Shortcut to a Relationship

Everywhere you look, there are shortcuts.  I use several one click shortcuts from my desktop screen in order to save time, when in reality I am only two clicks away in the first place.  Then there are "APS" or Applications for the phone and other devices.  You see that are shortcuts for most everything we do.

Last summer I went out and bought a push plow.  As a boy I was trained to walk behind and use this garden device that has a big front wheel, steer it with your upper body, and plow tongs in the lower back.  My Dad explained it as a shortcut for hoeing the ground around plants.  He taught me that if you lean the handles over while pushing  you can throw fresh dirt around the plant stems, kill weeds, and give them new soil nutrients.  I hated doing this but I was reminded that this helped the crops and gave me muscles.  At 150 lbs. I could use the muscles so I learned to love and hate this device.

Even when we broke down and bought a rototiller, I would have to go back down the rows and throw the fresh soil against the plants.  So much for shortcuts.

On-line dating or Cyber Dating is big today with one commercial noting that one in five relationships come from on line dating.  Yet you can put anything down on a profile and can get that date even though you do not reveal your true self.   I know of people who have invested several dates and a lot of time into an on-line relationship only to discover that it is not the real person they seeked.

Now I read on the Internet that churches are offering shortcuts for every aspect of religion.  Drive-in churches have been around for many years where you sit in your car with your coffee, pj's or whatever and get the service on your car radio.  Then they have men and women who go car to car to give out bulletins, take up offering, and hand out communion.  One church in Nashville took over a bank building and open it on Saturday and Sunday to offer drive up prayers.   Another church has drive up confessionals, while another has drive up communion.  So what is missing?  You get every aspect of Religion but void of anything else.

With all these shortcuts, people are missing out on the most important part of community.  Relationships!    If you just "GO" to church for one hour each week are you developing a friendship that is there for you when you have a problem or tragedy?   

As I have said before, the Creator of the Universe is passionately in love with YOU and all He wants is a relationship with you.  The Old Testament is about the Religion and rules to have a relationship with God.  But Jesus came to give you that personal relationship - One on One.  It is in this personal relationship with no shortcuts that gives your life direction, success, and fulfillment.

You can try any shortcut to a relationship with God, but all shortcuts are missing the most important need in our lives. If you are feeling alone you should take the time to build a personal one on one time with this Creator and look for others who walk beside you each day.   You'll see that personal relationships are so much better than any shortcut.

A "Blast" from the Past to Give Hope to the Future

It is strange how we tend to forget events from our childhood years until something triggers those memories. Even though some of them were tied to unpleasant tasks, or events within our families, or things such as planting crops by moonlight, we still had a life lesson to learn.

My Dad worked a full time job in the city during the day so when he got home at night he had to tend to the farm. But he always used some country psychology that worked quite well to get us to help him. Each spring my sister and I had to help plant crops. My sister would always find a way to step her foot in the water bucket and get sent to the house.  But that's for another day.

One evening we would plow the fields. The next night would include the final preparation of fertilizing and tilling the soil.   Then I had the mental preparation for being in the fields until 3:00 a.m. the following morning. You have no idea how many times I would go to bed praying for rain the next day for planting time.

Soon, I realized that those prayers would only put off the agony. I recall my father giving me the rationale for planting at night. “It is cooler at night so the plants get a better start before the heat of the sun wilts them”, he would say. Pop also said "Another reason for planting at night was that the moonlight made the plants grow taller." Dumb response that a child would believe?   It wasn’t until recently that I recalled the entire ordeal of spring planting time.

It was dusk on the mountain and as I walked outside the house I heard a sound that flooded me with those memories. The green water frogs were out in full chorus. I paused and listened and then recalled him say, “It’s not time to plant the first crops of spring until the water frogs are quieted three times”.  I remembered in my excitement to get plants into the ground one year I did not pay attention to his words of experience and numerous plants froze. 

God gives us signs each day that HE repeats day in and day out.  Year in and year out.  We are so busy with our technology that we forget what the Father is saying.   We just have to stop and look for them.

