Mom

As a young boy there are a few things that I really loved. I loved ice cream and potato chips.  I still love those things. I loved to play football and I loved to help others. But most of all I loved my mom. 

My mother was my hero.  She was a kind, loving women. She loved to talk about the things of God.  She loved to sing about Jesus and she loved me. I wanted to be with her all the time, and she always seemed to make time and space for me no matter what. Now let me tell you, I was an active child.   As I look back, I realized that I had to be a handful for my mom. But she never complained. 

She was the best example of Jesus Christ I have ever had.  She lived her life to show others Jesus.  What I have come to understand now is why she did what she did.  Why she lived for Christ no matter what was going on, how bad her husband treated her, how others talked about her, or how poorly her 11 children behaved. She lived not out of her circumstances, but out of her identity. 

You see, my mother knew who she was in Jesus Christ.  She understood that if we are to follow Christ, we would have to face many of the things he faced.  She understood that we would have to suffer and life would not be easy. But she KNEW that Jesus was worth it . It is not as if she was better than anyone else, she just lived what she knew to be true.

She lived her faith, she prayed often, she forgave much, as she knew she was forgiven of much. She believed that a follower of Jesus Christ should live like Jesus as to the best of their ability. She did not make excuses, she made choices.  Choices to follow Jesus. 

She made a choice to show us Jesus no matter the cost.  I am thankful God lead her to do so. At times, I have not done the best job of looking like Jesus.  I’m thankful that my mother even taught me about that.  When my mom made a mistake, when she sinned, she would get on her knees and plea for forgiveness. I have had to do that more times than I care to admit.  But every time God has been faithful to forgive.

So I thank God for my mom.  But even more, I thank God for Jesus, the one my mom lived her life to please.

Clarity

If you really think about life, really take a step back to consider what makes life worth living, you end up in the same place that King Solomon found himself. In the book of Ecclesiastes he states, “ The end of the matter, all has been heard, fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” You see, we live our lives, we work hard, we try to make a difference, we love our family and our neighbors; yes we do all the things that we think we should. And all those things are good, and they are important, but if we miss the most important thing, if we fail to get eternity, what have we done? We are just living to die. 

Now some will say that while we were here, we made the world a better place, and that may be true. Some will say our family and friends are better off because of us, and that may be true. And some may say that the poor are better off because of us and that may be true. 

But the question we must answer is, ‘but did we miss the main purpose of life?’ Did we do all those things, but fail to honor the One that made it possible for us to do them? What if we could have done all those things, and also the most important thing? What if we would have also added the love of God and added eternity to our lives? What if we would have lived, in such a way, that others would have known that all the good we do, is because the God who created us is good? When we recognize that life is not life if we are only living to die, we can’t say we are doing our best, and that we really love others when we teach them to only live to die.

When one of the lawyer’s asked Jesus what the greatest commandment is, He said, “ You shall Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” Jesus went on to say, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” So if we really think about it, clarity tells us that living life without God is to live life outside of the very reason that God gave us life. He gave us life so that we would love Him and love others 

He gave us life so that we would be with Him forever, not to be separated from Him. So enjoy life, work hard, make a difference, help the poor, care for the sick, love your family and neighbor, but love God first so that you do all those other things with a hope of eternity.

The Storm

If your anything like me, you love storms.I especially love thunder and lightning storms.I love the loud clashes of thunder and the bright flashes of lightning. When the storm is at a safe distance and I can sit in a safe place and watch and listen to it I really enjoy it. But when the storm comes into my safe space when it comes right into my world. That’s when the enjoyment of storms is no more. There are so many questions when the thunder and lightning have invaded my life. Questions like will I be able to make it though this, how did I ever get here, does God care, and is He going to do something. Even when the storms are a result  of my own sin or foolishness, I want God to do something. I ask for forgiveness, I repent and cry out. I promise not to fall again. But often time the storm rolls on. The thunder is loud and deafening, the lightning is overwhelming. And then I remember that often time it is in the storms, that I lean on God the most. It is in the hard time that I cry out to God the most. Now I’m not saying to live a sinful life, The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 6:1-2 What shall we say then? Are we to continue to sin that grace may abound?, By no means, how can we who died to sin still live in it.  But what I’m saying is this: If you are in the mist of a storm, either of your own making, or of no fault of your own, know that God has not abandoned you. Know that God will allow the storm to do its cleansing work, no matter how long it takes. Yes, God will allow the storm to do its healing work, no matter how long it takes. So the next time your in a storm, ask God to help you see what you need to see. To help you learn what you need to learn. To help you grow how you need to grow. Because God does not bring storms, or allow storms, for no reason. So trust the God that allows the storm to come, to work the storm out for your good and for his glory. And whether the storm is of, or not of your own doing remember the words of the Apostle Paul in
2 Corinthians 4:8-10 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. 

So grab yourself a strong umbrella walk with your head up and let it rain.

