Harvest Time

This morning I noticed a familiar plant growing just outside our back door. I never planted it but there it grew.   As the country people call it, we were witnessing a “volunteer” plant (a vegetable plant that has not be planted intentionally).

I guessed that one of the birds dropped the seeds on top of the ground and somehow in the hard ground the seed took root and grew into a nice sunflower plant that gives us a beautiful flower now and will give us seeds for eating. As I stare at the sunflower I counted over 100 seeds on one plant. That means what we got a 1000% return for doing nothing. 

Did you ever think about the miracle God performs with every ear of corn? Springtime planting requires grains or kernels of corn to be planted into tilled ground. As one kernel grows during the summer two to four ears of corn mature on a stalk. At harvest time one ear of corn contains almost 1000 kernels of corn. That means a return of 3000% to 4000%. for one grain of corn.   The only thing the one kernel of corn did was to obey God’s principles and grow when placed in a fertile area. 

If the kernel of corn has not been planted and a protective organic chemical is not placed on the corn kernel before planting, a small bug called a weevil will bore into the center of each kernel and render the kernel useless for any purpose.  So much for not appreciating the God given gifts in our lives.

There have been many times in life that we may wonder why God does not bless us with a large return on our stuff. The answer lies in three areas. First, we do not plant or fertilize what He gives us. Second, we do not build on faith to believe that miracles still happen and thus do not believe that we can get a large harvest.  Third, we look for only giving to areas that benefit us personally.   "What's in it for me?"

Matthew 10:42 says, “Give a cool cup of water to someone who is thirsty. The smallest act of giving makes you a true apprentice of God. You won’t lose a thing.”   Why are we sometimes so insecure in trusting God to bless our lives?  Is it in just trusting God to bless our “stuff and not try to control each move?   Are we better managers than God?   We just need to involve God in ALL our decisions which should include some hourly, daily, and nightly time in talking to the Lord. 

He then opens our eyes to what is important and gives us a peace that comes from blessing others, giving our lives away, building our daily faith, and not just to think about  that phrase, “what’s in it for us”. 

All growing churches are currently involved in a financial giving program. They need a lot of kernels of corn planted into the foundations of the church’s efforts to provide an atmosphere going forward for those far from God to experience the real love of the Creator.  We should all remember that if God can give such a return on a kernel of corn or a “volunteer” sunflower seed, imagine what he can do with your gift to help reach people for the Lord. 

My Dad taught me to remember one thing, “God will never be in your debt, you can not out give the Lord. It should be our love for Him that makes us want to try”. Therefore as we continue to develop our love for the Lord, strive for building our faith, and search for ways you can give to the Lord’s work. 

Harvest time is coming.

I Can Change Them

Year ago I encountered a situation where I liked a person but there were some of my perceived issues in their DNA that bothered me on a daily basis.  My thought is, "I can change that!" and set out on trying to make them a better person in my own mind.    Didn't work!

Instead it just frustrated me more and I thought it made the other person mad.  Later I learned that it just hurt their feelings that I was trying to mold them into something they were not.  I could not accept them where they were in life and so I moved on from the relationship.

Since that time my motto is "Love Them Where They Are At in Life".  Yet in our relationships we often do not apply the same principles.  We want them to pick up their clothes, brush their teeth a certain way, fix something a certain way that fits into how we were taught. Then for the person receiving this "correction" it may appear that they are mad, but most of the time they are hurt.  Why?

Before your partner came a long in the relationship they did things a certain way.  In the current relationship it is the desire to please your partner so you make some changes on your own.  But when those changes are not "good enough"  it can cause emotional strife in the relationship.

Take a moment and consider that when you point a finger at someone for doing something you perceive as being wrong and no doing it your way, there are three fingers pointing back at you. (Try It)  Guilty?