The Bible is filled with similar life experiences. But so often we wait until we fail before we fall back on the Scriptures for guidance. Jesus used these life lessons quite well to teach spiritual truths through common events. In Matthew 13, Jesus took an event found in everyday life and applied it to the kingdom of God. Likewise we need to open our eyes to the life events around us.

There is a message that the Lord has revealed to every one of us that should be passed on to our children and others. Those events can change lives and give us hope in a world that is becoming so twisted by people seeking their own agenda rather than God’s.

Isn’t there something you need to tell your friends, like a story from the past that will give hope and direction for their relationship with the Lord?

“A blast from the past to give a hope in the future”? (60’s term)

I Know How You Feel

As a young man, I recall going with my pastor to make calls on the sick. One such call will always remain in my memory. The lady we were visiting was about 40 and had a very aggressive and painful cancer.

As we entered her house, it was all I could do to not stare. She had been so full of life and active within the church yet now her body was now failing her. As the lady explained how she was handling the treatment for her cancer, the pastor sat down and within a very short time I heard him say, "I know just how you feel." When we left, I asked him if he had experienced that type of cancer. He said that he had not experienced any cancer. So I asked, "Then what gives you the right to tell her that you knew how she felt?"

He tried to explain that it was just a "saying" and a way to show compassion to the sick. It was then that I became determined to develop true compassion for the sick without saying things I didn't mean or couldn't know.

Several years ago, I faced the experience of a total thryoidectomy. The surgeons are required by law to tell you everything that could happen during and after surgery including the "C" word.   Their frank discussion resulted in one good thing to ten bad things that could happen.

Shortly after that meeting in the surgeon's office, a lady in our small group told me she knew what to expect. Jane had experienced the same surgery just months before, and as I witnessed her frustrations and progress, it gave me encouragement because I was now comfortable and now knew what to expect.  Her e-mail notes, cards, and hugs at church meant so much because, based on her own experience, I trusted what she had to say.

Jesus came to the earth for the purpose of building a relationship with each of us. His earthly struggles, from Bethlehem to Golgotha, gave him first hand experience that is of benefit to us. As a result, we can all trust that the Lord knows how we feel. No matter what is taking place in our lives, he can relate. And help.

Sometimes his help comes in a supernatural way. Sometimes he uses a friend who has already walked the journey we are about to embark. Either way, His help reflects the love God has for each of us.

Know that the Lord uses our trials, happiness and experiences so that we may lift someone we pass by to build on their relationship with the Lord.  The Lord WILL bring you along side of someone needing your experience just like Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch. (Acts 8:26-40).  The question is, “will you walk by or stop and be that friend who can lead someone to a relationship with the Savior of the Universe”?

You have been given a unique opportunity to help someone.  Are you looking down at your feet or looking around to be that friend to someone in real need?

Kicking Up Our Heels

Malachi 4: 2   “But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.  And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall”.

You have probably guessed by now that if a Bible passage had to do with farming or animals, I could relate to that message.  

In early February or March, cows would give birth to their spring calves. As a result of the cold weather, the baby calves had to be kept in the stalls of the barn so they would stay warm.  During the weeks that followed their births, they would grow strong and healthy in the warmth and security of the tiny stalls.

During the first few warm days of spring, I would open the doors of the stalls to let the calves go outside for the first time.  It was always fun to watch them leave the stall.  First they would just stick their heads out the door and then pull back into the safety of the stall.  Then once they got outside, each one would kick up its hoofs, leap sideways, and run until their young legs would no longer carry them. 

Many times, our lives are confined by the strife of emotional pain, life’s failures, sickness, or giving in to sin.  We think we will never know happiness or have a healthy relationship with others or God.  But as the scripture above tells us, by always loving, honoring, and respecting the Lord’s name, He will send healing our way.  

Anyone who has ever experienced God’s spiritual, emotional, or physical healing can relate to this verse.  Knowing that the Lord has so powerfully touched you makes you want to jump for joy in praise and thanksgiving.  

We should start today by revering the Lord’s name, by faith knowing that He will heal us.

Isn’t it about time for you to kick up your heels?  It's not about offending a religion but celebrating a relationship with the creator of the Universe. 

