Through experience I have found that my best Christmas memories happen before Christmas Day arrives. So, I want to share my top 5 memories from this season.
1. Delivering 90 bicycles in one afternoon with Ron and Tony to two area elementary schools. There is no greater joy than to see kids faces light up when they walk into a room of bikes knowing one of them is soon to be theirs. All these bikes came from Rock Creekers who give to our Bikes for Christmas drive we do every year. Credit for the Bikes for Christmas has to go to Bob Mack who started our church doing this seven or eight years ago.
2. Visiting a young man at Pulaski County jail one afternoon and hearing how God is working in his life in spite of his mistakes. I'm always amazed every time I do jail visits how God uses the loss of freedom to get our attention and bring the focus of our life back onto Him and what's really important. I always get much more than I give anytime I do these visits.
3. Spending two and a half hours last Sunday evening here at Rock Creek with my 11 year old granddaughter with over 600 excited kids and their parents at Christmas at the Creek. This is an annual event hosted by our Kidz Department that really gets an old guy like me jazzed about Christmas and experiencing the joy of Jesus and life.
4. Having the privilege of delivering a Christmas card from our couples group with a gift card in it to a couple in our LIFE group who have been struggling for 19 months due to an accident he had. They are dear, sweet people and wonderful neighbors and to help lighten their load made my day.
5. Having our couples Christmas party with our LIFE group and doing a Dirty Santa gift exchange is a blast. I highly recommend if you're not in a group find one in 2009. It will make a world of difference in handling the pressures of life.
Merry Christmas.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Dinner Theatre, 2009
Last night Jason Curry and his 531 youth ministry here at Rock Creek pulled off another amazing night of laughter, served over a 1,000 people in 20 minutes, and provided us all an opportunity to see what's right with teens today. In a day when teens get lumped together and they all get a bad rap for being disrespectful, rebellious hoodlums it's refreshing to see over 300 kids love Jesus, know how to have a good time, and are everything any parent would want their son or daughter to be. I sat beside a lady I had met for the first time and we had 4 teenagers across from us and after I had chatted with them for a while she remarked, "We're soon to be first time grandparents and these kids and those all around us are what we want our grandkids to turn out like." To that I say thanks to parents and a church that has it going the right direction so that kids can turn out to matter for God in their generation.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Community Impact Day, 2008
What a privilege it was to be part of our first Community Impact Day this past Saturday. We had 800 people serve 7 area schools, feed and clothe the homeless, help other churches, build a fence at a nursing home, pick up trash along a city street, and just generally be the church out in the community to show the love of Christ in very practical ways. The whole morning just made me feel great once again about being part of a church that "takes Jesus as He is to people as they are." And we had great fellowship with one another while we worked. That is such a hard combination to beat. Serving Jesus by serving your fellow man and experiencing Christian oneness with your spiritual family; I'm not sure it gets any better than that here on this planet.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Changes
I don't have to tell you life is full of changes. You already know that. But what do you do when something in your life changes and you don't even realize it? It's an odd feeling when something changes about or around you and you think, "How did I miss that?"
Case in point for me was a couple of weeks ago I had been having foot trouble where it was painful to walk; had been to the foot doctor, got a painful cortisone shot in the second toe, and still the pain wasn't getting better. Part of what they discovered was a broken bone in my second toe but the shocking thing was when I went to the shoe store to get some shoes I could walk in. I have always worn a 10 and 1/2D shoe. I have a closet and garage full of shoes and boots in that size. Imagine my surprise when the lady measured my foot and told me I wore a 13D!! My first thought was, "No way, I've always worn a 10 and 1/2 D." My second thought was "No wonder my foot hurts." Of course my family all made fun of me for being such an idiot.
I wonder what person or thing touching your life has changed and you're not aware of it. Maybe it's time to re-evaluate and not take things or people for granted. You know, don't assume just because that's they way it's always been that it must still be that way. There's a good possibility things have changed and you need to be made aware of it.
Case in point for me was a couple of weeks ago I had been having foot trouble where it was painful to walk; had been to the foot doctor, got a painful cortisone shot in the second toe, and still the pain wasn't getting better. Part of what they discovered was a broken bone in my second toe but the shocking thing was when I went to the shoe store to get some shoes I could walk in. I have always worn a 10 and 1/2D shoe. I have a closet and garage full of shoes and boots in that size. Imagine my surprise when the lady measured my foot and told me I wore a 13D!! My first thought was, "No way, I've always worn a 10 and 1/2 D." My second thought was "No wonder my foot hurts." Of course my family all made fun of me for being such an idiot.