The person in any relationship is only here for a short time, so accept them more where they are at today in life.  Two friends are going through the roughest times in their life because one lost her 19 year old son a year ago in an auto crash and the other has just placed her 17 year old son in hospice.   I bet they both would wish to have just loved the child more and accepted them more each day they have lived.  My heart goes out to both of them daily.

Love the people around you and stop trying to change them.   One day they will not be there to change and your memories may be of all recalling the effort to change them instead of just loving them.   Today accept people right where they are and not hurt their feelings as part of the relationship.

Don't forget!  Love Them Where They Are Today In Life!

Power of Touch

Mark 6:56 - And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or country, they laid the sick in the market places, and sought Him out that they might touch even the fringe of his garment; and as many as touched Him were made well.

                For those sick, just the touch of His garment, in faith, would make them well.  Can you imagine the power that came with a touch from Jesus?  In life, we tend to forget the importance of touch, until you see people who have received very little contact with others in their life.  Why is that the case?

Touch seems to have lost its meaning today.  There are so many mixed meanings today to touch that are considered offensive or aggressive that we find people tend to keep their distance from one another. But in a marriage, a husband should observe his wife’s need for something so simple as a touch, and strive to meet that need.

A few weeks ago, I observed a senior couple in a restaurant.  They were both wearing dark sunglasses while they ate so I could not see their eyes.  As they sat across from each other, there was not a lot of conversation.  When her plate was nearly empty, he slowly got up and this man of 80+ years placed his hand onto her hand and gave it a little pat.  Then he shuffled over to the dessert section and returned with a sweet delight. 

As they finished, he slowly stood and moved to her side.  He placed the walker in front of her and then moved her legs into position.  He touched her hands and then grabbed her wrists and began to pull.  She was so frail, but with his help she soon stood upright and she grasped the handles of the walker.  As he moved to her side, he bent over and gave her a little kiss on the cheek.  By that time I was nearly in tears.  What topped it off was when he placed his hand on hers as they slowly moved out of the restaurant.  Even in their frail condition, he knew what his wife needed.  It was his touch.

Have you ever watched an older couple in a mall who are holding hands?  If you listen closely there are usually comments made by other people about how cute or how absurd they look.

Yet, touch is so vital for every person.  Even shaking hands or a simple hug is a level of communication every person needs.

During the dating time of a relationship, it seems that you can hardly stop touching each other.  Then after marriage, in the hustle-bustle of daily life and the familiarity of each other, you forget that touch should still be a part of your daily life.

Both spouses should make the effort to touch each other more EVERY day.  Holding hands is not a possession issue, but just a simple bond between two people who love each other.  You will be surprised how that can quickly defuse tension.  Also try just a little hug or kiss on the cheek for no reason at all. 

Bob Yandian, in his book, “One Flesh” talks about the needs of the husband and the wife.  He says that the wife needs companionship, compassion, romance, affection, and passion.  The common thread that makes each need satisfied is personal touch.  But do not just do it long distance via a telephone, text message, tweet, or fax.  Physical Touch that goes beyond sexual feelings.

Men need touch as well.  One of the greatest things my Dad did during the last days of his life was to hold my hand and encourage us to touch him.  He was never a “touchy” person to us, but found that the thing he desired most was not money or possessions, but the touch of his wife and family as he moved from his earthly home to his heavenly one. 

Don’t wait until late in life to discover that truth.  Learn the value of touch with your family but particularly bond the threads of your marriage through touch.

Panning for Gems

Isaiah 62:3 - You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God

Recently my wife and I had the opportunity to pan for gemstones in the mines of Franklin, North Carolina.  In years past people panned these mines primarily for gold.  The gems such as garnets, emeralds, rubies, and other precious stones were tossed away on the mine floors.

The instructions by the prospector on sight for our experience were quite simple. “Keep every stone and fragment you find.” 

 So in our excitement of finding expensive gems, we took our slush boxes, poured sand into the box, got near the running water, and then in shaking the boxes in the water, all we found were rocks.  Normally,  people just throw those rocks down and look for the shiny green emerald, or glistening red ruby.  But we obeyed the prospector and put everything in our tray.

