April 25, 2013 · 6:27 AM

Peace. Hope. Love.

As I’m sitting on the roof, watching the sun rise in Haiti, I’m reflecting on yesterday. We arrived to chaos which, if you’ve ever been to a third world country airport is normal. Horns blaring, cars weaving in and out of people, others are trying to carry your bags for you and all the while follow the leader through this crazy maze. We get to our vehicles, load up all our luggage into the back of these quad cab trucks and half of us climb on top of the luggage to ride in the back.

As we make our way through Port au Prince, we are a sight to be seen. Some people wave and others have a look on there face of “Did that just happen?” Red lights and green lights don’t matter. Stops signs are just a decoration on the road. Horns are the language of drivers here. It took me back to my time in Egypt. We fought the traffic for what seemed like more than thirty minutes. I was enjoying it. I must have had a huge grin because the dust in the air caked my teeth.

All of a sudden, we arrive out our first destination. An orphanage for babies and toddlers with HIV and AIDS. Peace. The chaos stopped. I didn’t hear the horns anymore. My heart began to fill with love. My eyes with tears. As I sat down, I was talking with another person from our group. A little boy named Alfred came over and sat in my lap. He grabbed the phone out of my hand and started moving my apps around. Still in conversation, I hadn’t realized that my mind had made no distinction between he and my own son.

He soon ran off and another child climbed on my lap. I kissed her on the cheek, hugged her tight and tried talking with her. French Creole is not a language I speak. While I couldn’t speak the language, I could speak love and life to her. One after the other, the kids came up, climbed on me and it was as if I were home. There was love. There was peace. There was hope. There was life.

There was a book with several of the kids in it. Each page had a picture and a story. One little girl’s mother had died. Her father, who has HIV, went away to live in a tent city. The girl was given to her grandmother who was using her to beg and get money from strangers. A pastor came to her rescue and took her to that home. She’s getting food and the medical attention she needs now.

It’s a lot like us. We were abandoned in our sin. But God came and rescued us from that place and brought us into a place of peace, hope and love. He looked past our terminal disease of sin and brought us in. His Son’s blood provided the ointment for our spiritual healing. While we live in a world of chaos, He brings order and meaning to our lives. He is the One we can trust in a cruel world.

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April 24, 2013 · 7:00 AM

Faith’s Roller Coaster

When I was a kid, my parents took us to Six Flags Astroworld often. I always remember the anticipation of getting to ride the Texas Cyclone. My dad, who understood physics, always had us ride in the back seat. The ride would pull out of the station, my heart would start to beat faster. The ride pulled to the left and started the ascent up the first hill. Click, click, click. The smile on my face was so big my cheeks hurt. Click, click click. It went up so slowly that it seemed like forever to get to the top. Click, click, click.

All of a sudden I could hear the screams from the front car as they reached the top. Click, click, click. As I saw the hill approaching I would raise my hands. The suspense would kill me. I knew the rush that was about to come from going over the top. Click. I took a deep breath. Click. And suddenly, we were off on a set of twists and turns, peaks and valleys. The joy of getting thrown around side to side was too much. I was both laughing and scared at the same time as my stomach would come up to my throat.

I’m there in my life right now. I’m on my way to Haiti today to help build an orphanage. For the past six months the anticipation was much like waiting to go over the top. One month to go. Click, click, click. Passports ready. Click, click, click. Doing fundraisers to help raise the money needed. Click, click, click. Final check lists done. Click. Bags packed. Click. Arriving at the airport. Click. It’s time to take a deep breath and hang on for the ride.

I’m excited and nervous at the same time. I know God has something good in store, but there are so many unknowns. I can worry and scream about what’s coming or I can smile, throw my hands up and prepare for the ride. When I got in the car, I gave up my right to control what happens. It’s in control of going where the tracks lead. When I gave my heart to Christ, the same thing happened. I gave up control. My life is heading where His tracks lead.

I’m not sure why I get so nervous about the future. Jesus said in Matthew 6:34, “So don’t worry or be anxious about tomorrow.” He’s got the future, your future under control. There’s no sense in worrying about it. Just like on the roller coaster, you can’t always see what’s next. You may be able to see the mountains and valleys and turns coming, but what’s right in front of you is often a mystery. That’s the beauty of a roller coaster. That’s the beauty of life.

You aren’t in control. God is. Let Him worry about tomorrow. Give it over to Him. Smile. Throw
your hands up. Scream. Enjoy the ride. It will end before you know it. When you give up your life to God and allow Him to control it, you gave up the rights to a boring life. You just got on the Texas Cyclone! Your stomach might be in your throat some days. You might be out of breath on others. But when the train pulls in the station, you’ll be glad you got on the ride and want to do it again.