Celebrate Today!

Our Personal Worlds

 Sometimes our conversations to ourselves and with God are like these expressions:

“Weeds!   I hate weeds. They grow in the yard and in the garden and make it so hard to have beautiful plants and shrubs around the house.”

“Cleaning!   Dirt is everywhere.  As soon as I get done with one area of the house, it seems like I have to go back and start over again. I’m tired of cleaning.”

"Allergies!  Spring and Fall are the worse times of the year because I cough and sneeze way too much."

 “Rain!   I know Lord that I prayed for rain for the crops, but the grass just keeps growing and your rain will not let me mow.  Now I have limbs to pick up and trees to saw into firewood.”

“Kids! They won’t pick up their clothes. They argue with me all the time. I’ll be glad when they are grown.”

"Restaurants!  I hate the food there and will tell everyone about how bad the food and service are."

Then we hear a soft voice of the Lord call back to us.

“If you have weeds, it is because you have been blessed with a yard and garden to grow my beautiful plants. Be happy that you have the health to pull those weeds.

 If you are cleaning, then you are blessed with a home for comfort and protection.  Be happy that you can see the dust. 

If you have allergies and coughing then you are breathing the air I provide each day.  I may have pollen in the air but without that there are so many medicines that you would never have to stay well or the great honey that my bees produce.  Also in coughing, you know your lungs are working properly.

You know that without rain, there would be no grass to grow. Don’t you trust that I am in control for the showers to bless you.

Be careful what you ask for in your children. They WILL be grown too fast and today need your love and tolerance to show them a Christ follower’s example."

(Personal note)   Having matured, I constantly encourage parents to enjoy their children and love them for the creation God has entrusted to a parent, step-parent, or foster parent.  I watch at a distance our grandchildren growing and pray fro them and their parents to enjoy their time together because it will be gone way too fast.  My heart goes out to those who have lost children because their joy was stopped by Satan himself.

(Back to The Lord)

"My child, why do you use the word 'hate' so freely?  You were given taste buds for choices in food, but why do you seem so ungrateful for the richness that I have given you in choices for food and bounty.   So many throughout the world have not been blessed like you."

So when we get caught up in our personal worlds, we often turn our eyes away from the giver of everything and focus on ourselves. We complain about so many things that we forget to thank the Lord for everything.

Today we should take stock of our complaints and change those complaints into thanksgiving for the blessings we may not quickly see each day.

Our personal worlds can become more pleasant through the appreciation of weeds, cleaning, allergies, rain, our children, what and where we eat, or other areas of our lives.

Today ask for thanks for His mercies and forgiveness for our complaints. 

Psalms 136:1 Thank God! He deserves your thanks. His love never quits.

Where's the Miracle?

It was during my freshman year in high school that I encountered a science teacher who taught the “theory of evolution”. Never before had I been introduced to such “hogwash”. Instinctively, I began arguing from the Book of Genesis that God existed and was the Creator of all things. To my surprise, the teacher told me he also believed in God, but that God had nothing to do with the process of evolution.

When it came to test time, I had to answer the questions just like he taught. Hearing him present his so-called evidence still left me with the “missing link”. Even though at the year-end I was glad to be finished with that class, it did help me refocus on the miracle of creation. My son and his friend on the other hand did not fair so well. During their senior year in high school, they encountered an English teacher who was a “theistic evolutionist”. That is, she believed in God but felt that God’s method of creation included Darwin’s evolution. It was exciting to watch them intently study and read so many religious texts.

During each class for the rest of that semester, they did not discuss English, but forced class discussions on creationism versus evolution. When it came time for that grading period to end, the two guys knew that they had made an “A”. Then I got a call to come to the school office. It seemed that they both had a “D” average in the class. When I discussed the situation with my son, he knew he had been right. We then talked about understanding and respecting her position is spite of her misbeliefs. He had to believe that she would one day see God’s miracle of life and realize that it could not happen by accident. 

Take just a moment and realize how precious life is.

Find a friend who has just had a baby. Go to the hospital and just gaze at the newborns lying there. Look at their eyes, their little hands and feet. It’s not too difficult to see that God still creates miracles. Our very bodies are a testimony of God’s love, grace, and miraculous power.

