Month: March 2017

It seems when it comes to doing something for the first time there can be a lot of fear.  Especially when we are all alone, at least we may feel like it.

I remember my first flight.  I was 13, when I got the opportunity to go spend two weeks with my Aunt and Uncle.  I don’t know who it was the scariest for, my parents or myself.

This was back in the day when you could actually go to where people get on the airplane and wait with them.  You could even watch them walk on and then watch out the window to watch the plane take off.  I miss those days.

I think it is a good thing to have some nervousness with any new thing that we try.  It keeps us focused.  I remember sitting there waiting with my folks when my dad recognized someone from one of our local churches.  If I am recalling correctly I think he was our local conference president.  My dad went and talked to him and asked him if he would keep an eye on me.  It was nice to know that someone we knew would be with me on the airplane.  It is interesting how that made me, as well as my parents be more relaxed about it.

As we go through life there are always things that come along that we need to or want to do that we have never done before.  Sometimes we hesitate to even make a decision because we are afraid we might make the wrong decision.  A lot of times it is better for us to make a decision, even though, it may be a wrong, than to just not make any decision.  Staying in limbo and procrastinating is the worst.

I believe there are some steps we need to do before we make any decisions.  Once we have done these things we need to let go of our fears and make a decision.  Does God ever allow or even want us to make a wrong decision?  I believe that the Lord allows us to make choices and sometimes in the end we realize that it was not the best decision but God uses it to refine our characters.  God does not always give us black and white answers of what we should do in life but He uses our decisions for our good.  There are steps we need to take in making decisions, though.  We can’t just go blindly on our way and let our feelings dictate our decisions.

These are not exhaustive steps but here are a few steps to always take before making a decision.

1. Make sure it is in line with God’s Word. Whatever decision you make you want to make sure that it is not going contrary to what God has already made plain in His Word.  You can know it is not in His will if it doesn’t line up.
2. Make it a matter of prayer.  Spending time on your knees is key.  You need to ask the Lord to lead you in the study of His Word, when wanting to know His will.  If what you desire to do is not going against God’s Word in any way, ask God to reveal to you in what direction you should go.  I know it can be hard because He doesn’t always make it plain.  Which leads to my next point.
3. Walk through the open door.  What I love about God is that He is trustworthy.  If you are open to His leading and you leave all things in His hands, trusting Him to lead, you have nothing to worry about.  Sometimes we can push our way, so beware and make sure you are definitely surrendered to His leading.  When a door is open walk through it.  Be open and willing for Him to close the doors at any time but if He is not closing them, keep walking through.
4. Trust God.  If in the end it seems like you made a wrong decision, remember the Lord does not allow you to go through anything that He does not have a purpose.  As long as you stay surrendered to Him through each step, learn from it and move on.  Allow it to help you grow.
5. Learn from it.  No matter what decisions you make in life, the most important question is, “Did you learn from it?”  God has a purpose for your life and as long as you are surrendered, He is leading.  He can even teach you and help you grow through decisions you have made that were wrong.  So don’t wallow or beat yourself up.  If you have made a decision without doing these steps, confess and ask for God’s forgiveness and He will forgive.  Just make sure you learn from it.

Dear Father,

Thank You that as we stay surrendered to You, You will help us to grow.  And that You will use all our decisions and circumstances to refine our character.  Thank You for Your patience and love.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Surrender your whole life to God and let Him lead. Just like when I went on the airplane with someone I knew to keep and eye on me, God is keeping an eye on you.

Love you all.

Do you remember your first flight?  How was it for you?  I would love to hear your story.

 

Has there ever been something in your life that you have had a hard time letting go of?  It might be a bad habit, possessions, control, sin, etc.  It may even be something that you got yourself into because you were following other people.  Sometimes instead of really thinking we just follow what everyone else is doing.

I remember when I was young.  I really can’t remember my age but I am guessing 5 or 6.  We had gone to visit my grandparents.  My grandpa worked as a foreman in an orchard at a fruit farm.  My grandparents were allowed to take so much fruit for free each year but they were not fruit people.  So they would give their share to us.  We would go down every summer to bring back fruit to can.

This one particular time we went to visit we had taken our next-door neighbor with us, he was like a grandpa to me.  My grandpa wanted to take our neighbor around the orchard in the jeep to show him around.  Of course, my brother and I wanted to go with them.  There were a couple of others there as well.  My grandpa was driving and the neighbor was sitting in the passenger seat.  The rest of us climbed into the back of the jeep, which was open.  It was a farm jeep, more like getting into the back of a pickup.

As we were driving along through the apple orchard others were reaching out and pulling off an apple.  We were headed up this hill when I seen this really nice looking able and I reached out to pick it.  I was young enough that I could not get it to come off like the older ones had done.  But I didn’t let go either.  It all happened in seconds.  The next thing I knew, I was out of the jeep onto the ground.