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April 24, 2013 · 7:00 AM

Faith’s Roller Coaster

When I was a kid, my parents took us to Six Flags Astroworld often. I always remember the anticipation of getting to ride the Texas Cyclone. My dad, who understood physics, always had us ride in the back seat. The ride would pull out of the station, my heart would start to beat faster. The ride pulled to the left and started the ascent up the first hill. Click, click, click. The smile on my face was so big my cheeks hurt. Click, click click. It went up so slowly that it seemed like forever to get to the top. Click, click, click.

All of a sudden I could hear the screams from the front car as they reached the top. Click, click, click. As I saw the hill approaching I would raise my hands. The suspense would kill me. I knew the rush that was about to come from going over the top. Click. I took a deep breath. Click. And suddenly, we were off on a set of twists and turns, peaks and valleys. The joy of getting thrown around side to side was too much. I was both laughing and scared at the same time as my stomach would come up to my throat.

I’m there in my life right now. I’m on my way to Haiti today to help build an orphanage. For the past six months the anticipation was much like waiting to go over the top. One month to go. Click, click, click. Passports ready. Click, click, click. Doing fundraisers to help raise the money needed. Click, click, click. Final check lists done. Click. Bags packed. Click. Arriving at the airport. Click. It’s time to take a deep breath and hang on for the ride.

I’m excited and nervous at the same time. I know God has something good in store, but there are so many unknowns. I can worry and scream about what’s coming or I can smile, throw my hands up and prepare for the ride. When I got in the car, I gave up my right to control what happens. It’s in control of going where the tracks lead. When I gave my heart to Christ, the same thing happened. I gave up control. My life is heading where His tracks lead.

I’m not sure why I get so nervous about the future. Jesus said in Matthew 6:34, “So don’t worry or be anxious about tomorrow.” He’s got the future, your future under control. There’s no sense in worrying about it. Just like on the roller coaster, you can’t always see what’s next. You may be able to see the mountains and valleys and turns coming, but what’s right in front of you is often a mystery. That’s the beauty of a roller coaster. That’s the beauty of life.

You aren’t in control. God is. Let Him worry about tomorrow. Give it over to Him. Smile. Throw
your hands up. Scream. Enjoy the ride. It will end before you know it. When you give up your life to God and allow Him to control it, you gave up the rights to a boring life. You just got on the Texas Cyclone! Your stomach might be in your throat some days. You might be out of breath on others. But when the train pulls in the station, you’ll be glad you got on the ride and want to do it again.

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April 23, 2013 · 8:00 AM

The Unforced Rhythms of Grace

I heard a scripture a couple of weeks ago and I’m still chewing on it. I’m going over it in my mind over and over. I’m still not sure everything that it means, so I’ll keep chewing on it, breaking it down, thinking it through and pondering how it applies to my life. This simple phrase from matthew 11:28-30 keeps rolling around in my mind. Jesus said, “Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.”

Jesus says it after asking some good questions. He asked, “Are you tired? Worn out?” Then He offers for us to go to Him, get away with Him and to recover our life. He will show us how to take a real rest by walking with Him and working with Him. He says, “Watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.” It reminds me of a father teaching His child how to do something.

Watch me. Learn from me. I’ll show you how to do it. Do what I do. That’s a father’s heart. He wants to show us the rhythm of life. Real life, not this life we’re living that is inundated with emails, phone calls and traffic. Life that is unforced and natural. A spiritual life that loves others, does what is right and follows in His steps. He promised right after that, “I won’t lay anything heavy or Ill-fitting on you.” He’s not a burdensome God. His desire is simp,y to spend time with us.

The longer that I’m a father, the more I realize His love for us and His desire to just spend time with us. Our lives are to bring Him joy. We were designed to walk with Him and to spend time with Him. We weren’t meant to carry heavy burdens. His yoke is easy and His burden is light. In I Peter 5:7 It says, “Give ALL your worries and cares to God, for He cares for you.”

I think giving them over to Him is the first step to learning those unforced rhythms of grace. We can’t move well when we are bogged down with things that we can’t do anything about. Release them to Him and find rest. I know it’s easier said than done. It takes a shift in your thinking. Once you come to the realization that worrying about your problems won’t solve it, you have the ability to release it to God and find rest. The Amplified version describes that rest as “relief, ease, refreshment, recreation and blessed quiet.”

