This week I have been reading a great book entitled, "The ragamuffin gospel," by Brennan Manning, a Korean War veteran and former Franciscan priest.
It's a wonderful read concerning God's grace, that a lot of us believe in God's grace, but only in theory. Somehow we need to get God's grace into our daily lives, or daily routine.
Many see God as a small-minded book-keeper, tallying our failures and successes on a score sheet.
Yet God gives us His grace willingly, no matter what we've done. As Brennan manning says, "we come to him as ragamuffins - dirty, bedraggled, and beat-up. And when we sit at his feet, he smiles upon us, the chosen objects of his "furious love."
However, I digress, for there is a great quote that I want to give to you in his chapter entitled, "Magnificent monotony."
He writes, "In essence, there is only one thing God asks of us - that we be men and women of prayer, people who live close to God, people for whom God is everything and for whom God is enough."
"That is the root of peace. We have that peace when the gracious God is all we seek. When we start seeking something besides Him, we lose it. As Merton said in the last public address before his death, "that is his call to us - simply to be people who are content to live close to him and to renew the kind of life in which the closeness if felt and experienced."
Is God enough? Great question. If everything were taken away from me, my family, our church, my house, car, health, would God be enough?
I would suggest to you that it's not a question that we can answer at one moment and then go on with the rest of our lives. It is a question that NEEDS to be answered on a daily basis. Jesus said, "each day brings enough trouble of it's own."
Each day we must ask ourselves - is God enough?
What's your response today?
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Let's keep on growing...to reach our full potential
In my twenties and thirties, it was said to me often, "George, you have tremendous potential." I don't hear that my now that I am 49. The forties bring false thoughts that you have "arrived". You have it all together. You have reached your God-given potential. There's no more room to grow. You've done all that you can. There is a real temptation to stop growing spiritually, mentally and in the workplace.
Not true!
Let me give you a quote: "The saddest thing in the world is wasted talent."
Too many of us are guilty of this—we live beneath our talent. We settle for accomplishing a little instead of a lot.
For example, there are people with a great story to tell—but they will not write.
And there are people with fantastic leadership skills who will not pursue opportunities to lead.
And there are people with bright business minds who will not risk self-employment.
And people blessed with musical ability who won't get in front of an audience.
What holds people back? I've heard every possible excuse, some of them coming from my own mouth.
Maybe it's fear. Maybe it's laziness. Maybe it's lack of self-confidence. I don't know what it is that holds back, but I know what it isn't: it's not the voice of God.
He is NOT the one who says, "Keep your talent to yourself. After all, you're just an average person; what makes you think you can succeed? What makes you think you be a leader?"
God's method has always been to use ordinary people to do extraordinary things.
He used the son of a slave to lead God's people to freedom; he used a shepherd boy to defeat a powerful giant; he used a man in exile to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
And he can use you!
Don't live beneath the level of your talent. Ask yourself this week: "What am I good at doing that I am not doing? What talent have I not yet put to use?" Look for opportunities to do the things you do well. Put your skills to work.
Paul said in Romans 12:6-8
"God has given each of the ability to do certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out when you have faith that God is speaking through you. If you gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. If your gift is to encourage others, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly."
For those of us in our late forties....let's keep on growing...let's not stop growing until we are with Jesus!
Not true!
Let me give you a quote: "The saddest thing in the world is wasted talent."
Too many of us are guilty of this—we live beneath our talent. We settle for accomplishing a little instead of a lot.
For example, there are people with a great story to tell—but they will not write.
And there are people with fantastic leadership skills who will not pursue opportunities to lead.
And there are people with bright business minds who will not risk self-employment.
And people blessed with musical ability who won't get in front of an audience.
What holds people back? I've heard every possible excuse, some of them coming from my own mouth.
Maybe it's fear. Maybe it's laziness. Maybe it's lack of self-confidence. I don't know what it is that holds back, but I know what it isn't: it's not the voice of God.
He is NOT the one who says, "Keep your talent to yourself. After all, you're just an average person; what makes you think you can succeed? What makes you think you be a leader?"
God's method has always been to use ordinary people to do extraordinary things.
He used the son of a slave to lead God's people to freedom; he used a shepherd boy to defeat a powerful giant; he used a man in exile to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
And he can use you!
Don't live beneath the level of your talent. Ask yourself this week: "What am I good at doing that I am not doing? What talent have I not yet put to use?" Look for opportunities to do the things you do well. Put your skills to work.
Paul said in Romans 12:6-8
"God has given each of the ability to do certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out when you have faith that God is speaking through you. If you gift is that of serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, do a good job of teaching. If your gift is to encourage others, do it! If you have money, share it generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly."
For those of us in our late forties....let's keep on growing...let's not stop growing until we are with Jesus!
Monday, August 29, 2005
Today is NOT the day to quit
You ever feel like quitting? Sure you have. We all have. From time to time we think, "that's just about enough." Or, "They have rejected me too many times."
I like what Steve May said:
"In 1955, when Colonel Harland Sanders retired at the age of 65, he had little to show for himself, except an old Caddie roadster, a $105 monthly pension check, and a recipe for chicken.
Knowing he couldn't live on his pension, he took his chicken recipe in hand, got behind the wheel of his clunker, and set out to make his fortune.
His first plan was to sell his chicken recipe to restaurant owners, who would in turn give him a residual for every piece of chicken they sold -- 5 cents per chicken. The first restaurateur he called on turned him down.
So did the second.
So did the third.
In fact, the first 1000 sales calls Colonel Sanders made ended in rejection. Still, he continued to call on owners as he traveled across the USA, sleeping in his car to save money. Prospect number 1009 finally gave him his first "yes."
After two years of making daily calls he had signed up a total of five restaurants.
Still the Colonel pressed on, knowing that he had a great chicken recipe and that someday the idea would catch on.
Of course, you know how the story ends. The idea DID catch on. By 1963 the Colonel had 600 restaurants across the country selling his secret recipe of Kentucky Fried Chicken (with 11 herbs and spices).
