God made you exactly like He wants you! Amazing how many us want to undo or redo gifts He wants us to use. Spend time seeking Him about how, when and where to invest the rest of your life.

Proverbs 16:3 "Commit your works to the Lord and your ways will be established"

Beginning Again!

I'm getting back to this, checking to see if I'm still able to post. I'm a horse and buggy guy in a space travel world.

If I see this on the web I'll write some thoughts soon.

God bless you spirit, soul and body!

Legacy

We are leaving a legacy to our family and friends! We are either deliberately working to leave a positive impact or we are leaving a void because we are not taking serious our responsibility. Legacy means leaving something of value either material and or a way of living to those coming after us. Don't get caught just existing, watching weeks, then months fly by. Ask God to show you what He has created you to do. Begin obeying the thoughts that come to your mind that line up with His Word. Don't worry when you make a mistake, yes do your best to correct it but don't stop trying because you made one. Everyone makes mistakes; spouses make mistakes, parents make mistakes, children make mistakes, boses make mistakes, etc. Spend a few minutes everyday (5 or 6 minutes to begin with) being quiet and say "God do you want to say anything to me"? Pay attention to the thoughts that come to your mind after that prayer. Don't think anything is too big or too little to do. God is a good parent, He won't ask us to do some big thing when we have never done anything, He will give us a simple instruction and see if we will obey it; just like a parent tells their child to pick up their toys. Once we prove we will obey the small commands He will give us some larger ones to follow but just because we have been given some bigger instructions, we never outgrow the need to stay obedient to the simple ones. The enemy wants us to believe we don't matter, we are not good enough, not consistent enough or not "holy" enough. Trust God to tell you what to do, when He wants you to it and follow through even when you feel insecure or have more questions than answers. This guarantees we will not take credit for things He does through us or the legacy we leave for those coming after us! God bless as you begin building your legacy today!

Oh Really

Certain pockets of Christianity have turned this life into a giant Christmas Season! It's all about the gifts we crave and the pleasure we get from all the blessings we can accumulate. After the latest round of "new things" we begin to think of other things we want. I believe God wants to bless us, does bless us and will keep blessing us our entire lives but some of what we think of as trials are blessings. If you knew how your trial would affect your family, friends and testimony it might be easier to trust God during the storm because everything is not designed for our pleasure, never has been, never will be.

The Apostle Paul told the Church at Corinth "I wanted to talk to you like mature adults but you were not able to receive my words." (I Cor. 3:2) This world needs followers of Jesus Christ who don't have to be babied and catered too. I encourage us to grow up into Christ, become mature believers who are willing to trust God's plan for our lives more than our own.

Serious words to be thought about seriously!

God is faithful!

My encouragement today is something we already know. God never makes a mistake! The issue is "we don't understand" what He is doing or "why is He allowing this" and then our mind begins to race with questions that don't have a satisfactory answer. Beginning today, decide that you will "take those thought captives" (II Corinthians 10:5). Instead of allowing your mind to run possibilities, read God's Word; check His record, depend on His heart. Much of life has no rhyme or reason "today". Don't allow yourself to make a judgement based on a time frame that only lasts decades; God deals with eternity. Something you might not understand today may have an effect years from now that you will never see on earth. God has already proven His love for us; we can trust He will not waste any situation that we can't explain.
Again, we all know this. The test everyday is putting this in practice, Make the wise decision, never allow the assumption that God is allowing something hurtful or useless. God has plans for us that are filled with hope, for our welfare and good; especially when we can't see or explain them.Trust His heart especially when you cannot see His hand!

One Month to Live

I've just finished a book entitled "One Month to Live" written by Kerry Shook. It encourages readers to ask themselves this question "how can you live daily so that at the end of your life, you will not have any regrets"! It gives great perspective to what matters and what how we act and re-act to life's daily circumstances. It also encourages us to "do what we love doing" now, don't put off your passions to live a boring life. Another encouragement is to "ask for and give forgiveness to people" today, at the end of your life you will not want to wish I would have done this a long time ago. Lastly, it encourages you to "spend time with the people that really matter".

It's not morbid to think about how your life will end, the fact is everyone's life ends, be mature enough to plan for and prepare for the time it does. Make the people you care about aware of your wishes about how to handle end of life issues. Have a will, inform family and your attorney and or accountant where the will will be, make Funeral wishes known, have someone who you trust to handle these details at the appropriate time.

