Who are we tempted to trust?

November 14, 2009 at 11:53 am (Faith)

This morning I read in Deuteronomy and in Ezekiel where God scolded the Israelites for trusting in those around them for help.  God chastised them for not having enough faith in Him. 

What are ways that we are tempted to trust in the world around us instead of completely?

  • When money is tight, I have looked for ways that I could get myself out of a bind.
  • When relationships were damaged, I tried to fix them.
  • I have expected my spouse to make me happy.
  • I have looked to a leader to provide guidance.

In the big things and the little things, God expects me to depend on him wholeheartedly.  I want to be a person after God’s own heart like David…a person that loves God wholeheartedly like Caleb…and a person that has a heart in tune with God’s like King Asa.

God convict me of my lack of faith when I am tempted to be less than 100% dependent on you.

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Full-Time Ministry

October 23, 2009 at 8:21 am (Faith, Inspiration)

Several years ago I became convinced that I was supposed to be full-time in ministry. 

Don’t get me wrong.  I didn’t feel capable.  I didn’t feel I’d ever understand enough of the bible.  A sane person would run if for no other reason than the additional pressure put on you because someone who is serving Christ is more likely to be scrutinized.

Then if you read the bible it is clear that God doesn’t always choose to use perfect people.  The only requirement is total surrender and a heart that is willing to be broken. 

God used some unlikely characters in the past…

• Abraham was old,
• Jacob was insecure,
• Leah was unattractive,
• Joseph was abused,
• Moses stuttered,
• Gideon was poor,
• Samson was codependent,
• Rahab was immoral,
• David had an affair and all kinds of family problems,
• Elijah was suicidal,
• Jeremiah was depressed,
• Jonah was reluctant,
• Naomi was a widow,
• John the Baptist was eccentric to say the least,
• Peter was impulsive and hot-tempered,
• Martha worried a lot,
• The Samaritan woman had several failed marriages,
• Zacchaeus was unpopular,
• Thomas had doubts,
• Paul had poor health, and
• Timothy was timid.

The responsibility of being full-time in ministry doesn’t just belong to pastors.  All Christians are called to be passionate about drawing others to Christ. 

Pastors do full-time ministry in a church.  Business leaders do full-time ministry in the secular world.  Mom’s do full-time ministry in their homes.  We are all to use the gifts given to us to make a difference where we are planted.

Today I will do my part.  Today I will feel grateful that my Christianity isn’t only about me.

Today I will give God the glory.

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Delighting in the Details

September 6, 2009 at 1:28 am (Faith, Life Balance)

Psalm 37:23 “The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.”

I have to admit -  I love knowing that I am in the presence of God. 

I also have to admit – Sometimes I lose sight of the fact that I am in His presence at all times.

Being a child of God means we have the opportunity to rest in his arms and live a life that glorifies Him.  I have a hard time wrapping my mind around the thought that God delights in the details of my life.  It is even more amazing to me that we have the ability to have God direct our steps.

If you are like me you have taken some painful detours in life.  I have be out of alignment with God’s will more times than I can count.  I’ve also felt the moments when I knew I was moving exactly as He wanted. 

When I was out of His will, the feeling of isolation and loneliness was overwhelming…regardless of the number of supportive people that surrounded me.

Lord, help us to fully surrender to your will.  Help us to lives godly lives so we have the ability to see the direction you desire for us.  Thank you for your Word and the reminders that you provide that you are never too busy for your children.

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Defeated or Determined

August 31, 2009 at 10:00 am (Faith)

The last two weeks have been complicated beyond what can even be explained.  My friend Christina sometimes describes a “black cloud” that has followed her in the past…I feel like it’s chasing me like crazy recently.

I have never been closer to God than I am right now.  I have never been more determined to be close to God than I am right now.  In spite of that, things have been unusually crazy lately.

On August 20, 2009, when I was literally at my wits end a friend forwarded the following devotional to me…

A farmer and his farmhand went duck hunting.  The farmer said to his friend, “you’re always talking about fighting with the devil.  I’m not a Christian and I never have to fight with the devil.”

The farmhand answered, “Boss, if you and I shot two ducks, one was wounded and one was dead, which one would you go after first?”

The farmer said, “Well, I guess the wounded duck.”

“That’s right.  The devil knows your a dead duck.”

If the devil doesn’t bother you, it’s because he doesn’t have to bother you since you and he are traveling in the same direction. 

I believe that Karen’s e-mail and God’s timing were confirmation of His presence and His love. 

Thank you God for surrounding me with bold, obedient, supportive friends.  Thank you for the daily reminders of your presence.

