Interruptions

In the months of January and February I have spent many of my days at church dealing with heater issues. Our church buildings are well over 50 years old, and fixing the heaters has been long overdue. Whenever work is being done, it is not uncommon for there to be problems or issues that arise. Because of these issues, my attention has been taken away from what I want to accomplish and directed to the issues at hand with the heaters. This can be frustrating because I have not scheduled time for these interruptions.

Of course, these are not the only interruptions that I experience. Phone calls and people who come to the office are also a cause of interruption in my schedule. When someone goes into the hospital and I need to visit him or her, this also can be seen as an interruption from what I have scheduled. How can I change my outlook in regards to these “interruptions”?

It is important for me to live my life scheduling “open” times. What I mean by this is that I tend to plan my time without room for interruptions. Every half an hour I have something new scheduled to do. This not only keeps me from being able to handle interruptions, but also leads me to think of interruptions as a negative thing.

Even more important, I need to understand that most of Jesus’ ministry involved interruptions. In one story, Jesus is teaching at a house, when a paralytic is dropped down from the roof right in front of him. Instead of being upset at this, Jesus took the time to talk to the man, find out that he wanted to walk, and then He healed him. In another story Jesus is walking along when a woman touches the hem of His robe. Jesus feels ‘power’ go out from Him. He stops and discovers it was because the woman wanted to be healed. She believed she would be healed if she could just touch Jesus. Jesus took the time to talk with her and make her well.

I believe we are too caught up in life with what we are supposed to do, forgetting that there are things God wants us to do that aren’t even in our plans! Let us live our lives with the idea that interruptions are a part of life, and then we will be able to enjoy life so much more. Amen.

A New Year, Another Chance

In the Bible, the gospel of Luke, chapter 13, Jesus tells a story of a fig tree which is planted in a vineyard. The owner of the vineyard comes to visit, but there is no fruit on the fig tree. The owner wants to tear the tree down and plant something else that will make good use of the soil (since if a fig tree hasn’t produced in 3 years it probably never will). But the caretaker of the vineyard talks the owner into giving him one more year with the tree. The caretaker wants to do three things. These three things I believe give us an important lesson for our lives as well.

1. Work the soil- The caretaker wants to first work the soil. He believes that
by preparing the soil, the tree will have a better chance. The truth is, without good soil, a tree cannot produce. This is true for you and me. If we don’t have good soil (which Jesus likened to our hearts), then we will not be able to produce. So we must make sure that we are letting God soften our hearts to care for others around us.

2. Fertilize- Second, the caretaker wants to fertilize. Fertilizer helps to put nutrients into the soil that will make the soil more able to nourish plants and trees. For us, fertilizer is the word of God and Christian fellowship. When we are reading the Bible and when we are around other Christians, we will be more likely to live in a way that will bless others around us, and help others understand the need to believe in and follow God.

3. Extra care- Last, the caretaker wanted to give the tree extra care. Sometimes extra attention can help provide the right conditions for growth. Maybe there are insects that are affecting the tree. Or maybe the tree isn't getting enough water. That extra attention can make the difference. This is true in our own lives. It is good to have someone in your life who is making sure that you are doing the things you need to do to grow. It is important to have someone checking up on you, in love, so that you might become all that God created you to be.

This is a parable of second chances. This tree was given another chance. Jesus wants us to know that He gives us another chance. If we stumble, if we fail, if we stray, if we sin, if we feel like we don't measure up, Jesus is there to pick us up and help us move forward. As we enter 2012, let this be a reminder that you get another chance in a new year.

Getting Out of God's Way

My dad was a painter. He specialized in painting boats. I remember when I was in high school I would go and help my dad paint boats in the summer. Actually, I had to do the sanding and my dad did the painting. Every once in a while he would let me paint something, but often my dad would come over and re-do it. There were times when I felt like I was just in my dad’s way.

Do you ever feel like you are in God’s way? The truth is, sometimes we do get in God’s way. We get in God’s way when we say we are Christians but our actions don’t match our words. Then others will wonder what kind of God He is when His followers act like everyone else in the world. We get in God’s way when we are willful and don’t want to listen to what God has for us to do. We get in God’s way when we support the things of this world.

To get out of God’s way doesn’t mean to step aside and let God do the work. To get out of God’s way means we humble ourselves so that we have minds that will hear what God has to say to us. It means that we have hearts that receive God’s love to the point where His love overflows from us to others. It means that we follow God’s leading for our lives. It means that we make ourselves available to serve God wherever He might call us.

When we are able to get out of God’s way, we put ourselves in a place where God will use us, and bless us, and minister to others through us. God has chosen to impact this world through your life and mine. That is one of the main purposes of why we are on this earth (the primary one is to worship God and be in relationship with God). If we can understand this, and get out of God’s way, then wonderful and powerful things will happen!! Blessings.

How Do You Handle Failure?

Just a couple of weeks ago the Los Angeles Galaxy professional soccer team won the Major League Soccer cup. In doing this they were considered ‘winners.’ This was an especially important win for English soccer player David Beckham, because he had been paid millions of dollars to come and help the Galaxy win. For four years they had failed to win the ultimate prize. So when they won this year, everybody applauded David Beckham for again being a winner.

The blunt truth is that there are very few “winners” the way the world defines this term. Out of 16 teams in the Major Soccer League, only the Galaxy won the cup. Out of 30 basketball teams in the NBA, only the Dallas Mavericks won the trophy. If we go by the world’s definition of winning, then all the other teams in these sports were failures; they failed to win it all.

