Ten Key Moves – Peace and Organization

It has been over three months since I have written about one of my Ten Key Moves.  I’ll attempt to give a little update on my first five.  I’m not doing as well on “The Notebook” as I would like.  I got it started, but have not been diligent in adding to it.  Even with that, I believe I have been trying harder to be a student of my wife.  She is an awesome woman, and I want to do my part in making our marriage stronger.  We will be going to a Love and Respect marriage conference this weekend, which was one of my goals under this key move.  We are looking forward to it.  It is better to do maintenance along the way than an overhaul later.  As for the budget, it is going really well.  Things are still tight, but I’m seeing the fruit of putting back money for future expenses.  My wife is doing a great job of cutting expenses where she can.  Just this past month, she cut our grocery / household budget by $100.  Being on a budget has really helped with my whole peace of mind.  As for being intentional in spending time with my children, I am still not where I want to be.  I am trying to take more opportunities to spend time with my them, but I still want to do more one-on-one time.  I’m hoping this key move that I’m writing about today will help with this one.  Next, I feel like God is helping me to discover my gifting and allowing me to serve in areas where I can really make a difference.  I did not feel that I was gifted in the area of children’s ministry, and God made a way for me to hand those duties off to someone much more capable and begin to do some other things in the area of family ministry.  I am also teaching a class on spiritual disciplines, which is really exciting.  Lastly, back in June, I wrote that I would seek out a spiritual mentor.  After prayer and fasting, God has led me to ask a man named Dean Trune to do this.  He has agreed, and our first meeting will take place by phone tomorrow.  He is the Executive Director of Impact Ministries.  I have incredible respect for him because I see the fruit in his life that comes from his walk with God.  I believe God will use him to prune me toward more and lasting fruit.

The sixth key move is stated like this, “I will strive to move toward peace and organization in my life rather than chaos and busyness.  As part of this, I will take a spiritual retreat day once per month.”  From my personality tests (and from knowing myself), it is evident that I get my energy from times of solitude.  I enjoy peace and quiet.   Give me the quiet country over the busy city anyday!  I especially enjoy my early morning times with God.  If I have my choice, I spend time with God outdoors.  Of course, if really given the choice, it would be in the mountains next to a stream…  I do not thrive in chaos.  I can’t stand not being able to find things and being disorganized.  Somehow, though, in all of the busyness of life, I now find myself in this position.  Clutter, clutter, clutter…  We even bought a book about reducing clutter once, but it’s at the bottom of a stack somewhere…  One of the things that kills me the most is that it’s rubbing off on our children.  I can’t, with a clear conscience, tell them to clean their room when I haven’t taken care of mine.  When I was in high school, my room was impecable.  I cleaned and organized regularly.  In college, my dorm room was the same way.  However, life got really busy, and I didn’t keep up.  

Almost two weeks ago I couldn’t sleep and so I got up about 1:30 a.m. to spend time with God.  As I prayed, I was prompted to look at my “listening journal.”  As I looked back over the year and what God has been teaching me, there is one key theme that has stuck out all year.  It began on January 4, and has continued to today, and that is the theme of peace and organization over chaos and busyness.  God keeps reminding me as I read His Word and as I look around that His way is that of peace and order.  I don’t think He intended for us to go through life 100 mph getting worn out and burned out with no time to take care of the important things.  I also realize that with four children under the age of 10, life is going to be busy.  However, I believe we can find a balance if we are disciplined and purposeful.  

This will definitely be a process, and I’m not going to be so naive as to believe that it will change overnight.  I do believe it will change, though, with God’s help.

May God give you peace and order in your life as you seek Him!

Intimacy

Hmmm…  I wonder how many hits I will get with a title like that.   Our society has taken this word and really twisted it.