Here's the good news, most of us have much more than 30 days left to live, the challenge is to really live, not just exist. Start living today, not just breathing, really living because one day you really will only have 30 more days to live.

All Things are Possible

We are well into 2012. You have had chances to start the year with momentum and give up because of adversity. Almost everyday we face ups and downs. Ask the Lord to lead you (He does that as you read His Word, as you seek Him in prayer, listen to sermons and worship music); follow His direction and trust His timing. Just because things may not look promising at the moment does not mean that they will remain that way. What did the Lord say would occur during this year? If He said it, don't stop trusting Him because they look impossible; remind yourself how He has turned things around for you in the past. Remember a 90 year old woman got pregnant. The Red Sea split in half so God's children could walk through it on dry ground. Joseph lived in prison for 10 years before being delivered in one moment. David killed a giant with a sling shot. Daniel survived a lions den over night. Jesus turned water into wine, He fed thousands with a few fish and loaves of bread. Remembering those things, keep walking in obedience to God's call on your life and watch as He moves obstacles out of your way so you can follow through on what you committed to accomplish in His Name in 2012. This is going to be a good year for His Kingdom in your life. Believe what He has promised and watch it come to pass!

Glad for new Chances

Intentions are good things, unfortunately they do not accomplish any goals. If you have had good intentions about a particular job to do, habit to change or food group to leave behind that's good BUT I had good intentions of writing more regularly as a way to discipline myself. Writing requires me to sit down, gather my thoughts, put things in coherent sentences and edit what does not fit, then post the results.

I'm just glad we are about to get a whole new year to start over whatever we had good intentions of accomplishing in 2011. I want to challenge all of us to seek God about what He has for us to do in the coming days. I am going to (there are those good intentions again) God willing, begin a sermon series January 15 called "30 Days to Live". It is based on a book written by Pastor Kerry Shook that encourages everyone to make everyday of your life count. If you knew you had only 30 more days to live, would you continue with your present schedule or would you alter it. If you were actually going to die, you would make your relationships more of a priority. I think you would make calls to people who have meant more to you than they know and you would stop worrying about some of the things that keep you awake now.

If you would change things if you "only had 30 days to live" then START DOING THEM NOW BECAUSE NONE OF US KNOW HOW MANY DAYS WE HAVE LEFT TO LIVE!

Life has things we do not plan for, we can only react to. Decide now that you will follow Jesus Christ regardless of how things go in 2012. Read His word daily to grow your faith and trust Him when things do not make sense.

Don't try to keep things in 2012 that were only meant for 2011 and don't fear what God has in store, He promises we have a future filled with hope (Jeremiah 29:11).

Permanent or Temporary

"Christians settle for sedatives to numb the pain, God wants us to pursue treatment to cure the condition." Sun Stand Still (Steven Furtick) I remember when Jared (my son) was about 3 months old, he had an ear infection that would not get cleared up with antibiotics; about mid-night on this particular night he was in so much pain we called his pediatrician. 30 years ago the doctor would say "I'll meet you at my office". After a brief examination the doctor lanced Jared's ear drum. He screamed like crazy; I cried too. It was horrible seeing how badly he hurt. The doctor did something that hurt at the moment but immediately the fluid that had been trapped behind his ear drum began to leak out. He and I were shaken so bad Lydia had to drive home. I could not believe I let the doctor hurt him BUT I KNEW if that fluid did not come out, Jared would not get over his infection. A day or so later his ear was fine and never had another ear problem.

There are times God does a work in us that feels horrible. We question His love and cry about our pain but like the doctor working on Jared, God knows getting the problem fixed requires drastic measures. The doctor could have deadened Jared's ear drum and he may have had temporary relief but when the medicine wore off the intense pain would return. Like the doctor that night, God is doing a work in many of our lives, not because of cruelty but to get us well. Let some time go by without accusing the Lord, you will see that He is getting us well and ready to be used for His glory and trusted with His power to share with the world.

Don't settle for hiding behind your temporary relief when God is working to get you permanently healed, after all, "His ways are better than our ways"!

Sun Stopping Prayer

How is your prayer life? Are your prayer times the richest part of your day or is it a chore you avoid until you have no more excuses and then you can't wait until they are over? In Joshua's life, he faced disappointment, setback, delays and instructions from the Lord that no one had ever heard of. It's easy to go to Joshua chapter 10 and read about his powerful prayer and we all want to be able to pray Sun Stop Moving Prayer but God only trusts that kind of power to those who have proven that honoring the Lord and obeying Him are not debatable choices but opportunities to show our trust in God regardless of His instruction.

