"I Pity the Fool!"

Mr. T played B.A. Baracus in the original “A-Team” TV series back in the 80’s. Aaah, the 80’s ...not only did we have good music, but we also had good TV shows, like “The A-Team” and “Magnum P.I.”

Whenever I read Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, I hear the voice of Mr. T, and I’ll tell you why. So the verses are, “Two people are better than one, because they can reap more benefit from their labor. For if they fall, one will help his companion up, but pity the person who falls down and has no one to help him up.”

B.A.’s famous quote from the TV series was “I pity the fool!” So here’s how I hear Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 in my head with Mr. T’s voice, “Two people are better than one, because they can work faster and smarter, and help each other out. For if they fall, one dude will help the other dude up, but I pity the fool who falls down and has no dude to help him up!” That is the way I hear it, in fact in a college Bible study I was asked to read these verses. You guessed it I read them with a Mr. T accent. The guys in the group busted out laughing. Unfortunately, the teacher did not think it was as funny, but I still remember the verse to this day, so maybe it was not all that bad.

It helps to hear it that way in my head because it makes me laugh, but it also reminds me how important it is to not only have good friends, but have good Christian friends. We are all sinners and we all stumble or fall at times. If we have a good Christian friend, he/she will help us up. They will also help keep us accountable and visa versa. Fool is sometimes the right term for this verse because sometimes it is our fault for not having that good Christian friend to help us up. We sometimes do not think about the spiritual level of people we want to be friends with. Then when we fall he/she is not willing to help us up. In fact, they may even laugh at us, gossip behind our backs, be embarrassed we fell, or ignore us.

So think about your closest friends. If/when you fall will they help you up …physically or spiritually? If not, then I pity you fool for not having anyone to help you up!

And if you do not know who Mr. T is then I have not done my job right as a Dad.

Love Ya,

Dad

Pump You Up

Madison listens to music before a game to pump her up. She likes to put on her headphones and listen to it by herself. It is not for anyone else in the car to listen to, or join in. It is all for her, and helps get her ready for a game. It helps her put her mind in game mode and focus on the upcoming match. This is very common, a lot of athletes do this before a game.

Praise music at the beginning of a Worship service can serve to “pump us up.”

Madison has particular songs that she likes to listen to. These particular songs really pump her up. There are certain praise songs that touch my heart more than others …they “pump” my heart up for worship. 10,000 Reasons is one of those songs. Every time I see it displayed on the screen as the song we will sing next a smile comes to my face because it means so much to me and I really worship The Lord when I sing it (Psalm 30:12, “So now my heart will sing to You and not be silent; O Lord my God, I will always give thanks to you.”).

Next time you are in church and the music starts to play, let the songs pump you up for worship and let your heart really worship the King (Psalm 100:2, “Worship the Lord with joy! Enter his presence with joyful singing.”).

Act 16:25, “About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the rest of the prisoners were listening to them.”

Love Ya,
Dad

King Richard III

King Richard III, the last king of The House of York in England, ruled for only 2 years, 1483 - 1485. Henry Tudor of Lancaster thought he should be king, so he and his followers went to battle against King Richard III in the War of Roses. King Richard III was killed in the Battle of Bosworth Field, ending his reign, and beginning King Henry VII’s reign.

So how does this make you feel about King Richard III and King Henry VII? You feel kind of sorry for King Richard III dying just because King Henry VI wanted to take his crown. Things are not always as they seem. Do not jump to conclusions and make rash judgments of people. King Richard III had 2 nephews who had a claim to the throne, but they mysteriously disappeared from the Tower of London shortly before Richard became king ...how convenient. It is believed that Richard had them murdered so they would not be in the way of his crown.

We are good ...really good at making quick, rash, and often wrong judgments of people. We need to slow down, and get all the facts. In other words when we meet someone new we need to get to know them before we make a judgment about them (John 7:24, “Do not judge according to external appearance, but judge with proper judgment.”). We also need to find out the facts for ourselves instead of taking gossip for the truth, or what other people's opinion is about someone (Luke 6:37, “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven.”).