No worries, this is G-rated.  I am teaching a spiritual growth class on Wednesday nights.  Last night, I taught a spiritual journaling method used by Dean Trune, that I also use.  He says, and I agree, that it’s not about the method but about deepening our intimacy with God.  This isn’t about keeping a diary but about recording moments with God.  I looked up the word “intimacy” in the Webster’s online dictionary and it said, “1a.  Intrinsic, essential, b. belonging to or characterizing one’s deepest nature. 2.  marked by very close association, contact, or familiarity. 3. a. marked by a warm friendship developing through long association b. suggesting informal warmth or privacy. 4.  of a very personal or private nature.”  I want a relationship like this with God.  I want to abide in Him where my deepest nature is characterized by my relationship with Him.  I want a friendship with God that develops through long association.  I want to pursue God in my private life, not just corporately.  Dean teaches that we must teach people to pursue God in their private lives so they will produce fruit in their public lives.  It doesn’t work the other way around.  Often we try to pursue ministry or activity to try to “please God.”  However, we please God by abiding in Him and having an intimate relationship with Him where we come to know Him more and more.  THEN, we will know what He wants us to do and will have the faith to step out in obedience.  THEN, the fruit produced will be abundant and long lasting.  I heard a quote within the last week that went something like this, “Activity does not produce intimacy.”  Wow, how true that is!!  When we are so busy with activities, our relationship with God and people can suffer.  When we are too busy to stop and spend time with God, pursuing Him through prayer and spending time in His Word, we lose intimacy with Him.  If we are too busy with activities, we lose intimacy in our families.  Where did we ever start thinking we needed to fill every moment of the calendar with activity?  God does not call us to activity, but to intimacy.  Yes, sometimes, activity can be a result of what God has called us to do, but when God calls us to it, there will be balance.  I believe overcrowded schedules, full of activity, are ruining intimacy between people and God, between husbands and wives, between parents and children, and between friends.  Tell me this, where would intimacy grow most:  saying a quick, “Oh God be with me today” prayer as we walk out the door or sitting down with God to pray before everyone wakes up and before the day gets underway?  How about this scenario:  taking our child to (yet another) sporting event and cheering from the sidelines or taking the same child out in the backyard and throwing the ball or taking them on a walk where they could talk?  One more:  In the mini-van cramming down another Big Mac on the way to another activity or having a backyard bbq with your family and maybe inviting an elderly neighbor?  Seems like a no brainer, right?  Well, we often don’t go against our culture.  Instead, we get caught up in the tide and let it take us down the river of destruction.  I understand that team sports and other activities have their place, and I’m not promoting that we cut every activity from the schedule.  However, I also have to keep in mind that I’m not primarily raising basketball players, gymnasts, or pianists.  I’m raising the next generation of moms and dads.  They need to know how to have close, intimate relationships with their spouses and children, and in our society, that goes against the grain.  Jesus said to abide in Him.  God said to be still and know that He is God.  Those are times when intimacy flourishes…

May I also recommend Kevin Lehman’s book:  Homecourt Advantage

Psalm 42:1 – As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, Oh God!!

May you draw near to God today and grow in intimacy with Him.

Perseverance, Persistance, and Worship

We talked about yet another hero of the Bible yesterday and today in chapel.  I think I’m learning as much, if not more, than the students through this study.  We already know of Jacob’s faults, and often bring those out.  However, I want to talk about his positive points, those gold medal qualities that we’ve been focusing on.  I believe persistance and perseverance were two of his top qualities.  He had to run from his brother, who was trying to kill him, leaving his parents behind.  He went to back to his family’s land of origin and found a wife, but here is a summary of how that turned out:  In Genesis 31:38-42, Jacob tells his uncle Laban, “I have been with you for twenty years now.  Your sheep and goats have not miscarried, nor have I eaten rams from your flocks.  I did not bring you animals torn by wild beasts; I bore the loss myself.  And you demanded payment from me for whatever was stolen by day and night.  This was my situation:  The heat consumed me in the daytime and the cold at night, and sleep fled from my eyes.  It was like this for the twenty years I was in your household.  I worked for you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flocks, and you changed my wages ten times.  If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would surely have sent me away empty-handed.  But God has seen my hardship and the toil of my hands, and last night he rebuked you.”  This is incredible perseverance under adverse conditions. 