I don’t remember if I really got hurt but I did begin to cry because it scared me so bad.  And it scared my grandpa too, because the hill we were going up, the jeep could have easily rolled back.  This was especially true because my grandpa did not know what had happened at first and that I was out of the jeep.

This reminded me how sin is.  Sin looks so attractive.  Sin is also enticing.  Just like I could not resist that good-looking apple, sin can be hard to resist.  When we grab a hold of sin it draws us right out of the safety of the “Jeep” (Jesus presence).  We fall and get hurt.  Even if we grab out for the enticing sin, the second we realize that it is wrong we need to let go of it immediately so we are not pulled out from the safety of Jesus.

Dear Father,

Sin can be so enticing to us.  Help us, as we surrender to You, to see sin as You see it.  Help us to draw back from sin.  The devil can disguise things so well. We need Your eyes of discernment.

Thank You that if we do fall we have an advocate with You, Jesus Christ, and we can come to You and You will forgive.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Surrender all to Jesus today, keeping so close to Him that you recognize the disguises of Satan.

Love you all.

Share an experience you have had that shows how sin can draw us in.

 

Have you ever felt like you just keep hitting the wall?  Some times, it seems like, every decision we make in life, we go up against a wall.  We get tired of hitting the wall all the time but don’t seem to get what is going on.  When we have try the same thing over and over again and we keep hitting a wall, it seems to me that we need to reevaluate what we are doing.

When I was a kid I had a parakeet, he was a beautiful blue.  I really loved my bird.  I don’t even remember how long I had him.  He loved to ride on my shoulder around the house.  But there was a bad habit that he had.  He loved to fly off my shoulder at times as well.  I didn’t mind him doing that except for one problem.  He would fly into the wall.  The first time he did it, I don’t think it even knocked him out.  I don’t remember how many times he did it before it finally took his life.  It seemed strange that he didn’t seem to get it.

We don’t seem to be any different.  We can know that something is bad for our health.  It may even be killing us.  It may take a few years but nonetheless we are destroying our health.  But we tend to not want to make any changes because we enjoy what we are doing.  We would rather die than to make a change.

I remember my grandpa.  He thought for sure that his choice to smoke didn’t affect anyone else other than himself and he enjoyed it so much that he didn’t want to give it up.  Then one day he found out he had lung cancer.  It was scary for a little while but they were able to remove the one lung and he was able to keep living.  He quit smoking for a while but he finally went back to it.  A few years later when he got cancer in his second lung there was no hope.  He realized too late, not only was he going to die, but what he did was affecting others.  It was not long later at the age of 62 that my grandpa died.

We may think, “How crazy can he be?”  But the reality is we all do it in one way or another.  One of the biggest ways we do it is allowing stress to have its way in our life.  We can do everything right in our life, health wise, but if we don’t learn how to deal with stress it will kill us.  We will keep hitting the wall of stress and it will destroy us.

Here is what I recommend for healthful living as well as reducing the stress.  I have an acronym that I have created to help me remember, B A L A N C E D.

•   Bed Time.  It is so important to get plenty of rest.  Not only does this affect our physical health but it also affects how well we are able to handle stress.  Make sure, as an adult, you get at least 7-9 hours each night.
•   Aqua.  This is Spanish for water.  We need plenty of water each day.  It cleanses our body and keeps us hydrated.  When we don’t drink enough water we put a real stress on our bodies.
•   Light.  Our bodies thrive on sunlight.  We need to make sure we are getting out in to the sun each day.  This helps us in many ways, even getting good rest.  It also helps reduce stress.  If we live in an area where we do not get enough sunlight there are special lights that can give similar properties as sunlight.  Nothing is as good as the real thing, though.
•   Air.  When we get out and get some sunlight we also benefit from the fresh air.  Fresh air helps to keep our lungs clean.  It helps revive our whole being.  Doing some deep breathing really will help to reduce the stressful feelings that we can feel.  It also is relaxing.
•   Nutrition.  How we eat also affects how physically healthy we are.  When we are eating good nutritionally sound food it makes us feel so much better.  The body can actually run and function, way better.  This also helps us be able to reduce our stress levels.
•   Control.  Learning to have self-control can be so hard but it is necessary to be able to have good physical and emotional good health.  The simple way of saying this is completely eliminate those things that are bad and making sure we are balanced with the good.  You know that we can do too much of a good thing and destroy ourselves as well.  Water is good but if you drink too much it can kill you.  Being balanced is the key.
•   Exercise.  We have a lot of muscles in our body, including our heart.  If we don’t use these muscles they atrophy.  If our heart atrophy’s, we are in big trouble.  Exercise is a very important factor to keep us healthy.  And it is a good stress reducer.  So if you are feeling stressed go for a walk, it will do amazing things.
• Dependence on God.  This is the most crucial.  We cannot do anything but hit the wall if we don’t depend on God.  He is the best stress reliever. He is the physical healer and sustainer, as we obey His laws.  As we give every day to Him and take all our burdens and let Him have charge of them we will be able to handle whatever comes our way without destroying us.