If you have recovered from an illness or been healed of a sickness, then you too should know the miracle God has completed in your life.

Funny, but if evolution improves the species with the passing of time, what in the world has happened to my body.  Based on evolutionary process, by the time we get old we all should have that perfect body.  Guess I was behind the door when they were passing out the evolutionary process.

Thank Him today for the miracle of life. No one’s body is to full perfection, but God has given each of us an opportunity to reflect on His miracle in each life. It is also important that whenever we see or experience a miracle, we should tell everyone that God is the miracle maker. 

Have a Great Day!

Getting Through the Door

Luke 13: 22 And Jesus said, "Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you will try to enter and will not be able to."

On our farm there were many lessons that came to life each day for a young boy. One of my memories was the job of weaning calves from their mothers.

Oftentimes, we needed milk from the cows, so when a calf was three days old we would separate the cow from her calf and begin to feed it a special diet milk product through a bucket. I would mix the powder with warm water and then take the bucket to the barn. Since three-day old calves don't know how to drink from a bucket, I would set it in front of the calf, squat down, and stick my fingers into the mix.

At first the calf would just want to play, so I would get a little of the mixture in my palm and press the milk against its lips. Once the calf tasted the sweet fluid, I would dip my fingers into the bucket and then stick them into the calf's mouth. After about a dozen tries, the calf would begin drinking directly from the bucket. The calves quickly learned what the bucket in the stall was all about, and ran into the barn as soon as they heard me open the main door.

On the farm we had calves of all ages, but we only wanted to bucket feed the newborns. So my dad cut an opening in the stall door that was just large enough for the little calves to enter but too small for the bigger cattle. Since all the calves, both large and small, had gotten a taste of the sweet milk during the weaning process, it was comical to watch the larger ones try to get through the small door. 

They had grown too large for calf milk and needed to be on solid food.

In our lives, we often experience the salvation, grace, and love which the Lord offers, but never take the time to pray, read the scripture, or do the things that bring about spiritual maturity and a close walk with the Lord.  While many others have tasted the love, grace, and power which the Lord provides, but have never taken the time to develop a deep relationship with Him. Instead of following Christ's teachings and exercising love, forgiveness, patience, and peace, they have opted for what the world offers and get their "milk" doses from a Tweet or a once a week message at church or on the Internet. In doing so, they pass by the small gate but are so hungry for something more.

This scripture tells us to make every effort to enter through the narrow door to His kingdom. Perhaps it's time for some of us to go on a growth diet which comes from developing a close relationship (and NOT a Religion) with the Lord.

Contagious Faithfullness

Do you recall the last person that was faithful to you? In today’s society, those kinds of people seem to be rare. At the beginning of my business career in a large corporation, I experienced betrayal first hand. A couple of junior executives had become friends and one man confidentially related some personal issues that were taking place in his life and the struggles to work through them. Then one day a job promotion became available for which both men were qualified. The one candidate told the hiring manager all the details of the personal issues of the other candidate and of this man’s weakness for the job.

He broke every confidence that the one man had placed in him in order to try and get the job. Neither man was offered the position, and when co-workers found out about the incident, they were outraged at the one man’s betrayal of private conversations.

The man justified his actions by saying that no one should ever put their faith in anyone but themselves. It was their own fault. As sad as it may be, don’t we all do that today? We put our faith in our friends and they fail us.

We put our faith in marriage and many fail.  We put our faith in our job and it fails to satisfy us. We then become hardened to never trust or put our faith in anyone but ourselves. 

Wrong thing to do! 

Let’s take a look at the book of Ruth. Naomi experienced many disappointments including the death of her husband, a famine, and the death of her sons. Naomi and her two daughter-in-laws had moved away from their homeland to survive for a period of time. When times became good again in Judah, Naomi released her daughters-in-law to go back to their homeland and find happiness. Orpah was sad but went back to her people and to their gods, but Ruth was different. The famous words written in Ruth Chapter 1 verse 16 and 17 demonstrates her faithfulness to God and Ruth.