In 1964 he was bought out by future Kentucky governor John Brown. Even though the sale made him a multi-millionaire, he continued to represent and promote KFC until his death in 1980.
Colonel Sanders' story teaches an important lesson: It's never too late to decide you'll never give up.
Earlier in his life the Colonel was involved in other business ventures--but they weren't successful. He had a gas station in the 30's, a restaurant in the 40's, and he gave up on both of them.
At the age of 65, however, Harland Sanders decided his chicken idea was the right idea, and he refused to give up, even in spite of repeated rejection. He knew that if he kept on knocking on doors, eventually someone would say "yes."
This is how Jesus challenged us to approach life. He said, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." (Luke 11:9)
This command follows a story Jesus told emphasizing the importance of a "never-give-up" attitude in prayer. Jesus is saying "Ask--not just once, but as many times as is necessary. Then keep on looking and keep on knocking till the door is opened."
If you have made half-hearted attempts at doing God's will in your life...if you have given up too easily in the past...remember: It's never too late to become persistent. It's never to late to decide you'll never give up. Keep on asking. Keep on seeking. Keep on knocking."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I like what Steve May said:
"In 1955, when Colonel Harland Sanders retired at the age of 65, he had little to show for himself, except an old Caddie roadster, a $105 monthly pension check, and a recipe for chicken.
Knowing he couldn't live on his pension, he took his chicken recipe in hand, got behind the wheel of his clunker, and set out to make his fortune.
His first plan was to sell his chicken recipe to restaurant owners, who would in turn give him a residual for every piece of chicken they sold -- 5 cents per chicken. The first restaurateur he called on turned him down.
So did the second.
So did the third.
In fact, the first 1000 sales calls Colonel Sanders made ended in rejection. Still, he continued to call on owners as he traveled across the USA, sleeping in his car to save money. Prospect number 1009 finally gave him his first "yes."
After two years of making daily calls he had signed up a total of five restaurants.
Still the Colonel pressed on, knowing that he had a great chicken recipe and that someday the idea would catch on.
Of course, you know how the story ends. The idea DID catch on. By 1963 the Colonel had 600 restaurants across the country selling his secret recipe of Kentucky Fried Chicken (with 11 herbs and spices).
In 1964 he was bought out by future Kentucky governor John Brown. Even though the sale made him a multi-millionaire, he continued to represent and promote KFC until his death in 1980.
Colonel Sanders' story teaches an important lesson: It's never too late to decide you'll never give up.
Earlier in his life the Colonel was involved in other business ventures--but they weren't successful. He had a gas station in the 30's, a restaurant in the 40's, and he gave up on both of them.
At the age of 65, however, Harland Sanders decided his chicken idea was the right idea, and he refused to give up, even in spite of repeated rejection. He knew that if he kept on knocking on doors, eventually someone would say "yes."
This is how Jesus challenged us to approach life. He said, "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." (Luke 11:9)
This command follows a story Jesus told emphasizing the importance of a "never-give-up" attitude in prayer. Jesus is saying "Ask--not just once, but as many times as is necessary. Then keep on looking and keep on knocking till the door is opened."
If you have made half-hearted attempts at doing God's will in your life...if you have given up too easily in the past...remember: It's never too late to become persistent. It's never to late to decide you'll never give up. Keep on asking. Keep on seeking. Keep on knocking."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday, August 25, 2005
The Bible says, "Whom the Lord loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights." (Proverbs 3:12)
None of us like to be corrected. From cradle to the grave, we hesitate when we are forced to examine our actions and attitudes.
Now follow me. God is my father. He is my parent. He is responsible for my well being.
Sometimes I choose to do stupid stuff. Sometimes I make a wrong choice.
God says, "no, George, that's not the way to go."
I keep doing it.
God says, "George, since you didn't learn the last time, I am going to have to discipline you."
That's the "bad" news.
The "good" news is that he disciplines me for my good, and that he never gives me more than I can handle.
God doesn't take a belt and begin to wail on me out of a burst of anger. He doesn't call me bad names and tell me what a waste I am of a human being.
He doesn't compare me with others, "why can't you be like so and so."
He loves me. He accepts me. He wants the best for me.
Ed Young writes, "There is a difference between hurt and harm. As parents, we know that discipline hurts. And, sometimes, when we have to set boundaries with our children or say no to a particular activity that they really want to do, it hurts their feelings. In the long run, though, we know that this kind of tough love does not harm our children. Rather, it makes them stronger and more disciplined as they grow up.
God does the same with us. Sometimes, God has to correct us in ways that hurt for a time but, in the long run, make us spiritually stronger. If we, through our maturity and experience, know what's best for our children, how much more does God, in His infinite wisdom, know what's best for us. Instead of complaining, thank God for loving you enough to correct you when you need it."
Good stuff
None of us like to be corrected. From cradle to the grave, we hesitate when we are forced to examine our actions and attitudes.
Now follow me. God is my father. He is my parent. He is responsible for my well being.
Sometimes I choose to do stupid stuff. Sometimes I make a wrong choice.
God says, "no, George, that's not the way to go."
I keep doing it.
God says, "George, since you didn't learn the last time, I am going to have to discipline you."
That's the "bad" news.
The "good" news is that he disciplines me for my good, and that he never gives me more than I can handle.
God doesn't take a belt and begin to wail on me out of a burst of anger. He doesn't call me bad names and tell me what a waste I am of a human being.
He doesn't compare me with others, "why can't you be like so and so."
He loves me. He accepts me. He wants the best for me.
Ed Young writes, "There is a difference between hurt and harm. As parents, we know that discipline hurts. And, sometimes, when we have to set boundaries with our children or say no to a particular activity that they really want to do, it hurts their feelings. In the long run, though, we know that this kind of tough love does not harm our children. Rather, it makes them stronger and more disciplined as they grow up.