Love Ya,

Dad

Lessons From Katniss

As you know I just finished Reading “The Hunger Games” and I really liked it. Katniss is a great character and heroin. I realized there are a lot of things we can learn from her. Here are a few lessons we can learn from Katniss.

Lesson 1: Let’s start with the most obvious one, her sacrifice for Prim (John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.). Jesus taught us this, and through the “The Hunger Games” story we see a parallel to Jesus’ sacrifice for us, but we also see the example of love and sacrifice we should have for one another in our own family. Are you willing to be a Tribute for your sister, brother, mother, or father?

Lesson 2: Katniss is great with a bow and arrow, and she is not afraid to use them to not only defend herself, but also to release her wrath. God is the same God today as He was in the Old Testament (Psalm 7:12, “If He does not relent, He will sharpen His sword, He will bend and string his bow.”). I will bet He does not miss either. Thank goodness we have our Lord Jesus Christ to intercede for us, or else I would be a “Bang, head shot.”

Lesson 3: Water was life! Without it Katniss and the other Tributes would have died. Those first few days Katniss did not have any water and she was slowing dying. At first she could not understand why Haymitch did not send her any water when she was so desperate. Then she realized that he was not sending it for her own good (2 Peter 2:9, “if so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from their trials,”). Haymitch could see the whole picture and knew she was close and heading in the right direction. He knew that by not sending the water, Katniss would keep searching in the right direction, and he would not have to waste an expensive gift.

Katniss is not Jesus, or God, or perfect.

Lesson 4: Katniss selfishly fakes her love for Peeta in front of the cameras to save her own life. She’s very good as showing her love when it matters most, when she really needs to, when she is desperate to save her life. But as soon as they are back home and the cameras are gone, she grows distant from Peeta. We can be a lot like that. When we are in trouble or in the middle of a trial we cry out to the Lord and proclaim we love Him and need His help, but as soon as the trial is over sometimes we slowly forget how much we love Him and we grow distant from Him (Matt. 24:12-13, “and because lawlessness will increase so much, the love of many will grow cold. But the person who endures to the end will be saved.”).

Lesson 5: Katniss hates the Career Tributes from the beginning because they are arrogant, and give her hateful looks. I do not blame her, but we have been given a command to forgive. (Col. 3: 12-13, “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if someone happens to have a complaint against anyone else. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also forgive others.”).

Lesson 6: Katniss knows everyone is watching, so she plays the part to look good and get things from people. As believers, we have people watching us too, and we are to play or rather live the part, but for a different reason (Heb. 12:1, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us.” (or the game)).

There are a lot more lessons, but that is enough for this devotional.

So, are you Katniss, Prim, Peeta, Gale, Cato, Rue, Haymitch, or (cue music: dun, dun, dun) President Snow? We will find out in another devotional.

Love Ya,
Dad

The Dream

I had a really weird dream that made no sense.

I was with a group of people in our bedroom, and it was very chaotic. Lisa was with me but I didn’t recognize anyone else, but evidently I knew them in my dream. We were preparing for a very important person to show up, but at the time I didn’t know who it was. I knew he would be walking to our place, which was out in the countryside.

