trust

One of the hardest things to humanly do is trust. I know that with where I am with my life that I am in a place of having to trust that God has my future in his hands. My truck broke down yesterday and I just felt like I was going crazy. It is hard when everything in the physical realm looks pretty bad but I have God telling me in his Word that He is going to take care of me in every way. I have my wife telling me that God is just allowing things to happen to us so that he can set us up for an even greater miracle. Honestly, that is just hard for me to hear because we have to go through the crap to see what’s on the other side.

the greatest praise

I think that the greatest praise that you can give the Lord is what I call “no reason praise”. This is the kind of thanksgiving to God that is really born from nothing or from bad circumstances. I know that because God is great that He has every right to be praised but there are times in life when it feels like we have no reason because of personal circumstances. When we praise God in the middle of the trouble in our lives we do many things. We encourage other people that are watching our lives, we make the devil mad because he wants to steal our praise to God and we put ourselves in a position to be used by God that is beyond our human ability. Let God be the super that combines with your natural and live a life that is supernatural.

Life's too short

Here is a picture of the car my mom and uncle were in when they got in their accident. I looked again at this picture and thought to myself again that life is way too short to worry about things that don't really matter in eternity. I want to challenge you to think about the things that affect your life in a negative way and really evaluate whether they are worth the worry. Think about it.

The power of Proverbs

We have been talking about the power of Proverbs in our small group and the importance of it being a consistent part of your emotional diet in life. It is not a Biblical book that has stories or principles in it that need to be deciphered in some way. It is a book that is based on practical actions in life that matter in your walk with God. Anything you decide to put in you will make up who you are. That is not just food but also emotionally what you decide to make part of your diet. Make the word a part of your emotional diet and see your self stay in great emotional shape.

What motivates you in life? What happens when that motivation is gone? Evaluate your life today and consider what it is that takes you from where you are to where you need to go in life. If its money, then don't ever run out of it. If its someone else, make sure that person never leaves your life. If its Jesus Christ then be ready for anything because He is the master of unlimited motivational potential.

Snotty People equals Great Coffee

Where there are snotty people there is great coffee. I found this out at a Starbucks that I like to go to every once in a while over by my work. I don’t like to really go in there because it is usually very busy and full of people that are so in love with themselves and their money that if they could legally marry themselves they would. I know that sounds like a rude statement but I noticed something about the quality of coffee and service that you get in this specific Starbucks; it’s impeccable. You are greeted well, your coffee is never wrong and it’s always hot and served quickly. It is the expectation of these people that come in to get coffee that the service will be excellent, the coffee hot and served fast so that they can get on with their day. The Starbucks knows this and does everything in its power to make sure that the people in that store are happy when they walk out. I believe that expectation is a key element in getting the best out of life. When things are not going well we have a tendency to lower our expectations in life so that we are not disappointed. It is always easier to expect less in life than it is to push yourself to expect God to do something special. It has been so hard with my eye condition to expect anything but “pills, ills and bills”. I guess I need to be like snotty people ordering coffee at Starbucks; expect the best and get the best.

My dog's new name is Colonel Sanders

My dog got into our garbage the other day and started to eat the greasy chicken out of the trash. I told my wife that I am going to start calling him Colonel Sanders aka Mr. Kentucky Fried Chicken. I thought about how much we are like my dog when it comes to our relationship with God. My dog wanted to get into the trash because he thought he smelled something that would taste good and although it was in a trash bag he really didn’t care. He didn’t understand that there was probably a reason why we had put chicken in a plastic bag on the floor of our kitchen instead of keeping it in the fridge so that it would still be edible. All he knew was that it smelled good, he was hungry and he wanted it. How many times do we ignore God when he doesn’t give us something and we think is so important for us to have not thinking that God knows why we are not getting what we are asking for? Needless to say, my dog was not feeling too hot for that night and the better part of the next day. We push it with God sometimes when he says no to our requests in life and then we wonder why we have consequences to our actions. I want to trust that there is a reason why God is not giving me what I want and understand that he is smarter than I am knowing what I need when I need it. Don’t be like my dog that was rummaging through the trash for things that he should have never gotten into. Trust that there is a reason why God is not giving you what you want.

God Pills

Happy New Year everyone! Now for my first new years revelation about life and our relationship to Christ; I am convinced that the majority of believers in Christ don’t really want to change they just want to feel better about themselves and their situations so that they can continue to live life the way they want to. I was talking to my wife last night about people who really want to change their lives and people who basically want just a band aid for their lives or a type of “God pill” to make the pain go away so they can continue to live life on their own terms instead of letting Christ be the boss. I have a pretty good perspective on this with the 28 pills that I take a day. I take some pills that are vitamins and some that help my adrenal gland not shut down from the prednisone that I am on right now but I also take pills that if I didn’t I would be in some serious pain. I really feel like we treat God the same way as pain medication. We ask God to “take the pain away” but are we willing to do what it takes to not just be free but to stay free? It’s a big question for our lives because a walk with God takes effort everyday and its not just a one shot deal. If you have been told different then you were lied to. Think about your life this year and how you will be different January 1^st of 2008 from who you are today. Don’t just take the “God pill” for pain, give him your life completely and see what happens. This is not just praying and asking God for what you want, it is making your actions line up with the Bible.