Struggles

A month or so back, we were having our monthly 'Men's Ministry Meeting'. we were nominating people to perform certain functions with in the ministry. When they came to nominating for devotions, they nominated Bobby Graves, Jeremiah Young and myself. I looked at Jeremiah and he looked so excited, as did Bobby, so I just sat there and smiled right along with them. A few moments later I leaned over and whispered to Jeremiah,"So what are we doing?" he looked at me a little strange and I said, "What are devotions?" He informed me the we were going to be the ones standing up once a month on Wednesday nights to give the message or Devotion for that meeting. I couldn't believe it, I felt so overwhelmed. But after praying about it God reassured me not to worry, and I knew that if I just relied on Him everything was going to be okay. After all, I believe that God won't ask you to do anything that He Himself hasn't already prepared the way for you to do.
So as it turned out, I ended up going first, I prayed long and hard, and after praying every thing just seemed to come to me with ease, I felt the holy Spirit speaking to me so I just started typing every thing I was hearing. After that I went straight to the Word and just opened it up and my eyes just fell on the passages that went right along with the message. I was so relieved, then all I had to worry about was standing in front of all those people and not choking up. Sure I've stood infront of groups before, but these are people I know, people who know me, what if they judge me what if I mess up what if.. I had to stop thinking that way, it was destructive.
So finally the Meeting came around and I stood up and gave the message as prepared. Afterward everyone came up and told me how much they enjoyed it how great of a job I did and all that. But I humbled myself because I knew it wasn't me who did it. If it would have been all me, what a mess that would have been, i would probably have embarassed myself so bad I never would have wanted to go back. But lucky for me, the Lord is faithful, all the time!
Well next week we are having the meeting again, and yesterday I felt the Holy Spirit speak to me about it, so I prayed and before I knew a few hours had passed by and the lesson was all typed up. So I called Jeremiah if he didn't mind if I finshed the lesson from the Meeting before. Of course he didn't mind, and so it was. Until last night at church one of our elders in the church came up to me and stated that last time I spoke too long and that he wanted me to keep it down to about 15 minutes. I was devistated, he was asking me to interfere with what God had placed on my heart to do. I didn't say anything to him then but after the service I confronted him and said, "All I did last week was say what God placed on my heart, I don't know who it spoke to but I beleive it was for somebody. I can't promise you 15 minutes or even 20, all that I can promise is that I will say what the Lord gives me to say." I really felt like telling him off, inside I felt betrayed, how could you put me in this position! But I remained humble, then just simply and calmly said, "Listen, I will have to stand before God some day, and he will ask me 'why didn't you say what I asked you to say?' What will I tell him? I sorry ---- but I can't tell you how long it will be." He then seemd frustrated, and just threw up his hands. I felt really sorry for him. I don't want to give his name, but I want to ask that you all would pray for him. That God would bless him. Pray for me too, if I am not seeing this thing in the right way for God to show me, that God would allow he and I to see things from the same perspective, and that it would be from God's perspective, which is the only way to do anything right. Pray for us today.

Are you a minister?

“Another term for serving God that is often misunderstood by most people is the word Ministry. When most people hear the word ministry they think of pastors, priests, and professional clergy, but God says every member of his family is a minister. In the Bible, the words servant and minister are synonyms, as are service and ministry. If you are a Christian you are a minister, and when you are serving you are ministering.” THE PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE—Rick Warren DAY 29 pg.228-229