I wonder what person or thing touching your life has changed and you're not aware of it. Maybe it's time to re-evaluate and not take things or people for granted. You know, don't assume just because that's they way it's always been that it must still be that way. There's a good possibility things have changed and you need to be made aware of it.
Friday, September 26, 2008
Here Comes the Bride
I have had the privilege of doing several weddings in my short pastoral ministry and everytime I do one, there is the moment when I'm standing at the front with the groom and his attendants and the time comes for the bride to enter the building. When the bride appears to begin her walk down the aisle I always have a catch in my throat and a quickening of my heartbeat.
I had such a moment a week ago this Saturday at the wedding of my niece in Texas. That's what made me think about this again. As I thought about what makes this a heartstopping moment for me I realized it reminds me that there is coming a day and a time when Jesus is going to come down from heaven to this earth for His bride, the church. I can only imagine being able to visibly see Jesus for the first time and what an awesome sight that will be.
"For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud comand, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so will we be with the Lord forever." I Thes. 4:16,17
My hope for you is you're ready to see Jesus if today was the day He made His appearing to take his bride home to live with Him forever.
I had such a moment a week ago this Saturday at the wedding of my niece in Texas. That's what made me think about this again. As I thought about what makes this a heartstopping moment for me I realized it reminds me that there is coming a day and a time when Jesus is going to come down from heaven to this earth for His bride, the church. I can only imagine being able to visibly see Jesus for the first time and what an awesome sight that will be.
"For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud comand, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so will we be with the Lord forever." I Thes. 4:16,17
My hope for you is you're ready to see Jesus if today was the day He made His appearing to take his bride home to live with Him forever.
Friday, September 5, 2008
Powerless
Dianne and I just completed 62 hours at our home without power. I learned some very important lessons during that time. The most important lesson I learned from her perspective is she can't do without something called a "chee." I don't have a clue what a chee is, except it's some device that helps her fix her hair. When she had to go to school 3 mornings without the use of this chee she was not happy!
A lesson I learned about myself is I CAN do without TV for 62 hours. If you had told me this fact before doing it, I would have doubted you. No ESPN, no local news in the morning, no Dog the Bounty Hunter, no Monk; what would I do with all that time? Mostly go to bed at 8:30, sleep 'til 5:30 A.M.(which I never do when there's any kind of outside light) and just generally change my internal clock.
Thursday evening we were scheduled to have our usual couples group meeting at the house but around 2 P.M. with no electricity on, I made a call to the other four couples in the group to say let's meet at a local BBQ place, which we did, and we ate, laughed a lot at each others true to life crazy stories, and just had a wonder ful time. In fact, I think that meeting did so much to bond our still young 4 month old group in ways we wouldn't have if we had our normal meeting. There is something about eating and laughter and fellowship that gets us close to one another in ways I can't describe.
As we turned on to our street that evening at 8:45 the first thing I saw was the yard lights on at our house. What a relief! We had power! No more getting ready by candlelight and bumping into things in the pitch black darkness of country living.
Another important lesson I thing I learned was that there were others who had it much worse than we did. Like Stephanie, my server at breakfast that morning whose home was flooded and she and her family escaped with just a few garbage bags of their belongings and wouldn't be able to be back in their home until next week, if then. As we drove to supper we saw 20-30 trees down along the way, thankfully none on houses but still something else to have to deal with as things began to dry out. At our place we only had a few limbs down, not whole trees. I also learned to be thankful for the people who supply our power and fix it when it goes out. I saw crews from Oklahoma and Ohio out in my area fixing power lines. What a wonderful fraternity of helping other people than those you are paid to take care of. I think there's something we could all learn from the utility companies.
Lastly, I thought about how horrible it would be to be without God's power in my life. I am reminded of the psalmist David's cry in Psalm 51:11, "don't take your Holy Spirit from me." It is one thing to be without electrical power but the truth is we can make it without it, but for a believer who knows what the POWER of God does in our life we never want to be without that! The truth is His Power never goes off or is interrupted by storms. His power is ever constant and all we have to do to keep it going strong in our life is keep our hearts tuned in to Him.
A lesson I learned about myself is I CAN do without TV for 62 hours. If you had told me this fact before doing it, I would have doubted you. No ESPN, no local news in the morning, no Dog the Bounty Hunter, no Monk; what would I do with all that time? Mostly go to bed at 8:30, sleep 'til 5:30 A.M.(which I never do when there's any kind of outside light) and just generally change my internal clock.