The Lord wants that kind of faithfulness from us because no matter how we treat Him he is faithful to us in every instance. When we are hurt or experiencing troubled times, He is faithful to love us and take care of us.

Realize that people are going to fail us. The key is to “love them where they are today” and remain faithful to them. No matter whether a loved one is sick and going through rough times, be faithful.

Be faithful to someone near you.

It’s contagious!

Getting on the Bandwagon

Slang terms and sayings we use so often today are from years ago and are passed from generation to generation. Many times they lose or have changed their meanings. Such is the term, “Get on the Bandwagon”. The Columbia Guide to Standard American English explains it from the 1930’s as: The bandwagon, full of musicians playing loud, catchy tunes, was used in the circus parade before the show to attract crowds to the circus ground, and was adopted for political parades.

People would follow or jump onto the wagon to the circus or to the political candidate’s headquarters. It became an American Colloquial cliche. To climb, jump, or get on the bandwagon was to join the popular party, support its candidate(s) or proposals, and be on the winning side. Wow, haven’t we all seen a lot of bandwagon jumping recently.

In these changing times of our world, we see one popular belief pick up steam into the thoughts and terms being thrown around daily. One term that we never heard in public three or four years ago but is pronounced by everyone today is “God Bless America”. Since the beginning of President Bush’s first speech we would hear him close his messages with those words. Anyone that knows the beliefs of this man know he chooses his words carefully and means each one.

At first reporters made fun of him and others said that he couldn’t say those words because it crossed the line between church and state. Yet he continued to use them. Then this week, we see nearly every announcer in radio, pasted on billboards, flowing on business signs, pronounced by television show personalities, and those in the press saying those three words. They have gotten on the bandwagon but had no substance to what they are saying.   I continue to pray that they get to know the One whom they are asking to bless this great country.

They can verbalize the first part of Psalms 67:1 (take a minute and look it up) but need to finish the rest of verse two. It should not be for selfish reasons that we ask God to bless our nation. It should be that we can show the world that salvation comes through our strength in believing in Him.

Each one of us should be proud to request for God to Bless America. We need to do it so we can help people in other nations around the world realize it goes farther than just might and power in tanks and weapons, but in the saving grace of God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit that is with us.

When we realize why we want God to bless our great nation, then we will all want to be on that bandwagon for the rest of our lives!

Simple words from a Granddaughter

I hope each one of you had a great day yesterday in Easter praise, worship, and spending time with family and friends.  Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our daily work loads and activities around us that it takes the simple words from a granddaughter to bring things back into place.

On Friday my son was off work as the Good Friday holiday and he was spending the time at home with his family.  You see my son has some traits in him that are like me.  He normally puts in long hours each week and so having dedicated time with the family makes it tough to arrange. I am so proud of him because he does a fantastic job at every level of spending time with his family.

At the end of the day when it was time for his daughters to go to bed he tells them a story and is with them for their prayers.  On Friday night he told the story of why we have Good Friday and for the real story of Easter in a simple story.

The best I can recall the conversation, he told his oldest they give him time off work for remembering what Jesus did for each one of us.  My Granddaughter immediately went to her knees and said, "Thank you Jesus for Easter and my daddy having the time off".  My son then said, "It is because of Jesus birth that I get Christmas off".  Without breaking stride my granddaughter said, "Thank you Jesus for Christmas too."

That is one of the more interesting things for a child to thank Jesus for, but her mind knew that it was in these celebrations that her Daddy got some rest and was able to spend time with her.  We all should have that much passion for each other to be concerned and connect time together with Thanking the Lord.

For each one of us, Jesus is saying, "I gave my life so you could have freedom and joy in your life".  All He wants in return is for you to say, "Thank You for thinking of me and what I did to have that relationship with you".

When all is said and done can you be like my granddaughter and just say "Thank you Jesus for Easter"?

Or are you too busy to get that personal with Him?

Hurt by Our Children

It has taken me years of soul searching and observation to believe that I had raised my children in the ways of the Lord.

