relationship with god

Life By The Spirit

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In the coming days I will explore what I think it means to live by the Spirit.  In the Book of Galatians the apostle Paul is writing to the people in Galatia about how to live a Spirit filled life.  Because God has blessed each of us with free will, we all have a choice regarding how we are going to live our life.  What attitude are we going to have?  What perspective are we going to take, a positive one or a negative one?  Nobody else can decide these things for us unless we allow them too…that happens to be a struggle for many of us.  We let the words and actions of others dictate how we feel and act.  When we meet with God daily and begin to seek life in a new way and let the Holy Spirit flow through us the results can be transforming.  In the picture above what would life be like if you decided to go through that opening…….?

“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

I will be back tomorrow to discuss the first fruit…Love.

Peace.

What is it about Time?

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What time does it start?  What time does it end?  Is it time to go?  What time are we meeting them?  How long will it last?  Do you know what time it is?  We are constantly focused on Time…In the beginning God only spoke of two times, day and night and it was good.

When we came into this world as infants we didn’t wait to be born until a certain time…we weren’t regulated by the numbers on a clock for anything in life, as a parent of two I believe I can say no infant cares about the time on the clock.  During life the world begins to impose its will of Time on us.  “We are trying to get him on a normal sleep schedule”…”He should be walking by now”… as we grow we start to have a ‘schedule’ or ‘routine’ to follow.  The human race has been very specific about when everything should happen in your life.  Then as we age into the late stages of life the details of Time and the pressure of the schedule begin to fade away slowly until we are on our last few breaths and once again we are not concerned about what Time it is…

So when we are physically closest to God at birth and death we seem to have very little need to be so stressed about Time, then why do we choose to let the world dictate what Time we should be there and when we need to be here?   Don’t get me wrong I don’t expect the world to live in chaos, completely unstructured.  Take a moment to think about our world though, every new thing created by humans is designed to save you time!  Why?  What are we saving it for…to fit more stuff into a schedule that is already overflowing with commitments and promises we can barely keep up with now?

When is it time to slow down?  When will we choose to be present in life and not focused on what’s next?  I always love a huge snowstorm…why? Because the world gets really quite…and several ‘activities’ on the schedule get cancelled.  Then you get to sit and just spend time with whomever you are with at the time and the world finally seems peaceful if only for a moment.

The Bible has plenty to say about Time…you can find great information in the Book of Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament.  One of my favorite verses in this book is this…

“Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, ‘I find no pleasure in them’…”

                                                                                                                                Ecclesiastes 12:1

This verse is one of the reasons I want to spend so much time working with the youth in our church…the earlier in life we have a firm foundation of faith the more “Time” we have to live out God’s plan for our life.

Peace.

Faith Is a Journey

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Even when we feel like asking like a child “Are we there yet?” …we need to continue on the journey of faith.  Just like going on a trip you will have highs and lows, sweet surprises and unfortunate disappointments.  You will encounter unexpected events as well as amazing grace.  The title of this blog explains my perspective of the journey.  Remember to “Take Your Faith With You” wherever you go.

Think about when you are going to take a trip…do you plan and gather resources?  Typically you pack a bag, at least one.  Sometimes people make a checklist to be sure they have everything and sometimes people just grab a few things and head out.  Do you bring a map or I guess now it would be a GPS capable device as a guide?  When you are on the trip do you spend time regretting not taking a turn or trying to change something that didn’t go well on the trip?  Or do you continue to press on…knowing that things will be ok, looking for ways to improve yourself and your decision making in order to have a better experience for yourself as well as others with you on the trip.  Do you find that when you are lost or not sure where to go that the map/GPS is helpful in guiding you to a better situation?

For me every day is another day on the journey to discover more about and engage in faith with life.  I start by consulting the guide book or spiritual GPS called the Bible.  For any thoughts of worry or concern I offer them up to God in prayer, this helps me remember to keep a positive perspective on the events in my day…it reduces stress, frustration, etc…I also pray to help me see his work in the world and to bless every interaction with others in my day.  Just stating such a prayer each morning helps me remember God throughout the day.  When others share good news or bad news I praise God either for the blessings of the good news or for wisdom to see what he wants us to learn from the bad news.

Through it all, as a human, I stumble and sometimes I fall down completely…I still get mad, I still feel frustrated and I still feel sadness at times…I am not a robot.  We all still have all of our emotions…the difference is how we choose to respond to those feelings and emotions and whether or not we share those feelings and emotions with God.  After all, he created us…he knows us better than we could ever imagine.  The hard part is learning to trust him more and more and including him in your daily walk for every situation good or bad.

The more I have engaged in this behavior the more I am amazed how he guides me to do more for others and how wonderful you feel when you really stop focusing on how everything affects me or makes me feel.  The focus on self alone is the work of evil and will keep you from God…he created each of us for far more than we could know and the only path to discovering that is to walk with him to ask him questions, to speak with him.  To take direction from the spiritual GPS…here is a good instruction to start with…

“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be people of courage; be strong.  Do everything in love.”