Dear Father,

Thank You that You are always there for us through all things.  Prompt us by Your Spirit in what areas of our lives that we need to give to You.  Thank You for Your love and care.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Surrender every area of Your life to Him today and let Him take the stresses of life and work it for good.

What do you do to help reduce the stress in your life?  Share your ideas.

 

It seems projects can be so overwhelming most of the time.  We know it is a project that needs to get done but it just seems too overwhelming to even get started.  And when we do get started it seems things don’t go how we have planned.  It often takes longer than we intended, as well.  Have you ever felt this way?

I experience this on a regular basis.  My most recent one is preparing my son’s house, he just bought, for renting out.  Every day we go to do what needs to be done but it seems that we don’t accomplish what we really wanted to get done that day.

Here are a few tips that I have learned over time that has been helpful to me.

1. Keeping a right attitude is key.  No matter what we are trying to accomplish in life if we go into it with a negative attitude we won’t get very far.  Even if we go in with a good attitude and things don’t go how we want and we have a bad attitude, it destroys our day.  It is amazing how our attitudes can change a situation.  We need to continue to be grateful no matter how things turn out.  What I have found is the attitude I tend to have; I actually fulfill what I really don’t want to have happen.  Our minds are a very powerful tool.  Stay positive.
2. Set goals for the project.  Before you actually start a project lay out a plan.  Then at the start of each day, that you have dedicated to this project, layout what you are going to do that day.  If at the end of the day you didn’t finish everything on the list, that’s okay.  When your making the list over achieve but at the end of the day be grateful for what you have accomplished.  This leads to the next step.
3. Give your day to the Lord.  So many times we can head into our day with our own agenda.  But God has a different agenda for us.  So as we make our list for the day we need to always be ready for God’s leading.
4. At the end of the day, be grateful for what you have accomplished.  If we are giving our day to God, we have made our list, then at the end of the day, we should be grateful for what we have accomplished.  This will keep our attitudes where they should be.  A lot of times it can be hard to be grateful.  But it is a habit that we need to cultivate.   Here is a routine that I have started each day to help me stay focused and grateful.
5. In the morning, I write down 3 things that I am grateful for.  Remember it does not have to be big things.  We need to be grateful about all things.  As I started to do this it was hard at first but it gets easier.  We take so much for granted.  Just the fact that our heart is still beating is amazing.
6. Also, in the morning, I write down 3 things that I will do to make the day great.  This could be projects you want to accomplish, habits you want to change, or even attitudes you want to change.  Whatever it is that you think would make the day great.
7. In the evening, I write down 3 things that made the day great.  Now these three things can be different from what I thought would make the day great.  When we give our day to God, He can do amazing things.
8. Lastly, in the evening, I write down what I could have done to make the day even better.  This could just be, having a better attitude.

I have found these things to help me to keep my prospective where it should be.  It is also great to be able to look back and see what God has done.

Dear Father,

Thank You so much that You are there for us.  You will make our day great, if we give it to you.  You have told us in Your Word that we need to live our lives with a thankful heart no matter what our circumstances.  We humility ask for Your help and guidance to do it.  Thank You that as we surrender to You, You do the work in our hearts.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

I challenge you today to take up the attitude of thankfulness.  It will change your life.

Have you had a time where you have chosen to be grateful through hard circumstances and God gave you victory?  What has having a grateful heart done for you?

 

Depending on what age you may be, your thought of windmills may be different.  When my grandparents were coming out west I imagine they had a certain thought of what windmills looked like.  If they saw the ones of today they probably wouldn’t even know what it was.  I imagine a barn and next to it a wooden windmill.  The windmill would be used to pump water, which made it so much easier than pumping by hand.  There would usually be a trough not far away for watering the cattle.

Things have changed a lot in what a windmill looks like but the idea is the same.  Now a days it is used more to utilizes the wind to create electricity.  Of course, the more wind the more power that is generated.

The wind that is created for the windmills reminds me of the trials and temptations that come into a Christian’s life.  The trials that come actually create a good thing, if we allow it.

It reminds me of the verse that says, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” 1 Corinthians 10:30. I don’t know about you but at times when I am going through a trial, I am tempted to wonder how I can bear it.