There was one incident in my son’s teen years that gave me reason to think that my efforts might be futile. Our family was raised to love and respect the Lord by living His truths and to know that living for ourselves would reap consequences.

My son was 16 with a job, a car, and plenty of friends. One Saturday nights, he worked until 11:00 p.m. and then he would go to a friend’s house for the evening. One Sunday morning I was up early and saw that he had some mud on his car. I thought I’d give him a gift of washing his car before I went to church. After cleaning the outside of the car, I opened the car door to vacuum the mats. The smell about knocked me over.

In the back seat were numerous bottles of alcohol. How stupid could he have been? He could have been hurt, hurt others, or have been arrested. I was extremely angry, and then hurt. Upon opening the trunk lid I found a nearly empty 24 pack of beer. This only added to my pain as I quietly laid each item on the steps of the back porch. I just sat down and cried.

How could I have failed? I wanted to shake, yell, and motivate my son like I did when he was a younger child. All I could do, because of my obligations, was go early to church and pray for him. When he awoke and saw the evidence, he quickly got ready and went to church as he did each week.

Arriving, he asked my close friend if I was mad at him. The response was, “No, just really hurt”. Later that night we sat and talked and through his teenage tears he apologized for his actions.

From that time forward I noticed positive changes in his level of responsibility to himself and others.

I believe that God has some of those same feelings when we fail Him. He could get angry and punish us for making stupid mistakes in our lives. Instead, He loves us.

Maybe we should talk to the Lord on a one to one basis and tell Him our failures. Through His grace, we can show others the changes that will make the Lord proud of us as His children. Each time I talk to my son, I feel great pride to know that Proverbs 22:6 is true. 

"Raise a child in the ways of the Lord and when they grow old they will follow that training. "

Experience a Special Sunrise

John 20:1 "Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance."

Remember Easter as a child? Was your best memory the Easter baskets with candy, eggs, and that funny grass? Or was it the new clothes you wore to church that morning?

I remember not particularly caring for the new clothes. The shirt buttoned tightly around my neck and the tie made me feel like I was going to choke. Our family never missed an Easter sunrise service. For me, getting up at 4:30 in the morning was no treat.

The Easter baskets were still empty and we had to rush to get ready and be in the car by 6:00 am. We then had to put on our smiles and be in good spirits even though we wanted to go back to sleep before the fifteen-minute ride to church was over.

My best memories of our sunrise services were not the great music or inspiring message, but the smell of breakfast cooking downstairs. The fresh donuts after the service made the early wake-up call worthwhile. As a freshman in college, I experienced a special Easter sunrise service held high on a hill next to the school. About fifteen students, including myself, hiked up the hill early in the morning while it was still dark. Then we sat on the new spring grass facing toward the east.

It was there that we talked about Mary Magdalene and what she might have thought as she approached the tomb. We talked about her having lost such a dear friend and of her duty to come and pay respects with spices for the body. Then we talked of her deep sorrow.

As the sun rose in the valley, we imagined what Mary and the other women must have experienced when they looked into the empty tomb. First is disbelief, then investigation of the facts, and finally a personal meeting with Jesus. They found joy in that glorious sunrise.

Sometimes we can allow a busy Easter morning to rob us from taking a deep breath, watching the sunrise, and experiencing the joy of a risen Savior? Why don't we take fifteen minutes this Sunday and celebrate Jesus again? Find out when sunrise occurs and enjoy how God starts a new day.

Cherish the moment with our risen Lord!

Seeing His Power

On a recent trip to California, Lynnette and I decided to take a walk on the beach in Del Mar.  In order to get to the beach from the hotel, we had to cross a railroad track and then head down a steep cliff.  The flowers in people’s yards were bright and cheery like the picture above.  The plants along the cliff also showed off the beautiful yellow, blue and purple blooms that allowed us to be amazed at God’s creation.

But as a commuter train rushed by I looked back at the railroad tracks.  There, through the rail bed of gravel, was a new plant that would become blooming yellow daisies. 

How could that be?  The ground was so hard and full of large rocks, yet not only had the plant made its way through the ground, it was pushing toward the sky and would bring joy to any observer.

