lessons from the snow

We have had some SERIOUS snow here in Denver the past week or so and my wife and I had something interesting happen. The entire town of Denver was pretty much shut down last week and there were no supply trucks to stock the stores an also gas trucks to refill the gas stations. My wife went into the store to get a couple of groceries and said that all the salad was gone off the shelves and some other basic food was all gone. Then we went to fill up our car with gas and the gas stations were empty. It was very eye opening to see that we really take for granted some of the simple things in our lives. I think that is the same with God. When everything is going good, we don’t really think about our lives and the things that God takes care of that we never see. Then when things get rough in life we get all bent out of shape start to blame God and think everything is his fault. I guess that is why God wants us to thank God for the little things in life instead of just expecting life to roll along. God really is into using any and all situations to teach us the lessons that he wants us to learn.

true compassion

I realized something about compassion these past few days. When it says in the Bible that Jesus had compassion on people I really think it meant more than the fact that he felt sorry for them. I think it had to do with a deeper level of self denial and more of putting people first. My eye has pretty much flared back up to the point that the medical community has needles and Chemo as the next step for my condition. I have had a hard time mentally this past week dealing with some of that and trying to stay positive. Then I thought about what Jesus knew he was going to have to ultimately do in dying on the cross for our sins while he was on this earth while saving and helping people with their crap. I really believe that when we have compassion on someone we are literally putting our “stuff” away mentally to put others people’s needs in front of our own. Jesus was the ultimate example of this for us when he would put other people in front of himself. When we feel sorry for someone the greater question is what does it motivate us to do? Does it inspire us to take action in their lives or is it just something we feel and then slip back into our own world of pain and mental distractions? I am not saying that I have mastered this technique in any way, but am trying to work towards a place of denying my own crap to put others first and help them with their walk in life. I would hope that God would put those same kinds of people in my life to encourage me and help me in this journey that I am walking as well.

your mind, emotions and actions...

I noticed something about my health and my mind. When I have one of those “give up” days that happen every so often I find myself eating things I probably shouldn’t, sleeping more and walking less. I think that our minds are directly connected to our emotions in that way and it affects our actions. This really reemphasizes my point about how the devil is always trying to get at your mind so that he can affect your emotions and then get your actions to line up with how crappy you tell yourself that life is. Be careful to not separate these three elements of your life and think that they are not all intimately connected inside of you. I really believe that is why God doesn’t want just part of us, he wants all of us. He knows that if he only has one of those three areas committed to him that we are cheating ourselves out of the enjoyment of having him be in full control of our lives.

strength in relationships

The strength of any relationship is not in agreement but in disagreement. I don’t think we realize the depth of that statement. When you have a relationship with anyone you have the ability to have a disagreement. The strength or depth of that relationship is tested or explored each time you disagree with that person. I think that if you know that person is not trying to intentionally hurt you then you are more willing to disagree with them and be able to walk away with a respect for them and their opinion. I also think that our relationship with God is also tested not when everything is going well and we are in “agreement” with his ways but when things are going rough. I know that in the season that I feel like I am in that I have disagreed with his methods to get me to a place of listening and trusting in him. There has never been a time in my life where I have had to trust that God like I have the past two and a half years. The true barometer of my relationship with God is tested each time my eye flares up or my back hurts or my mind starts to wander about all the things that can go wrong in my life because of the prednisone that I am on. I need to see my attitude with God getting better each time one of these things crop up in my life. If I am not getting closer to God and trusting him more than I am moving away from him and trusting him less. I want to have a strong relationship with God and the only way that I can do that is to trust him more.

God lets it happen...