When finished, we took our ugly rocks inside for someone to evaluate.  I thought she was crazy or that the woman viewing the stones was just giving us a sales pitch but with an excited tone in his voice, she began describing the rocks in the tray, as topaz, garnets, emeralds, and so forth. 

She pulled out another tray and said, “and we can do this to these stones”.  Right!  Take a muddy rock and make it sparkle like those stones.  Previously at another location we panned for some stones with our mothers watching the master jeweler cut and polished some of our rocks. 

It was during this process, that I saw a marvelous transformation.  A gem cutter studied the rock and then took a tool to chip away at the outer edge.  Then he would buff the edge and look at it again.  With one cut after another and some polishing, the rock became a beautiful gem.  The master cutter would hold it up to the light for flaws and continue with his work.  When he finished his task, you could see a dark red garnet that glistened in the light.  It was amazing what a master cutter could see and do when we only saw rocks.

Our life is just like panning for gems.  The world may have looked at you and saw your life just like a stone that should be thrown away.  But a Christian friend or someone that was a part of your life may have seen you as much more.  They spent the time with you and showed you God’s love and the value that you have to Him. 

When you gave your life to Christ, you were still a rough stone.  Old habits, and issues did not just fall away. 

Just like the gemstone, this is not an instant process.  It may take months or years before events such as abuse, control, alcoholism, or other issues are cut away.  But, through the Holy Spirit, your prayer time, friends, and study of the Bible with others in small groups, the rough edges will drop off.

So when you are forced to confront and deal with old habits or issues, it is not because God is angry or punishing you.  He is just making you more of the beautiful gemstone He knows you are.

A Little Understanding . . . Please

Jude 1:10 “But these people attack with insults, anything they do not understand; and those things that they know by instinct are the very things that destroy them.”

Our society today is making a habit of verbally attacking people who do not conform to the “norm”. Looking back fifty years or so, it seems like our world was more compassion and innocence back then. Trust me, that’s what age does to our memory.

We only seem to recall the good times of our younger years. But last week I was reminded of the dark times of my youth back in the ‘50’s. In our town we had no special education programs in public schools. So the special students had to ride the same bus, sit in the same cafeteria, and sit in the back of the same class as everyone else. We never talked to them because we thought they were “dumb”. They made us feel uncomfortable.

Therefore, we made fun of them and pushed them around. In short, we did not treat them like the other students. In reality, we were self-righteous and just did not try to understand them or their needs. Then in college, I took a Developmental Psychology class which required two months of lab work in the Greenville Tennessee Mental Hospital. It was there that I discovered how I was guilty of not understanding special people and condemning the individual because of my desire not to understand. Several young patients were severely deformed or had serious mental deficiencies because their mother or father had been an excessive user of lead filled moonshine or had been users of recreational drugs. Others were just the way God created them. All of them were special people who had the same basic needs that I had.

They wanted to love and to be loved.   I then understood, and asked the Lord to forgive me for insulting others and being a real “jerk”. As we look back on our past, do we find false thoughts, beliefs, or prejudices that do not fit into the teachings of Scripture?

Can we be honest with ourselves and stop the chain of misunderstanding that may have passed from generation to generation or from childhood to now? It might help us all to be more humble, to get on our knees, and ask the Lord for the compassion and wisdom to love people right where they are.

And pray for understanding to love them the way the Lord loves them, and us.

Unconditionally.

A Simple Prayer

Did you ever wake up way too early with things running through your mind?  Then you can not get back to sleep?  Well this is a normal occurrence for me. 

Everything from what I have to do today, to what's on TV, to keep the dogs quiet so Lynnette can sleep, to replaying a dream that I had to see if it made any sense, and the list goes on and on.  Well, it's Sunday at 4:30 a.m. and here I am composing my thoughts. 