God does the same with us. Sometimes, God has to correct us in ways that hurt for a time but, in the long run, make us spiritually stronger. If we, through our maturity and experience, know what's best for our children, how much more does God, in His infinite wisdom, know what's best for us. Instead of complaining, thank God for loving you enough to correct you when you need it."
Good stuff
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
The invasion of spam
Recently I watched the movie, "war of the worlds," with Tom Cruise. It's a story about an invasion from outer space upon our planet. Okay movie - exciting and dull at the same time.
Yesterday, this blog experienced an invasion of another kind. Spam. Unwanted advertisements.
I didn't know such a thing could happen.
Everyday of our lives we are bombarded with commercials, billboards and ads in our newspapers. Buy, buy, buy. Obtain, obtain, obtain.
We have become a culture so immersed in self, for so long a time, that we don't even pay attention to the fact anymore that everything in our society is about "me, myself and I."
McDonalds years ago used to advertise it this way. "Have it your way."
It's the "the world owes me," type philosophy.
I looked up the definition of "rude" in the dictionary and it is thus: "discourteous, impolite, lacking refinement; coarse or uncouth."
It's the invasion of the discourteous, the impolite, those lacking refinement, the invasion of the coarse or uncouth.
Whether this kind of blog entry will spur the "spammers" on or will stop them, we will see.
All I am asking is - please don't put advertisements on this blog.
Thanks!
Yesterday, this blog experienced an invasion of another kind. Spam. Unwanted advertisements.
I didn't know such a thing could happen.
Everyday of our lives we are bombarded with commercials, billboards and ads in our newspapers. Buy, buy, buy. Obtain, obtain, obtain.
We have become a culture so immersed in self, for so long a time, that we don't even pay attention to the fact anymore that everything in our society is about "me, myself and I."
McDonalds years ago used to advertise it this way. "Have it your way."
It's the "the world owes me," type philosophy.
I looked up the definition of "rude" in the dictionary and it is thus: "discourteous, impolite, lacking refinement; coarse or uncouth."
It's the invasion of the discourteous, the impolite, those lacking refinement, the invasion of the coarse or uncouth.
Whether this kind of blog entry will spur the "spammers" on or will stop them, we will see.
All I am asking is - please don't put advertisements on this blog.
Thanks!
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Criticism
Oh, alright, I admit it, I have a hard time handling criticism. It's extremely difficult to receive criticism from someone who in my viewpoint doesn't know anything about the subject at hand.
Jesus said some great things about criticism. He said that it's crazy to point out a piece of criticism in someone else's eye and not pay attention to the log that is ticking out of your eye.
Let me tell you what I know about criticism.
It focuses on little things.
Small stuff.
It's human nature to take something that really bugs us about somebody or something and take it - no matter how small it is - and blow it out of proportion.
What's wild about that is that this can be especially true about people who are the closest to us.
Rarely is criticism constructive.
Most of the time we don't criticize others in order to help them. We criticize to make ourselves feel important, to get something off our "chest".
If somebody criticizes me, it's negative. If I criticize somebody else it's "constructive".
So many times we exaggerate the faults of others while ignoring our own.
Some people don't need the criticism of others. They are so hard on themselves that anything anyone else says is just the confirmation they are looking for that they aren't worthy or not talented or able to do the task at hand.
There is a place of introspection, not in the morbid sense, but in the biblical sense. That means that I let God into the details of my life and open myself up to the Holy Spirit working on me so that I might be the man of God he has called me to be.
He does that through His word.
He does that through His Holy Spirit.
He does that through (yes, it's true) through others who will give us honest and sometimes painful evaluations of what we do.
Bullet points (quotes):
People of low ambition are overly critical because so much of life is beyond their reach.
Listening to gossip is as wrong as spreading it.
Gossip should never be disguised as concern.
If you agree to bury the hatchet, don't leave the handle sticking out.
Never criticize your barber - at least not while you are getting a hair cut.
Criticism and finding fault are not spiritual gifts.
To belittle is to be little.
The urge to criticize someone usually comes from feelings of resentment.
If you make an effort to overlook the little faults in others, they'll d the same for you.
Jesus said some great things about criticism. He said that it's crazy to point out a piece of criticism in someone else's eye and not pay attention to the log that is ticking out of your eye.
Let me tell you what I know about criticism.
It focuses on little things.
Small stuff.
It's human nature to take something that really bugs us about somebody or something and take it - no matter how small it is - and blow it out of proportion.
What's wild about that is that this can be especially true about people who are the closest to us.
Rarely is criticism constructive.
Most of the time we don't criticize others in order to help them. We criticize to make ourselves feel important, to get something off our "chest".
If somebody criticizes me, it's negative. If I criticize somebody else it's "constructive".
So many times we exaggerate the faults of others while ignoring our own.
Some people don't need the criticism of others. They are so hard on themselves that anything anyone else says is just the confirmation they are looking for that they aren't worthy or not talented or able to do the task at hand.
There is a place of introspection, not in the morbid sense, but in the biblical sense. That means that I let God into the details of my life and open myself up to the Holy Spirit working on me so that I might be the man of God he has called me to be.
He does that through His word.
He does that through His Holy Spirit.
He does that through (yes, it's true) through others who will give us honest and sometimes painful evaluations of what we do.
Bullet points (quotes):
People of low ambition are overly critical because so much of life is beyond their reach.
Listening to gossip is as wrong as spreading it.
Gossip should never be disguised as concern.
If you agree to bury the hatchet, don't leave the handle sticking out.
Never criticize your barber - at least not while you are getting a hair cut.
Criticism and finding fault are not spiritual gifts.
To belittle is to be little.
The urge to criticize someone usually comes from feelings of resentment.
If you make an effort to overlook the little faults in others, they'll d the same for you.
Monday, August 22, 2005
Fearfulness of solitude
I need to spend time alone with God. There are times when I want to run into His presence.
And yet when I feel that way, I frequently come across the temptation of "there is too much to be done," or "I don't have the time," to dwell with Him.