Joshua's prayer was answered after marching all night long and began fighting and continued fighting for 36 hours. Quit expecting to walk out of troubles forever. Make sure you are keeping the Lord first in your life. Just because He has been there in the past does not mean He will be there today, you must continually put Him there. Kind of like wearing a retainer for those who have had braces on their teeth; if you don't constantly wear a retainer your teeth revert back to their old positions. Our prayer lives can be the richest parts of our lives but they can also be a challenge to "keep up" when things don't seem to be going like we want them to. The same God who stopped the sun for 24 hours is listening for your requests and looking to see if your obedience matches your desire for things to change.

I love the quote "He who God uses greatly will be tested powerfully"! Don't let tests cause you to doubt God's goodness of favor on you, in fact if you are in a serious battle you re probably right where He wants you to be -- let His light shine through and make sure He gets the praise!

Don't Quit

Everyone faces touch situations somewhere at some time. No avoiding that fact but we can prepare for these tough events and decide before they get here that we are going to get through them, they will not stop us. They may delay our arrival but they will not keep us from reaching the God designed destination. The question is how do we prepare.

First, know who will get you through the tough times. If you rely on anything or anyone other than Jesus Christ and the guidance of His Holy Spirit you will delay your arrival even longer.

Next keep God's Word exalted above all circumstances. What God says will never change, circumstances do. Get advice from people who have walked the path before you. Usually advice requires us changing something which brings resistance but don't be afraid of change. Everybody and everything changes. We can't stop it and complaining (even if it's just rehearsing it in our minds) causes frustration to grow; when that happens it brings more difficultly in relationships that can help you get through the struggle. The enemy we face and who constantly works to kill, steal and destroy us is relentless so prepare for long term to battle him with weapons that are not earthly but divinely powerful for tearing him down.

One more thing although I could keep going with ideas is don't give up. We do not know all that God knows. We see through a dark glass, He sees things exactly like they are -- trust Him. I love the saying, "When you cannot see God's hand, you can trust His heart". He is for you and He will never leave or abandon you, so hold on, remember change is on it's way!!!

God's DNA

We all have God given talents. Everyone has them, Christians and non-Christians. God made us unique and gets joy when we use our gifts for His glory. Many struggle with accepting their gifts because they like the gift someone else has and try to be like them. People spend their whole lives "acting" like someone they were never created to be. One of parents highest responsibilities is to seek God about their children's gifts; once they discover what they are the parent should constantly point the children towards their gifts; NOT the gifts the parents want them to have but the gifts God has given them. Because we all have God given gifts we know the devil will try to pervert, steal and destroy these gifts. It requires constant effort to use these gifts and if God is going to get the glory from our use of gifts, it must not be our talent or skill alone that empowers us. A tendency that can creep in is to become prideful about gifts especially the ones that are used in public platforms. Parents need to stay watchful as their children get comfortable with what God has given them by instructing them early on in their gift discovery and function. Proverbs 22:6 says "Train up a child in the way he should go, when he gets older he will not depart from it." Training is likened to training a horse to be used in handling cattle. It implies practice, patience, correction, encouragement and perseverance.

Ask someone if they can identify your gifts, then ask them if they think you are using them to their highest potential. If they say you are not using them to that potential ask them to help you increase that use until it is obvious that what God invested in you is not being wasted. We are all created with gifts from God, use them to glorify Him, after all He gave them to you!

Seriously!

There is no way it has been almost 3 weeks since I wrote something for this. If you read my last post I said "I will check with you in a day or so". Turns out I wasn't even close. The best I can say is "I have thought about it". Reminds me of the 3 frogs who decided to jump off a lily pad; how many were still on it, all of them because deciding to do something and doing it is not the same. Amazing how we give ourselves slack (we don't allow others to get away with near what we allow our self to) when we are not following through on a particular thing we need consistency in. That was my apology in case you do not recognize it. I have been living on Romans 8:28 for the last month or so. It says "That's why we can be sure that every detail of our lives works for good to those who love God and are used in His purposes." I believe God is doing things we don't see or understand (He has been for all time but I'm recognizing it more now) that will be made evident in the future (maybe even near future). Hard times make it difficult to see "what God is doing". During hard times we focus on our circumstances, tend to go over and over the "trouble" and stop looking up for God. If we are not looking for God's provision we are likely going to miss it and never even know it was there. Let me challenge you to keep looking for the Lord in the middle of your "hard times". Times can change in less than one day. You can go from "prison to the palace (Joseph, Genesis 38-50) in one day. If you keep looking for the Lord, you will find HIm. I will look for you in a few days!