A friend of mine (who in real life I only keep in touch with through Facebook, and is not a Christian) called me. He and I were supposed to meet our important guest out in the yard as he walked up. My friend was calling to tell me he was delayed and could not be with me to greet our guest. I was very disappointed he would not be there. While I was on the phone, Ms. Kitty (yes, for some reason she was still alive in my dream) pooped on the carpet. Lisa made an exclamation then picked up the poop with her BARE hands, and it did not seem to bother her (sorry to gross you out). At this time when everything was chaotic and I was not ready to go out and meet our guest, our very important guest walked into the bedroom. It was Jesus Christ. I realized I knew all along whom our very important guest was going to be, and now he had arrived unexpectedly, early (1 Thess. 5:2, “For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come in the same way as a thief in the night). He wore jeans, a t-shirt, and glasses. I could not see his facial features, for some reason they were blurry to me, but he looked like just an average guy. I told my friend on the phone he was here and that I needed to hang up. He said he understood and sorry he could not be there. I hung up and stepped into the bathroom to let Lisa know He was here. She made another exclamation and said “Oh no. He’s early.” I said I know and took the poop (with MY bare hands) from her hand so she could go out and greet Him. I threw it away and then stepped back into the room (without washing my hands) for my turn to greet Jesus Christ. I did not know what to do. I stood there awkwardly not knowing what to do or how to greet The King. I finally shook hands with him and said “Welcome.” What a goober I can be (Funny, my hands were clean, no poop). I then knew what I was supposed to do. I lowered my head, closed my eyes, and cried for all my sins and shame, and said “Sorry.” Then I knew He was smiling and I suddenly knew I was supposed to be filled with joy. I FELT my whole body filled with an inexpressible joy and started laughing from all the joy. I opened my eyes and He was beaming with a smile at my joy. We started to walk out of the room and I stopped and asked Him if I could hug Him. He said “Yes.” I stepped to Him and wrapped my arms around Him and hugged Him tightly. He returned my hug with strong, protective arms. I could not stop hugging Him. I did not want to stop hugging Him, and saying “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

I woke up while I was hugging him. I thought what a cool way to end the dream, but what a weird dream. I asked myself several questions. Why did I dream THAT? Why did it take place in our bedroom? Why did my friend, who I have not talked to in several years, be the one to call me? Why was it he who was supposed to be with me to greet Jesus Christ and not one of my really close friends who are believers? Why was I so disappointed he would not be there? Why could he not make it to meet our very important guest? Why did Ms. Kitty poop on the carpet and at such an important time? Why did Lisa pick up the poop with her BARE hands? Why did I take the poop from her with MY bare hands? WHY did I dream THAT?

As I pondered these questions a few answers started to surface in my mind. My friend is not a Christian, and therefore meeting Jesus Christ was not important to him. I wanted him with me to meet Jesus Christ so he could believe. He was delayed in the dream, because in real life he has not accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, and does not want to. My really close friends actually, everyone I know who is a Christian, were there in the room. I just did not realize it because I was focused on my non-believing friend. Ms. Kitty pooped so Lisa would have to clean up the poop/junk/trash/sin. She did it with her BARE hands because she (and all of us) is dirty with sin (Rom. 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”), and sometimes our nasty sin does not bother us. Instead of having Lisa just throw away the poop, I took it from her with MY bare hands because I am just as dirty with sin, but in the presence of Jesus Christ we were clean (John 15:3, “You are clean already because of the word I have spoken to you.”). It took place in our bedroom because the bedroom is a very intimate place, where we can tell secrets, hide things, keep others out, show our emotions, and feel alone. It’s the one room when guests come over that you close the door because you threw all the stuff in there and it’s unclean, and you can keep guests out of your bedroom (Psalm 44:21, “would not God discover it, for He knows one’s thoughts.”). Yet, Jesus Christ walked right into our bedroom, and was not embarrassed, horrified, or angry by what he saw…

…He just smiled!

I know why I dreamed THIS dream.

Love ya,

Dad

Stars in Daylight

Did you know if you climb down into a deep enough hole in broad daylight then look up you will see the stars? One of my instructors in college told us this. He was teaching on bridge construction and talked about how deep the holes for the bridge support pillars have to be. Then he mentioned that if you went down into one of those holes and looked up you would see the stars. I remember thinking, “That is so cool! I want to try it. Where’s a hole deep enough for me to crawl down into.” The reason is the hole is so deep that the sunlight is cut off from your vision. When deep enough in a hole/pit, the sun’s light is blocked out and you see the stars. This is such a wide known belief that Aristotle mentioned it in one of his essays in the 300 BC’s and Charles Dickens begins Chapter 20 of Pickwick Papers with it. That is how cool it is.

