a person who is so competitive that he literally can't tolerate losing in any facet of his life? It may be total loneliness or pent up rage. There is always a cost to our actions and our decisions. When we take time to deeply reflect on what is truly important to us, then we will put a structure in place in our lives that prioritizes the things we value most. I have lived for most of my adult life believing that success was tangible, that it could be measured. I have recently come to understand that at least in my life, my personal definition of success is more intangible; It is to be measured by things that aren't easily measured in our world's eyes. Time spent with my family is a major priority. My children's happiness and contentment with their lives is a major priority. Helping people who are less fortunate than me is a priority. Using my God given gifts to glorify the One who created me is important. I can't drive those things, I can't sell them on Craig's List, but I can make decisions that take into account how those things are effected by my decisions. Let's face it, we live in a world where people are willing to do or say almost anything to get ahead. But what does get ahead mean in our society today? In most cases, people view obtaining wealth as the measure of success by which they want to be measured AND MANY WILL DO ANYTHING REQUIRED TO GET IT, INCLUDING LIE, CHEAT OR STEAL. Others seek power or influence. They view success as the end goal and the means will justify the end goal in a way that they don't really care about all of the baggage they accumulate on their way to their goal, as long as they get there. Just look at the mess most of the top politicians in this country have made of their personal lives in their quest for power and influence. Scandals seem to always be right there by their side. Extra-marital affairs are commonplace. Deceitfulness is prevalent in their lives as they try to hide from the truth of what they have become. They are willing to forfeit their souls to get what their heart desires. Many times though, I have heard people say they have gotten exactly what they wished for, only to find out that it left them without the fulfillment they had planned on. They soon realize that the rush that the world promises never lives up to the hype. In fact, many times it left them even more empty when they had to reflect back on all they had given up in order to obtain their desires. When we back away from God and try to be our own kings, what we quickly find is that the enslaving chords of this world begin to grip around us and capture us, and begin to chip away at our own personal beauty. We become slaves to the things that we worship. We must be very careful about what we allow to be our master, for we all become what we worship. God repeatedly warns us about getting caught up in our own plans, and striving so hard to obtain them. He tells us to stop striving and to put our trust in Him. A Pastor friend of mine said something this week that was so poignant to me. He said " If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plan." Proverbs 3:5-6 instructs us to " Trust in the Lord, with all of our hearts and lean not on our own understanding, and in all our ways acknowledge him, and he will make our paths straight." We have choices every day, and every choice has consequences. It has caused me a lot of pain in my life by not thinking about the consequences of my actions before I did something. Only afterward, when the pain had been inflicted in many different ways, would I say, well that sure was a stupid thing to do. I sure wish I hadn't done that. We can rely on our own wisdom and plans, choose to be our own kings, put our heads down and plow ahead to what we think will bring us success and contentment. Many times our way may bring us short term pleasure, but often times it will lead to long term pain. We tend to have a problem with this thing called sin, which the results of tend to stay longer than we want them to stay and cost us more than we want to pay. Have you ever made a mistake and just wished that the ramifications of that mistake would just go away? I made a grievous error in judgement a few years ago when out of pure impetuousness and greed I purchased two investment homes in Arizona. I had not done lots of thorough research on the areas in which I purchased, nor the required thought process of why exactly I was buying these houses, only that the rates were low and they required little down payments, and I would make a quick buck and sell them. Well, it turns out that was right at the top of the real estate market and just before the big crash we have endured. Well, almost 5 years later, I can honestly say that the pain has been severe, both financially and emotionally, and I wish I had never sought the glory of being a " real estate magnate." We don't have to trust in our wisdom, we can put all of our trust in God's. Psalm 1:5 says that if we delight in the law of the Lord and meditate on it day and night, that we can " be like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season, and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers." The cost of following God and seeking His righteousness is ALWAYS less than following our own wisdom. Every decision we make has a cost. We never get the time back to change what has already been done. Those consequences are already written in stone. Thanks to Jesus Christ we can be forgiven of our sins and have them permanently removed from our records, but we can never undue the consequences of our actions. If I go have a beer with a friend after work instead of seeing my son's baseball game, I can never erase that decision and the pain I caused him when I didn't show up when he expected me to. He may forgive me, but I can't undo what has been done already. I want my life to reflect that which I hold dear to me, based on the decisions I make. I know now I need God's strength and power to make the right decisions. When we sink our roots deep down into the Lord, He will provide us with an unremitting source of living water, even during those drought periods of our lives. True peace is found there.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Friendship
12/1/2011
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible verse of the Day: John 15:13 " Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."