It brings about a paradox, or at least I think it's a paradox, that it's when I am alone with God, in solitude with Him, that I discover how dependent I am on Him.
I find myself coming into God's presence, just me and Him, alone, in solitude and without the distractions of my daily life, I begin to feel anxious and tense.
When nobody speaks to me, or is calling me, or needs my help, I can start to feel like a nobody and that leads to feelings of uselessness, of not feeling valuable, or feeling insignificant.
So what do I do many times? I leave this fearful solitude quickly and start getting busy again to reassure myself that I am "somebody."
It's a great temptation, for what makes me "somebody," is not how much other people needs me, but God's eternal love for me. When I realize how much God loves me and cares for me, it throws all of my co-dependency out the window.
As one author wrote, "to claim the truth of ourselves we have to cling to our God in solitude as to the One who makes us who we are."
In other words, I am somebody when I am in God's presence. Alone. In solitude. That's what he ultimately created me for. For worship. For relationships.
And yet when I feel that way, I frequently come across the temptation of "there is too much to be done," or "I don't have the time," to dwell with Him.
It brings about a paradox, or at least I think it's a paradox, that it's when I am alone with God, in solitude with Him, that I discover how dependent I am on Him.
I find myself coming into God's presence, just me and Him, alone, in solitude and without the distractions of my daily life, I begin to feel anxious and tense.
When nobody speaks to me, or is calling me, or needs my help, I can start to feel like a nobody and that leads to feelings of uselessness, of not feeling valuable, or feeling insignificant.
So what do I do many times? I leave this fearful solitude quickly and start getting busy again to reassure myself that I am "somebody."
It's a great temptation, for what makes me "somebody," is not how much other people needs me, but God's eternal love for me. When I realize how much God loves me and cares for me, it throws all of my co-dependency out the window.
As one author wrote, "to claim the truth of ourselves we have to cling to our God in solitude as to the One who makes us who we are."
In other words, I am somebody when I am in God's presence. Alone. In solitude. That's what he ultimately created me for. For worship. For relationships.
Thursday, August 18, 2005
Are you ready for some football!
Football season is almost here. High school and college start in a week or two, the pros not far behind.
My forecast. USC will once again reign in college football with Texas giving them a great chase.
Lakeview High School will go 6 and 3 and make the playoffs. (As long as they beat Harper Creek, I'm okay with whatever record they come up with)
The Super Bowl will consist of two teams who weren't there last year. There is so much parity in the National Football League that any team, in any given year could win. Which is what makes New England's three championships in the last four years so phenomenal!
The Dallas Cowboys will go 10 and 6 and make the playoffs but will lose in their first playoff game.
Bledsoe will last until the 7th game, maybe the 9th depending on how stubborn Parcells is. The battle will be between Tony Romo and Drew Henson to see who's going to be the quarterback, with Tony Romo winning out until Drew Henson can take over next year.
What are your forecasts?
My forecast. USC will once again reign in college football with Texas giving them a great chase.
Lakeview High School will go 6 and 3 and make the playoffs. (As long as they beat Harper Creek, I'm okay with whatever record they come up with)
The Super Bowl will consist of two teams who weren't there last year. There is so much parity in the National Football League that any team, in any given year could win. Which is what makes New England's three championships in the last four years so phenomenal!
The Dallas Cowboys will go 10 and 6 and make the playoffs but will lose in their first playoff game.
Bledsoe will last until the 7th game, maybe the 9th depending on how stubborn Parcells is. The battle will be between Tony Romo and Drew Henson to see who's going to be the quarterback, with Tony Romo winning out until Drew Henson can take over next year.
What are your forecasts?
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
BTK - insane or demon possessed?
Debbie and I sat and watched an interview with Dennis Rader the other night, the BTK killer in Wichita, Kansas.
Denise Ono writes, "for more than 30 years, he terrorized the Wichita, Kansas, area, killing at least 10 people and taunting police and local media from 1974 until earlier this year."
We, like many, were struck by his calm demeanor as he described during the interview how he chose, tracked and killed his victims.
A psychopathic murderer and a family man and church leader AT THE SAME TIME.
We all have a dark side, but that's the extreme!
According to J. Reid Meloy, a forensic psychologist who has written extensively on criminal behavior, antisocial personality disorder affects around 2 percent to 5 percent of the population. Only about 1 percent of the population can be described as having psychopathic personality disorder.
"They tend to be very cruel and aggressive, detached, grandiose (they have a very high opinion of themselves), chronically manipulative and often have histories of criminal behavior," he writes.
Many are highly socialized and are able to keep their psychopathic personalities separate from their public daily lives he said. He added that they often try to get into positions of authority.
Former FBI profiler Clint Van Zandt describes Rader as, "someone who has no conscience, no guilt, someone who takes no responsibility for his actions."
Ono writes, "After his capture, Rader said he couldn't control himself. He blamed his behavior on "demons" or "Factor X". He also claimed to have been dropped on his head as a child."
Here's the question: Was Rader able to control himself, or was he controlled by an insane compulsion at the time of the murders? How could he purport to be a believer in Christ, a leader in his church and a serial killer at the same time? Was he insane, demon possessed or both?
Can God forgive Dennis Rader?
Denise Ono writes, "for more than 30 years, he terrorized the Wichita, Kansas, area, killing at least 10 people and taunting police and local media from 1974 until earlier this year."
We, like many, were struck by his calm demeanor as he described during the interview how he chose, tracked and killed his victims.
A psychopathic murderer and a family man and church leader AT THE SAME TIME.
We all have a dark side, but that's the extreme!
According to J. Reid Meloy, a forensic psychologist who has written extensively on criminal behavior, antisocial personality disorder affects around 2 percent to 5 percent of the population. Only about 1 percent of the population can be described as having psychopathic personality disorder.
"They tend to be very cruel and aggressive, detached, grandiose (they have a very high opinion of themselves), chronically manipulative and often have histories of criminal behavior," he writes.