But this morning I awoke thinking about a family that was hurt deeply by others and how they are searching for a hug and acceptance.  My mind races in that I can not be around to give them the hugs, so I go to praying for them to find the people they need who will uplift them and give them love and acceptance.

I simply pray for them and ask the Lord to lead them to people who will love them unconditionally. No need for a long drawn out dissertation of prayer but just petition the Lord for his favor in their lives.  Period.

Is there someone out there where the Lord has placed them on your heart?  It is not by accident that they have now come to you mind so just say a simple prayer and watch the Lord work.  You will be enriched beyond your wildest imagination of what the Lord does today.  So get going on your simple prayer.

Declaring Your Independence

None of us can imagine what it fells like to not be free.  As we celebrate a day of rejoicing in our freedom, many of us are bound by struggles that keep us from really understanding the refreshing breath of REAL freedom.

We may be bound by drug, alcohol, relationship, job, or no job, and kids, as the list keeps us emotionally and spiritually from really being FREE.   I looked up what the word FREE means:  "Receiving or enjoying something of value that does not require any monetary outlay of funds or obligation on the part of the receiver"

Well, I guess if you drill down to bottom of this many of us are really not free in this country of freedom.  So often we encounter "strings attached" to a gift or relationship with many people. 

Yet when I stop and look at my relationship with the Creator of the Universe, I see someone who just wants to be close to you and give you permanent freedom.  If you are really free from what the world offers then you celebrate that freedom and want to stay that way.  In our daily relationship with the Lord it is in our freedom that we find compassion, love, and admiration in every aspect of life.

Maybe you should really learn to declare your Independence from the struggles of life.  You can learn a lot more in a free (yes "free") day of activities on the 3rd - celebrating the 4th - at 5:00 p.m.  www.faithpromise.org

I would love for you to declare your independence from the struggles daily life has for you and enjoy what freedom really feels like in your life.

Who are Your prayer Warriors?

Below is a note from my wonderful wife to the many people who were petitiioning the Lord for His blessing and Favor yesterday.  You have seen the power of prayer in sickness and other areas, but when you see the Lord working in business and daily life, you get excited to rely on Him more, tell others of the Lord being a daily part of your life, and sharing that God is showing His Favor EVERY day.   If I were doing things, "My Way" the results would not be the same.  So where are your prayer warriors? Are you being open with them so they know how to petition the Lord?  Transparency is the key.  Both with the Lord and others so the Lord can bless your life.

Friends and family,

Thanks SO MUCH for your prayers for Gary this afternoon.  In his words, the meeting with the Wal-Mart buyer went “interestingly well” and that the buyer was “very receptive”.  Here’s a brief summary of how the meeting went.  Each point below is a big “God-thing”:

• The buyer likes the product and even said that he has been looking for something like this and thinks that it would sell quite well when placed in the aisle with the storage tubs and totes.
• The buyer would like to place a good-sized quantity of product in 500 stores to start (this would be 500 of his stores which have the best sales of storage totes which our product is ideal for).
• If that “test” goes well he would like to place product in all stores by the end of the year (the after-Christmas emphasis on storage products).
  He agreed to the revised pricing that Gary presented.
• Interesting to note that this is the same buyer that just a couple of months ago totally blew Gary off.  I guess God was still in the process of pulling all the details and players together!

I won’t bore you with the details of everything that has to happen now in order for there to be an official and binding purchase order, but I will ask you to pray that everything falls into place both to secure the purchase order and for us to fill it.  We have good people working with us, but it’s quite a tap-dance putting all the pieces of this deal together.

Now for your prayer assignment for tomorrow (smile):  Gary is on his way to Little Rock as he has a meeting tomorrow morning (Thursday) with the CEO and others of Century Ladders.  They are interested in possibly distributing our Attic Trac product.  This will be an interesting meeting as they have pursued us since Gary first made contact with them.  Please pray that it becomes clear where God is leading and that His wisdom is clear in any deals or decisions to be made. 

Thanks again.  You guys are the best!
Lynnette