Sin is like a pit. If you are deep enough in sin it is hard to see the Light. The deeper you are in a pit, the darker it is, and the harder it is to climb out. In fact, if you are deep enough you cannot get out alone, you need a ladder or rope. If you are too deep in the pit of sin you need help getting out. Prayer (Lam 3:55, “I have called on your name, O Lord, from the deepest pit.”) and accountability (ECC. 4:9-10, “Two people are better than one, because they can reap more benefit from their labor. For if they fall, one will help his companion up, but pity the person who falls down and has no one to help him up.”) are the ladder and rope you need.

The interesting thing is that this is a myth. It has been proven to be incorrect. At the bottom of a pit you will still see daylight. The same is true of sin. No matter how deep you are in the pit of sin, you can still see the Light as long as you look up. Satan wants you to believe if you get deep enough, The Lord will not forgive you or want to help you. The Lord will hear you and help (Psalm 103:3-4, “He is the one who forgives all your sins, who heals all your diseases, who delivers your life from the Pit, who crowns you with his loyal love and compassion.”), no matter if you accidentally fell into the pit or crawled down willingly (Psalm 7:15, “he digs a pit and then falls into the hole he has made.”).

So the next time you find yourself in the pit, look up.

Isaiah 38:17, “Look, the grief I experienced was for my benefit. You delivered me from the pit of oblivion. For you removed all my sins from your sight.”

Luke 17:3, “Watch yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him. If he repents, forgive him.”

Heb. 3:13, “But exhort one another each day, as long as it is called ‘Today,’ that none of you may become hardened by sin’s deception.”

Love You,

Dad

The Beach

I am sitting here at the beach, enjoying the view, and writing this devotional. What a great place to sit, relax, and write a devotional. The beach and sand are great, the sound of waves rolling in is enjoyable, the temperature is very comfortable, the sky is a brilliant blue, the sunrise is a golden glow, and the setting is very relaxing. God sure did do a good job when He created this place.

But even in this place there are problems. My stomach really hurts from my sunburn. Only my stomach got sunburned. But, but …I had a tent! The only thing I can figure is I forgot to spray it with sunscreen to protect it. At least only my stomach was not protected, but it still makes me uncomfortable, and harder to sleep at night.

It reminds me that even in a great, relaxing place such as this we still need sunscreen, and that sunscreen comes in the form of God and His Word (Luke 11:28, “But he replied, ‘Blessed rather are those who hear the Word of God and obey it!’”)

No matter how comfortable, relaxed, secure, or strong we feel, we still need protection (2 Thess. 3:3, “But the Lord is faithful, and He will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.”).

God is like the tent we had. The tent is anchored and firm, it is not going anywhere. As long as I am under the tent I am protected, but when I move away from the tent I expose myself, and need protection such as sunscreen. When I wonder away from God I expose myself to sin/evil and need sunscreen, but in the form of God’s word and the Holy Spirit (Eph. 6:10-20, (Spiritual Warfare), “…and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…”).

And remember, use sunscreen even after you get sunburned or it will get worse.

Psalm 91:14, “The Lord says, ‘Because he is devoted to me, I will deliver him; I will protect him because he is loyal to me.’”

Psalm 25:21, “May integrity and godliness protect me, for I rely on you!”

Love You,

Dad

It's Just Around the Bend Part 2: We Made It!

It was a long journey, but we finally made it to the boat ramp. Even though the day started out cool it got hot by the time we finished our journey. The heat added to our exhaustion. Even though we were exhausted and a little cranky at times we still worked together. We all paddled to help us get down the river. Some of you even got in the water when it was shallow and pulled the raft down river.