Thursday evening we were scheduled to have our usual couples group meeting at the house but around 2 P.M. with no electricity on, I made a call to the other four couples in the group to say let's meet at a local BBQ place, which we did, and we ate, laughed a lot at each others true to life crazy stories, and just had a wonder ful time. In fact, I think that meeting did so much to bond our still young 4 month old group in ways we wouldn't have if we had our normal meeting. There is something about eating and laughter and fellowship that gets us close to one another in ways I can't describe.
As we turned on to our street that evening at 8:45 the first thing I saw was the yard lights on at our house. What a relief! We had power! No more getting ready by candlelight and bumping into things in the pitch black darkness of country living.
Another important lesson I thing I learned was that there were others who had it much worse than we did. Like Stephanie, my server at breakfast that morning whose home was flooded and she and her family escaped with just a few garbage bags of their belongings and wouldn't be able to be back in their home until next week, if then. As we drove to supper we saw 20-30 trees down along the way, thankfully none on houses but still something else to have to deal with as things began to dry out. At our place we only had a few limbs down, not whole trees. I also learned to be thankful for the people who supply our power and fix it when it goes out. I saw crews from Oklahoma and Ohio out in my area fixing power lines. What a wonderful fraternity of helping other people than those you are paid to take care of. I think there's something we could all learn from the utility companies.
Lastly, I thought about how horrible it would be to be without God's power in my life. I am reminded of the psalmist David's cry in Psalm 51:11, "don't take your Holy Spirit from me." It is one thing to be without electrical power but the truth is we can make it without it, but for a believer who knows what the POWER of God does in our life we never want to be without that! The truth is His Power never goes off or is interrupted by storms. His power is ever constant and all we have to do to keep it going strong in our life is keep our hearts tuned in to Him.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
I'm One of "Those People"
One of the things I enjoy most about my job is getting to work with people in Celebrate Recovery. These are people who have what we call; hurts, habits, and hangups. It strikes me as odd that everyone on the planet has "hurts, habits, and hangups," because every being has a sin nature. Very few of us will admit our hurts, habits, and hangups that have caused us to hurt ourselves, hurt others, and also cause others to hurt us. One of the reasons I enjoy working with "those people," as they are sometimes called by those who think they don't have any issues, is because they recognize they have wounds and pain and the best way to deal with them is to face them honestly. Jeremiah 6:14, "You can't heal a wound by saying it's not there!" is a verse we quote regularly to help us face our denial.
Maybe you don't need a 12 step recovery program, but if not, you certainly need a biblically balanced program, be it a small group, a regular bible study you do with others, or somewhere you can exercise self examination and accountability to bring about the neccessary life changes God wants to make in your life.
Maybe you don't need a 12 step recovery program, but if not, you certainly need a biblically balanced program, be it a small group, a regular bible study you do with others, or somewhere you can exercise self examination and accountability to bring about the neccessary life changes God wants to make in your life.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Who Loves Ya, Baby?
Back in the 70's and 80's one of my favorite TV shows was "Kojak," starring Telly Savalas who played the role of detective Theo Kojak. Kojak was a tootsie roll pop eating, bald headed, tough New York City detective. One of his favorite lines was, "Who loves ya' baby." Kojak usually used that line after the person he was questioning told him what he needed to know to solve the case.
I was reminded of that line the other evening as Dianne and I rode in the car with our 10 year old granddaughter, Mackynzie. Mackynzie was relating how much she was enjoying the new school year and her new teacher. When I questioned her further about the difference between this year and last, she said the difference was that last year her teacher would say things to her like, "Mackynzie, you have a brain, why don't you use it?" in a very cutting tone. Her teacher this year has already convinced her she can learn math and anything else presented to her. This years teacher is a positive and uplifting person to all her students and we could tell from Mackynzie's tone and comments she would work very hard to please this teacher because her teacher believed in her and built her up at every turn. She had even told of how selfcontrolled she had been in not talking when others had blurted things out. That was a big accomplishment for her, one made easier because she wanted to please a teacher that believed in her!
When you think about people you like to be around, don't you always choose the ones who believe in you, believe the best about you, respect you, and only want the best for you? Come to think of it isn't that a form of loving?
"Love is patient and kind. Love is not rude. Love is not irritable, love never gives up, is always hopeful, it will last forever. There are three things that will endure--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love.