Many are highly socialized and are able to keep their psychopathic personalities separate from their public daily lives he said. He added that they often try to get into positions of authority.
Former FBI profiler Clint Van Zandt describes Rader as, "someone who has no conscience, no guilt, someone who takes no responsibility for his actions."
Ono writes, "After his capture, Rader said he couldn't control himself. He blamed his behavior on "demons" or "Factor X". He also claimed to have been dropped on his head as a child."
Here's the question: Was Rader able to control himself, or was he controlled by an insane compulsion at the time of the murders? How could he purport to be a believer in Christ, a leader in his church and a serial killer at the same time? Was he insane, demon possessed or both?
Can God forgive Dennis Rader?
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Worry or Worship?
When faced with a difficult situation, I have found that I have one of two choices: I can worry, or I can worship.
So many times I choose to worry. I know it's not right, I know it's not good for me, but I still worry.
It doesn't help when someone comes along and says, "there's nothing to worry about, why worry?"
That's easy for you to say, you aren't in my situation.
I don't like cliches anyway.
I need a constant reminder in my life that in the midst of worries about finances, food and fitness that I can worship instead of worrying.
Jesus asks a great rhetorical question in Matthew 6:27, "Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not."
If anything, worries can take away from my life. It's so easy to try to arrange the details of our lives so carefully that I leave God out of the process. It's so easy to try to rely on our own abilities and that we have a lot to lose if things don't turn out the way we want.
What is the antidote to worry?
Well, the following thoughts are thoughts that you and I are well aware of...Yet so important....For most of us they are simply a reminder to help us through this day, Tuesday, August 16, 2005.
I must worship. I must recognize that God is in control of every area of my life. I must invite him, as I worship, to get involved in the details of my life. Peter writes, "Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you."
I must keep a proper perspective. I must focus on the creator instead of my circumstance.
Jesus says, "look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?"
I love that. Let's get our perspective right.
I must live for today. Yesterday is gone, tomorrow is not yet here, today is all we have.
Jesus said, "Don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of it's own."
Great stuff.
Are there areas of worry within your life that need to be blown up? Be honest with yourself and transparent with God. Worship instead of worry.
So many times I choose to worry. I know it's not right, I know it's not good for me, but I still worry.
It doesn't help when someone comes along and says, "there's nothing to worry about, why worry?"
That's easy for you to say, you aren't in my situation.
I don't like cliches anyway.
I need a constant reminder in my life that in the midst of worries about finances, food and fitness that I can worship instead of worrying.
Jesus asks a great rhetorical question in Matthew 6:27, "Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not."
If anything, worries can take away from my life. It's so easy to try to arrange the details of our lives so carefully that I leave God out of the process. It's so easy to try to rely on our own abilities and that we have a lot to lose if things don't turn out the way we want.
What is the antidote to worry?
Well, the following thoughts are thoughts that you and I are well aware of...Yet so important....For most of us they are simply a reminder to help us through this day, Tuesday, August 16, 2005.
I must worship. I must recognize that God is in control of every area of my life. I must invite him, as I worship, to get involved in the details of my life. Peter writes, "Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you."
I must keep a proper perspective. I must focus on the creator instead of my circumstance.
Jesus says, "look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?"
I love that. Let's get our perspective right.
I must live for today. Yesterday is gone, tomorrow is not yet here, today is all we have.
Jesus said, "Don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of it's own."
Great stuff.
Are there areas of worry within your life that need to be blown up? Be honest with yourself and transparent with God. Worship instead of worry.
Monday, August 15, 2005
"Help, I've lost my joy!"
David, in Psalms 51 writes (and I love the Message's translation of this): "God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. Don't throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails!"
"Shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life." Bring out something new in the midst of the same ole drudgery.
It's easy to lose the joy that we once had not only in life but in our relationship with God.
Earlier in his life, David overflowed with joy.
He sings on a hillside as a shepherd.
He dances with joy as the ark is carried into Jerusalem.
But then he commits a mistake. He blows it big time with Bathsheba, not his wife.
He loses his joy.
You might be asking, "can I get my joy back?"
YES YOU CAN!
Refuse to accept a joyless condition in your life. David, to paraphrase his words, cries out with intensity, "God, I refuse to accept this joyless condition I'm in. Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails!"
Don't go for the quick fix.
Buying more things, eating more, drinking to drown or ease the pain of your feelings won't work. Pills, excessive TV or sex doesn't work. Oh, you might feel like it will work for a season, but in the end it demands more. Buying more things, eating more, drinking more, until it destroys you. You end up dry and empty.
The church father, Augustine said, "O God, our hearts are restless till we find rest in thee."
David owns up to his situation and doesn't go for the quick fix.
Remember that God is in control of your life.
Nothing is impossible with Him.
David remembers that God is able to restore his joy. He goes to the Lord in prayer.
He prays, "God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life." In other words, create in me a new, clean heart. The Hebrew word for create is bara.
It's used for God creating the world.
He makes something out of nothing.
That's what God is able to do with joy in your life.
He is able to create and restore joy in your life when you have totally and completely lost it.
He can create joy out of total despair.
And then receive joy.
Open yourself up to joy.
Do that today. Open yourself up to the Holy Spirit. Realize that today can be the first day of a life filled with joy. And you will never be the same.
"Shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life." Bring out something new in the midst of the same ole drudgery.
It's easy to lose the joy that we once had not only in life but in our relationship with God.
Earlier in his life, David overflowed with joy.
He sings on a hillside as a shepherd.
He dances with joy as the ark is carried into Jerusalem.
But then he commits a mistake. He blows it big time with Bathsheba, not his wife.
He loses his joy.
You might be asking, "can I get my joy back?"
YES YOU CAN!
Refuse to accept a joyless condition in your life. David, to paraphrase his words, cries out with intensity, "God, I refuse to accept this joyless condition I'm in. Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails!"
Don't go for the quick fix.