Then, later, he “wrestles with God.”  The Bible says he wrestled with a man until daybreak.  When the man saw that he couldn’t overpower him, he touched the socket of his hip and wrenched it.  After telling Jacob to let him go, Jacob responded, “I will not let you go until you bless me.”  At that, the man changed Jacob’s name to Israel, because he had “struggled with God and with men and had overcome.”  Then, he blessed him.  He received the blessing because of his persistance.  It is clear in God’s Word that we are to pray continually.  It is also clear that we are to be persistent, not giving up.  This should be encouragement that our prayers do make a difference.  I could go on and on about prayer, but that is not in the scope of this post.

Anyway, Jacob, later in life told Pharoah that he had had an unpleasant life.  When we go back and read all that he went through, he truly had a tough life.  On top of the things we already talked about, his wife Rachel was barren at first and later died during childbirth, his daughter was violated, two of his sons plotted and murdered all the males in a town for revenge, his sons plotted against his favorite son, Joseph and sold him into slavery, telling their father he had died, and later he suffered through a famine.  Yet, he persevered and persisted because he believed God.  The writer of Hebrews says, “By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.  Even as he faced death and looked back on the hardships, he had faith in the future because of God’s promises and so he WORSHIPED!  That gives me chills.  No matter what we are going through or what is happening in our lives, we are called to persevere.  James tells us that the testing of our faith develops perseverance and that perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

I would like to stop for a minute to give a personal illustration about persistance.  Last night, I laid beside my son to “help him” go to sleep.  I gave him a drink before we went to his room.  We turned on his cd player and his fan and turned off the lights.  We laid down, and immediately he said, “I want a drink.”  I said, “You already had a drink.”  He said once again as if he didn’t hear me, “I want a drink.”  I said, “you already had a drink.”  “I want a drink, please.”  “You already had a drink.  Go to sleep.”  “I want a drink, PLEEEEEEEEEASE!”  “You already had a drink.  Go to sleep.”  “I want a…You already had a drink.”  “I want…You already had one.”  Then, he thought it was funny that I was saying it before he could get it all out.  So, it became a game.  He then got on top of me, in my face, and would attempt to say it before I could say, “You already had one.”  We were laughing and wrestling around on the bed for a minute.  We were rolling this way and that trying to say “our lines” first and I was tickling him.  I finally had to get a little firm and told him to go to sleep and I rolled over and ignored him.  He said it several more times, but I somehow dozed off through it.  Literally, an hour after I had come into the room with him, I woke up with him in my face saying, “I want a drink.”  ARGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!  The boy won’t stop!!  So what happened?  We got up and got him a drink and while I was talking to my wife for a minute, he snuck off to play trucks.  I picked him up, took him back to the bedroom and laid him down.  Much to my chagrine, he said, “I want a drink.”  I had to be very firm this time.  He realized I meant business and he soon fell asleep.  To me, it was like Jacob wrestling with God, not letting Him go until God had blessed him.  Of course, I’m NOT God and I didn’t wrench my son’s hip, but his persistance resulted in the blessing he was looking for…a drink of water.  Not a perfect illustration, and some might argue that I should not have relented, but that’s what happened.  Even the Bible says that God changed His mind…

Whatever you are going through right now in your life, remember God’s promises.  Take encouragement from Jacob:  Persist, persevere, and most of all continue to worship.

May God bless you as you seek Him today!