Picking Back Up

I don't know what has happened for the last few weeks. I have not had any desire, time, umpth, motivation or discipline to write. Problem is writing keeps me connected in a way that is helpful for me. If you have had any lapses in any area of discipline lately, I urge you to join me and get started again. It probably won't happen because you feel some big inspiration but if you will take the first step, the second one will be easier. You may not do your best ever but you can create some momentum and we know once we have that working for us we can get our jobs done way easier. Do a quick survey of the important things in your life. Are you reading your Bible daily? Are you spending quiet time with the Lord listening for His guidance instead of dumping your "to do" list on Him? Are you getting enough rest? Are you spending quality time with your family? The list goes on but you get the idea. If you fall short in any of these areas or ones that are important to you, give yourself a deadline to get them going again. A reasonable time like hours or days not weeks or months. If you pass your deadline without making any progress, ask someone to be an accountability partner to check on you for awhile until your new beginnings become habits that you accomplish regularly. For now, you are my partner, you will know shortly if I am back on track with keeping up with my blog. Get started today, I'll talk to you again in a day or so!

Enjoy Today's Victories!

My "to do" list is 2 slots shorter for the moment. It feels good to get some things marked off before a dozen try to fill the slots. For perspective, the things still on my list scream "what about me" pushing to get their turn and have the potential to steal the feeling of accomplishment for getting some big things checked off. I believe we experience the same kinds of feelings when we get some really big answers to prayer. We enjoy the answers for a short time only to begin focusing on "what's let to pray about". Philippians 4:8 says we are to control what we think about. It says "think on things that are good, honest, right, pure, lovely and a good report". Colossians 3 says to "think on things above not only on things below". II Corinthians 10 says to "take your thoughts captive" meaning don't just see the glass half empty, make sure you see the glass half full too. There is a natural "tendency" to see things that need to be done instead of the things that have already been done for many people. For those people they spend more time stressing about the "to do list" than rejoicing over their "just got done list". A wise saying is "make sure to enjoy every single victory". A victory may mean getting something checked off the to do list, losing a few pounds on your diet, learning a new Bible verse, being more attentive to your spouse and kids, going all day without losing your temper, etc. I just remind us all to make sure to enjoy the pleasant moments; don't loose the value of things accomolished because of things waiting to have their turn.

Completion

It's nice to set a goal and keep working until it is complete. If the goal is significant, you will be tempted to quit a number of different times before it is completed whether it is losing weight, adding on to your home or reading the Bible in a year (or a million other things.) A key to accomplishing your goal is to be realistic in setting your completion date and being honest about your ability to pull it off. Losing 20 pounds in a month is not going to happen. Adding a room or building a deck on your home can only be as good as the person who builds it has skill. If you have never done anything like that, know going in to it "this is never going to be perfect". There will be obvious flaws but I am not going to keep focusing on the flaws at least, YOU WILL HAVE A DECK or whatever your project is. If you continually criticize your work, you won't enjoy doing it and you won't enjoy the end result. If you will be honest and begin the project with realistic expectations, the whole thing can be rewarding and enjoyable. Philippians 1:6 says "He who began working on you (God) will keep at it until you die"; in other words God is not going to have a "perfect you" until you get to Heaven so relax and enjoy the life He has given you to live, knowing you are never going to be perfect while you are here on earth. If God can enjoy you without your perfection the least we can do is join Him in accepting the truth, He is going to keep working on us and encouraging us to not give up until we see Him face to face!

Are you liviing on fumes?