Buying more things, eating more, drinking to drown or ease the pain of your feelings won't work. Pills, excessive TV or sex doesn't work. Oh, you might feel like it will work for a season, but in the end it demands more. Buying more things, eating more, drinking more, until it destroys you. You end up dry and empty.
The church father, Augustine said, "O God, our hearts are restless till we find rest in thee."
David owns up to his situation and doesn't go for the quick fix.
Remember that God is in control of your life.
Nothing is impossible with Him.
David remembers that God is able to restore his joy. He goes to the Lord in prayer.
He prays, "God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life." In other words, create in me a new, clean heart. The Hebrew word for create is bara.
It's used for God creating the world.
He makes something out of nothing.
That's what God is able to do with joy in your life.
He is able to create and restore joy in your life when you have totally and completely lost it.
He can create joy out of total despair.
And then receive joy.
Open yourself up to joy.
Do that today. Open yourself up to the Holy Spirit. Realize that today can be the first day of a life filled with joy. And you will never be the same.
Thursday, August 11, 2005
To love or not to love that is question
Loving others is a key to experiencing all of the fruit of the Spirit. Peace, joy, self-control, patience, they all stem from the desire and ability to love others.
But here's what I know. To love others, I must first of all understand and realize how much God loves me.
God's love is an unconditional love.
God wants us to receive his love and his healing. And then he desires that we turn around and give his love and healing to those who are hurting.
It's so important that we all receive healing from past emotional wounds, not only to be cleansed from the past but to deal with the future and fresh wounds that might come our way.
Hurting people hurt people
Hurting people hurt easily.
None of us will never reach a place where we will be hurt again, yet God is always there, available to heal your every wound, both old and new.
Receive your healing today, for if you don't that old wound will keeping opening up and bleeding if someone hurts your feelings that "one more time."
When I experience the love of God that heals me, I will find it easy to get along with others.
I will begin to see that people with whom I have had trouble with in the past are no better or worse than anybody else. I can shake off something that might have offended me and go on.
When you and I receive God's love, we are so grateful for what he is doing in our lives that we are ready to let His love start to flow through us to the unloveable, the obnoxious, and the people who are just the same way we used to be (or still are) before we realized the extent of God's love.
Love God today and realize that he loves you! Just a thought....
But here's what I know. To love others, I must first of all understand and realize how much God loves me.
God's love is an unconditional love.
God wants us to receive his love and his healing. And then he desires that we turn around and give his love and healing to those who are hurting.
It's so important that we all receive healing from past emotional wounds, not only to be cleansed from the past but to deal with the future and fresh wounds that might come our way.
Hurting people hurt people
Hurting people hurt easily.
None of us will never reach a place where we will be hurt again, yet God is always there, available to heal your every wound, both old and new.
Receive your healing today, for if you don't that old wound will keeping opening up and bleeding if someone hurts your feelings that "one more time."
When I experience the love of God that heals me, I will find it easy to get along with others.
I will begin to see that people with whom I have had trouble with in the past are no better or worse than anybody else. I can shake off something that might have offended me and go on.
When you and I receive God's love, we are so grateful for what he is doing in our lives that we are ready to let His love start to flow through us to the unloveable, the obnoxious, and the people who are just the same way we used to be (or still are) before we realized the extent of God's love.
Love God today and realize that he loves you! Just a thought....
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Hiddeness in God
I find it interesting that there was nothing spectacular about the life of Jesus. Whoa...George...What are you saying?
What about the miracles he performed and raising people from the dead! That's pretty spectacular to me!
What I mean is that when you do look at the miracles that Jesus did, you will find that he didn't heal or call back to life anyone in order to get his picture on the cover of Time magazine or spend the hour with Larry King.
He told people not to talk about the healings. Even when he was resurrected, Jesus appeared to only a few disciples at first, a few men and women who had really connected with him before he died.
Jesus came as a servant. All freshman in Bible School memorize (or at least they did when I was in Bible School) this scripture, "For the son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many." Mark 10:45 (KJV)
It was a life of power wrapped in the hiddenness of servanthood.
Whenever I come across someone who is truly walking in God's spirit, I sense a deep longing for that hiddenness, that seclusion.
That thought is especially meaningful coming back from our minister's meetings in Denver, Colorado.
It hardly ever fails, I come back from those meetings feeling inadequate, empty and sullen at the thought that there are others who are accomplishing so much more than I, that there are those who have bigger churches, larger ministries, and receiving far more acclaim than me.
Yet the life of Jesus shows me that I am not to be concerned about what God has given to others, but what God has given to me.
God has me right where he wants me. My calling is to be faithful, to love and to minister to those whom he has given me and to walk in the knowledge that it's not anyone on this planet that I am trying to please but God!
God has you right where he wants you! Rest in that. Relax in that. And let's build His kingdom together.
What about the miracles he performed and raising people from the dead! That's pretty spectacular to me!
What I mean is that when you do look at the miracles that Jesus did, you will find that he didn't heal or call back to life anyone in order to get his picture on the cover of Time magazine or spend the hour with Larry King.
He told people not to talk about the healings. Even when he was resurrected, Jesus appeared to only a few disciples at first, a few men and women who had really connected with him before he died.
Jesus came as a servant. All freshman in Bible School memorize (or at least they did when I was in Bible School) this scripture, "For the son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many." Mark 10:45 (KJV)
It was a life of power wrapped in the hiddenness of servanthood.
Whenever I come across someone who is truly walking in God's spirit, I sense a deep longing for that hiddenness, that seclusion.
That thought is especially meaningful coming back from our minister's meetings in Denver, Colorado.
It hardly ever fails, I come back from those meetings feeling inadequate, empty and sullen at the thought that there are others who are accomplishing so much more than I, that there are those who have bigger churches, larger ministries, and receiving far more acclaim than me.
Yet the life of Jesus shows me that I am not to be concerned about what God has given to others, but what God has given to me.
God has me right where he wants me. My calling is to be faithful, to love and to minister to those whom he has given me and to walk in the knowledge that it's not anyone on this planet that I am trying to please but God!
