Focusing on what is right with us

 Funny how when someone is coming to visit or you're having a party things get done around the house that are normally let go. My wife and I just had another couple over for dinner. We spent about four hours in the back yard and then another couple of hours in the house that was already clean, we cleaned and arranged things in hopes of making our dinner guests more comfortable.

 The evening was nice so we set up outside on the deck in the back yard. My wife cooked a fabulous dinner and made up a great desert. Conversation was easy. The night was a success. Our guests have been friends for some time and today I am happy say we are better friends. Time well spent without a doubt.

 My friend is a contractor and some of our conversation was about some of the homes he had built and how his father was a contractor. From the stories I gathered his dad was quite the craftsman. They enjoyed our home which made me feel pretty good because we actually did most of the physical work in the remodel of our house. The only problem with you doing your own work is you always focus on the imperfections and the things you wish you would have done differently or more of.

 Something struck me this morning as I was looking out the bay window into the backyard. I reflected on conversation from the night before. Realizing much like my thoughts of the imperfections in my home because of my construction abilities. The encouraging words from our friends made me realize my focus was on imperfections not on what was positive and functional.

  Many of us view our lives by looking at our shortcomings and our personal imperfections. Paul understood this concept as he wrote in Philippians 3:13 “Brethren. I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead.”

 I remember years ago my wife and I went to a performance of a Christian comedian. He told the story of not wanting to become a Christian before he got saved. He said “I always thought the Bible was full of don’ts, then he realized after he became a Christian if he focused on doing the do’s he wouldn’t have time to do the don’ts.

 I suppose the idea is we all have amazing things that make us who we are. We all have abilities and gifting that are unique to us. And guess what? It’s good!

  If we focus more on what is right instead of being hamstrung by what is wrong life will be more enjoyable and we will become comfortable in our own skin, the way God meant for it to be. If we compare ourselves to him instead of everyone else around us we will find he is very gracious, he is our present help in time of need. He is at work in us both to will and to do for his good pleasure. If he is for us who can be against us?

 There is so much God wants to do with and through us, his choice is to use us for his purpose. He places us strategically in lives of the people who we can speak to, because they can relate to us. Who we are is no mistake but accurately designed by God for his pleasure.

 We need to learn to enjoy and embrace who we are and how we’re made as we grow in purity and holiness. Paul also said if we walk in the Spirit we will not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Doing the do’s and focusing on what is right with us instead of being frustrated about the don’ts and magnifying what is wrong with us will make life more abundant.

  Life is fun and should not be missed because of looking at what is wrong with it. The journey is what we make it.

Don't sit on the sidelines,  get in the game. 

Have a blast!

Today’s Fire is Not Found in Yesterday’s Ashes

Have you ever seen a great movie followed up by a sequel that was a bomb? Or listened to a CD that was amazing and turned out to be a Grammy winner only to be followed by a CD that no one wants to buy by the same artist?

I was recently involved with helping coordinating a men’s gathering. This was the second year I've been involved. It was unanimous that last year’s men’s event was over the top amazing. This year fell short. The event was good but not great. The planning seemed much more difficult and the attendance diminished from last year.

 The sequel was good but not as good as the original. I was puzzled. As good as it was, and yes God did show up, men accepted Jesus as their savior, I still felt disappointed. The speakers were better than last year; the worship in song was good
.

After months of planning and putting things together, this week was a good time to get some time to get caught up on things around the house. Today (Saturday) I mowed the front and back lawns. Then it was time for some weeding. I sat alone in the quietness of my back yard pulling weeds enjoying the sunny afternoon. I love the quite, it allows me time to reflect and process things. Alone with my thoughts I began to speak to God from my heart.

I thought about the men’s advance last weekend and the unsettled feeling that remained in my heart. I thought about the time and effort that went into preparation. All the sudden my mind was filled with the thought “Today’s fire is not found in yesterday’s ashes.” What? No really what the heck does that mean? Then I thought about how the men’s event of 2010, it was so good and 2011 felt mediocre. Then the thought came again “Today’s fire is not found in yesterday’s ashes.” Exodus 16:4 says: “Then the Lord said to Moses, I will rain down bread from heaven for you." The people were to go out each day and gather enough for that day, on the sixth day they were to collect twice as much so they could have enough for the seventh day and not gather manna on the Sabbath.

One of the teachers at the retreat spoke about authority in Christ; he said authority doesn’t come through just knowing about the name of Jesus but through intimacy with him. That intimacy is a daily issue.Yesterday’s connection with the touch of the Spirit doesn’t fill the need for today. A lot of Christians try to be filled and live on Sunday’s sermon all week with no contact with Jesus at all during the week. No Bible study, no fellowship, and especially no intimate prayer time in his presence. The problem is we become famished and malnutrition sets in. We begin to live in what the teacher called soul famine. The funny thing about someone who is starving, almost anything begins to look good to eat, even things that will cause harm. A person adrift at sea dying of thirst will drink salt water, eventually it's the salt that dehydrates him and will kill him. When our souls are starving if we don’t take in what we know to be nourishing for a long enough period of time we will try to fill it with things unimaginable. Things that would normally be obvious to us as unhealthy to our spirit. Things that are not supported in God’s word. All because we are starving for the things of God but we don’t go to him to find what we need. If we try to just live our Christian life from Sunday to Sunday we will eventually see other things as better than the eternal promise offered to us. Our experience will become like the manna that was kept too long and would begin to smell foul and turn to worms.

We need a fresh daily portion of intimacy with Jesus to live in the power and demonstration of the Spirit who wants to live in and through our lives.

All we need is found in his presence.

Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness and all things will be added to you.

Today’s fire is not found in yesterday’s ashes.

Stay close to him, the entry point is found in a prayer closet.