I Corinthians 13:4,5,7,8,13(NLT)
I was reminded of that line the other evening as Dianne and I rode in the car with our 10 year old granddaughter, Mackynzie. Mackynzie was relating how much she was enjoying the new school year and her new teacher. When I questioned her further about the difference between this year and last, she said the difference was that last year her teacher would say things to her like, "Mackynzie, you have a brain, why don't you use it?" in a very cutting tone. Her teacher this year has already convinced her she can learn math and anything else presented to her. This years teacher is a positive and uplifting person to all her students and we could tell from Mackynzie's tone and comments she would work very hard to please this teacher because her teacher believed in her and built her up at every turn. She had even told of how selfcontrolled she had been in not talking when others had blurted things out. That was a big accomplishment for her, one made easier because she wanted to please a teacher that believed in her!
When you think about people you like to be around, don't you always choose the ones who believe in you, believe the best about you, respect you, and only want the best for you? Come to think of it isn't that a form of loving?
"Love is patient and kind. Love is not rude. Love is not irritable, love never gives up, is always hopeful, it will last forever. There are three things that will endure--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love.
I Corinthians 13:4,5,7,8,13(NLT)
Monday, August 11, 2008
Prosperity
3 John 2 "Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers."(NKJV)
What does prosperity look like to you? Are you prosperous? How do you measure prosperity? Is it how much money you have in the bank, what you own, the size of your house, or the type car you drive? It seems to me it is a rare person who, regardless of how much money they make, think they are prosperous. Our standard of prosperity is way out of touch with Biblical reality, much less very foreign to 90% of the rest of the world. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing bad about being blessed with possessions if our attitude is one of contentment and seeing our prosperity as a way to bless others.
I hope as you contemplate 3rd John 2 you realize the relationship between prosperity and the health of your soul. Your soul is your mind, will, and emotions. How properous or sound are your thoughts, your resolve, and your feelings? Do the things you feed your mind, will, and emotions cause you to prosper? Could it be time for a check-up of your soul? Maybe this week you should evaluate whether your thoughts, feelings and actions build you up or tear you down. If they tear you down decide what mental, emotional, and spiritual changes you need to make so that you will prosper.
If life has you down right now, talk to the most spiritual person you know and share your struggle with them. Even if they don't have all the answers there is great value in sharing your burden and asking them to pray for and with you about your desire to prosper.
What does prosperity look like to you? Are you prosperous? How do you measure prosperity? Is it how much money you have in the bank, what you own, the size of your house, or the type car you drive? It seems to me it is a rare person who, regardless of how much money they make, think they are prosperous. Our standard of prosperity is way out of touch with Biblical reality, much less very foreign to 90% of the rest of the world. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing bad about being blessed with possessions if our attitude is one of contentment and seeing our prosperity as a way to bless others.
I hope as you contemplate 3rd John 2 you realize the relationship between prosperity and the health of your soul. Your soul is your mind, will, and emotions. How properous or sound are your thoughts, your resolve, and your feelings? Do the things you feed your mind, will, and emotions cause you to prosper? Could it be time for a check-up of your soul? Maybe this week you should evaluate whether your thoughts, feelings and actions build you up or tear you down. If they tear you down decide what mental, emotional, and spiritual changes you need to make so that you will prosper.
If life has you down right now, talk to the most spiritual person you know and share your struggle with them. Even if they don't have all the answers there is great value in sharing your burden and asking them to pray for and with you about your desire to prosper.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Living With Imperfect People
I read this quote today from humorist Dave Barry who said, "A perfect parent is a person with excellent child-rearing theories and no actual children." There's lots of wisdom and truth in that, not just about raising kids but about any aspect of life.
We are all experts on perfection until we have to actually be engaged in the process. That's where the rub comes in, isn't it? Everything would be perfect if it weren't for people. Living with imperfect people requires lots of patience and forgiveness. It's always very easy to think about how much patience I must have with others until I stop to realize I also am an imperfect people myself and that someone else is having to extend patience and forgiveness toward me.
Patience means putting up with me when you would rather lose your temper; it means forgiving me when you would rather hold a grudge. Patience puts the long in long-suffering. Patience is love in action because "love is patient" (I Corinthians 13:4 NIV).
Even when your complaints about someone else are justified, patience pushes you toward forgiving and forgetting the hurt: " a man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense" (Proverbs 19:11 NIV).
Being patient will try your patience but we become stronger when we learn to love imperfect people. Patience frees us to develop godly diversity in our relationships, where we no longer require everyone to act and look and think the same way we do.
We are all experts on perfection until we have to actually be engaged in the process. That's where the rub comes in, isn't it? Everything would be perfect if it weren't for people. Living with imperfect people requires lots of patience and forgiveness. It's always very easy to think about how much patience I must have with others until I stop to realize I also am an imperfect people myself and that someone else is having to extend patience and forgiveness toward me.
Patience means putting up with me when you would rather lose your temper; it means forgiving me when you would rather hold a grudge. Patience puts the long in long-suffering. Patience is love in action because "love is patient" (I Corinthians 13:4 NIV).