                                                                                                                            1 Corinthians 16:13-14

After that start reading everyday…the book of Proverbs is a great place to start in the Old Testament.  I pray that each day we all can work on inviting and trusting God to guide us and be with us every step on our journey to the life everlasting.  Amen

A Place Where You See God

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If you stop and think about it, where is that place in your life?  Is it a physical location or something different?  Is it in an act of kindness you have experienced or seen happening to another person or in a story you have heard about other people?

Sometimes it can be hard to find him…when I think about it and realize I haven’t seen him or been aware of him…I have learned not to ask God to show himself in some way but rather give me eyes and ears to see your work in the world.  For me, the key is where are we focusing our attention…if we are self-focused we will miss just about every opportunity to see God’s work in the world.  As we learn to focus on a relationship with God and others first we begin to acquire a new perspective.  This type of change in focus requires a commitment to change your routines and habits in life.  If we just try to work it all in to our current schedule and life we will fail…I speak from experience.

For many years I was consumed with my work and the company I worked for and my “position” in the social stratosphere.  I would work in “my time” with God on the weekend before getting down to business.  This life created several false idols for me, because deep in my heart I had not surrendered and committed myself to Jesus.  When I finally stopped pursuing my plans, my ideas for how things should be and truly dedicated daily time in devotion and worship…I finally started to see opportunities to connect with the world through God.  Some would argue that I have given up on living my life…my response is…you are correct in that I have given up trying to live my life my way and instead I am trying to live my life the way God has intended for me.  Of course, I am human and still make plenty of mistakes and have trouble with temptations but my life has never had more joy, more peace and contentment.

So where is it?  Where is the one place in your life right now that you see God?  Where is it that God has cracked a door or a window in your life and you just need to open it and step through trusting that no matter what happens God will be at your side and if you commit to meeting with him daily you will begin to experience life in a whole new way?

May God’s peace be with you

A Hymn and a Prayer

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When I awoke this morning a hymn and a prayer began playing in my mind.  This is not the first time this has happened.  It comes from my childhood and is another clear indicator to me that even when I was not paying attention to God he was working on and paying attention to me.  What an awesome God!  I share this particular hymn and prayer with you today:

Make me a channel of your peace.
Where there is hatred let me bring your love.
Where there is injury, your pardon, Lord
And where there’s doubt, true faith in you.

Oh, Master grant that I may never seek
So much to be consoled as to console
To be understood as to understand
To be loved as to love with all my soul. 

Make me a channel of your peace
Where there’s despair in life, let me bring hope
Where there is darkness, only light
And where there’s sadness, ever joy. 

Make me a channel of your peace
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned
In giving to all men that we receive
And in dying that we’re born to eternal life.

Amen

When You Don’t Know What To Do…

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Pray.  When things aren’t going your way…Pray.  When you are feeling great and everything seems to be falling into place…Pray.  When you are exhausted and worn out…Pray.  When you are energized and you feel like you can take on anything…Pray.

I have learned over time that prayer can be so much more than a list of thanks for this or that and please bless him and her…this is not to say that these types of prayers are not important, they are.  However, they should not be the only prayers we say.  One of the greatest joys of being a believer is the relationship you can develop with God.  Like any relationship in life it takes time and effort on our part.  Think about your best relationships in life…typically those relationships are with people you see often or people you speak with daily.  The same can be true with God.  If you make it a priority to spend some amount of time reading the bible and speaking with God every day I promise you will begin to feel a difference in every aspect of your life and when you are unsure about something or someone…talk to God about it he will help you see your way through.  As one of my favorite bible verses states…

“Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again: Rejoice!  Let your gentleness be evident to all.  The Lord is near.  Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard you hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

                                                                                                                        Philippians 4:4-7

So when life has you questioning “What do I do now?”…Pray

Peace.

Mission Trip Day 8 – The Challenge Is To Take It With You

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This is our last night together.  Our group has bonded very well this week.  We have laughed together, sang songs of worship, served the homeless in shelters and out on the street directly.  We have cried together, shared stories of our encounters with people in need.  We have been silly together and have genuinely been shown kindness from several people along the way.

When you make a commitment to step away from your daily grind and focus only on where you are and what you can do to help others it gives you an opportunity to learn so much about yourself and what gifts God has given to you.  This Mission trip experience is unique and wonderful and the best way to honor what we have done together is to make the next commitment to use what we have learned in our home community.

This is one of the biggest challenges of faith and one of the many reasons I started this blog in the first place.