God has you right where he wants you! Rest in that. Relax in that. And let's build His kingdom together.
Tuesday, August 09, 2005
Resilient people foresee the great questions of life's passage
Last night I was thumbing through a book by Gordon MacDonald entitled, "A Resilient Life." His chapter, "Resilient people foresee the great questions of life's passage," so struck me that I read it through twice, and then once more.
Let me summarize it for you.
It is very important to identify as many of the significant questions that people are asking as they move through the decades of life. If we can do that, we will know a lot more about big-picture thinking and resilience.
People in their twenties are preoccupied with clarifying their identity.
They ask questions like:
What kind of a man or woman am I becoming?
How am I different from my mother or father?
Where can I find a few friends who will welcome me as I am and who will offer the familylike connections that I need (or never had)?
Can I love, and am I lovable?
These are relational questions.
People in their twenties fear rejection, loneliness and the feeling that they might not fit in. They need to find a place, a people to whom they can belong.
They are asking:
What will I do with my life?
What is it that I really wanting exchange for my life's labors?
They wrestle with the lordship question - Around what person or conviction will I organize my life?
People in their thirties are asking:
How do I prioritize the demands being made on my life?
How far can I go in fulfilling my sense of purpose?
Who are the people with whom I know I walk through life.
What does my spiritual life look like?
Do I even have time for one?
MacDonald writes, "There is usually an expansion of responsibility and no expansion of time. Life becomes busy. There are spouses to love and know more intimately, children who need endless amounts of attention, and jobs/careers that absorb energy. Homes must be maintained, bills paid, obligations to organizations met. Suddenly one must budget the yesses and the noes of life, and these decisions are not simply or easily made."
There are new questions that pop up in our forties.
We begin to recognize that we can no longer put off our flaws and failures as youthfulness and inexperience. Panic and fear are for younger (and older?) people. In our forties, the expectation is that we are solid.
Still....There are questions:
Who was I as a child, and what powers back then influence the kind of person I am today?
Why do some people seem to be doing better than I?
Why am I often disappointed in myself and others?
Why are limitations beginning to outnumber options?
MacDonald writes, "I believe the forties to be dangerous, uncharted waters for a lot of us. Lots of things begin to happen for which many of us are not prepared. Bodies change. Children become more independent, even begin to leave home. Marriages have to be readjusted to face new realities. Some of us being to enjoy financial leverage; others of us begin to assume that we will never be materially secure. Some give up the fight to achieve lifelong goals and settle into a defensive posture of living. Others miss their youth and its seeming excitement so much that they try going backward to retrieve earlier pleasures."
They ask:
Why do I seem to face so many uncertainties?
What can I do to make a greater contribution to my generation?
What would it take to pick up a whole new calling in life and do the things I've always wanted to do?
People in their fifties find themselves wondering how many years are left. The news of friends dying, marriages dissolving, and people moving to places of retirement increases.
It can be a time for sober thinking.
You find yourself asking, "Why is time moving so fast?"
Why is my body becoming unreliable?
How do I deal with my failures and my successes?
How can my spouse and I reinvigorate our relationship now that the children are gone?
Who are these young people who want to replace me?
What do I do with my doubts and fears?
Will we have enough money for the retirement years if there are health problems and economic downturns?
People in their sixties are asking:
When do I stop doing the things that have always defined me?
Why do I feel ignored by a large part of the younger population?
Why am I curious about who is listed in the obituary column of the papers, how they died, and hat kinds of lives they lived?
Do I have enough time to do all the things I've dreamed about in the past?
Who will be around me when I die?
Which one of us will go first (if you are married), and what is it like to say good-bye to someone with whom you have shared so many years of life?
What do I regret?
And what are the chief satisfactions of these many years of living?
What have I done that will out live me.
People in their seventies and eighties are asking:
Does anyone realize, or even care, who I once was?
Is anyone aware that I owned (or managed) a business, threw a mean curveball, taught school, possessed a beautiful solo voice, had an attractive face? Is may story important to anyone?
How much of life can I still control?
Is there anything I can still contribute?
Heaven? What is it like?
I encourage you to get the book if you can, if not for this one chapter. And what really struck me was not only the way MacDonald nailed the questions that I am asking in my forties, but it also emphasized to me that we can't minister to people in the different decades in the same way. Or can we? What do you think?
How can we minister to people who are living in different decades of their lives and answer their questions when the questions are different?
Let me know....
Let me summarize it for you.
It is very important to identify as many of the significant questions that people are asking as they move through the decades of life. If we can do that, we will know a lot more about big-picture thinking and resilience.
People in their twenties are preoccupied with clarifying their identity.
They ask questions like:
What kind of a man or woman am I becoming?
How am I different from my mother or father?
Where can I find a few friends who will welcome me as I am and who will offer the familylike connections that I need (or never had)?
Can I love, and am I lovable?
These are relational questions.
People in their twenties fear rejection, loneliness and the feeling that they might not fit in. They need to find a place, a people to whom they can belong.
They are asking:
What will I do with my life?
What is it that I really wanting exchange for my life's labors?
They wrestle with the lordship question - Around what person or conviction will I organize my life?
People in their thirties are asking:
How do I prioritize the demands being made on my life?
How far can I go in fulfilling my sense of purpose?
Who are the people with whom I know I walk through life.
What does my spiritual life look like?
Do I even have time for one?
MacDonald writes, "There is usually an expansion of responsibility and no expansion of time. Life becomes busy. There are spouses to love and know more intimately, children who need endless amounts of attention, and jobs/careers that absorb energy. Homes must be maintained, bills paid, obligations to organizations met. Suddenly one must budget the yesses and the noes of life, and these decisions are not simply or easily made."
There are new questions that pop up in our forties.
We begin to recognize that we can no longer put off our flaws and failures as youthfulness and inexperience. Panic and fear are for younger (and older?) people. In our forties, the expectation is that we are solid.
Still....There are questions:
Who was I as a child, and what powers back then influence the kind of person I am today?