Even when your complaints about someone else are justified, patience pushes you toward forgiving and forgetting the hurt: " a man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense" (Proverbs 19:11 NIV).
Being patient will try your patience but we become stronger when we learn to love imperfect people. Patience frees us to develop godly diversity in our relationships, where we no longer require everyone to act and look and think the same way we do.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Healing Broken Relationships
I believe everyone wants good relationships with their loved ones, co-workers, and friends. But what do you do when the relationship is strained or broken due to a failing on the other persons part? In the Bible, Paul dealt with that in Galatians 6:1.
"Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself." (NLT)
Notice that this call for restoration is a measure of the spirituality of the person who instigates the restoration. How we restore someone back into relationship with us and with God is to be done with gentleness and humility because we may need that same grace-filled treatment ourselves.
The whole issue of restoring someone, who usually is hiding in shame, and bringing them back to authentic relationship with God, themselves, and us is one of the purposes God created us for in the beginning.
Is there someone who has fallen you should talk to today? One of the best things you can do is to love them and walk alongside them.
"Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself." (NLT)
Notice that this call for restoration is a measure of the spirituality of the person who instigates the restoration. How we restore someone back into relationship with us and with God is to be done with gentleness and humility because we may need that same grace-filled treatment ourselves.
The whole issue of restoring someone, who usually is hiding in shame, and bringing them back to authentic relationship with God, themselves, and us is one of the purposes God created us for in the beginning.
Is there someone who has fallen you should talk to today? One of the best things you can do is to love them and walk alongside them.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Crossing the Rubicon of Relationships
The year was 49 B.C. The order came down to Julius Caesar to disband his army and give up the struggle. He stood on the banks of the Rubicon River and pondered his dilemma. If he continued his march by crossing the river there could be no turning back. He turned to his troops, tore up his orders, and led his dedicated legion across the Rubicon to march against Rome. This act of commitment to his cause brought about a declaration of war against the Senate and, for Caesar, paved the way for his becoming ruler of the Roman world. Since that day the phrase, "crossing the Rubicon", has been used to signify total commitment to a cause from which there can be no turning back.
There is a Rubicon in every interpersonal relationship. That is, there is a line of commitment we cross from which we are "in" for the duration. Commitment is a missing element in many modern relationships. We live in a day when we have throw away marriages and families, throw away careers, and throw away friendships. Many lives, including our own, are devasted when this happens.
Why not "cross the Rubicon" of relationships and make lifelong commitments to all those relationships and people you treasure in your life? Once you do this you will find your life is so much more satisfying.
There is a Rubicon in every interpersonal relationship. That is, there is a line of commitment we cross from which we are "in" for the duration. Commitment is a missing element in many modern relationships. We live in a day when we have throw away marriages and families, throw away careers, and throw away friendships. Many lives, including our own, are devasted when this happens.
Why not "cross the Rubicon" of relationships and make lifelong commitments to all those relationships and people you treasure in your life? Once you do this you will find your life is so much more satisfying.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Getting Along
"I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought." I Corinthians 1:10 (NIV)
The Bible doesn't tell us "one anothers" to just get along with one another. The apostle Paul calls us to a higher standard than just getting along. He tells us in Philippians 2:1-2 to have the same mind, the same love, and to be one in spirit and purpose. Your life's testimony is validated by how well you get along with other people at work, church, school, and first and foremost those people in your own house.
Love really doesn't look like love when it's accompanied by arguments, fighting, and ongoing disputes. Now, we all know that anytime you put people together there are going to be conflicts. I've been married 38 years this summer to Dianne and even though we vowed "till death do us part," we have had conflicts. The issue isn't if you're going to have conflicts, it's how are you going to work them out?
Can I give you a couple of suggestions on how to handle conflicts with other people?
1) Take your conflicts to Jesus. In other words pray about it. Pray that both sides will yield their rights to Jesus. We can have differing opinions about things but it is His opinion that ultimately matters. Submit yourself to Jesus and let Him wash away your divisions and arguments with His love. See James 4:1-7 for further insight.
2) Agree to agree with Jesus. If someone comes to your mind with whom you need to work out a difference don't try to get them to agree with you, you agree with what God tells you to do about the difference between you them. You are called to love them and pray for them that God will open their hearts to wisdom and understanding about the conflict.
The Bible doesn't tell us "one anothers" to just get along with one another. The apostle Paul calls us to a higher standard than just getting along. He tells us in Philippians 2:1-2 to have the same mind, the same love, and to be one in spirit and purpose. Your life's testimony is validated by how well you get along with other people at work, church, school, and first and foremost those people in your own house.