As I was watching these windmills it clicked for me.  Just like the windmill produces more power when there is more wind, our lives, when we have more trials our character becomes more refined so that we produce more power to go forth and do the work that Christ has for us to do.  It is only through the trials that we even have “electricity” to supply to people.  The more trials we have the more power God supplies to us.  We may feel we can’t handle it, and we can’t on our own.  But it is the temptations and trials, the Lord helps us through, which give us the ability to reach out to others.  We all have something we can give because the trials have given us something to share that nothing else can.

Dear Father,

It is not always easy to say thank You for the trials.  I do thank You because I know that the trials are there for us to learn to trust You no matter what, so that we can produce an “electricity” to benefit others around me.  Continue to guide and give us the power to overcome all that comes our way.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Let’s allow the trials to produce “electricity” in us so we can be a blessing to others.

Love you all.

Do you have a story about an old windmill?  Maybe it was from your grandparents’ farm.  Share your reminisce story about windmills.

Have you ever picked up a piece of fruit that is so beautiful but when you opened it up it was rotting on the inside? Or maybe you get a piece of fruit that looks so disgusting you think it must be starting to rot but when you open it up it turns out to be one of the most delicious pieces of fruit you ever had?

I remember when I went on a mission trip to Mexico. We were in the process of building a church. Every day the ones in charge would bring a huge gunny sack full of oranges. The oranges were so ugly that it was in question whether or not you would want to eat them. I did try one and I was so glad I did. They were the most delicious oranges that I ever have eaten.

There was also bananas. If there is one thing that I have never liked, it is an over ripe banana. The bananas, where we were in Mexico, looked over ripe, so I would not eat them. I was told later that they were the most delicious bananas but I missed out because I could not get passed the skin.

The question is what kind of fruit are we? Do we look good on the outside but we are full of rot on the inside? Has sin is so polluted our lives that it has taken over our lives but we try to put on a Christian face?

Then there is the other side of things. How do we look at other people? If we like how they look on the outside we think they must be wonderful. But if they don’t look the way we think they should we just decide they are rotten on the inside.   We cannot judge people by how they look on the outside.

We have such a tendency to look and to judge others. Some how that makes us feel good about who we are. And the reality is we may have some real rot on the inside. “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he:” Proverbs 23:7a

We may look at someone and judge about the way they are eating but we are cannibalizing people. We may judge someone who murders, even little babies, but we hate someone. In God’s eyes it is all the same. Every person on this earth is His child and He knows their needs, he knows their, circumstances.

I have found that as I start to look at someone, to judge him or her, I have to stop and look into my own heart. I would say a lot of the time when we go to judge someone else we can find something in our own lives that is not any better or a lot of times, worse. The devil wants us to focus on others so that our focus is not on examining our own lives. He wants to make us feel uncomfortable with examining ourselves.

I want to make a disclaimer here. There, obviously needs to be some watch care or judging if you will, for keeping our children and us safe and that is not what I am referring to here. But even in those circumstances we need to be careful not to bring a hate toward the person but a forgiving love. And stay away from what can harm.

The question is, what can we do to not judge others by their book cover, or just not judge a person at all? It takes discipline because it is not an easy thing. But God is able to accomplish it in us if we are willing.

1. When you want to judge, look at yourself. I have found this very revealing at times. When I start to look into my own life I find a lot of times that what I want to judge in someone else, I can find underlining issues in my own life. Maybe I am thinking they need to be obeying God in this area but I am disobeying God in another area.  What’s the difference?
2. When you look at others look through the eyes of Jesus dying on the cross for them. This changes the perspective. We are nothing special to God. He loves us all the same. Even though we don’t say it, when we look at people and have the disgusting attitude we are having it toward God. We are all His children. How do we feel when someone judges our child? We tend to want to defend. And God has one up on us because He can see everything and know the ends and outs of every life, so He can judge rightly.
3. We need to pray for the ones we want to judge. God is working with them just as He is working with us. We are all on a journey and we are all at different stages. We need to leave room for God to work instead of taking it into our own hands. Somehow we think we can do it better than God, at least that is the way we act.
4. Only God can give us the love we need to have for others. We definitely cannot do this on our own. As we spend time in God’s Word, in prayer, and in memorizing Scripture, we will become more like Him. When we struggle He is there to give us the power to overcome, all we have to do is ask.

Dear Father,

We all struggle so much with wanting to judge others. Give us more compassion. Help us to love as You love. Open our eyes to ourselves and show us what we need to change in our own lives. Thank you for Your patience with our stubborn hearts.

In Jesus Name,

Amen

Keep close to Jesus; He is the only one that can change us from the inside out.

Love you all.

 

Have you struggled with judging others? What has helped you in overcoming that habit?

Maybe you have been judged, what pain has that brought to your life? And what did you do to get healing?

Share so that others can be blessed.