I think we all too often apply this definition to our lives as well. We believe that if we don’t continue to climb the company ladder then we fail. We believe that if we aren’t making ‘lots’ of money, then we fail. We believe that if we don’t have a spouse, two kids, a house, and a dog, then we fail.

The good news is that God looks at things differently. 1 Samuel 16:7 tells us: “But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.’” God looks at the heart.

It is true that we do fail in that we might fall short of the expectations of others, or we might fail to meet our goals. How do you handle failure? If you have the definition of the world, then it might lead you to get down on yourself or your life. But if you think about 1 Samuel 16:7, then you realize that what is important is the status of your heart.

As long as you are doing your best and seeking God’s will, then you will be fine. So, anytime you experience what seems like failure, then you need to seek after God, who will make sure your heart is in the right place, and set you off on the correct path again. Failure then turns into an opportunity to adjust ourselves in God’s will and to re-focus on the goal God has for us. Blessings.

What New Thing I Learned Last Week

This last Sunday we had our annual Youth Sunday. Usually Youth Sunday is held when I am away, but this year I got to be there. I had a wonderful time watching our youth do the prayers, read the scripture, do the children's sermon, and even help with the main sermon. I was moved by the maturity and seriousness the kids displayed, but also by their enjoyment of the experience.

The scripture passage for the morning came from Matthew 18:1-5, with the main verse being Matthew 18:3, "And he said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.'" The title of the sermon was "Faith Like A Child."

The sermon started with one of our high school boys giving his testimony of how he came to our church and has grown in his faith while attending. I was excited to hear his story and watch as he spoke with great enthusiasm and style. The sermon was finished up by our high school director, who went on to talk about how the youth encourage and teach her even in the midst of her teaching them.

However, what really spoke to me was the word 'change.' I have read this passage many, many times, but this time I was caught by the word ‘change’, as Jesus said, 'unless you change and become like little children.' Our high school director pointed out that in our younger days we are trusting of what we are told, but as we get older we begin to question and doubt. So, for us to have faith like a child, we have to change our thinking from our questioning mold of adulthood to the trusting mindset of a child.

I realized that the only way I can change is to let God change me. I cannot change myself because I have grown too far past trusting like a child. I have been lied to and deceived too many times by people to trust like a child. This can even at times affect my ability to trust God. I know that I can trust God, but there is a part of me that doubts.

Can you relate to this? Do you have trouble trusting others? Does this carry over into your relationship with God? Does it affect your faith in God? We must allow God to help us to believe in Him as a child does. We need to pray to God to give us the ability, the faith to trust in His word and His way; His will and His power. Only then can we truly experience God and see the Kingdom of Heaven. What have you learned lately? I'd be interested to know. Blessings.

Does God Give Us More Than We Can Handle?

I think most people would agree that life is not easy. Life can be very challenging with school, work, marriage, children, as well as the every day problems that come along. Sometimes we can be overwhelmed by life. Which leads us to ask the question, ‘Does God give us more than we can handle?

There is a verse in 1 Corinthians 10:13 which says: “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.” I believe that just as God doesn’t give us more than we can bear in regards to the temptations of life, so He doesn’t give us more than we can bear in the events of our lives.

There are indeed problems in life, some that are great, but God doesn’t give these problems to us. Instead, God promises to be with us in the midst of them. As Isaiah 43:2 tells us, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” God is ever with us and will watch over us. God will help us in our struggles and will give us strength.

The problem really lays with us, not God. Too often we don’t look to God for help, and so we will struggle along in our own limited power. Without God’s help our problems, challenges, and struggles overwhelm us. Another issue is that we allow our lifestyle to become more than we can handle. We allow our kids to be in choir, and baseball, and Girl Scouts, and the next thing we know we are running in too many different directions. Soon we find that we are facing burn out blaming God for all that has come down on us.

The answer for us is to be wise in the choices we make. The first choice needs to be to seek out God daily. Seek out God through prayer, Bible Study, and fellowship. The second choice needs to be limiting how much we plan in our lives. Don’t do too much, and if you start to feel stretched, cut back. Third, if and when you feel your life is too much to handle, go to God for help and allow Him to give you extra wisdom and strength. Trust in Him to not let the waters sweep over you.

Don’t let your life be too much too handle. There is a way out and God can help you find it. Blessings.

Deepening Relationships

The truth is that we have been created to be in relationships with others. All people not only desire to be in a deep relationship with another person, but it is a part of their make-up to have deep relationships. In this blog I would like to explore how we can deepen our relationships.

First, for a relationship to go deeper there needs to be honesty. You need to be able to share with the other person your thoughts, and feelings, and desires, and dreams. You need to be able to talk about important topics and not hold back. You need to allow yourself to tell this other person what you experienced, both past and present. You need to develop an environment where both of you can talk openly.

Second, communication is important in a relationship. In my counseling of couples, I see this as one of the weakest points of people’s relationships. People have trouble communicating with others. There have been many times when I have told one spouse something, and then I will see the other spouse a week later, only to learn that the wife never communicated the information to the husband; or visa versa. People don’t talk that much anymore, and if they do talk, there is not much depth to their conversation. We have to learn good communication skills, and have a willingness to communicate, if we hope to develop deeper relationships.

Third is what I call the triangle of relationships. How this works is that God is at the top of the triangle, one person in the relationship is on one side of the triangle, and the other person is on the other side. As a person grows in their relationship with God, they move up the triangle toward the top (where the triangle gets more narrow). If both people are growing in their relationship with God together, then they will inevitably be growing closer to each other as well. The stronger they are in their faith, the deeper their relationship with each other will be able to grow.

I pray that we will all seek to deepen our relationships with those whom we desire to grow closer to. May God bless you in your relationships!