When thinking about God’s power in our lives, we should realize that it begins with faith.  Our lives get turned inside out on a daily basis, and we often lose the desire to seek God or the determination to make the best of each day.  So, having a strong faith in the Lord allows the Holy Spirit to show us God’s power. 

The new plant in the railroad track allows us to see the power and determination of nature to grow and flourish.  Through our struggles in life, we can know the power of God as He corrects, teaches, and delivers. Then, like the plant rising out of the gravel, we can experience the miracle of God’s power in our daily lives.

If the Lord places the will power in a plant to push through such hardships, can you just imagine what he has placed inside you? 

Perfect Attendance

Do you recall the days when you received perfect attendance awards at work or for not missing church on Sunday? Growing up, I made sure that I earned every pin for perfect attendance. I still have my seventeen years worth of perfect attendance pins.

I was quick at the scripture hunt on Sunday night youth group. I had all the answers for the Bible questions. I thought that I was close to the perfect Bible student. Then I went to college. A Christian liberal arts Bible college.

My first class was in Old Testament history. Professor Phillips came into the room for the first class and hopped up on his desk. Standing above a class of thirty students, he proceeded to tell us that Moses had been struck by lightning and that was why he, as the writer of Genesis, had all those crazy ideas about how the earth was made and the creation of Adam and Eve.

His speech lasted for about ten minutes as he raged on about the myth of creation. “How could he say such things in a Bible College?”, I asked myself. I became angry that he had attacked the facts and truths I had learned as a child. Then he got down from the desk and said, “Now, prove me wrong!”

For the next four years, I learned of the faith, trust, and grace of God from this wise professor. For the first time in my life I had to get personal with the Lord. I learned that seventeen years of perfect attendance was good for learning the law of God. But I had missed the redeeming love of Jesus. I had missed His grace.

Where are you in the journey to understanding the power that comes from God’s grace? His Son was sent to give us hope, peace, love, and forgiving grace.  More importantly I found the love of the Jesus in giving his life rather than the law that kept the hammer over my head to bop me on the head to get back in line when I did things wrong.  That was the law portion of the Old Testament.

Is your relationship with the Lord including a daily time thanking Him for His grace? If not, perhaps it should.   It is in building a person relationship and not a religion that you become a Christ Follower and not just a Christian as a religious name.

The Devil's Workshop

Growing up, my grandmother often gave me words of wisdom. She would quote these “tidbits” to me when she desired to keep me from doing something wrong. So the phrase, “An idle mind is the devil’s workshop” was impressed into my brain quite often. 

Living on a farm meant chores from early morning until late evening. So I thought there was not a lot of time for my mind to be idle. Nevertheless, when I wanted to relax and do nothing there was always someone like my grandmother to give me a reminder of not being idle.

They believed that if you were not doing something constructive you were inviting Satan into you life. Years later, I realized that it was not continual work that kept Satan away but the grace of God through His son Jesus. Being an “ADHD” personality, I keep moving most of the time, and my mind does not take many breaks.

Even when I am still and take time to meditate on the Word of God, my mind wanders into what I need to be doing in the next five minutes, next five hours, or the next five days.  It is though blogs like this that I can focus on my relationship with the Lord more than I ever have before.

Therefore, I have learned to force myself to spend time incorporating Philippians 4:8 through nature. Being outside and listening for the Lord helps me to grow and look to the future with faith and hope.  For me, everything that the Lord created brings this verse into focus. So to sit and watch the cloud formations,  the squirrels playing in the trees, the new blooms of spring, or to observe a snowfall in the mountains, always brings this verse to the forefront of my life.  Psalms 46:10 says it best when I am seeking the Lord, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

In the Disney movie, “Hook” do you recall what it was that made Jack fly? It wasn’t a feather like Dumbo thought, or pixie dust. It was happy thoughts.

Today try and focus on the “happy” thoughts of life. Focus on what is pure, lovely, and good. You do not have to go far.

Just set your mind on things that are worthy of giving the Lord praise.

Then give Him the praise!