We learned quickly this was not a quick sprint, but a journey of endurance. We did not have a lot of choice in the matter, this was the journey set out for us. We could not stop in the middle of it when we got tired and say, “That’s enough. I’m exhausted and I’m going to quit here.” That was not an option. There was no way to stop and go back to our car. We had no choice but to “run with endurance” (Heb. 12:1, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us.”). It is the same with our walk in Christ. We get exhausted, frustrated, and cranky sometimes, but we cannot say, “Whoa, I’m tired. I’m going to take a break from being a Christian, and not worry about the people around me and how they view Christ through me.” Sorry, we do not get to take a time out from being a witness for Christ …even to other Christians. Now let me take moment right here to say I know I am not perfect and I do not always present the best witness for Christ (a lot of times because I am tired and cranky). I am sorry for that, but I am also human, and we humans are not perfect. The Lord knows this and forgives us, but He also wants us to do our best, which is why we are to “run with endurance.” Sometimes we stopped paddling because we were so tired, but after a rest we paddled again.

Finally the boat ramp came into view and we felt our spirits lifted with the joy of seeing it. I think I even heard a little “Hallelujah” chorus from somewhere. I think we all would have shouted for joy if we had not been so tired …and too embarrassed to cheer in front of the two guides at the boat ramp. As we came within thirty yards of the boat ramp (our finish line) our joy was suddenly sucked away as we felt the raft shudder and then come to a complete stop. What happened!? The river became so shallow our raft was dragging on the bottom and would not move anymore. We all had to get out of the raft. We could have stopped right there, become angry, sat down and pouted, and told the two guys to come and carry us the rest of the way (I am sure they would have laughed and walked away …and I would not have blamed them). But we did not. We got out of the raft and several of us pulled the raft across the pebbles and shallow water. Even though the raft was heavy we pulled it all the way to the ramp, we endured. It was easier to pull the raft and endure because we were so close to the finish …it was right there, we could see it clearly. (2 Tim. 4:7, “I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith!”). It is easier to endure when you can see the finish line, but when the finish line is out of sight we still need to endure and finish.

That was a long, tiring river journey, and we suffered a little (Rom. 5:3, “Not only this, but we also rejoice in sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance,”), but it was worth it for the memories, the growing, and the togetherness.

I hope when our journey here ends we can say, “I have endured, I finished my journey, and I have kept the faith!”

Oh, and the two otters …to be continued.

Love You,
Dad

Lessons from Scary Movies

It happens all the time. You're watching a

scary movie and some guy or girl does something dumb and you think “Oh, he’s going to die.” We can learn a lot from that dumb guy and scary movies. For instance, in scary movies the guy that’s too curious and goes to investigate a sound in a dark room always ends up dying.

Lesson 1: Don’t be curious about the dark side. (2 Titus 4:3, “For there will be a time when people will not tolerate sound teaching. Instead, following their own desires, they will accumulate teachers for themselves, because they have an insatiable curiosity to hear new things.”)

Lesson 2: The girl who runs out of the safety of her house screaming into the dark woods ends up dead. Never leave the safety of God’s Word. (Psalm 91:4, “He will shelter you with his wings; you will find safety under his wings. His faithfulness is like a shield or a protective wall.”)

Lesson 3a: The dude that looks back while running away from the killer always trips... even when there’s nothing on the path to trip over. Always run forward, keeping your eyes on the path ahead of you. (Prov. 4:25-26, “Let your eyes look directly in front of you and let your gaze look straight before you. Make the path for your feet level, so that all your ways may be established.”)

Lesson 3b: The girl that trips usually hurts her ankle and it requires her friends to come back and have to help. Sometimes you need help getting away from your sin. (James 5:16, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”)

Lesson 4: If you ignored Lesson 3a, and you looked back and tripped, don’t sit there waiting/crying. Get up as fast as you can and run! (Acts 22:16, “And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on His name.”)

