Month: May 2018

Friendship

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We need good friends as a part of our journey.  True friends, not the ‘how you doing’ people we pass and never take time to sit and listen to how they really are doing.  Friendship is a commitment to the other person that you will be there for them and they will be there for you.  It is a give and take and both parties have a responsibility to honor that commitment to the other.  These are the people that will go through your greatest highs and your deepest lows with you.  Think about who that is for you…give thanks to God for that person and take time to let them know you appreciate them.  May God’s love and joy be with you.

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“My command is this:  Love each other as I have loved you.”

John 15:12

(This photo was taken in July of 2014 by my friend Matt at a lake place in central Minnesota)

Giving

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Be generous when you can, to whomever you can, wherever you are in your life.  Look not only to your own needs.  Look around you, there are others in need and you have the ability to help.  Giving is not always a financial based event, the world tends to portray it that way.  Giving can be in things more valuable than money, like giving your time, your attention, sitting and listening to someone, preparing a meal, etc.  Don’t limit your gifts to what the world wants to tell you can offer, trust in God and your relationship with Him to fully understand what you are created to give.  God loves you and knows the most about what you have to offer to others.  May God’s love and peace be with you.

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“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

2 Corinthians 9:7

(This photo was taken in August of 2016 in Mount Rainier National Park in Washington)

Grace And Mercy

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God provides us both His grace and His mercy, even though we do not earn them.  His love for us is so strong that even though we were still sinners He sent His one and only Son to save us.  When we reflect on our daily lives there is so much we should be thankful for that gets taken for granted.  We would be wise to take time to praise God and give thanks for all He has done for us.  It is so easy to get distracted by a variety of things in the world and yet God is right here with us, waiting for us to turn to Him in faith.  We are most encouraged when we spend time in relationship with the Lord.  May God’s peace and joy be with you.

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“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Ephesians 2:10

(This photo was taken in August of 2016 in Glacier National Park in Montana)

Memorial Day – Thank You

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This day I offer gratitude to all military personnel and their families, to those that have died fighting for our freedom in the world and those that are serving now…Thank You!  The sacrifice these individuals and their families have made deserve nothing less than our respect, honor and gratitude.  May God’s peace, love and joy be with you.

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“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”

John 15:13

(This photo was taken in June of 2013 at Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota)

Choose Love

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Relationships can be hard if we strive to seek power or control.  If our self is driving during our interactions with others things will often end poorly.  There will be bitterness, anger, frustration and all the things we don’t want to be a part of our relationships.  There is a better way.  There is love.  Unconditional, never-ending love.  This does not mean just let the other person walk all over you and do whatever they want whenever they want.  This means both people do things to make life better for both of them.  It is important in any relationship to build your time together on a foundation of faith.  There will be times when each of you will need to lean on the Lord in prayer as each of you will have your moments when self will try to take over.  Be strong together and God will watch over your life.  Today my wife and I are celebrating 23 years in marriage, we were joined in marriage by God and nothing will keep us apart.  We have had to fight some battles and we continue to get stronger as we go because we both know that there is nobody who will love us like we do each other.  I am thankful for every day God gives us together.  May you find God’s love and joy in your relationships.

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“Love must be sincere.  Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.  Be devoted to one another in love.  Honor one another above yourselves.  Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.  Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.  Share with God’s people who are in need.  Practice hospitality.”

Romans 12:9-13

(This photo was taken in April of 2016 at a lake place in central Minnesota)

Gratitude

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One of the difficult challenges in life is adjusting your perspective.  We receive so many messages through our senses from our daily life.  Things we see, things we hear, things we read, etc.  We get to choose what things get our time and attention.  Whatever we focus on becomes embedded in our perspective.  When we spend too much time on negativity, sadness, anger, selfishness and hatred we adopt that point of view to everything else.  This is the way of living focused on self.  We will always end up disappointed.  We need to find ways to build in positive things, goodness, kindness, joy and love.  These things will help us live with a balanced perspective.  One easy way to start is to practice gratitude.  What are you thankful for?  It may not come easy at first if you haven’t done this very often.  Think about the very basics in life like food, shelter and clothing…don’t take such things for granted as these are not in abundance for everyone in the world.  Once you start practicing gratitude and you want to build on it, the next thing is giving…the joy, peace and contentment will continue to build in your life from there.  Find your gratitude things and give thanks to God for all of it.  May God’s joy and peace be with you.

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“Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.  Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.  Know that the Lord is God.  It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.  For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;  his faithfulness continues through all generations.”

Psalm 100

(This photo was taken in March of 2018 while traveling through southern New Mexico)

The Fruit Of The Spirit

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We all have something we believe in, we all have something to share with others.  The way we choose to share that message will have a significant impact on whether we are heard or cast aside.  How we communicate is probably more important then the message itself because the best message that goes unheard is nothing.  God provided the guide on how to interact with others and if more people spent time interacting with each other in this way there would be so much less anger, hatred and disrespectful choices being made among us.  The way to communicate a message of injustice or to help draw attention to a need is with the fruit of the Spirit…with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and with self-control.  If you choose to communicate with dishonor, anger, yelling and disrespect for others then the value of your message is lost as the focus will only be on your poor behavior.  The message everyone has is important and just as important is how everyone chooses to communicate their message.  May God’s love and peace be with you.

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“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.  Against such things there is no law.”

Galatians 5:22-23

(This photo was taken in June of 2013 near Garden of the Gods park in Colorado)

Choose How You Will Respond

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With every situation in life we are given free will by God which means we choose how to respond to what other people do or say.  This freedom also means we are accountable and responsible for our response even if the response is to do nothing.  If we are focused on self more than anything else we will often choose a poor response as self is only responding to the impact on me without regard for others.  God created us out of His love and we were made to choose the fruits of the Spirit in how we live our daily lives.  Be aware not only of ‘what’ you do and say, but also ‘how’ you do and say things when you respond to others.  Free will is a gift from God, how we respond with this gift makes all the difference in how we feel in our life.  May God’s joy and peace be with you.

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“A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”

Proverbs 15:1

(This photo was taken in September of 2016 at a lake in central Minnesota)

Be Strong And Courageous

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Don’t give up, don’t stop trying…whatever it is the next attempt can be the one that gets the results you are hoping to see.  Be persistent and be creative.  When you have exhausted your approach to an issue or situation, be open and willing to change how you think about it and try again.  Pray about it as well, lift your worries and concerns up to Jesus in prayer.  Surrender your plans only to God and see what He has in store for you.  No matter what the circumstances God is with you and He can guide you.  May God’s peace and joy be with you.

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“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous.  Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

Joshua 1:9

(This photo was taken in August of 2016 in Glacier National Park in Montana)

Trust In The Lord

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In our interactions with others it may become difficult to trust other people.  We are all broken and we all have committed sin.  We all have difficulty denying thy self, and we end up doing things that hurt another person.  We have all been there…we have all been the one who hurts another and we have all been the one hurt by others.  Depending on how bad you have been hurt or betrayed it becomes difficult to trust others.  The place we can always trust is at the Cross.  This doesn’t mean God will always do what we plan or want, it means we can trust that He is always working for the good in our lives according to His plan.  Come to the Cross and learn to live trusting in the Lord first and He will guide us in our relationships with others.  May God’s peace be with you.

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“Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.  Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Psalm 37:3-4

(This photo was taken in June of 2013 at Falls Park in Sioux Falls, South Dakota)