Love really doesn't look like love when it's accompanied by arguments, fighting, and ongoing disputes. Now, we all know that anytime you put people together there are going to be conflicts. I've been married 38 years this summer to Dianne and even though we vowed "till death do us part," we have had conflicts. The issue isn't if you're going to have conflicts, it's how are you going to work them out?
Can I give you a couple of suggestions on how to handle conflicts with other people?
1) Take your conflicts to Jesus. In other words pray about it. Pray that both sides will yield their rights to Jesus. We can have differing opinions about things but it is His opinion that ultimately matters. Submit yourself to Jesus and let Him wash away your divisions and arguments with His love. See James 4:1-7 for further insight.
2) Agree to agree with Jesus. If someone comes to your mind with whom you need to work out a difference don't try to get them to agree with you, you agree with what God tells you to do about the difference between you them. You are called to love them and pray for them that God will open their hearts to wisdom and understanding about the conflict.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Thanks Dad
I don't know how you're going to celebrate your father this week but since I've been thinking about my dad quite a bit lately I decided I wanted to just pause and say thanks to him and brag on him. My dad was born in 1926, a product of The Great Depression. His father, my grandpa, was a muleskinner in eastern Oklahoma while he and his brother, Jim, were growing up. My dad only went to school through the 8th grade around Hugo, Oklahoma, but he's one of the smartest, wisest men I know. There aren't many things my dad can't fix.
Anyway, he grew up dirt poor and he would tell you one of the best decisions he ever made was to join the Army, where he served one tour during the Korean War. Following his hitch in the service he met and married my mom, she being 16 at the time and he was 21. That means this year they've been married 60 years. My dad worked 38 years in the oilfield for the same company and retired when he was 62. He and my mom have lived in the same house since 1962, and attended the same church for over 50 years. Amazingly enough in todays fast changing, microwave world and unlike most people I meet they are the most content people I know. My dad worked hard all those years, supported his family of 3 kids and a stay at home wife and still saved enough money on a pumpers salary to live very comfortably and debt free.
The things I admire most about my dad are his steadfastness, his loyalty, and his contentment. I can only pray I have half of those qualities myself so that my daughter and my granddaughter can say the same about me.
Find something you can brag on your dad about this Father's Day, 2008, and tell him or write it down for him to read. It will be the best gift he receives this year.
Anyway, he grew up dirt poor and he would tell you one of the best decisions he ever made was to join the Army, where he served one tour during the Korean War. Following his hitch in the service he met and married my mom, she being 16 at the time and he was 21. That means this year they've been married 60 years. My dad worked 38 years in the oilfield for the same company and retired when he was 62. He and my mom have lived in the same house since 1962, and attended the same church for over 50 years. Amazingly enough in todays fast changing, microwave world and unlike most people I meet they are the most content people I know. My dad worked hard all those years, supported his family of 3 kids and a stay at home wife and still saved enough money on a pumpers salary to live very comfortably and debt free.
The things I admire most about my dad are his steadfastness, his loyalty, and his contentment. I can only pray I have half of those qualities myself so that my daughter and my granddaughter can say the same about me.
Find something you can brag on your dad about this Father's Day, 2008, and tell him or write it down for him to read. It will be the best gift he receives this year.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Are You Connected?
No matter if you're a mid-life single, an empty nester, a college student, or a Senior citizen living alone, all Americans have a shrinking circle of close friends as opposed to a generation ago. The challenges to connectedness are many: TV, computers, video games, ipods, text messaging, cell phones, email, face book, all play a part in not having to interact face-to-face with other human beings.
Sociologists say we may be losing the ability to build relationships and have a close circle of intimate friends. God made us to connect with one another relationally. It's called the art of connecting or fellowship. One of the benefits of fellowship is it helps us to develop a healthy self-esteem. Another is it helps us battle loneliness. No one I've ever known likes to be lonely.
From the very beginning God said it was not good for man to be alone, so He created Eve so that
Adam would not be alone. Ephesians 2:19(LB) says, "You are members of God's very own family, citizens of God's country, and you belong in God's household with every other Christian."
My hope is that if you are feeling lonely or disconnected you will find a place where you belong.
No matter if you're a mid-life single, an empty nester, a college student, or a Senior citizen living alone, all Americans have a shrinking circle of close friends as opposed to a generation ago. The challenges to connectedness are many: TV, computers, video games, ipods, text messaging, cell phones, email, face book, all play a part in not having to interact face-to-face with other human beings.