Lesson 5: Creepers/ Monsters/Killers are always long distance runners in scary movies. Train for long distances, train in God’s Word. (Heb. 5:14, “But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.”)

Lesson 6: Saying “Hello?” or “Who’s There?” as you walk through the dark house. It just lets the killer know where you are. It’s not very wise. Be wise. (Psalm 119:98, “Your commands are always with me and make me wiser than my enemies.”)

Lesson 7: People move into a haunted house and weird, scary things start happening, but they don’t move out. They stay there and try to “fix” it. They should just move out as soon as possible. We should “get out of” the sin as soon as possible. Weird things start happening, but we don’t always stop right away. (John 5:14, “Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, ‘See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.’”)

Lesson 8a: The killer/creepy dude never dies the first time (or stays dead). In scary movies the killer always gets back up after the hero has stabbed, shot, hit, or crushed him. Never assume sin will go away and you will never be tempted by that same sin again. (1 Kings 15:34, “He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, following the ways of Jeroboam and committing the same sin Jeroboam had caused Israel to commit.”)

Lesson 8b: The killer always gets up after the heroin has turned her back on him, and discarded the weapon used to “kill” him. Never get rid of your weapon. Always pray and since you can’t always carry your weapon, the Bible, with you, memorize scripture. (Joshua 1:8, “Keep this book of the Law on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”)

Lesson 9: Always make it a head shot. Zombies are only stopped with a shot or stab to the head. Make sure you don’t leave room for the sin to keep coming after you. (Matt. 26:41, “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”)

Bonus: Lessons from Movie Villains

Lesson 1: Just kill them. Villains have a bad habit of dragging things out by telling the hero how they’re going to kill him. Don’t just talk about how you’re going to stop sinning, just stop it. (1 Cor. 15:34, “Come back to your senses as you ought, and stop sinning…”)

Lesson 2: Villains have elaborate machines to slowly kill the heroin that leave plenty of time for her to escape. Don’t take too much time coming up with an elaborate plan to stop sinning, but never end of doing. (1 Cor. 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”)

Lesson 3: Villains love to brag to the hero about their evil plans, and of course the hero escapes and then knows how to thwart their evil plans (Think of Dr. Doofenshmirtz). Again, don’t just talk about your plan to quit the sin because Satan will try to thwart your plan before you have a chance to implement it. (1 Thess. 2:18, “For we wanted to come to you – certainly I, Paul, did, again and again – but Satan blocked our way.”)

What about Spy movies? I’ll save that for another time ;)

Love You,
Dad

It's Just Around The Bend

Rafting on the White River …for 6 hours.

It was suppose to be about a 4 hour trip, but it went on forever, or at least that's the way it felt ...does anyone else have the "Gilligan’s Island" theme song playing in their head? 

The guide told us the trip will last about 4 hours if we do some paddling. He also said, “When you start seeing houses on the right then the boat ramp will be just around the bend, and I will meet you there.”

It started out great. The water and temperature were a little cold, but the weather was great, the river was moving, and we were having a lot of fun. All 6 of us fit into the raft fairly comfortably. Usually some of us sat straddling the side with one leg hanging over into the cool water and that way there was more room.

It was fun at first, but near the 4 hour mark we were getting tired and a little bored. We were also starting to get hungry …hmmm, it would have been a good idea to bring lunch. Well at least it was the 4 hour mark and we should be getting to the bend he was talking about which would represent the near end of our journey. What we didn’t realize was the river was flowing slower than expected and we didn’t paddle enough, so we were not near the final bend yet. We did finally come to a big bend and figured this was it! The boat ramp is just around this bend and we’ll be done. We can get out of the water, rest our arms and legs, be on solid ground, eat dinner. We finally floated around the bend and much to our dismay we didn’t see a boat ramp or anything. It was not the final bend! Oh how frustrated we were which was made worse by how tired we were. We started to complain about our adventure (which we loved at the beginning), and we started getting frustrated with each other. We so wanted our journey to end, and we didn’t even realize all the reasons why we wanted it to end.