God is Good

Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!  Psalms 34:8

Over the past few months I have become increasingly aware of God's goodness. Now don't get me wrong, I have known that God is good for most of my life, but recently that truth has overwhelmed my heart. The little things in my life now remind me of how good God is. From the fact that I have clean water to drink, that I can turn a thermostat and control the temperature in my house. I have a house to live in, food to eat, and a car to drive. If I don't feel well I can call the doctor, I can get the medicine I need that helps me get over what ever it is. And I can take a hot shower that feels so good I just stand there and feel the warmth of the water. Yes all these little things that I once took for granted, now make me stop and thank God for his goodness to me. I know these things are not what makes God good, He is good because that's who He is. He does not have to become good, by doing anything, He is good, and that's what my heart has come to know. God does good things because He is good. It is part of his character. I have often wondered why I have been blessed so much, while others have seem not to be as blessed. Why did God choose to allow me to live in a country where we have so much. Everything I need is often at my finger tips. Why has the creator of all things been so good to me? And then it hit me, God is good to all, because He is good. The circumstances of our lives cannot, and do not change the fact that He is good. He is not less good to others in less fortunate places, he simply shows his goodness in other ways. It might be His presence feels more near to them, or His mercy appears more real to them, or his love seems more close to them. You see, I'm not sure how God's goodness comes to others, but I know it comes because He is good. So I am grateful that God is good to all who are his, no matter the circumstance or situation, and I am blessed that God has chosen to make me more and more aware of the truth that He is Good. So for all of you who may be in a place that has caused you to doubt, open your heart and open your eyes and know that God is good, whatever He is doing it will be for your good, because He is good.

Thankful

As I sit here this morning my heart is thankful, thankful for friends, both far and near.  I am very aware that God has blessed me with people who I love very deeply and love me the same.  I cannot begin to explain to you how God has worked in my life through the people he has placed into it. I have been challenged to love deeper, forgive quicker, try harder, and laugh more often, to give with a heart of abandonment, to hope with a sense of urgency and to believe with a sense of assurance.

I have come to understand that after the gift of Jesus Christ, and without Christ no gift really matters. But after the gift of Christ, the gift of friends is the gift that I hold most dear. And even though I have made mistakes in my past with those I love and had mistakes made against me by those I love, it is still the people that God has brought into my life that makes life all the better.

So I sit here and I am overwhelmed by the goodness of God, how He continues to give to me such blessed friendships, and how He continues to show me through these friends that he gives that He has not and will not give up on me, that his plans for me are to conform me into the image of Jesus Christ and to love me with a love that is so great that my heart, my mind, my soul, and my will are more and more after His.  And the friends that he has placed into my life are being used to accomplish the goal He has for my life. 

So I sit here and I am thankful for the two greatest gifts that a person could ever receive.  Frist, the gift of Jesus Christ, which makes life worth living, and the gift of friends that helps us come to understand how much God loves us, and helps us to understand how better to love.

So to all of you that I have once or now call friends I would say. I am truly sorry and I ask your forgiveness if I have failed you in any way.  If I have failed to be the friend God has called me to be. To any of you that I have not shared Christ with I ask that this Christmas season you would look at Jesus Christ once again and truly ask yourself how your life would be with Him in it. And for you who have stood by me as a friend I say thank you for loving one as broken, but one who is being changed by the love of God and by your love. My prayer this year is that I will be to you all the friend that God has called me to be.

A Time To Reflect

My mother once told me that this life that God has giving us is to be lived with great love for God, great love for people, and a passion that burns for the things of God. As I sit here today, I realize that she was right.

It’s the things that we accomplish for Christ and it’s the love we have for one another that make life so wonderful, that makes life so special. It’s those things that show Christ’s love, and that changes our hearts to love people more that make our time in this life worth living. 

As I look back over my life, I have not always loved people and loved God, as I should, and I now see, it was when I did not love Christ, I was more likely to hurt others. I was more likely to put my needs and wants, my desires above anyone’s. It was during those time that I hurt the people I loved and used people to get what I wanted.

So I sit here telling you that life is bested lived, in love with God. We are better people because of Christ, and we can love people with a true love when we are following and loving Christ.

So as I sit here, I’m thankful that the God of all creation, has saved me, and is transforming me into a person that loves Him and because of that can truly love others. If you take time to reflect on your life, and you are sadden by your past failures, turn to God, love Him deeply and ask Him to give your a heart to love others with a love and passions that comes from Him.

Lessons I Learned…Again!

This week was a time in which God has grabbed my heart again.

A team from our church went to spend time with some of our missionaries serving in a children’s home in Guatemala.  We had the opportunity to serve with them in their everyday life.  I'm taken back by their love for the children and their desire to not grow weary in the work they are doing.  These children are precious and the work is hard.  Most of them come from very difficult situations and need much love and care.  However, this task does not seem to overwhelm or deter these missionaries.

As I was sharing one morning with some of the older boys, my heart was broken.  What could I really do to impact their lives in a week?  No matter how much I served during this week, I would have very little impact on the children.  To these missionaries however, our visit meant the World!  What they needed most was to be loved, encouraged, and poured into by people who love them and what they are doing.  They needed us to see the work they are doing, and share in the difficulties they are facing.

What I came to understand most is how much I needed from them!  I needed to have my heart encouraged by those who gave up so much to follow Jesus.  I needed to see the children and remember that God is working in every part of this world.  I needed to remember the lessons that I have learned about the heart of God.  I needed to have my heart stirred with the Heart of God again so it can once again long for the things of God and the work of God.  

God's heart has not changed.  He loves those who have very hard lives and He has not forgotten them, and we cannot forget them.  We must care for people everywhere and share with them about the Gospel of Jesus Christ so they can be saved.  God loves people and we must be the hands and feet of Christ.

I must remember these lessons and never forget!