The Greatest Compliment

I don’t have much time to blog because I’m on my way to Wings of Love, but I have to share this story.  This was my first day to substitute teach, and it was not without it’s challenges.  My prayer this morning was that God would help me to encourage someone today and that I would find someone to be praying for.  God blew me away with His love because out of the challenges came one of the greatest compliments I have ever received.  One of the girls in the class listed out all of the initials of the stuff she’s been diagnosed with that keeps her from focusing on her work.  I was trying to encourage her to keep trying.  One of the boys said he was just dumb and I told him it wasn’t true.  Anyway, as I walked by the girl’s desk that I mentioned, she asked, “Are you a Christian?  Because you talk like a Christian?”  Wow, I wanted to jump up and down and scream YES!!  I kneeled down by her desk and said, “Yes I am.”  To that she said, “Me, too, but I don’t get to go to church except with my Grandma in another town.  I just worship at home with my mom and sister.”  She is the one God wants me to pray for.  She made it a point to tell me her first and last name, while I only remember first names of the others.  While I will pray for some of the others, too, she will go on my long term prayer list.  God is good.  I can shine the light of Jesus in everyday life.  I didn’t even have to say the words ”God” or “Jesus” and someone still noticed.  I hung onto that moment for the rest of the day!  At the end of the day, one of the boys who had been trying to pick fights with others gave me a big bear hug before leaving.  There is no telling what all is going on in the lives of these young people.  I just pray that I will be salt and light, as Jesus has called me to be.

May the love of Jesus shine through you!

Laughter

I really don’t have time to blog today.  I have to finalize everything for my class that I’m teaching beginning tomorrow night (which I am very excited about because it is on the subject of spiritual growth), and I have a camp board meeting tonight that will take me away from 4:00 until late.  But, I’ll make this one short.

In chapel this morning, we talked about what made Sarah a Bible “gold medalist”.  One of the things that really stood out about Sarah was her laughter.  She was not only beautiful on the inside and out (I Peter 3:3-6), but she was joyful.  I think sometimes, we forget that the Christian life is to be full of joy.  It’s okay to laugh; yes, even in the sanctuary when the preacher tells a joke…   I don’t mean that life is all fun and games and that life is all about entertainment.  I mean we should be joyful in the fact that Christ is in our lives.  God has given us so many things for our enjoyment.  We really need to laugh more.  I’ve even read studies that say that laughter is good for our health.  Like I said, I don’t have time to research all that right now, but I know I feel better when I laugh.  Therefore, I’m going to give you a few things to laugh about this morning.

First of all, last night, my youngest daughter (who has enough energy to power a small third world country), was jumping around swinging her arms saying over and over, “Oh, baby, I do karate.”  No, she really doesn’t, but that’s not the point.  Her eyes were dancing and she was having a blast.  So….  our son comes along and he starts jumping around swinging his arms saying over and over, “Oh, baby, I go potty…”  We were all rolling over that one.

Then, this morning, when I was finished speaking at chapel I asked if anyone had any questions.  One of the little first grade boys raised his hand and asked very innocently, “Did they wear underwear in Bible times??”  I lost control of the group for just a few minutes, including the teachers.  It was not quite as bad as the time I said, Cain’s offering was not as good as Abel’s, BUT…  I hung onto the “but” too long for emphasis before I was about to say ”but God would have given him a chance to give a better offering from the heart if he would have chosen that path.”  Anyway, all they heard was the last two words above and began to giggle and then laugh, and all control was lost.

May God bring you joy and an opportunity to laugh today!

Reflections From “The Fair”