We kept looking for the boat ramp …longing for it.

The boat ramp was significant. It represented the end of our very long journey, but it also represented food, water, rest, security, and comfort. Longing for the boat ramp is like longing for the Lord and heaven (Psalms 63:1, “You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you…”). The earth moans and groans for heaven, as we do. Sometimes we are moaning and groaning and we don’t realize we are doing it, and other times we know we are doing it, but we don’t realize we are moaning and groaning for the Lord and heaven (Romans 8:22-23, “For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers together until now. Not only this, but we ourselves also, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we eagerly await our adoption”).

We need to realize sometimes when we are frustrated, tired, groaning, moaning, complaining, or whining, it is because inwardly we are longing for our Lord …and we don’t realize it. The next time you feel this way stop and ask yourself, “Why?” Then ask the Lord “Why?” and talk with Him. The next time someone else is displaying these “symptoms” stop and ask yourself, “Why?” Maybe they are just longing for the Lord and don’t realize it. Pray for them and your attitude towards them.

Well, we finally started seeing the houses our guide was talking about and the final river bend. As we came around the bend we were a little anxious, and a little excited with anticipation. We wanted to be at the boat ramp so bad we all leaned to our left and craned our necks to see if it was actually there as we came around the bend, it’s a wonder we didn’t flip the raft.

Praise the Lord! There was the boat ramp and two guys to help us out of the river. We were saved! We made it …6 hours after we started. (Psalms 62:5, “Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from Him.”)

There's a lot of lessons to be learned from our journey...

…to be continued.

Love You,

Dad

Picking Chelsea Up From College

For weeks I looked forward to seeing Chelsea again and picking her up from college. I counted down the time …2 weeks left, 1 week, 5 days, 3 days, I leave tomorrow, you get the idea. I imagined a squeal of joy (I’m not sure if it would be from me or her) and her running to greet me and we hug as a Dad and daughter who have been separated far too long from each other should. 

Too bad we’re not always that way towards our time with The Lord, whether it’s our quiet time or worshiping Him at church. “It’s Friday and in 2 days I get to go to church and worship my King, my Savior, my Lord!” (Psalms 95:3 For the Lord is a great God, a great king who is superior to all gods.) “I’m going to bed now, and I can’t wait to wake up and spend time with Jesus Christ.” How many times while your eyelids start weighing heavily and you’re drifting off to sleep have you even thought about Jesus Christ and having a quiet time with him the following morning? I’m usually thinking about …well, nothing, or maybe “Rats, I have to get up in a few hours.”

What if we imagined ourselves running into church and hugging our Lord. You now we do that …sort of. When we enter the sanctuary and begin singing praise to our Lord (Psalms 98:4 Shout out praises to the Lord, all the earth! Break out in a joyful shout and sing!) and focus on HIM, we are essentially hugging Him, and saying “I’m so happy to see you!” and He hugs us back and says “I’m so happy you’re here!” It’s the same with our quiet times. When we sit still in His presence and FOCUS on Him, we’re saying the same thing …and so is He (Matt. 28:9 But Jesus met them, saying, "Greetings!" They came to him, held on to His feet and worshiped Him.).

It’s about our attitude. What if Chelsea and I saw each other, and just said “Hey.” No hug, no squeal of joy, no excitement, no counting down the days, nothing, nada, zip, zilch. We wouldn’t have much of a relationship. Maybe the excitement and enthusiasm don’t have to be an outward demonstration, but they need to be there somewhere. Even if it’s inside it’s still our attitude. Sometimes that’s the way we greet our Lord at church or in our quiet times (Mark 9:15 When the whole crowd saw Him, they were amazed and ran at once and greeted Him.), and sometimes we don’t even greet Him, not even a “Hey” …how sad.