Getting Things in Focus

Galatians 3 :1   You crazy Galatians! Did someone put a hex on you? Have you taken leave of your senses? Something crazy has happened, for it's obvious that you no longer have the crucified Jesus in clear focus in your lives. His sacrifice on the Cross was certainly set before you clearly enough.

(The Message)

Picking up my glasses off the night stand each morning, I was reminded that it is time to get replacement lenses.  The scratches on the lenses seem to get worse with every cleaning.  It was getting so bad that I sometimes had trouble focusing on a distant object unless I move the glasses around on my nose.

The doctor noted that I have an acute astigmatism which gives me distortion or blurring of images at all distances, headache and fatigue, and squinting along with eye discomfort or irritation.  When I forget to pick up my glasses, I sometimes have trouble focusing on objects.

Some of my friends who have had lasik or cataract surgery performed say they are amazed with the results.   Most everyone gets immediate results and can see clearly.  It just took some correction steps.

Maybe it has been years since you have focused on what Jesus did for each one of us and the rush of our lives has pushed us to look only at today’s wants and not focus on the One who supplies our needs. 

When we focus on Christ’s death and resurrection, we realize why we celebrate Christmas and Easter.  Without Christ rising from the dead, we have no reason to focus on anything but ourselves.  Any society who has adopted that attitude are now only historic societies.   You can study history and see when the Lord has taken his hand off them and they are not blessed.

In life today you need to build a faith in the impossible.  As you open the Bible and read, it is filled with impossibilities.  Yet we think that it happened thousands of years ago and does not happen today.  Wrong!  

Stop looking at what is right in front of your nose as it may be that your "gimme, gimme"  approach to life just isn't working out. 

When you step back from yourself, you will see life change,  attitude changes, heart changes, marriages restored, emotional repair, physical healing, and so much more.  But without getting your life into focus it is all a blur.   

Maybe your emotional glasses are scratched and you need to look at the rebirth of spring to really focus on what is important and to build your faith for the impossible for your life.  The Lord is waiting for you to ask for the impossible so he can do the impossible in your life.

Are you ready to getting things into focus?

Spiritual Exercise

Corinthians 2  4:16 “Do not lose heart.  Even though our outward person is perishing, the inward person is being renewed day by day.”

I don’t believe there is a diet I haven’t tried or an exercise that has not made me sore.  It was a month before my 30^th birthday and I felt as if life was over.  During the year I had, what I thought, were real physical problems.  Torn tendons and ligaments in my right ankle kept me from playing softball.  I had played the game fervently since I was 15 and enjoyed the relaxation it brought three nights a week. 

Before the injury, warming up before a game and running onto the field to catch fly balls was easy.  I had exercised hard by working on the farm and then in college had built up my strength through Judo.  Staying in shape was no effort. Now all of a sudden, I couldn’t play the game I loved.  So, I chose surgery to repair the damage knowing it meant that the season was lost.  Thoughts like, “Half my life is over”, “I’m really old!”, and “Just think about what you have not done with your life”, all flooded my mind.  Funny how today at twice the age, I quit figuring what percentage is over or how many years are ahead.  Just thrilled that the Lord has given me another day of living.

Have you ever found yourself looking into a mirror and saying, “I’m getting old or my life is over because of a situation, injury, or any reason you can experience?   Good health and exercise are important parts of our lives and should never be glossed over.  Yet the reality of life is the first part of today’s scripture, “the outward body is perishing. . .”  But that does not mean we should ever give up!  The rest of the scripture should become our target, “. . .the inward person is being renewed day by day.”

Spending time with the Lord each day is vital to the renewal of our inward person.  Daily devotions are helpful to motivate you to seek the Lord’s face.  If you don’t take the time to get close to the Lord, you are missing out on the best health of your life. Your spiritual health. Read, pray, and talk to the Lord EVERY day.  Ask Him for wisdom and he will give it to you.  Exercise the spiritual man or woman within you.  You will be amazed how easily you can handle anything the world throws at you!

We all need to improve our health by exercising our spiritual minds. For me, physical exercise does not help the fact that the muscular chest I once had has now moved to my waist line.  The problem for me is that I don’t care much for the truth of the first part of the scripture.   

But I really enjoy the second half of the verse.