Yesterday was the last day of the Kansas State Fair.  Our family enjoys the fair each year.  We usually set aside one day to see the exhibits and the animals and one day to do the rides.  This year was a little tricky because of all the rain, but it all worked out.  Having a degree in animal science, I especially enjoy going through the barns, telling my children about the different breeds of animals, etc…  My son really enjoys when we make animal sounds together.  I’ve been told I can make a life-like “moo.”  Must come from spending so much time around cattle in college.  One of our family favorites in the past has been the “birthing center,” although this year they only had one cow.  It was very disappointing, as they usually have 4 or 5 dairy cows and about the same number of sows.  My children have enjoyed petting the piglets and calves in the past, but didn’t get to do that this year.  The petting zoo made up for it though, as they got to pet and feed a zebra, camel, deer, giraffe, etc…  My personal favorite is seeing the Watusi cattle.  I’m just amazed at their huge horns.  I even talked to one of the breeders for a few minutes and felt led to ask him if I could be praying about anything for him.  He’ll be traveling a lot, so he asked for prayers about that.  Anyway, as far as I’m concerned, you can keep the “Midway” and all the rip off games, crowds, high priced junk food, and rides that make me sick.  I’ll stick to the country side of the fair.  Boots, Wranglers, men whose handshake is like gripping a brick covered in leather, big trucks, animal smells, stepping in “stuff”- there’s just nothing like it.   Of course, in saying that, I’ll have to say that one of my fair highlights this year was when my oldest daughter gave up the chance of riding another ride by herself in order for us to ride one together.  She only had two tickets left, and she asked me to ride one with her.  We rode ”The Blizzard,” which I was more familiar with being called the “Himalaya.”  Anyway, it goes around and around up and down really fast forwards then backwards to the sound of loud music.  Just to get her to laughing, I was putting my hands up in the air, yelling “WHOOOO” and basically acting like a goof.  It will make for good memories…   

On another note, my wife and I had talked about seeing if we could work at the fair to help make a little extra money, but didn’t pursue it.  Well, on Tuesday I got a call from a friend who had a friend who had a friend…  To make a long story short, we were offered the opportunity to work for one of the vendors.  My prayer was that it would not just be about making extra money, but that we would be able to encourage someone through it.  Not only did God bless us with the opportunity to work with a really nice Christian couple, but I met their son who trains leaders in the U.S. and in foreign countries in youth ministry.  I encouraged him by adding him to my regular weekly prayer list.  I also worked the first day with a single mom and was able to share with her about our ministry.  God is so good.  We ended up making enough to cover our September budget, and met some great people while doing it.

I worked from 3:00 to 11:00 p.m. on Saturday.  Let me just say that I’m fascinated with “people watching.”  I especially enjoy observing how parents interact with their children and how couples interact.  At the fair, there are so many different people from all walks of life.  For instance, there was the “filthy rich guy” who wouldn’t spring the extra couple of bucks for a lemonade (according to the owner), and then there was the guy who came back twice to buy pretzels and cheese for his two daughters.  When he was there the second time, I heard one of his daughters say, “Daddy, can you help me…”  To my utter dismay and disgust, he looked at her and said, “Where were you when I needed help in ‘nam?”  Seriously???  The little girl was probably 6 years old and had no clue what he was saying, just that it was mean spirited and she didn’t get the help she was asking for.  I won’t tell you the fleshly thoughts that went through my mind about what I would like to do to him, but it had to do with his head and the cast iron sandwich grill sitting next to me.  Forgive me, I was raised around good ol’ country justice…  I have since said a prayer that God would forgive me for my attitude toward him and that he would send someone into this man’s life who can mentor him.  Then, there was the boy who accidently backed up and stepped on his dad’s toe.  His dad lashed out at him, and while I couldn’t hear what he was saying, the boy’s face told the story.  He looked beaten down and belittled, and I could tell this wasn’t the first time.  Of course, on the other side of the spectrum, you could tell the children who got everything they wanted and didn’t have to do anything themselves, which isn’t healthy, either.  I saw lots of young men (dare I use that word??) who had no clue how to love and respect the young ladies (dare I use that word, too??) they were with.  I could see in their eyes and by their actions what was on their mind, and it wasn’t valuing their date.  It didn’t help that their dates were wearing next to nothing in many cases.  On both sides, I believe it’s another tragic result of the lack of godly fathering or quite possibly no fathering at all:  boys who haven’t been taught by their fathers how to treat a lady and girls who will do anything for attention.  Believe me, I’ve been there.  When my wife and I first started dating, I didn’t have a clue, either.  I often pray for my children’s future spouses because they are hopefully in training right now, and although I don’t know them, I believe God does.  I did see couples and families who seemed to be happy to be together.  In fact, I saw an older couple who looked to be as much in love today as ever.  I love to see that.  Makes me want to follow them around and learn, maybe even ask them for an interview.  I’m glad that my wife is my best friend and that we enjoy being together.  In fact, she sent me an email earlier today that said “Thanks for being my best friend.”  You don’t know what that does to my heart to hear her say that.  I once had a wise math teacher in seventh grade who said his wife enjoyed when he told her that he loved her, but REALLY appreciated when he said, “I like you.”  Well, you can see how long that has stuck with me.  And, while I don’t get it right all the time and I say or do things that I later regret, especially with my children, I’m thankful to God for His amazing grace in our weaknesses.  I want to do better at being a student of my wife and my children so I will know how to love them better.  I will put forth my honest effort, and have faith that God will bless it when I am putting Him first.  I’m thankful that Jesus is at the center of our marriage and our home.