The youth in our church are so amazing.  They are so much better than me and my friends were at that age.  They are kind, generous, enthusiastic and totally filled with the Holy Spirit.  I am so impressed with their ability to step up to challenges of faith.  I hope we all take this time together and truly change the way we live our lives when we return.  It is too easy to slip back into our old habits and fill our schedules with busy time and forget we need to leave time for the Holy Spirit to work in our lives.

Heavenly Father, I pray that you lift up this week we have had together as a reminder to us that we need to continue what you have shown us.  I ask that you give us the courage to make a change in how we live our lives.  Lord, thank you for the blessings you have placed in us and around us, please guide us to the next challenge of our faith and strengthen us to do your will…I pray all of this in Jesus name, Amen.

Leaving For a Mission Trip Today

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I am heading out with a few other adults and 20 or so senior high youth from our church today to go and serve others in need.  We are hitting the road driving to a city much larger than our own but it could be any city, including our own, that has people in need.  Our bible verses surrounding us for this trip come from Luke 10:1-12…

“After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.  He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.  Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.  Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals and do not greet anyone on the road.  When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house’.  If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you.  Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages.  Do not move around from house to house.  When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you.  Heal the sick that are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near you.’  But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you.  Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.  I tell you it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.”

I have come to understand that the only way we can grow in our spiritual life is to try new things and challenge ourselves regarding faith.  There was a time in my life that a mission trip was the last thing on my mind and yet that probably means God was the last thing on my mind as well.  I am glad that times have changed…

I pray for our group on the trip that we can all grow in faith and grow closer to God and that all people we encounter will see the love of God through our actions.

I will post as often as I can as we go to share my thoughts and reflections…Peace to you.

Trying to Live With Balance

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Reflecting on different times in life I realize the moments that have the most peace and contentment are the times when I was restoring some balance in life.  It seems we all have at least four key elements of life that can get out of balance and when they do, chaos is more than willing to show up.

I believe these four key elements revolve around the following…

Physical Life = Time focused on health and physical fitness

Emotional Life = Time with friends and family

Mental Life = Time spent reading or learning something or having an interesting discussion

Spiritual Life = Time spent in worship or prayer or feeding our faith

Now many times these elements overlap, which is great but it can also be deceiving.  Many people live with any of these three out of four areas of life getting plenty of time and attention.  Eventually that one area of your life that has been put aside will creep up and show itself and we just don’t know how or when.

Imagine carrying a yoke (a wooden frame that fits your shoulders) that has four buckets of water hanging off it, two buckets on each side.  While you carry this load, as long as the four buckets have an equal amount of water it is easier to stand and move forward.  If one bucket has less than the other three you could still maintain balance with extra effort on your part but moving forward would be very slow.  You could also try to put less in one bucket on each side to help balance but as you move along you will not have enough to share with others to help them balance.  Thankfully, our heavenly father knows us and knows we struggle with this balance.  He sent his Son into the world to save us from our sins.  In the bible in the Gospel of Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus says:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden in light.”

I encourage you to look for ways to achieve balance in your life by examining which bucket(s) you have the least water in and begin to fill them with time.

I pray that you are blessed on your faith journey today.

Surrender but Don’t Give Up

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In my opinion in our society and our world today…to surrender, by definition is to yield to the power of another, however, to give up is to quit.  Depending on your context one is a transition and the other carries a negative connotation or a defeated and deflated feeling.  When we listen to the news on TV or read about events online it is easy to feel defeated and deflated by how people in this world choose to treat each other.

Don’t give up…..we live in a fallen world and it is very easy at times to believe that all is lost.  The Good News is…that is not true.  We practice surrender and don’t give up more often than we realize.

For example, you are sitting at your computer doing the things you love (like reading blogs) and something happens…the computer stops responding and then starts popping up boxes and then the “blue screen”.  What happened?  You begin to “troubleshoot” with your vast PC knowledge…you are spending hours trying everything to recover what has been lost…a working computer.  Alas, you have exhausted your abilities and still nothing.  So what do you do?  Do you give up?  Never use that computer again?  No.  You surrender to others who have worked on and repaired computers for living, they often work for companies that create and develop new computer technology.

Now back to our fallen world…there we are living our lives doing the things we love when out of nowhere the world seems to stop responding to us and events keep popping up that trouble us and then we lay down in defeat looking up at the “blue SKY”……wow isn’t this a beautiful day!

Don’t give up on this world.  Surrender to the Creator…he knows what is troubling you.  The best part about faith is it comes with a guide book…the bible.  On this blog I have a Favorite Bible Verses page that I will change from time to time.  The guide book that has been provided us tells us not to give up but trust in God.  Here are two verses I look to:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.”

                                                                                                                     Proverbs 3:5-6

“I am confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.  Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord”

                                                                                                                     Psalm 27:13-14

So take all your problems, all your concerns and lift them up and surrender them to God.  He knows you better than you know him and he loves you unconditionally no matter what.

Find your guide book and open it.