A Reason For Everything

My wife and I watched the last Presidential debate. When it ended, Governor Romney's family came out on stage. We both commented on how much the Governor's sons looked like him. My wife said, "There is no question about who their daddy is."

A thought occurred to me that kind of gave me chills (the good kind). God designed in our DNA the family resemblance for a reason. Children look like their parents for a reason.

God is our Father. The family resemblance is there to remind us that there should be no mistake about to whom we belong. We should look just like our Father.

God is AWESOME!

Broken Hearts

Isaiah 61:1-3

My thoughts sometimes wander to some dark places. Places that make it hard to breathe. Places that make it hard to see hope.

I was on my way home from work today, and my mind wandered. I started thinking about some of the people Jesus would associate Himself with that got Him in trouble with the religious leaders of His day (Mark 2:16-17).

There are people out there who are in desperate need of hope. People who have been caught in the jaws of the enemy (1 Peter 5:8). Their dreams have died and their hearts are broken. Now they simply try to survive in a hard, cruel world devoid of hope.

They need to know that there is hope. That this isn't all there is. That Christ Jesus holds out hope to them. Not just hope. Life. Real, fulfilling, joyful, abundant life! (Luke 19:10, John 10:10)

We don't have to go beat people over the head with Jesus. We share the gospel and guard closely our testimony in the way we talk and live our lives. We don't judge or pretend that we are somehow better (which is a ridiculous notion - Romans 3:23).

The reality is that it is a cold, hard world. And bad things happen. But that doesn't mean hope has to die. We know the Way and have the Truth and the Life. He isn't a bureaucratic system, He is a living breathing man (John 16:33).

Thank You for the hope that You hold out. Help us to simply point to You so others can see.

God is AWESOME!

A Familiar Face

Romans 8:1

I went to the mall after I got off work today. It's a Saturday, so the mall was pretty crowded. I feel uncomfortable in crowds. I wouldn't have gone, but I had to pick up a new sport coat that had to have alterations on the sleeve length.

I was ill at ease when I went into the store at the mall. Another way that I'm kind of a weirdo is that I don't like being touched, which is why I don't like crowds. I did my best to make a bee line to the part of the store where I had to pick up my new jacket. I wanted to get in and out of there as quickly as possible. I had to dodge quite a few people. I got my jacket, thanked the man at the desk and left. I was making my way out when I started to feel a little bit of anxiety. So many people. I looked around at all the strangers there and felt even more ill at ease. I wanted to be home so bad.

As I walked toward the exit, feeling more and more desperate to leave, I saw a familiar face. An old friend that I hadn't seen in years. Relief washed over me. It was good to see my friend. I stopped and talked to him for a few minutes and all anxiety melted away. A miracle, I thought as I bid my friend goodbye.

As I made my way to my truck, anxiety free, I was no longer focused on the crowd, but thinking how nice it was to see my friend.

I wondered if that is what it will be like when we get to heaven. Judgement taking place, and in our limited understanding, we start to feel anxiety. Then, there He is. Our Beautiful Savior. The Familiar Face. All fear, all doubt, all anxiety, all questions....gone. Only our Glorious King, who is happy to see us, and we standing in His presence with great joy (Jude 1:24).

Thank You, Father, that we will one day stand before You under the representation of Christ Jesus...innocent.

God is AWESOME!

Simmer Down Now

Psalm 46:10

"Don't worry about it." "Just trust God." Don't you hate it when this is the advice you get when everything around you seems to be falling apart? Then there are the well meaning people try to give you a spiritual pep rally. Boy isn't that just the best. I like the way Job's friends handled things (Job 2:13).

When life becomes one giant struggle after another, it is very difficult to focus on anything other than what is happening right now. Everything is so...loud. The noise of the struggle is deafening.

There are some trials that you just can't prepare for. We are blindsided by things. A spouse leaves the marriage for someone else, a child dies in an auto accident, a job is unexpectedly lost, a house burns down, an economy collapses suddenly...

The truth is that in these situations, once the initial shock (that time that you feel like what is happening can't be real, it has to be a dream) has passed, it's time to deal with it. Time to calm down and remember. Remember that we are in fact children of God. Remember that He is there and (even though it doesn't seem possible at the moment) is in control. Time to remember His promises to us. Remember that He is our Wise Father.

Philippians 4:4-7, John 14:27, John 16:33, The book of Job, 1 Peter 5:6-7. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but just a few that helped me through some rough times. As I said before, we can never prepare for some things, but with a solid foundation in Christ Jesus, we will be able to withstand the blow (Ephesians 6:13-17).

Thank You, Father, for adopting me. For loving me and providing me with the tools necessary for coping with bad situations. Thank You for Your Holy Spirit and the comfort and understanding that He gives. Thank You for giving us an "other side" of things, and the ability to say at the end, as Job did, "Before I had only heard of You, but now my eyes have seen You."

God is AWESOME!