"Delight In You"

A song came to my mind this morning as I sat down with my guitar and started playing a few chords. It was meaningful because as I played the song, I began to sing inspired words from my heart about our journey over the last few years as my family and I have walked through ministry. I want to share those words with you now.

"A thousand miles, feels like I've been walking

 A thousand more, I will walk for You, Lord

 Even when the darkness seems to fall

 I will lift my eyes and look to You

Putting one foot in front of the other

Is what we were made to do 

Putting one foot in front of the other

Get's us one step closer to You

Jesus - I choose to delight in You

Jesus - You are the only hope that's true

Jesus - I choose to delight in You

Jesus - I cling to the only truth - and that is You"

If you've never followed a prompting of the Lord, and moved in obedience to Him, you probably won't feel these words. But if you have, than you know the loneliness, and hardships that can come along the way. Literally sometimes you simply get through by putting one foot in front of the other just to keep going. Other times you cry out to God that you are ready to be with Him and it can't come quickly enough. Some days in themselves feel like you have walked 1000 miles, and ready to stop walking. But then, the choice comes in that what you are doing is all about Jesus. The choice has to be to delight in Jesus, and cling to Him. Without it being about Him, what's the point. I love these lyrics, because they exactly represent my hearts words, and all in just a few minutes this morning. God is good. He is faithful. It's about Him. 

Applying the rebate

It wasn't too long ago that I realized I needed a new phone, and that I would have to upgrade to a smartphone if I was going to take things to the next level. I had fought it long enough, "moving on up" was what I had to do. As I looked at phones, I settled on the HTC Thunderbolt. It's a great phone as far as intelligent phones go. One of the things I liked most was that I received a $50 rebate with it as well. So, I sent it in and waited to receive it back. Yes, it eventually came and I was excited to apply it to the phone, since that is its purpose. Just this morning the Lord spoke to me concerning this. See, that rebate card is a lot like the Bible. When I received the rebate card, I had a couple of choices. I could have read it and placed it in my drawer, nullifying its value, or I could use it to APPLY to the phone. This is its purpose, to be applied to the phone. The Bibles purpose is to be APPLIED to the readers life. It's fun to have great discussions about scripture, but where real life change happens isn't at 30,000 feet looking over the landing area, it's at ground level when we bring it in for the landing. It's where we see up close how that days reading can be lived out, not just read about, and theres a HUGE difference. I challenge you, when you enter into devotion time, think application, not just observation. This is where the rubber meets the road, and lives change for the Kingdom. APPLY the rebate card to the phone. APPLY the scriptures to life. Be blessed.

Trust

13 This is the fate of those who trust in themselves,
and of their followers, who approve their sayings.[d]
14 They are like sheep and are destined to die;
death will be their shepherd
(but the upright will prevail over them in the morning).
Their forms will decay in the grave,
far from their princely mansions.
15 But God will redeem me from the realm of the dead;
he will surely take me to himself.
16 Do not be overawed when others grow rich,
when the splendor of their houses increases;
17 for they will take nothing with them when they die,
their splendor will not descend with them.
18 Though while they live they count themselves blessed—
and people praise you when you prosper—
19 they will join those who have gone before them,
who will never again see the light of life.
(Psalm 49:13-19)

Scripture: Psalm 49:18-19

Observation: Some people may be looked upon in this life as "blessed" because of status, job, finances etc., but are they? The future for the one who trusts in himself or his possessions is trusting in what is temporary, not eternal. It's not wrong to have nice things, but never trust in them.

Application: Consider where my trust is. Look at what I spend my time thinking about and hoping for. Is it more of Jesus? Is it more money? Spend time praying and gaining clarity each morning for what really matters.

Prayer: "Father, help me to have right focus. Give me clarity each day for the eternal, not the temporary things, for they are fleeting. Bless me, but I don't want to trust in your blessing alone as my comfort, that job is yours, you are my comfort and joy. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Where are you found?