One of the biggest questions I ponder in my relationship with the Living God is what does He really want or expect from me? This questions can take on many different iterations and lead down many winding paths, depending on what kind of mood I am in at any given time or how I am viewing this question I am asking myself. In other words, through what lens am I viewing this question? I know that He wants me to follow him and to trust him and to love him and I believe that I try to do this to the best of my abilities on most occasions and want to continue to get better at his throughout my life. I realize that there is always room for improvement and I want to do better, be more consistent. Some days I do great and totally feel in harmony with my Lord and Savior, and other days, well not so much. Always it is because me and my love are imperfect, while He and His are always perfect. I guess sometimes I feel as though I just don't measure up, although I know He would never say or think that, just the adversary messing around in his playpen called my mind. But the other day, the answer to the original question of what does God and Jesus want from me became crystal clear after reading a book called " Secrets of the Vine." He wants my friendship most of all. He truly wants me to be his friend and that takes a willingness to spend time with him on a consistent basis. Like any relationship, the more time spent, the better that relationship will grow to be. He is always there and available, so it is incumbent upon me to draw closer and to willingly learn more about him, and in turn He will reveal to me more about Himself. Like any relationship, when you love being with someone, or some thing, you naturally want to spend time with them. You are willing to prioritize that person or thing in your life. I know now that Jesus Christ wants me to be His friend and He wants me to abide in Him, for the Bible tells me so. He is not ever Jealous of me, but He is jealous for me. Why would I not want to invest as much of my time as possible with Him, who is the author of all creation. He plays so many roles in the world and in my life that He is the fountain of wisdom that never grows old or dry out. At any given time, Jesus can be a Witness of truth, a Prophet, an Intercessor, a Warrior, a Priest or a King. He is always all of those things, but He can be any of those things in my life at the exact time that I need Him to be. But the only way I can find out what He is saying to me is to be His friend and to be in continual fellowship with Him. Most people say Love is the key to a healthy relationship and i would certainly agree with that statement, but love without time spent is unfulfilled. I can tell my children I love them, but if I don't spend time with them, they will always wonder in the back of their minds why I am not making them a priority in my life, and hence whether i truly love them. In this life, our actions always speak louder than our words, and we will always be judged not just on what we say, but on what we do. As a mentor of mine once said to me, don't tell me why you don't have time for something, tell me why it's not a priority. We all get the same amount of time in day, but how we spend it is totally up to us and says lot about who we are and what we care about. Can you imagine how Jesus must feel when we choose not to spend time with Him after all He did and continues to do for us? Time together = love. We need to be friends with Christ. Proverbs 17:17 says, " A friend loves at all times," and Christ loves us consistently and wants to be our friend. We can read all the books in the world, go to all the bible studies and attend church every week and we can be left feeling burned out and no closer in our relationship to Christ. But if we take time to be in His presence, alone and aware,present and engaged, our friendship will blossom and fulfill us like no other. That is why in John 15, Jesus implores us to abide in Him, to remain in him and his words to remain in us, so he can be our closest friend. He can protects us, guide us, love us and help us to grow in our faith and in our understanding of who He is in our own individual life. He wants to give us the answers to our dreams and to see us bear much good fruit. But most of all He wants to be our friends. Praise God for the fact that the King of all Kings wants to be my friend. I want to be His as well.
Weather Report From Heaven: Sunny and bright, with an abundance of light and lots of singing and rejoicing.
Bible verse of the Day: John 15:13 " Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."
One of the biggest questions I ponder in my relationship with the Living God is what does He really want or expect from me? This questions can take on many different iterations and lead down many winding paths, depending on what kind of mood I am in at any given time or how I am viewing this question I am asking myself. In other words, through what lens am I viewing this question? I know that He wants me to follow him and to trust him and to love him and I believe that I try to do this to the best of my abilities on most occasions and want to continue to get better at his throughout my life. I realize that there is always room for improvement and I want to do better, be more consistent. Some days I do great and totally feel in harmony with my Lord and Savior, and other days, well not so much. Always it is because me and my love are imperfect, while He and His are always perfect. I guess sometimes I feel as though I just don't measure up, although I know He would never say or think that, just the adversary messing around in his playpen called my mind. But the other day, the answer to the original question of what does God and Jesus want from me became crystal clear after reading a book called " Secrets of the Vine." He wants my friendship most of all. He truly wants me to be his friend and that takes a willingness to spend time with him on a consistent basis. Like any relationship, the more time spent, the better that relationship will grow to be. He is always there and available, so it is incumbent upon me to draw closer and to willingly learn more about him, and in turn He will reveal to me more about Himself. Like any relationship, when you love being with someone, or some thing, you naturally want to spend time with them. You are willing to prioritize that person or thing in your life. I know now that Jesus Christ wants me to be His friend and He wants me to abide in Him, for the Bible tells me so. He is not ever Jealous of me, but He is jealous for me. Why would I not want to invest as much of my time as possible with Him, who is the author of all creation. He plays so many roles in the world and in my life that He is the fountain of wisdom that never grows old or dry out. At any given time, Jesus can be a Witness of truth, a Prophet, an Intercessor, a Warrior, a Priest or a King. He is always all of those things, but He can be any of those things in my life at the exact time that I need Him to be. But the only way I can find out what He is saying to me is to be His friend and to be in continual fellowship with Him. Most people say Love is the key to a healthy relationship and i would certainly agree with that statement, but love without time spent is unfulfilled. I can tell my children I love them, but if I don't spend time with them, they will always wonder in the back of their minds why I am not making them a priority in my life, and hence whether i truly love them. In this life, our actions always speak louder than our words, and we will always be judged not just on what we say, but on what we do. As a mentor of mine once said to me, don't tell me why you don't have time for something, tell me why it's not a priority. We all get the same amount of time in day, but how we spend it is totally up to us and says lot about who we are and what we care about. Can you imagine how Jesus must feel when we choose not to spend time with Him after all He did and continues to do for us? Time together = love. We need to be friends with Christ. Proverbs 17:17 says, " A friend loves at all times," and Christ loves us consistently and wants to be our friend. We can read all the books in the world, go to all the bible studies and attend church every week and we can be left feeling burned out and no closer in our relationship to Christ. But if we take time to be in His presence, alone and aware,present and engaged, our friendship will blossom and fulfill us like no other. That is why in John 15, Jesus implores us to abide in Him, to remain in him and his words to remain in us, so he can be our closest friend. He can protects us, guide us, love us and help us to grow in our faith and in our understanding of who He is in our own individual life. He wants to give us the answers to our dreams and to see us bear much good fruit. But most of all He wants to be our friends. Praise God for the fact that the King of all Kings wants to be my friend. I want to be His as well.
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