May God bless your family today!

Little Eyes Are On Me

I never knew how different it would be to have a son.  I was perfectly content with our three daughters.  Then, God surprised us with a son, and our world was forever changed.  I have always enjoyed spending time with my daughters and doing things with them, but I don’t recall them trying to do everything that I do.  Sure, they like to help out and use tools and stuff sometimes, but my son takes it to a new level.  If I have a hammer, he wants to have a hammer.  If I’m mowing, he gets his little mower and pushes it all over the yard, even dumping his imaginary grass catcher and putting in imaginary gasoline when I’m doing it for real.  If I stand a certain way, it is hilarious to see him trying to stand the same way.  Last night, I was on the roof cleaning gutters and making a few minor repairs, and he wanted so bad to be with me.  He kept trying to carry on a conversation with me from the ground.  The State Fair is in town, so he kept talking about the rides that he rode on Monday night.  He was saying things like, “Daddy do you want to ride the trucks?”; “Daddy do you want to ride the motorcycles?”; “Daddy do you want to ride the ’jungle’ bees?”  Yes, the jungle bees, aka bumble bees.   I got such a kick out of that one.   Anyway, it is like he is studying me, so he can be just like me, and that, folks, is a sobering thought.  It encourages me even more to be a student of my Heavenly Father.  I want to be like Jesus, so that my son (and daughters and wife and anyone else who God gives me to disciple) will grow to become like Him.  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to be God, just godly.  I have to do more than just teach with words; I have to live it out in my daily life.  I purpose to pursue God with reckless abandon so I will not lead anyone astray who is following me, including my one and only son…  I have heard, and I believe it’s true, that we, at least initially, see God the way we see our earthly father.  Yes, as we grow spiritually, we learn to see God in a much different light.  However, the way our children view God initially will be directly related to the picture we paint for them by the way we live our lives.  Uh oh!  Some days, I don’t even want to be like me.  Where would we be without God’s grace?  I shudder to think…

With all this in mind, I have sought out a man to be my spiritual mentor.  Once the details are worked out, I will probably talk about it more.  Let me just say that I don’t want someone who will make me feel warm and fuzzy.  I want someone who do whatever it takes to teach me and help me grow.

Here is a link to a video that I saw this morning:  http://www.allprodad.com/playbook/viewarticle.php?art=361.  The words are few, but the actions tell the whole story of the impact a father has on his children.  Make it a point on this Patriot Day, whether you support the war or not, to pray for those in harms way and for their families back home.  Most of us really can’t comprehend this kind of sacrifice.

May you grow in your walk with God today, so you can help others to grow!