Last Night at Lifegroup we were discussing pride, and it was great to listen to each person & hear their input. As I lay in bed last night after getting home, I thought about this a little more. I began to think of all the things that people invest themselves into, very good things sometimes too. I thought about family and how it can be so easy to sink your identity into what your kids are doing, or where you're from. I think about finances & savings and the stock market and how easy it is to sink your identity into what those things are doing. I think about a place of employment and how easy it is to sink your identity into a new promotion or finding your way to the top of the success ladder. I think about the opposite sex and how easy it is to sink your identity into doing whatever it takes to find someone to be with, no matter what they are like, as long as there is someone. I think about the pursuit of knowledge and how easy it is to sink your identity into how many degrees you can receive or how you can debate anyone into submission. I think about church and how easy it is to sink your identity into the work you do at church and a certain status within the church. It was a busy night inside my head as my wife drifted off to sleep! :) Then God reminded me, pride is anything we choose to sink our identity into that is not Jesus Christ. It is prideful to place anything in the position that can only be occupied by Jesus. The identity of man was always meant to be in Jesus Christ, and not anything of this world. Even unbelievers' identity is meant to be in Jesus Christ, it's just elusive since like many others they look elsewhere to find this.

Please consider today what you may be sinking your identity into that may seem harmless but is pointing away from the real core of who you are. There are many wonderful things God has blessed us with in life, but the identity our souls are longing for is only found in one place, Jesus Christ. When we accept this, pride is crushed and we do what we do for a much higher purpose.

Have a wonderful day friends.

Thanks

One of my favorite memories of Thanksgiving is each year watching "March of the Wooden Soldiers." Each year Laurel & hardy would start the day off right, along with the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. With the smell of wonderful food cooking, and the anticipation of family coming over to celebrate, I felt secure and comfortable. There is something really great about Thanksgiving time, and this time of year alltogether. Here are a few things all of us would do well to remember this Thanksgiving.

1. Thank God. He is the ultimate provider.
2. Fellowship. We were designed to be with others.
3. Eat. We should eat to the glory of God! (Plus, Thanksgiving dinner is so good!)
4. Give. Find how we can give to those in need.
5. Bless. Be a walking blessing to those around you in word & action.
6. Love. Make sure your love is felt by your family & friends, not just heard.
7. Laugh. Getting together with others is best accompanied by laughter!

Just a few thoughts as we enter into such a wonderful season of the year. Have a blessed Thanksgiving friends!

"Good" or "God"?

I was reminded this morning of how great the cost of following Jesus really is (Luke 9:57-62). There are a lot of "good" things we desire to take care of sometimes before serving Jesus, but they are not "Gods" things. These things take on the appearance of being highly important, but they are avenues that lead us away from serving God wholeheartedly. I then thought of how lukewarm we can be as believers. We place a toe in to test the water, then a little more but don't dive in and become submerged in the service of our savior. Lukewarm isn't good however...the lukewarm are a bad taste in Jesus' mouth. The lukewarm get spit out (Rev.3:16). If we keep our eyes on what is behind us, like we are missing out on some great things we are leaving behind due to following Jesus, we are lukewarm...and lukewarm is a bad taste to the savior. Don't be a bad taste...I encourage you to let go of the "good" stuff and grab hold of the "God" stuff. It is the cost of following Jesus.

Overcoming the fear of fear

President Franklin Roosevelt said in His first inaugural address to the nation in 1933 that "...the only thing we have to fear is fear itself..." He of course was referring to the nation's future in coming out of the great depression and belief in itself that better days lay ahead. As I thought about this statement, a very spiritual truth seems hidden inside it as well.

As believers we are called to reach people with the good news of salvation from our sin and sure eternal death through the payment given by Jesus Christ himself. We are called to share the good news, wherever we are called by Him. Many times we are faced with decisions to go where we may not desire to go, but we follow (if we know what's good for us!). And sometimes the place that He leads may take us out of safety and into the unknown and uncertainty of the future. I can hear God speaking even now in my mind, saying to the believer, "the only thing you have to fear is fear itself my child". Truthfully, the only thing we have to be afraid of, is being afraid. If your life is about glorifying God and living in a oneness with Him (John 15), than what do you have to fear? What's the worst that can happen? Death? Jesus states in Matthew 10:28 that as disciples we are not to fear "those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul". We become so worried about harm & even death while Jesus says "Is that all your worried about?" Do not fear man, because all he can take is the life of the body, not the life of the eternal soul. We must come to the place where we overcome the fear of fear, and replace it with the joy of obedience to the creator. Not an easy task, but one we must get.