So the next time you enter church greet your friends and talk with them (1 Thess. 5:26 Greet all the brothers and sisters with a holy kiss.), but remember the Lord is there and wants to greet you too …with excitement (Luke 15:20 So he got up and went to his father. But while he was still a long way from home his father saw him, and his heart went out to him; he ran and hugged his son and kissed him.) because He’s so happy you’re there and He's excited to spend some time alone with you during the week!

Psalms 81:1 Shout for joy to God, our source of strength! Shout out to the God of Jacob!

Luke 24:52 So they worshiped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple courts blessing God.

Love You,
Dad

When It Rains It Pours...

So you’ve heard the saying “When it rains it pours”, right? Weeell...

…it started with our Ford Expedition having transmission problems (When it rains…), which leaves us with only the Xterra. Of course the air conditioner was not working in the Xterra …makes for a hot ride for 5 people. Can you say antiperspirant? Last Sunday night Chandler informs me he’s not getting any hot water for his shower. I looked at the hot water heater, and my fear was confirmed. The pan at the bottom is full of water …great, it’s not working, and we can’t afford this (…it pours…). My shower Monday morning was VERY cold and VERY quick. Monday the transmission guy calls (Please give me some good news) to let me know the transmission will cost $1836 to fix (So much for the good news …and it pours…). Will the rain ever stop?

 I talked to a really great friend about the water heater, and he said it needed to be replaced and he would help me replace it. The only cost was the water heater. I had a nice, hot shower this morning. So far so good (…and then the sun starts to shine. James 1:2-4, My brothers and sisters, consider it nothing but joy when you fall into all sorts of trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance.  And let endurance have its perfect effect, so that you will be perfect and complete, not deficient in anything.).

Interestingly, our pastor’s message this past Sunday was on Abraham having to kill/sacrifice his son Isaac, and how Abraham reacted to this test. I hope I reacted well to our tests, and learned what I am supposed to learn ;-) Hopefully my next test will be what to do with the million $ that was left on my doorstep. Somehow I think I’ll have a few more tests before that one ;-) Oh well, I’m glad I know the Test Giver (Prov. 17:3 The crucible is for refining silver and the furnace is for gold, likewise the Lord tests hearts.).

Zephaniah 3:17, The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; He will comfort you with his love, He will rejoice over you with singing.  

2 Cor. 13:6, And I hope that you will realize that we have not failed the test!

1 Thess. 5:18, in everything give thanks. For this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

Love You,
Dad

Go Ahead …Jump In

Close your eyes and imagine …oh wait, you need your eyes open to continue reading this. So, keep your eyes open and imagine yourself standing on a dock at a beautiful lake. There is a slight breeze, but it’s warm. You can hear the pine trees rustling with the breeze behind you on the shore. In the distance you hear the beautiful song of a bird calling. The sun is midway in the vibrant, blue sky and reflecting on the fairly calm lake in front of you.

You have never been to this lake or stood on this dock. It belongs to a friend of yours who is standing on the dock with you. You are really hot and want to jump off the dock into the cool, refreshing water, but the water is dark and you cannot see below the surface. What do you do? Do you go ahead and jump in without knowing what lies just below the surface? What if there are some rocks hidden a couple of feet below the surface? What if there are “critters” known to hang out under the dock and they make it unsafe? What do you do? Ask your friend if it is safe? Of course you would, that makes so much sense. It is a lot safer to seek advice about your decision from someone who knows if anything lies hidden. Everyone would agree that it would be dangerous and foolish to jump in without seeking advice about what dangers lie below …and yet we do this all the time.

We make decisions and jump into circumstances without going to The Lord in prayer and seeking His advice about things unseen (Jer. 42:3, Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do.), or asking someone else who might have good advice (Prov. 4:1, Listen, children, to a father’s instruction, and pay attention so that you may gain discernment.). Dear Lord is this a good decision? Is this what you want me to do? (1 Thess. 5:17, constantly pray,)

Jer. 29:12

James 1:5

2 Cor. 20:3

Love You,
Dad