Sociologists say we may be losing the ability to build relationships and have a close circle of intimate friends. God made us to connect with one another relationally. It's called the art of connecting or fellowship. One of the benefits of fellowship is it helps us to develop a healthy self-esteem. Another is it helps us battle loneliness. No one I've ever known likes to be lonely.
From the very beginning God said it was not good for man to be alone, so He created Eve so that
Adam would not be alone. Ephesians 2:19(LB) says, "You are members of God's very own family, citizens of God's country, and you belong in God's household with every other Christian."
My hope is that if you are feeling lonely or disconnected you will find a place where you belong.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Thinking About Others
I have a plaque in my office that reads, "You cannot be what God made you to be, you cannot do what God created you to do, and you cannot fulfill the purposes God made you to fulfill without other people. We were made for each other, God made us for a family."
Did you know there are 58 "one anothers" in the New Testament? These cover ideas like forgive one another, pray for one another, love one another, and serve one another, just to name a few.
One of the best ways I have found to deal with life's problems is to put the needs of others ahead of my own. I have found that when my focus is off me and my needs, God meets my needs and blesses my life in ways far beyond what I can think or imagine. God expects us to be more concerned about our relationships (others) and less concerned about ourselves.
Take a test this week. Think back over yesterday and count up how much time you spent thinking about yourself and compare that with how much time you thought about someone else's needs. How will that time comparison change how you're going to think today?
Did you know there are 58 "one anothers" in the New Testament? These cover ideas like forgive one another, pray for one another, love one another, and serve one another, just to name a few.
One of the best ways I have found to deal with life's problems is to put the needs of others ahead of my own. I have found that when my focus is off me and my needs, God meets my needs and blesses my life in ways far beyond what I can think or imagine. God expects us to be more concerned about our relationships (others) and less concerned about ourselves.
Take a test this week. Think back over yesterday and count up how much time you spent thinking about yourself and compare that with how much time you thought about someone else's needs. How will that time comparison change how you're going to think today?
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Priorities
I can't think of a more scary word than the word, "Lost." I'm just like everyone in the sense that I have misplaced material possessions and searched high and low for them. Usually I find them where I have mislaid them but on the few occasions I don't find things I lose, I get over it pretty quickly.
You know it has to be a totally different emotion for us when we lose a person. Whether we lose them in a crowd of people or they move away or die or some other way they are lost to us, it's a horrible feeling to think we may never find them.
When I read Luke 15 where Jesus gives the 3 parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son and I read about the older brothers angry reaction to their dad throwing a party for his younger brothers return to the family it always makes me check to make sure my priorities are on people and relationships much more than they are on things.
You know it has to be a totally different emotion for us when we lose a person. Whether we lose them in a crowd of people or they move away or die or some other way they are lost to us, it's a horrible feeling to think we may never find them.
When I read Luke 15 where Jesus gives the 3 parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the lost son and I read about the older brothers angry reaction to their dad throwing a party for his younger brothers return to the family it always makes me check to make sure my priorities are on people and relationships much more than they are on things.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Overcoming Fears
Kynzie rode her horse, Doc, all by herself yesterday for the first time in the pasture and it was a little, (actually a lot for), traumatic for her. She did fine after she got over her initial fear but it made me realize we’re all like that to varying degrees. I mean, we want to do something but we’re afraid to because we might get hurt, or this thing is bigger than me and a thousand other reasons our minds can conjure up why some new thing is going to be terrible. Actually if we can conquer our fear and do the thing we fear, it turns out to be a lot of fun. From a distance she wanted a horse but when it came time to get on a 1,200 pound animal it’s a different story. One thing you learn about horses is they can sense their riders’ fear. Kynzie’s instructor told her, “You have to get your bluff in on a horse.” In other words act like you’re confident and the horse will think you’re in control. We’re like that about a lot of things aren’t we? We want something really badly until we get it then realize this thing is much bigger than me and I have to overcome my fear to stay on top of this. We also need to understand we can act our way into a feeling and overcome our fears by acting like we are in control. I’m not sure what you’re afraid of today but do your best to get on top of your fear and you will discover you’re far better off when you control your fear than when it controls you.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Gettin' Hay
You never know who you’re going to run across in a day. Case in point: my friend Danny and I went to haul hay to feed the insatiable appetites of Mackynzie’s horses and happened to stop for lunch at a restaurant 60 miles from home. Well, our server was a young lady that noted the hay on our trailer and wondered where it came from. When I told her who I had bought if from she said “that’s my grandfather.” Upon further conversation we found out her grandfather, who I’ve bought hay from 6 or 8 times before, has 10 kids and out of all the family our server only feels close to her grandfather because she’s been rejected by everyone else in the family because of a teenage indiscretion.