As I write this, I find myself struggling in this as much as the next person, but as long as we're taking steps in the right direction we are being obedient to Christ. Join me in continuing to die to self and live for Christ, because no one can take that from us. Take risks...share the gospel...go where called, and know that "to live is Christ, and to die is gain".

Amen!

A blast from the past!

Words or Heart?

This morning in church service I found myself, along with everyone else, singing the words "I live to worship You". I caught myself looking around at the hundreds singing these words and thinking "is this true of ALL of these people singing these words?" I thought "surely there must some in here that worship with their lips, but their hearts are far away from God". Then I began to think of my own heart and the words rolling off of my own tongue, "do I mean what I am saying?" I stopped and began to make sure I meant what I was saying. The Christian life is never merely about words rolling off of our tongues, but about hearts longing to know God deeper and more intimately. I must admit, some days I sense my heart farther from God than other days, maybe you can understand. Ultimately though, God is in the business of being worshiped, not out of duty, but because of greatness! He is great, and moods and circumstances must never stand in our way of honoring Him who deserves all praise. So if you, like me, have those days, remember the greatness of God and the words "I live to worship You" will be easy to mean wholeheartedly!
Jonathan Edwards resolved it best, "Resolved, that I will do whatsoever I think to be most to God' s glory..." Praise be to God!

Sam, a rock, and a Wild Goose!

Have you ever felt like letting go? Like things have just become more complicated than you wanted them to become? In these times it is easy to want to "tag out", as they say in tag team wrestling. "I've been in long enough", you may think to yourself, time to "tag out" and let someone else do the work. Tonight while watching Lord of The Rings, Return of The King, I watched as Frodo fought his own desire to keep the ring rather than throw it into the lava of Mordor. He finally ends up hanging from the side of the cliff as the ring falls into the lava, and as he is hanging, Sam says to him, "don't you give up Frodo" and he reaches down to help him. On Easter Sunday we were asked to select a rock from a pile of rocks that had been gathered for that day. "Select a rock & write a verse or encouraging word on it" the pastor told us. As I selected mine, it was a rough, tall, jagged rock. The first thing that kept coming to mind was "keep climbing with endurance", because the rock looked like a steep wall to be climbed. I read the bottom of that rock today, and was reminded of the need to continue to climb well, whatever the path looks like ahead. Finally, the book I finished up today (it took me FAR too long to finish!) is called Wild Goose Chase, by Mark Batterson. In the final paragraph he writes this:

"Two thousand years ago, Jesus issued a standing invitation:follow me. But it came with a warning, "foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the son of man has no place to lay His head." "When you embark on your Wild Goose Chase(Pursuit of following the Holy Spirit) you never know where you're going to end up."

This post is for anyone who has become weary in the pursuit of following hard after the Holy Spirits leading. "Don't give up" Samwise gamgee would tell you, "keep climbing with endurance" my rock would read, and follow Jesus anywhere Mark Batterson would want you to read. Please know that you are in my prayers if you are reading this and feeling this way. Stay the course and know that Jesus will do do mighty things through those who refuse to give up!

The small things

"A group of American tourists walked through a quaint English village in wonderment. They were enamored by the town's winding cobblestone streets, the beauty of its courtyards and plazas, and the sense of history emanating from its ancient churches. While strolling through the local park, the tourists struck up conversation with an elderly gentleman and found out that he had lived in the town for his entire life. One of the Americans, eager to hear more about the town's history, asked, "Sir, have any great men been born in this village?" "Nope," said the old man, "only babies."