Maybe that’s where you are today. You need to learn those rhythms of grace, but you have to let go of the burdens of the past first. You can’t let the worry of the unknown interfere with those rhythms either. Your life is precious and our Father wants you to learn His ways and to find rest in Him. He wants to refresh your soul today if you’ll just let Him. Don’t hold onto the things that keep you from walking forward with Him.

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April 22, 2013 · 7:13 AM

Stories of Healing

I’m going to brag on God today. A couple of weeks ago my sister in law was experiencing problems. The doctors looked and didn’t like what they saw. They did a biopsy and it came back positive. The doctors said there was a 95% chance it was cancer and immediate surgery would be needed to remove it. When they told us about the situation, I made the comment, “They just gave God 5%. I’ve seen Him do a lot more with a lot less.” After surgery, they sent off another biopsy. When it came back, the doctors said they were confused. There was no cancer.

Scripture tells us that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. What He’s done in the past, we can expect Him to do today. Jesus went around healing people in towns and villages. He healed those who had faith that He had the power to do it. He still has not changed and has the ability to heal us. I don’t know why everyone who has faith isn’t healed, but I do know that it takes faith to be healed.

I believe that faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God as Romans 10:17 says. I believe it also comes when we hear stories of other people who have been healed. There is something about hearing someone else’ verifiable healing that causes our faith to rise. When our faith rises, anything is possible. Jesus Himself said, “Anything is possible if a person believes,” in Mark 9:23.

When all hope is lost and when it doesn’t look like there is a way, that’s when God loves to move. Isaiah 35:5-6 says, “And when he comes, he will open the eyes of the blind and unplug the ears of the deaf. The lame will leap like a deer, and those who cannot speak will sing for joy! Springs will gush forth in the wilderness, and streams will water the wasteland.” God can make a way where there is no way. He can make streams in the desert and He can heal the deaf, the blind and those who are lame.

If we go back to the scripture in Mark that we read earlier where Jesus said that anything was possible, it was Jesus’ response to a man who brought his son to be healed. When Jesus asked him if he believed, he replied, “Lord, I believe, but help my unbelief.” That’s what a lot of us need to pray when our faith is waning due to circumstances. God can help our unbelief and grow our faith. We just need to ask. If you need healing today, I encourage you to continue to believe for your healing. God is still working. He’s still in the healing business.

If you’ve been healed, please let me and others know by commenting below. Your testimony will help build the faith in others. If you’re believing for healing, I want to hear from you too. That way, we can all join together and bind our faith to believe with you for your healing.

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April 19, 2013 · 9:37 AM

Freedom Through Perspective

A co-worker of mine has a drawing on his desk of a bird eating a frog. You can’t see the frog’s head because it’s in the bird’s mouth. With one of his legs that is still outside of the mouth of the bird, the frog grabs the bird by the throat to prevent it from swallowing him. The caption reads, “Never give up!” It’s a funny drawing, but there’s a great message in it too. Most people in that situation would have given up. They can’t see the light of day. They’re being swallowed by their problems. All hope seems lost.

Paul the Apostle was in a similar situation. He was in jail often. His life was always being threatened. He was beat up, stoned, ship wrecked and had to face judges. When things seemed at their worst, he still found a way to praise God. One of my favorite stories of him was when he was in the dungeon of the prison. He was shackled with no hope of getting out. At midnight, he was singing praises to God.

If you’ve never been in a prison before, I can tell you there’s not much reason to be happy. There’s no joy there. Our prisons today have power, sewer, water, air conditioning, TV, food and more. Back then, prison was prison In every sense if the word. There was no hope for anyone that was there. Paul’s hope didn’t rely on his external circumstances though.

He understood that the things that happen to us are only temporary. As he sang, an earthquake shook the prison and the shackles that held him physically released him. His physical body became as free as his spirit. Not only did his shackles come off, but so did those of everyone in the prison. Praise is powerful enough to not only free you, but to free those around you who do not have the strength to praise.

We studied in church this week from the book “Love & Respect” by Dr. Emerson Eggrichs. The chapter we studied was called, “My response is my responsibility”. Even though the book deals with marriage, the principle that was shared applies to all areas of your life. Other people do not control your response. You do. You choose how you respond to situations created by others. They can’t make you do anything. How you react is your responsibility.

Paul’s response to troubles, persecutions, prisons and trials was never one if despair. It was always of hope. In II Corinthians 4:16-18 he says, “So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without His unfolding grace. These hard times are small potatoes compared to the coming good times.” He understood, as we should, that the thing we are going through right now is temporary even though it doesn’t feel like it.