The next morning I was reading Job 1.  I still freak out every time I think about Job losing all of his children and all of his possessions and instinctively turning to praise God…immediately.  In Job 2:10 he told his wife…”Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?”

God, I want to always praise you in the storms of life.  And by the way…I know my problems are tiny in comparison to what they could be.

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Back to Basics

August 24, 2009 at 1:43 pm (Uncategorized)

 So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. Roman’s 12:1-2 MSG

 

We are living in a time when the world would have us panic.  Popular thought would be that we should live in fear.  Negativity and catastrophic events abound today.  How will we choose to respond?  God’s advice would be – get back to basics.

 

A struggling business owner in today’s economy can increase the odds of success by reverting to what created original success – consistent processes and genuine concern for customers.

 

A family struggling financially can most improve their situation by going back to basic monetary principles.  Live on a budget and spend less than you earn.  Unfortunately this is easier said than done.

 

What are the spiritual basics in God’s eyes?  How would God recommend we direct our energies?   We have a choice – work harder or trust more!

 

As baby Christians, our faith seemed simple.  However, for many of us, we grew up and made it complicated.  We complicate it by failing to continuously surrender.  We complicate it by haphazardly squeezing God into our lives briefly before getting on with our own agenda.

 

Oswald Chambers said, “The challenge to the missionary does not come from the fact that people are difficult to bring to salvation, that backsliders are difficult to reclaim, or that there is a barrier of callous indifference.  No, the challenge comes from the missionary’s own personal relationship with Jesus Christ…The one great challenge to us is – do I know my risen Lord?”

 

God’s way is simple – He wants us to cling to Him, to crave Him.  He wants to be an integral part of our everyday, ordinary life (Romans 12:1&2).

 

The Bible describes Enoch in Genesis 5:24, “Enoch walked with God…”

 

In 1 Kings 15:14b it says, “…Asa’s heart was fully committed to the LORD all his life.”

 

Imagine a life of walking with God.  Imagine life lived with a heart fully committed to the Lord.  Imagine a life where we readily recognize what God wants from us and quickly respond to it.

 

As you go through this week do a few gut checks:

 

  • Am I walking with God at this moment?
  • Is my heart fully committed to the Lord?
  • Am I allowing myself to “fit into” the world or fixing my attention on God?
  • Is every aspect of my life glorifying God?
  • Am I readily recognizing what the Holy Spirit would have me do and quickly responding?

 

Spend time renewing your commitment to living out the childlike faith that we enjoyed as baby Christians.  Go back to the basics by leading a God-centered life.

Pray as David did in Psalm 51:10, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.”

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Breakfast and the Bible

August 15, 2009 at 3:33 pm (Faith, Life Balance)

Regardless of my efforts, life seems to get in the way of my bible study.

I wake up in the morning thinking of God.  Within moments my popcorn brain starts going off in a million tangents.

My body is programmed to be starving from the moment I awake.  I run to the kitchen for my morning bagel.  Sometimes it is accompanied by green tea.  Sometimes it’s Dr. Pepper.

It’s amazing how much better life is on the days when I relax with God…in His Word before I allow the world to take over my schedule. 

Lord, today I commit to breakfast and the Bible every day.  I never allow anything to get between me and breakfast.  I should never allow anything to get between me and my time with you.

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Serving instead of Searching

August 5, 2009 at 10:52 pm (Uncategorized)

One of my best friends, Alene, asked me this week…”what is God showing you now?”

Some weeks I don’t feel like I’m getting much new.  Then there are weeks like this one where I am blessed by one message, over and over again.

It is neat to be in relationships where we can share what insight God is choosing to expose. 

I recently watched a DVD of Bruce Wilkinson talking about how we can get busy serving God and in the process reduce our committment to having a relationship with God.

Then this week I heard a Christian talking about Matthew 22:36-39.  It was a reminder that the greatest command was to love the Lord with all our heart.  The SECOND was to love our neighbor.

This morning I was reading a book by Doug Fields about Youth Ministry.  His book also quoted Matthew 22:36-39.  He said, “The distinction between these commandments is that one is the greatest and the other is the second greatest.  Failuring to understand the difference can have devastating effects on your spiritual life because serving in ministry and loving others can become an excuse for not falling more deeply in love with God.”

The common thread for the last few weeks has been clear.  Don’t get so focused on serving Me that you stop searching for Me. 

Thanks for the reminder, God.

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Handling the curve balls

July 20, 2009 at 9:11 pm (Faith, Life Balance)

One of my favorite sayings in business is “every day is Plan B.”  No matter how well you plan.  Life is going to throw TONS of curve balls at you.