How often we look at the result instead of looking how to encounter that outcome. We want to know how to have the result without knowing the road that leads to it. We expect that "big" things are what matter most. We may even think that "big" things or great people were simply born that way. It's never "big" things that matter most, it's the small things along the way that matter most. All great people in history were born but infants and on a daily basis, through life decisions, and God's providence, became the people we know. These types of decisions will kick our butts sometimes, but we will gain much from them. Don't be afraid to walk the hard road and focus daily on the small stuff. Begin today, unless of course you are content dreaming about the "big" things.

Be blessed...

Who's work is it?

At the age of 36 I don't claim to understand it all, however as we progress in years I believe it is right to learn and mature in our understanding. I have had these years to learn through my failures and successes. The older I get the more I understand what Paul is talking about here in Romans 8. People are unable to make the changes necessary in life to please God. Paul says that the sinful mind is "hostile to God" and that it cannot please God. No matter how much one may try harder to be better, it will always fall short. The life driven by sinful nature will lead to death, "but if BY THE SPIRIT you put to death the misdeeds of the body you will live..." As hard as people try, it is impossible to create a life that pleases God. It is BY THE SPIRIT that we find life.

If your life seems to be filled with ups and downs, and then more ups and downs, look to what is driving your life. Is it your own strength to simply do better, or is it rooted in the spirit of God changing you from the inside out? Real change that pleases God and leads to life doesn't come through your work, but from work done in you by God's Spirit. Invite the Holy Spirit to begin to make changes in you that will make you the new creation you are meant to be. Be encouraged today!

Investment

"Read the history books and see - for we were born but yesterday and know so little, our days here on earth are as transient as shadows. But the wisdom of the past will teach you. The experience of others will speak to you..."- Job 8:8-10 (TLB).

Do we know it all? Though Bildad's assumptions of Job losing everything were wrong, this is an important thing for us to look at. The past can teach us much. Looking to what God has done throughout the lives of others is an investment we all need in our own lives.

God help us to allow ourselves to be invested in through the past so as to strengthen our future. For our lives are "as transient as shadows." Amen.

Scary Stuff?

In my Life journal reading today I came across Jesus in the region of the Gerasenes dealing with the Legion of demons and the man possessed by them. It is interesting to me that after the entire event unfolds the only person begging to follow Jesus and be with him is the healed man. The people of that region were fearful and told Jesus that he needed to leave now! What is it about what we do not understand that makes us so afraid? It happens all the time. I think it is part of what makes man so intent on only believing what we can prove and make sense of. Spiritual matters are often hard to make sense of, and we can't always explain them away. It's what makes serving God so great is that what He does, we could never do.
Today, let go of the things you feel you need control over and see what God can do with a willing and accepting life! I believe we will be amazed at what He does as we allow Him to move freely! No need to be scared!

Compassion

Looking over the letters we have received from the 2 children we sponsor through Compassion International is always a blessing. Charles lives in Kenya while Natalia lives in Brazil. I so look forward to hearing from them and it's such a blessing to know that good things are happening for them. The latest letter from Natalia tells us that she wants our photo and that she prays for us everyday. She also told us that her little brother is "chubby and cute!" This is not about just giving charity for someone, but rather building a relationship with kids that bless us probably more than we can bless them.
Today I would encourage you to get involved with Compassion International and help children overseas get the care and education that every child deserves. Trust me, it will bless you as much as it has blessed us. Get involved my friends. Use well the time and resources God has entrusted to you. Compassion is simply one way to do that.

Humble & Gentle

Was reminded today while listening online to a message to embrace humility and gentleness in life. It is so easy to get involved in putting our heads down and bulldozing through with our own way, leaving others in the dust and often frustrated. Humility is living in such a way that we don't think we are above all others in our thinking or ways. The things we say sometimes aren't as important as the way in which we say it. We must have a gentleness about us in our words. I am reminded to allow God to show me how much grace I have received and MUST pass that grace on to those I come into contact with. We must do this as believers in Jesus Christ. Without it we cannot call ourselves Christ "followers". Let's allow God to break pride in our lives so that we may become gentle followers who are easy to be with. Amen!