God really does love us enough to let things happen to us to keep our perspective on him. When we think that we are getting too big for our britches, as my mother would say, he allows stuff to happen to us to put it all back in perspective. I guess that is the key to keeping a good attitude in the middle of a trial; to realize that we are not the ones that God is trying to hurt, but the ones he is trying to help by keeping our eyes totally focused on him. My eye has flared back up a bit and it was a little discouraging but I know that if I keep my eyes on him everything will be ok. That is not saying that it doesn’t make my eye any less red or feel any better, but I don’t want a crappy attitude to keep me in this place of pain any longer than I have to be.

what you do echoes in eternity

What we do on this earth echoes in eternity. The difference that we make here on earth will be what really matters. I mentioned this at my Grandma’s funeral service about leaving a legacy that people would remember. I always want to be remembered for making the people’s lives around me better because I had a part in their lives. There is no greater honor in this life than making someone else better because I was alive. Make someone’s life great today (you can be as creative as you want with that statement).

God's plan is bigger than you

God’s ultimate plan is so much bigger than us and the crap that we go through. Let me explain. The devil’s main goal is to isolate us. I know that the scriptures say he is here to steal, kill and destroy but if he can isolate us then he can do all those things. One type of isolation is when we get so focused on the issues that are going on in our lives and we forget to realize that God’s plan is bigger than anything that we could ever imagine. I was praying tonight and I had a type of revelation about this. When I get focused on all the elements of my eye and how many things can go wrong at this stage it is pretty overwhelming and emotionally and mentally I can begin to isolate myself from everyone and everything that I am around. What better way for the devil to come in and lie to me about my situation than when I am in the middle of a physical and emotional battle. If you are isolating yourself by over-thinking your situation, stop it, go to church tomorrow and immerse yourself in Jesus and the family of God. It really is great therapy!!

what is in your hand?

I think the best thing about serving God is that he will never ask you to do something that he doesn't think you can do or he will give you the power to overcome the crap in your life that seems so overwhelming. He really is only asking "what is in your hand?" He is asking you to use what he has given you and not expecting you to accomplish something without the right tools to get the job done. Don't get frustrated at the issues of life, begin to pray and ask God to help you have victory with the abilities he has instilled in you. You might surprise yourself at the kinds of things you can accomplish when you stop complaining and start working toward a solution to trouble in your life.

you get what you expect...

I just got back from Montana and I helped with a funeral for my grandma. It went really well and I think it was good for everyone that was there. I did the eulogy for her and I think people really got a sense of the kind of person that she was. I said a couple of times that everyone grieves death differently and that we need to respect the way we grieve. For some people, they will cry a lot at the funeral and then be ok. For others, they will not cry at all and then a couple of weeks into life they will read something or see something that will remind them of grandma and be able to process it that way. There will also be people that have convinced themselves that it will be hard to deal with the loss of grandma. I really think the key with what I call “life issues” is that you get what you expect. If you expect to have a hard time getting through something that is emotionally painful in some way then you are probably going to have trouble with it. I don’t think that we really understand the power of our minds and the kind of mental strength we can have in most all situations. When God created us he knew that our minds were going to have great power in determining how we deal with all of life’s issues. There is really is something to the scripture verse that talks about taking every thought captive. The word “every” is not some, most or just about all; it means everything that goes through our minds. That verse is a perfect example of God understanding that if we don’t get our minds under control then the rest of the body will follow where the mind leads. We also need to realize that our minds are the primary target of the devil. If he can mess with our minds he has a chance to effect our actions. Expect to have a good day today and to take every thought captive and then release those things that cause you worry to God. He is big enough to take care of the crap that you go through and give you peace in the process. The catch is that you have to expect that he will take care of you which is not something that is easy to do but definitely worth it.

real change...

What does it take for someone to change? I think that for everyone its very different because God knows what each of us need to inspire us to change. I think about the Bible and what that means to each person that reads it. Some people have to go through tramatic experiences to realize the importance of changing their lives and doing something different than what they have always been used to. For me, I needed to have a dangly eyeball to understand that I needed to change and seek God on a whole new level. I know that God doesnt want us to have to go through tramatic things to change, but he loves us enough to do what he needs to do to get our attention. Be a quick study and learn what God has for you. Look at your life now and see how you have changed; or if you have changed. Understand that anything that is considered to have life is either growing or dying. What are you doing with your realtionship with God?