Last night my friend Janice and I watched “The Next Food Network Star.”  The episode featured the contestants cooking a dish live on television.  What they didn’t know was that each session was sabatoged intentionally.

It was great to see how each contestant handled he unexpected.  My favorite contestant was booted off because she responded viciously when things didn’t go well.  Been there…done that.

Being loving and godly is easy when things are going smooth.  How do we handle the rest of life?  Will I turn into psycho chick when something unfair happens to me?

Today has been full of insanity.  Jury duty the week before I lead a Walk to Emmaus (no I am not excused).  I also had to do damage control to smooth out the rough edges in a situation that was not my fault.  That’s life.

Three years ago I would have been a nervous wreck after a day like today.  Resting in your arms, Lord, gives me the ability to chuckle at the insanity that is sometimes life.

True character is revealed in the bad times, not the good ones.  This is your life…are you who you wanna be? (yep, I love Switchfoot).

God Bless

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What is Your Passion?

April 11, 2009 at 2:25 pm (Books, Business, Faith, Goals, Life Balance)

As a child it was important to me to please my parents.  I was a “good kid.”  I never skipped a class.  I got wonderful grades.  The first time I tasted alcohol I was 23 years old. 

As a teenager I pushed my curfew at times but as a whole…it was important to me to make my parents happy.

That need to please followed me into adulthood.  I graduated college with highest honors.  It was important to me to excel at work.  I took care of myself physically because it was important to me to be attractive.

At the age of 33 I became self-employed.  I was determined to be a super star.  Our first full year in business we were named the number 1 Allstate agency in the state of Texas.  Our second year in business I wrote in our employee handbook “we will have a positive impact on Allstate nationally.”

I visited over 300 small business owners and was determined to be a resource for best practices.

Along the way, I purchased a new vehicle every 2 years.  Each purchase was reasonably practical but made me feel good…it was a way of proving I had “arrived.”

In 1999, my “need to please” slapped me in the face.  I read a book by Thomas Stanley and William Danko – The Millionaire Next Door.  It is an amazing book that compiles results of studies of many multi-millionaires. 

Two characteristics stood out:

1) These multi-millionaires were passionate about their work.  They enjoyed it.

2) These multi-millionaires weren’t worried about impressing others.  They aren’t keeping up with the Jones.  They are not wearing Rolex watches. Ouch! 

I came away from the book realizing that I had an unhealthy desire to please others.  I got a much clearer picture of the difference between things I wanted in life and what I really needed.  I drove my car until it died (it was 8 years old). 

It has taken me years of thought and prayer to tackle the tendency to please and impress others. 

In 1999, I also became aware of Christians in my path.  I became aware that my passion was recognition and success.  They were passionate about knowing and serving  God.  I wanted to live a God-centered life.  Enough of my self-centered behavior.

I am sad about all of the years I wasted “gaining” all of the things that the world teaches me are important.  I’m excited about the years that remain and having a clearer focus on what is really important.  In the Bible Mark 8:36 says, “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world but to lose his soul.”

What is your passion?

 Here is a cool article written about The Millionaire Next Door book  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/books/chap1/millionairenextdoor.htm

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The 30 Hour Famine

April 5, 2009 at 12:00 am (Faith, Inspiration, World)

 Around the world, millions of children go to bed hungry every night. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Last year, over 100,000 teens across the country did the World Vision 30 Hour Famine. They raised over $4.5 million to help children and communities in need around the world.

As a youth leader in our church this year, I am joining them. By taking part in the 30 Hour Famine, I will raise funds to help provide nutritious food, clean water, medicine, and shelter for children in countries such as Uganda, Tanzania, India, Cambodia, and Ecuador.

My fast began last night and I will fast for 30 hours which lets me get a taste of what millions of others go through every day.  Right now I have been fasting for 22 hours.  It is amazing how much easier it is knowing that there is actually food in my kitchen.  I can’t imagine being hungry and not having that option.

The good news is, a little money goes a long way: just $30 can feed a child and their family for one month, while $90 will feed a child and their family for three months.

This year, I hope to raise $ 2500 to help children and families around the world. To donate by credit card now, click the following link:

https://www2.worldvision.ca/famine/80001463

Any amount that you could contribute is most appreciated.  Obviously I’ve put my money where my mouth is.  Most importantly I’ve enjoyed watching 20 kids from our church make a committment to this cause. 

Tomorrow at 2:30 we will have a Bar-B-Q to celebrate the conculsion and enjoy a meal.  I know we will all be thinking of those that do not have that luxury.

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