Gems from the Leadership Summit

I spent the day at a Global Leadership Summit in Everett, WA. listening to a satellite feed from Willow Creek Church in Chicago. There are so many things to process and I am mulling back over many of them tonight. I want to share just a few things that really stood out to me and caused me to pause and reflect tonight. I hope they speak to you. Here we go...

1. "Can we please go find some darkness?" There was a cute story that goes along with this statement that I will not go into, but the fact is that Christians are too slow to get involved in the dark places that they would rather be sheltered from.

2. Breakthrough is never a single occurance, but a process. When we are always looking for the home run, we are really only grasping for something to save the day and probably on the verge of losing.

3. How is the quality of your antenna? Are our antennas in good working order to be able to hear from the Lord when He whispers?

4. Putting in long hours is not the same as being productive. They are totally seperate things.

5. Don't let the devil ride cause eventually he will want to drive! :)

6. There will always be certain tensions/problems in every organization that cannot and should not be solved/resolved, they just have to be managed.


Blessings!

Hope

I have hope. Some may say that "God is not at work", but I see it all the time. I see it in the faces of so many that are committed to Him. I see it in the way God places people in our paths to get to know. I see it in the way that so many people are seeking "more" but can't quite seem to nail down what "more" is. I believe people want to serve God but are looking for someone who is faithful to lead the way. I believe people want to know the God of the Bible but are looking for those who are committed to finding Him themselves. In the book of Esther we don't see God's name mentioned even once, but you can see strongly that God's providence is there. He is there, behind it all orchestrating all that takes place. Why do I have hope you ask, because I know that the God of the Bible uses the weak to humble the proud. I know that human strength cannot even begin to compare to God's "weakness", if He indeed had any. I have hope because I'm not in charge of God pouring out His spirit on us all, He is. "Pour out your Holy Spirit Lord as we bath in your presence, Amen."

Got Questions?

Habakkuk is so cool. I love his questions of what God was doing, makes me feel like I'm not the only one! Questioning what God is up to isn't wrong, God can handle it. Make sure however to do it with sincerity, that's the key. Habakkuk had questions and wasn't afraid to ask God. As a matter of fact he went up to a watchtower to listen intently for God's response. He didn't necessarily get the answer he thought he would get but God did show him what he was up to and for Habakkuk it was cause to sing praise to God. The next time you seek answers of what God is up to, make sure to:

1.Seek sincerely for God to show you His ways.

2.Listen intently somewhere where you can connect with God.

3.Praise God for His goodness when He does respond to you.

Be blessed today!

The Wrestling Match

A friend of mine recently posted a status on Facebook talking about wrestling with God. The question he was asking was what would it look like for him to wrestle with God for what he wants most. Jacob wrestled with God in Genesis 32:23-34 and would not stop until he was blessed. I think we all want to be blessed by God, and rightly so. I think one of the biggest problems facing us today is the wrestling match of wills that we have with God.

In this corner, weighing in at 170#(give or take a few pounds) is the contender, Clint Reeves. In this corner, weighing in at 0#(remember, God is a spirit) is the creator of the universe, the big El Elyon, the great I AM, the Alpha and Omega, none other than GOD! To say it that way may sound a bit funny, but it's true, we do battle wills with Him. We go back and forth, yell, scream, cry, beg, plead and so on...you get the picture. Then we just make the decision and move on as if we are capable of making our own life decisions. Of course, we are not able to make these decisions ourselves. God is always leading us. We can wrestle with Him all we want, but in the end if it's the battle of the wills, He will win. It isn't until we turn our trust over to Him and wrestle with Him for the right reason, to receive His blessing, that He will indeed bless us.

I read this tonight in my time of wrestling that really forced me to see that I was wrestling wills with God. It is found in Hosea. It made me ponder my wrestling with God and ask myself if I was righteous, wise or discerning. It is this:
Hosea 14:9
"Let those who are wise understand these things. Let those who are discerning listen carefully. The paths of the Lord are true and right, and righteous people live by walking in them. But sinners stumble and fall along the way."
Live by walking in His ways.

Be blessed today!