A Love Letter to Jesus

Do you remember the last time you wrote a love letter? A heart felt note to someone you truly love and care for? How would it make them feel? I imagine they would enjoy it, Don't you? This thanksgiving take some time to write a love letter to Jesus, tell him how thankfull you are for the things He's done, for the things He is doing, and celebrate the things He is going to do. Tell Him what He means to you. If you've hurt Him in some way tell Him your sorry, He's very forgiving.
Have you thought about how much you mean to Him? Just like a spouse or best friend, we often spend time together doing things together, and then spend twice as long talking about how we enjoyed them, what we saw, our perspective, even though we just shared the expirience with them. Is it any different with Jesus? Hasn't He been with you all day, doing everything with you, watching your every step, crying with you, laughing with you; just delighting in you his very creation. Wouldn't He like to hear you perspective, wouldn't it do you good to hear His.
As parents don't we enjoy hearing from our childeren? How was their day at school? or Maybe you all just went to see them same movie, Don't you ask them what they thought, how was it, what was your favorite part? ect...
These are the things that build our relationships with the ones we love. Communication is key to our relationship with Jesus or anybody else. How can you build your relationship with Jesus today He's been with you all day, He knows your struggles and He longs to hear what you have to say about them. We often tell everybody in the world anout the things we're going through and never tell our Lord Jesus Christ. Why not? Can our friends really do anything beyond the scope of their control, to change our problem or situation? Sure they can offer us comforting words or, maybe just be a good listener. What about Jesus, does He not sit at the right hand of the father? saying, Come, all you who are weary and heavy ladened, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Cast your cares upon Jesus today, remember he is the one who holds the power to turn your test into a testimony, your mess into a message and take a victim to victory.
Won't you cast your cares upon Jesus today. Surely, there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Prayer

If you are reading this join with me today in prayer,

Heavenly Father we come into your presence with thanksgiving in our heart, We love you and lift up your name in praise. Father thank You for so many, many things You've done, the prayers You've answered, the ones You haven't. For the wonderful things You do at every given moment that we don't ask You to do, thank You for doing it anyway because You love us. We have so much to be thankful for, if we were to type them all out we would be here until Your second comming. Our words would be as endless as Your love. Father I confess to You that I have sinned. Against You and You alone I've sinned. Father forgive me. Help me to live Your way, help me not to conduct myself that way anymore. Father make me a forgiving person, help me to love others the way You do, the way You have commanded us in Your Word. Help me forgive others just the way You do, Completely. If there is anyone that I need to forgive I ask that your Holy Spirit would reveal it to me so that I can confess this before you as sin, Help me to forgive them completely and I ask You to bless them Lord, forgive them the way you have forgiven me. I pray Lord that you would remove any bitterness from with in me, So that my prayers will not be hindered. Show me Father where I am not living your way so that I can confess that also before you as sin, Father help me find full deliverence and repentance from doing these things that do not honor and glorify You. Set me free in the name of Jesus. Lord Your Word says that whosoever the Son shall set free, he shall be free indeed. I stand on Your Word today in faith, and thank you right now for setting me free by the power that is in Your name. Father we lift up to you today in prayer, Bobby and Vincent, enable them to see things from Your perspective, prosper them abundantly, open their eyes to see what it is that You are doing. Father increase their Faith. We pray for Jerimiah and Jessica, that you would richly bless them and continue to use them to reach others in the love of Jesus Christ. Continue Your work in Bret and Lori, increase her faith by the wonderful work of Your mighty hand, enable her to see the answers to her prayers. Continue to strengthen Bernie and Sandy, help them to grow in their relationship with You everyday, keep them in all Your ways molding them and shaping them in to what You want them to be. Holy sprit continue to speak to Billy, show him how much You love him and Amy. Bless Polly. Continue Your good work in Angie, thank You for all You have been doing in all of us for bringing us together as friends. Make us a strong prayer support for one another. Continue Your work in Carla and Me, help us to grow together in You Lord. I ask that You would Guide and direct all of our steps, gaurding our hearts and minds from the enemy drowning out his lies and replacing them with Your Truth. Father please protect our childeren, protect their minds and their bodies as well as their hearts. Help us to raise them in the way they should go so that when they are older they will not turn from them. Lord give to us wisdom and discernment concerning what we allow our childeren to see and do, and what we allow into our homes. Lord I pray that we will lead by example and allow nothing into our homes through tv, books, magazines, video games, internet, people or anything Lord that doesn't glorify You. Lord I also want to lift up Bobby Jr, his wife and childeren, Father love them and bless them in a special way. Father I ask all these things of you in the name of Jesus and I stand in confidence knowing you hear us, knowing that if we ask anything in Your name that it will be done for us by our Father in heaven thank You God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Walk with us today, fellowship with us. In Jesus name. AMEN.

Brad

My brother Brad is comming into town today, I can't wait to see him. I think it has been since last Thanksgiving. Pray that his trip will be safe. That God would anoint our time together, our conversations, and generally the things we do. I hope you all get to meet him.

