Perfect peace

Blogging is something that takes discipline and I have been miserable at it. But I hope to turn that around. Anyway here I am again. Maybe I can make a habit of just letting people know that I am alive and that God is still at work in my life. Winds of change are coming. I just need to trust God through these changes. "You will keep in perfect peace, him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you." Isaiah 26:3 Thank you Lord for the perfect peace I have in you.

I'm Back

It has been since January since I posted a blog. How ridiculously negligent I have been and now I am finally going to post this today. The last two weeks I have begun to enter daily in my spiritual journal again. It feels good and a discipline I have lost is coming back. Anyway a lot has happened since January and I think I failed in my New Year's resolution. Go figure that those things don't last. Anyway what really matters is that Christ is alive and well in my heart. He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords no matter what life and this world brings to me. May He be lifted up in my life and praised. More to come. . . Later.

New Year's Resolution

I am not much on New Year's Resolutions, but with the new year of 2005 maybe there is one thing I can aim for in my sometimes scattered world. It is better to aim for something than nothing at all. As I was singing at church last night I realized how much I am influenced by the material things around me and not so much by being relational with others. John the Baptist was definitely not one of the guys influenced much by the material world or what was comfortable. His one aim was to point people to Christ. His one quote is my aim for 2005 and beyond. "He must become greater, I must become less." John 3:30. In everything I do and say and am with my being, I must become less and give Jesus the glory. To reflect the glory of Christ also means I must abide in Him daily minute by minute. I believe this is possible and yet it will be challenging at times this year. I do not fear the future because He is in control. And so it is with this aim and purpose I enter 2005.

To God Be The Glory through Christ!

Brian, my son, and me at the table in the middle of our Thanksgiving feast. God has blessed us so much! 

Nicole and me with our puppy Sam before our Thanksgiving celebration.

The Wonder of Christmas

As I woke up this morning with Christmas only two days away, I asked myself "How will this Christmas be different?" All the traditions, gifts, and time spent with family and friends fade with the comparison in taking time to reflect on the wonder of Christmas.
Maybe what God really desires is a quiet walk to contemplate the amazing thing that happened when He sent Christ to become as we are in the flesh. God loved us enough to step into time and history to demonstrate that He intimately knows our condition. Our world is fallen and I wrestle with sin, greed, lust, and pride. For Christ to come in the humblest of circumstances to be born in a stable to a young mother and give up His glory for us is amazing. He became poor for us so that we could experience someday the riches of His glory in heaven. WOW! He did that for me!
And so as I conclude this blog entry I too must pause in wonder and awe at the cost Jesus paid for me. I rejoice and give Him praise and glory and honor for coming into my life and entering a world that was hopeless without Him. Glory to God in the Highest!

The Golden Question

This week I was challenged with our staff to consider using "The Golden Question". When approaching a potential partner in ministry for financial support you must ask them to support you and then be quiet and wait for their answer. The same goes for sharing our faith. How many times lately have I asked a student or those who may be ready to receive the Good News of Christ, "the Golden Question"? "Would you like to invite Jesus Christ into your life as your Savior and Lord?" It takes courage and sensitivity to the Holy Spirit to ask this question, but it is the question we must all answer in our lives. "What will you do with the person of Jesus Christ?" I hope and pray that God would give me courage and boldness to ask this question more often to those I love and hope to see in heaven for eternity. I too must be patient and wait for their answer.

The Gift

It is just around the corner and I know it is already on some people's minds: Christmas. I confess that I am already getting excited about celebrating. The one way that I like to celebrate is to show the people I love by giving them gifts. Today I am so thankful for the gift of Christ in my life. I would have no hope without Him. The apostle Paul was also given a gift: the calling and priviledge of sharing the Gospel of Christ: "I became a servant of this Gospel by the gift of God's grace given me through the working of His power." Ephesians 3:7. God's grace is truly amazing that He would first of all die for me and then extend unto me this calling of being His servant in sharing the Gospel of Christ. So this morning I am grateful for this privilege that I have and pray that I would be bold and unashamed in sharing this Good News with anyone that He brings my way today. Thanks be to God for His indescribable Gift!

Back Again

I'm Back again after nearly a month of being on the run. Wow! How time has gone by this month and now I have a calm moment to make an entry. What I have been impressed with lately is the need for boldness and courage in my life. I know that in the flesh I am weak and shrink back from those things that God would have me to do. I am thankful for the Helper, the Holy Spirit who indwells me. If it was not for Him, I would not have hope or the power to live out the Christian life. And so Galatians 2:20 has been a Scripture I have been meditating on lately: "I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."
And so it is that daily "cross moment" in which I must decide to follow myself or God. And when I truly do die to self and am alive to God that is when I experience His presence and joy fully. So today I thank God for His presence in my life by the Holy Spirit. "Those who bel0ng to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit." Galatians 5:24-25