Why do some people seem to be doing better than I?
Why am I often disappointed in myself and others?
Why are limitations beginning to outnumber options?
MacDonald writes, "I believe the forties to be dangerous, uncharted waters for a lot of us. Lots of things begin to happen for which many of us are not prepared. Bodies change. Children become more independent, even begin to leave home. Marriages have to be readjusted to face new realities. Some of us being to enjoy financial leverage; others of us begin to assume that we will never be materially secure. Some give up the fight to achieve lifelong goals and settle into a defensive posture of living. Others miss their youth and its seeming excitement so much that they try going backward to retrieve earlier pleasures."
They ask:
Why do I seem to face so many uncertainties?
What can I do to make a greater contribution to my generation?
What would it take to pick up a whole new calling in life and do the things I've always wanted to do?
People in their fifties find themselves wondering how many years are left. The news of friends dying, marriages dissolving, and people moving to places of retirement increases.
It can be a time for sober thinking.
You find yourself asking, "Why is time moving so fast?"
Why is my body becoming unreliable?
How do I deal with my failures and my successes?
How can my spouse and I reinvigorate our relationship now that the children are gone?
Who are these young people who want to replace me?
What do I do with my doubts and fears?
Will we have enough money for the retirement years if there are health problems and economic downturns?
People in their sixties are asking:
When do I stop doing the things that have always defined me?
Why do I feel ignored by a large part of the younger population?
Why am I curious about who is listed in the obituary column of the papers, how they died, and hat kinds of lives they lived?
Do I have enough time to do all the things I've dreamed about in the past?
Who will be around me when I die?
Which one of us will go first (if you are married), and what is it like to say good-bye to someone with whom you have shared so many years of life?
What do I regret?
And what are the chief satisfactions of these many years of living?
What have I done that will out live me.
People in their seventies and eighties are asking:
Does anyone realize, or even care, who I once was?
Is anyone aware that I owned (or managed) a business, threw a mean curveball, taught school, possessed a beautiful solo voice, had an attractive face? Is may story important to anyone?
How much of life can I still control?
Is there anything I can still contribute?
Heaven? What is it like?
I encourage you to get the book if you can, if not for this one chapter. And what really struck me was not only the way MacDonald nailed the questions that I am asking in my forties, but it also emphasized to me that we can't minister to people in the different decades in the same way. Or can we? What do you think?
How can we minister to people who are living in different decades of their lives and answer their questions when the questions are different?
Let me know....
Monday, August 08, 2005
I'm back!
Hey, I'm back after a week of vacation and a week of being with other ministers of the Assemblies of God in Denver, Colorado. We had a great time, saw some old friends and ate dinner a couple of times with family.
Denver was hot, yet dry and the evenings cooled off nicely.
When we flew into Denver on American Airlines, we were supposed to arrive at 2:10 P.M. I had two tickets for Debbie and I to go to a Colorado Rockies game at 3:05 P.M. The plane was two hours late, due to mechanical failure. We hustled off the plane, got our rent-a-car and promptly got stuck in a traffic jam on the highway going into downtown Denver.
We only got to see the eighth and ninth innings. Bummer. However, we did get to see the stadium, and in one sense were grateful that we didn't have to sit through the whole game because it was literally close to 100 degrees, and it was a lousy game.
I also painted one side of our house, cut down branches, mowed the lawn twice, pulled weeds and played some golf.
Let me give you a thought that has really struck me recently.
We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.
Chew on that for a while.
True or false?
True.
God created us as spiritual beings. We are body, that's true, but we are primarily soul and spirit. After we die, it's our spirit and soul that continue, until we receive new, created, perfect bodies in heaven.
So many times we spend an enormous amount of energy in satisfying our bodies. That, I believe, is a deception from both our spiritual enemies and our soulish flesh.
The deception: If I only take care of my body (i.e. what I eat, what I drink, getting enough exercise, etc.) than I will be happy in my spirit and my soul. Yet I am learning that it is just the opposite.
It's as I feed my spirit and my soul that I find happiness and peace in my body. How many illnesses are caused by anxiety and fear in the soul?
We are first and primarily spiritual beings.
Having just taken a vacation to rest my body, I encourage all of us to take daily "vacations" to restore our spirits as well.
Feed your spirit. Feed your soul. And perhaps your body will take care of itself.
Denver was hot, yet dry and the evenings cooled off nicely.
When we flew into Denver on American Airlines, we were supposed to arrive at 2:10 P.M. I had two tickets for Debbie and I to go to a Colorado Rockies game at 3:05 P.M. The plane was two hours late, due to mechanical failure. We hustled off the plane, got our rent-a-car and promptly got stuck in a traffic jam on the highway going into downtown Denver.
We only got to see the eighth and ninth innings. Bummer. However, we did get to see the stadium, and in one sense were grateful that we didn't have to sit through the whole game because it was literally close to 100 degrees, and it was a lousy game.
I also painted one side of our house, cut down branches, mowed the lawn twice, pulled weeds and played some golf.
Let me give you a thought that has really struck me recently.
We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience.
Chew on that for a while.
True or false?
True.
God created us as spiritual beings. We are body, that's true, but we are primarily soul and spirit. After we die, it's our spirit and soul that continue, until we receive new, created, perfect bodies in heaven.
So many times we spend an enormous amount of energy in satisfying our bodies. That, I believe, is a deception from both our spiritual enemies and our soulish flesh.
The deception: If I only take care of my body (i.e. what I eat, what I drink, getting enough exercise, etc.) than I will be happy in my spirit and my soul. Yet I am learning that it is just the opposite.
It's as I feed my spirit and my soul that I find happiness and peace in my body. How many illnesses are caused by anxiety and fear in the soul?
We are first and primarily spiritual beings.
Having just taken a vacation to rest my body, I encourage all of us to take daily "vacations" to restore our spirits as well.
Feed your spirit. Feed your soul. And perhaps your body will take care of itself.
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