When you compare the situation you’re in with eternity, it’s small potatoes. When you compare it to your life and what is temporary, it’s huge. God doesn’t want you to compare your struggles to the things of this world. You’ll lose your perspective and ultimately your joy. Keep your eyes on eternity and what is to come. Your perspective will change and your praise will rise to free you from those chains.

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April 18, 2013 · 8:46 AM

Approachable Jesus

My pastor asked a question last Sunday that still has me thinking about it. He asked, “Are you approachable by the world or are you so self righteous that they want nothing to do with you?” His next point was that Jesus was approachable. So approachable in fact that a prostitute came and washed his feet, a tax collector invited Him into his house and a Samaritan woman brought her whole village out to meet Him. His life wasn’t about showing how much holier He was. It was about showing love to others despite how the world labeled them.

It’s easy to not want to associate with certain types of people. It’s become normal for us to wonder about those who hang out with sinners. Why? I heard Kirk Franklin say, “If everyone I know loves Jesus, I don’t know enough people.” I get it. We need to surround ourselves with other believers and grow in the faith. We also need to make sure we have relationships with those who aren’t believers.

How can we have influence on someone we don’t have a relationship with? Jesus taught in the temples on the Sabbath, but the rest of the week He was in the streets, villages and hillsides building relationships with those who weren’t in the temple. He left the 99 who were safe in the temple to search for that one who would listen outside. He made Himself available to others. He healed those who weren’t religious. If He didn’t, why did He often say, “Go and sin no more”?

We limit God by thinking certain things are only for believers. God wants us to demonstrate His love to all so that none would perish. I was praying this week a prayer that I heard from a friend of mine. The prayer he told me he prays isn’t, “God show me your will and I’ll do it.” He said, “I’ve been praying, ‘God, what are you dreaming of doing? Pick me. I’ll volunteer to make that dream a reality.'”

As I was praying that this week, I asked God, “What do you dream about?” The answer was, “That none should perish.” God’s dream isn’t that we have large churches, debt free buildings or an amazing light show during praise and worship. Are those things great to have? Yes. But are we putting our time, energy and money into building relationships that grow the Kingdom? That’s where God’s heart is.

Today, think about your life. How approachable are you by those outside the church? If an unbeliever is around you at work, are you the type of person they could come to and ask questions about faith? Would you give them the churchy answer? Or do they know you will be real and transparent about your faith? None of us are perfect. We just serve a perfect God and do our best to be like Him. Build relationships. Win the lost. That’s God’s heartbeat.

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April 17, 2013 · 8:35 AM

Spiritual Apnea

One of the things you may not know about me is that I have sleep apnea. What happens is that when my body is at rest, the air pressure outside my body is greater than on the inside causing me to not only snore, but also can deprive my brain of oxygen. To fix the problem, I sleep with a CPAP machine and mask that pushes air into me. The machine creates a positive air pressure in me so that the pressure inside is greater than the pressure outside.

You and I walk in a world that is constantly trying to force us and to shape us into its mold. We are pressured from every side to compromise, to give in or up and to conform to its ways. Romans 12:2 tells us, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” It’s a clear command that we are to resist the pressures that are on the outside.

Sometimes the outside pressure is stronger than our inside pressure to resist. When we give in to those pressures, our spirit is deprived of the things it needs to stay strong and healthy. We start to exhibit the side effects of spiritual apnea. We fall asleep spiritually, our prayers cease to have the power they once had, our faith begins to wane. We eventually allow this to be the norm for our spiritual life. There is no growth only maintenance.

The good news is that God has given each of us His Holy Spirit to create a positive pressure in us to combat the external pressures of this world. Acts 1:8 says, “But you shall receive power (ability, efficiency and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you.” God has given us the power, ability, efficiency and might to combat the pressures that come against us. Just like I have that CPAP machine, if I don’t use it, it’s wont help me create a positive pressure inside. We can be guilty of having the Holy Spirit and not using the power He has given us to have a positive pressure.

II Corinthians 4:7-8 tells us, “This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves. We are pressed on every side, but we are not crushed.” The power and pressure God has given us will not allow us to be crushed by this world. His desire is not to just equalize the pressure between our inside and the world, but to create a greater power and pressure in us that extends into the world. We are not to maintain, but to advance. We are to conquer.

Romans 8 says that we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. God wants you to walk in victory today. We were not made to be defeated. Quit living like you’ve been defeated today because that’s not who you are in Christ. Change your mindset, access the power of the Holy Spirit that is dwelling in you and go create positive change today in your world. You have the power and ability according to what we read. Now walk in faith believing in the victory God has given you.