TGIF

I am so glad it is Friday, this week has seemed longer than usual for some reason. But now that I think about it, doesn't it always this time of year? The Holidays are comming up and that just seems to be all we think these days. I was blessed today. I got to meet Carla and the boys today for lunch. We ran an errand, ate some lunch and then took the kids to a park to play until I had to go back to work. It was great. Sometimes we use that time not only to watch our kids play but also to catch up and talk. After that Carla was planning to go to the commissary to get groceries. I offered that the boys come to my office and hang out with me till I got off work, It is so nice to do that sometimes. We had a great time, and we ended up getting off work early. So me and the boys came home and we decide that we would staighten up the house a little before Carla got home for a change. Anyway tonight were going to the "Movies", the youth at our church are doing a movie night. I am excited. They have daycare there and that is a blessing for anyone with three childeren.

Blogging is more rewarding than I could have imagined

I just want to say how thrilled I am to open this page up and find that not only do people read the things I write but that they also take the time to comment also. It is such a blessing to know that we have friends who care enough to listen, strengthen and encourage us. Much like the rest of you, I've been at work pretty much all day dealing with the ups and downs, ins and outs; the struggles and victories life brings. As some of you know I am still struggling with a bad smoking habit that started some 13 years ago. I want to quit so bad, and I do good for a while but then sometimes the temptations get so strong I give in out of weakness. God is surely strengthening me in this area and today I have only smoked once. Yet how I wish it were zero. Most times I wish I had never started smoking to begin with. I know that if I just hang in there God will deliver me from it. Who knows maybe even my wife too. Wouldn't that be great! I want to ask that all of you would pray for me. I believe strongly in the power of prayer, and I can assure you that this is not something I can break free of in my own strength, if I could I would have done so already. Everybody struggles with something. Carla sent me an email yesterday containing an interview with Rick Warren. He was talking about how he use to believe that we went through hills and valleys (good times and bad times). Here's what he said "Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life. No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for. You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems. If you focus on your problems, you're going into self-centeredness, 'which is my problem, my issues, my pain.' But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others." ...I believe he is right, God is continually working on us; helping us through every struggle, rejoicing with us in victory, and He leads us into a new tomorrow. Rick Warren also said, "God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity. We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense. Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort. God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy. We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness." Just pray for me that I will be able to shake this bad habit and replace it for a good one.

"God began doing a good work in you, and I am sure he will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again." These are Paul's words to the church at Phillipi, Phillipians 1:6 (NCV)

Do you suppose?

Could it be possible for all you to post a comment to me with your blog address? I want to be able to put them all on my "links". This would help me out so I can get to your pages without having to type it in from memeory....(hint, hint... I have a bad memory)

A Rescuing Hug

This is a small paragraph taken from one of my favorite books: "I heard a story about a set of twins who were just a few days old. One of them had been born with a serious heart condition and wasn't expected to live. A few days went by and one baby's health continued to deteriorate; she was close to death. A hospital nurse asked if she could go against hospital policy and put the babies in the same incubator together, rather than in individual incubators. It was a big ordeal, but finally one doctor consented to allow the twins to be placed side by side in the same incubator, just as they had been in the mother's womb. Somehow, the healthy baby managed to reach over and put his arm around his little sister. Before long, and for no apparent reason, her heart began to stabalize and heal. Her blood pressure came up to normal. Her temperature soon followed suit. Little by little she got better, and today they are both perfectly healthy childeren. A newspaper caught wind of the story and photographed the twins while still in the incubator, embraced in a hug. They ran the photo with the caption 'The Rescuing Hug.' Friends, sombody needs your hug today. Sombody needs your love. Somebody needs your touch. You may not realize it, but there is healing in your hands. There is healing in your voice. God wants to use you to bring hope, healing, love and victory to people where ever you go. If you will dare to take your troubles, get your mind off your own needs and, instead, seek tobe a blessing to other people, God will do more for you than you can even ask or think." 'Your Best Life Now,' by Joel Osteen Chapt 24, pg 224.

Even Leaders Follow

As a Marine we are taught to lead, follow, or get out of the way. Marines are always encouraged to lead but in order to be a good leader you also have to know how and when to follow. A wonderful group of friends introduced me to this new way to communicate to friends and family. Some of them have been blogging for a while yet some are also new, but it is definately an awesome way to share thoughts, insights, and encouragement as well as just keeping up with all that we have going on from day to day.