We talked further with her and were impressed with her personality, her energy, and her friendliness. We also knew she had no use for her family’s religion and she actually rejected the church because of how her Christian family treated her.
Both of us on the way home talked about the hurt we sensed in her. It seems to me like if there’s any place on earth there would be forgiveness and grace it would be within our Christian families. It is really sad when that doesn’t happen and it makes me wonder how many people aren’t serving God because of the lack of forgiveness in our homes.
We talked further with her and were impressed with her personality, her energy, and her friendliness. We also knew she had no use for her family’s religion and she actually rejected the church because of how her Christian family treated her.
Both of us on the way home talked about the hurt we sensed in her. It seems to me like if there’s any place on earth there would be forgiveness and grace it would be within our Christian families. It is really sad when that doesn’t happen and it makes me wonder how many people aren’t serving God because of the lack of forgiveness in our homes.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
DREAMS
What did you want to be when you were growing up? I wanted to be a horse rancher in Wyoming (not sure why I picked there.) I think that dream came from watching Roy Rogers on TV. The cowboy life looked so romantic and I’ve always loved horses. Once in about the second year of our married life I had talked my new bride into me buying a horse at a horse auction even though we didn’t have a washer and dryer. My dream of being a horse rancher changed over the years but I never lost the desire to own a horse.
Years passed by and to be honest with you I had given up on that dream until about two years ago we moved out of town onto a few acres. I first bought a few cows because they will eventually make money and then with the help and influence of my granddaughter we began to talk about buying a horse for her 10th birthday. I have learned over the few years she has been around that she can get things from her nana that I don’t have a prayer of getting. Well, anyway a week before her birthday I was in a local restaurant and ran into an old friend and asked him if he knew of any horses I could buy for her. I just about passed out when he said he had two horses he would give me!! Sure enough 6 days later we went and picked up two registered quarter horses and man are we excited.
I share that story with you to ask if you have a special dream from years ago that you’ve given up on? The good news is it’s still not too late. Think about it. God is the ultimate creator and dreamer. He created us in His image and He is the One who put that dream inside you. Pray for big dreams and don’t give up!
“Take delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4
Years passed by and to be honest with you I had given up on that dream until about two years ago we moved out of town onto a few acres. I first bought a few cows because they will eventually make money and then with the help and influence of my granddaughter we began to talk about buying a horse for her 10th birthday. I have learned over the few years she has been around that she can get things from her nana that I don’t have a prayer of getting. Well, anyway a week before her birthday I was in a local restaurant and ran into an old friend and asked him if he knew of any horses I could buy for her. I just about passed out when he said he had two horses he would give me!! Sure enough 6 days later we went and picked up two registered quarter horses and man are we excited.
I share that story with you to ask if you have a special dream from years ago that you’ve given up on? The good news is it’s still not too late. Think about it. God is the ultimate creator and dreamer. He created us in His image and He is the One who put that dream inside you. Pray for big dreams and don’t give up!
“Take delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Your Own Genesis Moments
As we begin a new year I am reminded of a verse I read in Genesis 51:10. "God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life." (MSG)
Genesis is the first book of the Bible and it begins with an account of how God created the world and everything in it by speaking it into existence. God spoke you into existence in your mother's womb. Even now He can speak into the chaos of your life to bring order and sense to it.
God creates something from nothing and He makes something good out of bad for His children. He can take a heart that is broken and impure and create in its place a heart that is whole, pure, and purposeful. God loves you and wants to pour His grace into your life. He wants you to be pure and for you to succeed--so much so that He takes an active role in creating a new heart in you and bringing order to the chaos of your life.
Your job is to submit to His sovereignty, (His right to rule over you because He created you,) humble yourself before Him, and ask for His help everyday.
I hope you have lots of Genesis moments in 2008.
Genesis is the first book of the Bible and it begins with an account of how God created the world and everything in it by speaking it into existence. God spoke you into existence in your mother's womb. Even now He can speak into the chaos of your life to bring order and sense to it.
God creates something from nothing and He makes something good out of bad for His children. He can take a heart that is broken and impure and create in its place a heart that is whole, pure, and purposeful. God loves you and wants to pour His grace into your life. He wants you to be pure and for you to succeed--so much so that He takes an active role in creating a new heart in you and bringing order to the chaos of your life.
Your job is to submit to His sovereignty, (His right to rule over you because He created you,) humble yourself before Him, and ask for His help everyday.
I hope you have lots of Genesis moments in 2008.
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