The Body

Several years ago I learned a journaling method from Dean Trune that has stuck with me.  Basically, I have a spiritual journal that is made up of several other journals.  One of those is my daily journal.  As a part of my daily journal, I read a small part of Scripture each day and write down 4 or 5 things from that passage that really stood out to me.  The next day, I ask myself the question, “What was applicable in what I read from God’s Word yesterday.”  Very often, I read something in God’s Word in the morning and find it to be very significant at some point during the day.  I have been spending time in 1 Corinthians, as I think I have mentioned before.  Yesterday morning, I was reading in Chapter 12.  A couple of things really “stood out” to me.  First of all, we as a church are a body of believers that God has brought together for His purpose.  Each of us has unique gifts, and some are more “public” than others.  However, every gift is needed in order for the body to function properly and in unity.  Secondly, verse 26 really stood out to me.  It says, “If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.”   If you read my post entitled “Prayer Ride” you might remember that this verse stood out to me that day, too.  That was the day I read all of 1 Corinthians at my stops during a prayer ride on my bike.  Anyway, during church yesterday, I realized why these things were important in my study time.  I am teaching a “get to know our church” kind of a class called Connecting 101.  We talk about the beliefs of the church, membership, etc…  So, the part I studied about us being a body was significant to reiterate that we exist for God’s pleasure and we operate most efficiently when we are all using our gifts.  I had only one person in my class, but I believe God really blessed our time.  She is a single mom (if you are new to my blog -  ministry to single parent families is my life mission), who has suffered through a divorce fairly recently.  I felt my heart going out to her and her children, which I believe is part of ”when one suffers, we all suffer.”  At the same time, last week she received a real blessing from a member of our church, and I got to “rejoice with her when she rejoiced.”  I think we as Christians are supposed to share life together.  We need each other in good times and in bad.  Then, during the service, I had a sobering experience.  My wife and I were behind a couple who are going through a heartwrenching ordeal.  During part of the worship service, she began to weep, and knowing why, I felt a lump coming into my throat.  I couldn’t even sing.  All through the day, I thought about them often and would feel myself getting a little choked up.  I prayed for God’s mercy on them.  Once again, God brought it home to me that when one part suffers, we all suffer.  I am praying that God will show us how to reach out more, not just ignore them because we “don’t know what to say.”  We were created for relationships.  Our most important relationship is that with Jesus Christ.  Then, secondly with other people.  Ministry is about people, not programs.

May God bless you with people to suffer AND rejoice with!!

Fitness and Focus

I haven’t ridden my bike in about two weeks.  Since school started, I’m not riding to the office every day like I was, and our evenings and weekends have been busy.  Last Thursday (the one day I can ride to the office), my back was hurting from working on the deck, so I wimped out and drove the truck.  I didn’t even go on a prayer ride last week.  Well, I decided to ride this morning.  It’s a lot different now that school is in session.  I have to include school buses in the hazards to watch out for.  It is amazing how it took me all summer to really get in shape and only two weeks to get out of it.  Let me tell you, I was sucking wind this morning (and a pretty cool wind at that – it was 51 degrees on my ride in).  I had told myself when I got in shape, I was going to maintain it, but I let busyness and circumstances get in the way of exercise.

I think it’s that way with our spiritual lives, as well.  In order to grow spiritually, we must daily walk with God.  We need to be consistent, not sporadic.  We can’t let busyness and the stuff that life throws at us get in the way of our relationship with God.  I have found that when I am consistent in my walk with God, I am able to listen to Him much better.  I begin to see patterns of what He is teaching me.  When I constantly abide in Him, my faith is stronger and I am more ready and willing to obey whatever the Lord wants me to do.  In fact, when I am walking with God, I remain spiritually fit and ready for action at any time.  I find that my focus and purpose are much clearer, and generally other things in my life begin to fall in place better.  As a comparison, when I was riding my bike everyday, it didn’t kill me the day I rode 19 miles, instead of my regular 7.  My daily exercising had prepared me to be able to stand up to the challenge.  In addition, when I left my career in the meat industry to accept the calling into the ministry, I was spiritually fit to make that decision and I didn’t think twice.  On the other hand, when I am sporadic and inconsistent in spending time with God, I’m not in the proper spiritual shape to listen, much less obey.  In these times, I really don’t give God a chance to build my faith and work through me.  I begin to try to do things in my own “power,” which is so insufficient.  I also get frustrated because I begin to get in a rut or get sidetracked, and things don’t work out like I think they ought.  In fact, my whole life seems to be in chaos at times like that.  In comparison, with my ride this morning, I was not ready for my daily ride, much less any greater challenge that may have presented itself.  I have not been consistent in my physical exercise, so it was frustrating and disheartening.  I must be disciplined and ready for whatever God has for me.