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April 16, 2013 · 8:15 AM

Taste and See

A few weeks ago some friends and I went to dinner. One of the people with us was younger. At the restaurant he was asking what we thought about the choices on the menu and what he should get. He decided on the surf and turf. I complimented him on his choice. When they brought us our meals, he immediately went for the lobster. He asked, “How do I get it off the tail?” As I was beginning to tell him, he stabbed the tail with the fork, grabbed the shell and pulled.

He successfully had removed the whole tail. Before I could congratulate him on his feat, he shoved the entire lobster tail in his mouth, chewed a couple of times and swallowed. I sat there in shock. I said, “You aren’t supposed to eat it like that. This is something you take your time with. You savor it. You dip it in the butter and enjoy it. If you’re going to eat for the sake of getting full, go to McDonald’s. If you want to experience a meal, you eat this. It’s more than eating. It’s enjoying your food.”

Many of us approach reading God’s word the same way he ate his lobster. We stick a fork in it, read a bunch, comprehend little, chew enough to swallow and move on. We don’t enjoy the Bible. We read it out of spiritual duty. We say, “A chapter a day keeps the devil away.” Is that really the case though? Are we really getting anything out of it when we do it as a chore?

David said, “Oh taste and see that The Lord is good.” He understood what it meant to take your time in God’s word and to enjoy Him. He let God’s word sink down into his spirit. He often talked about meditating on God’s word. That’s how he got it into his spirit. He knew there was more than just reading. There was tasting, savoring and enjoying to what God says. He took his time, thought about what God was saying, how it applied to him and how he could use it in his life.

Each day when I read the Bible, I try to do the same thing. For years I was guilty of the chapter a day mentality. It was a box I had to check off in order to be a Christian. Now I know better. I don’t put a time limit on God nor a chapter or verse limit on Him either. I get to a quiet place, calm my my mind and emotions. I pray, “God, speak to me today through your word. Direct me to what you want me to see. Help me to read it like never before and to see things I’ve never seen before. Help me to make connections in your word that I’ve not seen in years past.”

I encourage you to do the same thing. If you find yourself doing a chapter a day or trying to read through the Bible in a year, ask yourself why. Are you trying to say you’ve read the whole Bible? Are you plowing through the goodness like my friend with the lobster tail or are you enjoying it? Take time today to look at God’s word with different eyes. Meditate on a verse all day. Chew on it. Think about what God meant, how it was directed at you and how you can apply it to your life. His word will become alive in you. Who knows, you might even end up with a heart after God like David.

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April 15, 2013 · 7:53 AM

Moving Day

Today is the first day in a new office. There’s first day jitters like I experienced as a kid on the first day of school. All the familiar faces will be here, but it will be in a new environment. Boxes will need to be unpacked. Desks will need to be arranged. You’ll have to find out where everyone sits so you can find them when you need them. There’s a sense of excitement and nervousness at the same time. I can’t wait to go see the new place.

I wonder if that’s what Heaven will be like. It’s the familiar faces we’ve known just in an unfamiliar setting. We’ll get acquainted with how the streets of gold are layer out. Find our bearings around the sea of glass. Walk in awe through the pearly gates as we wonder in amazement at a place that was designed just for us. There’s a home there built with us in mind. Designed specifically to our standards. I can’t wait to go see it.

Jesus said in John 14 that He is preparing a place for us. In verse three, He says, “When everything’s ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me.” Just like at work where we’ve been anticipating this move, we need to be anticipating His return. We don’t know when He’ll come for us or when our life will be over and we go there. The important thing is to be ready at any given moment.

You don’t realize how much stuff you’re holding on to until it’s time to move. I threw away so much stuff last week because I realized I really didn’t need it. I started thinking about how much stuff in my own life that I’ve been holding onto that I need to release. Things like forgiveness for those who’ve wronged me, grudges against others who’ve made me angry, resentment for not being dealt a hand as good as others in life and so many other things we pack into our lives and hold onto.

When we hold onto those things, our hands aren’t free to receive all that God has for us. God has great things in store for each of us, but so many times we haven’t freed ourselves of the things that so easily weigh us down. We haven’t given them over to God and we end up putting ourselves into a yoke of bondage. God’s desire is that we live free of any yokes, especially those that are self imposed.

If you were moving to Heaven today, what would you need to pack and what would you need to throw away in your own life? What have you been holding onto that you don’t need? Why hold onto it any more? Free yourself today from those things that weigh you down. You will find freedom when you release them. God has already offered us freedom. He’s just waiting for us to take off the unnecessary weights and things that hold us down. Walk in freedom today!

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