I have had a great 3 or 4 months with the Lord. I don't know what changed, I just have begun to sense His presence more in everyday things and it has been wonderful. I wish there was a way to guarantee these times but the truth is there is not. Anyone who tells you there is does not tell the complete truth. Sure God never leaves us, maybe I am just expressing what I am feeling in a poor way but what I am trying to say is "something has gotten better, significantly better" and it would be nice to never loose "this feeling". The truth is everyone goes through times of wilderness, some of these times last for years (study Moses' life, Joseph's life, King David's life, Apostle Paul's life). I want to remind us that just because we may be walking in the wilderness does not mean we are out of God's will. There certainly are times when we put ourselves in the wilderness because of disobedience or stubbornness, but the enemy tries to convince us that if you are in the wilderness, it is always your fault. Again, if we know the Bible we know that Jesus was specifically led into the wilderness by the Spirit of God (Matthew 4:1). The best thing we can do in our walk with God is prepare the same way whether we are in "good times" or the "tough times". This process requires discipline. It means we will not let our emotions control us or dictate our actions. I hope your are enjoying a time of "blessing with God", if you are enjoy it. If you feel like you are on the back side of the desert, forgotten by God hold on, likely God is preparing you for the project He has been preparing to lead you in to. When He does come and get you, you will probably resist His prompting to go forward (just like Moses did) because what He has been planning for you will blow your mind. You are not forgotten and you will not continue without being used in His great plan!

Are you Happy?

What does it take to make you happy? If you are happy, how long have you been? If you are not happy, how long has it been since you were? Do you believe that if you were somewhere else you would be happy? Are you buying in to the lie that "if only things were different" you would be happy? More money? Different spouse? Different Job? Everything that could be had was had by a man who lived before us. His name was Solomon. He literally had people from all over the world coming to see what he had created and how rich he was. At the end of his life he said "nothing on this earth can make me happy; All I have worked for my entire life just brings me emptiness." If Solomon could say that having owned everything he did, still left him with an empty feeling, I challenge you to make a decision to put your trust in God, believe His word that says in His presence is the fullness of joy and at His right hand are pleasures forever. The Bible says if we meditate on God's Word and do what it says, we will be successful and full of joy! (Joshua 1:8) Don't think that there is always something else you need before you can be happy. God is more than enough in everything we dream about. If what you are dreaming about making you happy does not have God at the top of the list, you will never be truly happy. Happiness with contentment is great gain, the Apostle Paul said. Make it a part of your daily plan, living God's Word and discover what true happiness really is!

Comparisons

Comparisons can produce a lot of bad things. Notice we usually stay off balance with them. If you are prone to success, you compare your successes with others but if you are a negative person, you compare yourself and find a way to see "others as better than you". The only comparison that is good for a Christian is to use the Word of God as the "norm'. It never changes and even though parts of it are over 4,000 years old it is still timely and relevant for today. God has a different plan for every human. Only He knows how and when it will work out; the best way to walk in His peace is to trust His will for your life and not allow human logic or intellect to "measure up" at any given moment. Things can literally change in one second. If a person is being diagnosed for a cough and the doctor says I have bad news, you have cancer and in 3 months your life will be over. I recently heard of a woman who had a minor cough and was dead in 3 weeks because of a fast growing disease. She was not aware of her decline in health because she was very active. The owner of a small company gets a call from the "big company" with an amazing offer to buy them out and becomes a millionaire many times over. Ask God to lead you on a daily basis. Read His word and capture your thoughts. If they do not line up with what He says about you DO NOT LET THE THOUGHT REMAIN! Wash your mind with God's promises of grace and a future full of hope and provision. You may not get everything you are hoping for but you will walk in His peace if you capture the comparisons that lead to prideful thinking or defeated lifestyle. If God is for us who can be against us!

Gone

More than half of 2011 is gone. Have you accomplished what you imagined you would in the first half of this year. If you have, congratulations, if you have not, what are you going to do to catch up and finish the year with goals met. One of the reasons things are not complete is because there is not a plan to follow. Sure there are unexpected things that pop up but truth is, that must be a part of every plan. In other words, we need to save time for unexpected interruptions. A Scripture that gives us guidance is Habakkuk 2:2. It says, "Write out your plans. Make them plain so that everyone who reads them will know exactly what they are. Even though they take longer than expected to come to pass, they will." Do you have a plan? Is it written? Do others know what it is? Do they understand it? We all know breaking one of the 10 commandments is bad. So is not obeying this command in Habakkuk! Don't keep trying to take shortcuts, they never work out for good. If it seems they do, they produce an attitude that we don't have to play by the rules like everyone else does. Before July is gone, I urge you to take this seriously; get your plans written out and understandable. We have not guarantees about tomorrow, work while there is still time. Make it easy for people to help you accomplish God's goals for you.