Lately, in my time with God, He seems to be teaching me on the topic of focus and consistency.  I tend to get too many irons in the fire and am not able to get to all of them.  By the way, I just looked online for the exact meaning of that phrase and found two great articles:  http://ezinearticles.com/?Too-Many-Irons-In-The-Fire&id=415086 and http://www.mackarrington.com/articles/TooManyIrons.pdf.  Wow, it really gives me more to think about.  Yes, this is what God is teaching me…  As I think about this, one of the passages that has impacted me recently really ties in the concept of spiritual fitness with focus.  I Cor. 9:24-27 – “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize?  Run in such a way as to get the prize.  Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.  They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.  Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air.  No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”  God wants us to live on purpose, not aimlessly.  I read a quote by Elbert Hubbard yesterday that also fits, “Know what you want to do, hold the thought firmly, and do everyday what should be done, and every sunset will see you that much nearer the goal.”  I would change it to say, “Know what God wants you to do…”  I also received a devotional from a friend last week who said that she was sending it to another friend and God put it on her heart to send it to me, too…  Now I see why.  It’s all coming together.  See below.

Redeeming the Time ~ by Henry T Blackaby & Richard Blackaby
(Experiencing God Day by Day Devotional)
 
Ephesians 5:15-16 ~ See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
 
These days we are bombarded with opportunities that entice us to invest our time and energy. Each day the voices of urgency cry out for every available moment. So many causes promise that time spent on them will reap great rewards; how can we recognize God’s voice among so many competing voices?
 
A fool makes unwise choices with his time. With every new opportunity that comes along, the fool chases off in a different direction, not questioning whether that is the best choice. The loudest voice gains his attention. At some point the fool discovers to his dismay that he has squandered the investment of his time.
 
The days in which you live are evil. Marriages are under tremendous pressure; families are disintegrating. Multitudes are dying each year without hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ. Investing your life wisely is critical to you and to those around you. Foolishly spending your time in sinful or wasteful pursuits rob your time. Rather, the temptation is to sacrifice what is best for what is good. The enemy knows that blatantly tempting you with evil will be obvious, so he will lure you with distractions, to so fill your schedule with good things that you have no time for God’s best. You may inadvertently substitute religious activity for God’s will, pursuing your own goals for God’s kingdom instead of waiting for His assignment. Time is a precious commodity. Be sure to invest it wisely.

I have quoted it many times, but I’ll do it again (for my own benefit as well as your’s) –  John 15:5 says, “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”

One final thought.  I learned from Dean Trune that we often focus on the urgent things in our life, and rarely do we consider spending time with God as urgent.  Therefore, we have to be intentional in setting aside that time because it is too easy to let the urgent override the critical.

Wow, I was just going to write a short post about my bike ride this morning and compare it to spiritual fitness, but it just kept flowing.  Thanks for reading about what God is teaching me.  I hope you find encouragement in it today!

May God bless you as you abide in Him!

Fireproof Your Marriage

I just learned of a new movie coming out September 26 from the creators of Facing the Giants.  It is called Fireproof, and is centered around saving a marriage.  I just watched the trailer and can’t wait to see the movie.  Here is a link, if you would like to see the trailer:

http://www.fireproofthemovie.com/main.php

In a day and age where marriages are under fire everywhere we look, I am happy to try to promote something like this.

Also, while I’m at it, for you ”locals,” there is a Love and Respect conference that will be held in Wichita at Central Community Church on October 3 and 4.  In fact, the lady who brought the promotional materials to us yesterday also donated a copy of Love and Respect for our church library.  I would highly recommend this book and conference for all couples.  Here is the website for more information on registration:

http://www.centralcommunity.org/loveandrespect

If you want more information on Dr. Emerson Eggerichs and his Love and Respect Ministries, go to http://www.loveandrespect.com or click on the link located on my blog homepage under “Marriage”.

May God bless your marriage!