What Am I Thankful For?

God has blessed my family and I more than we deserve in this life.  Is my life perfect?  Not hardly.  We face many trials and tribulations as everyone else does.  There is a misconception going around in which people believe that Christians all live wonderful lives.  In a way that is true, but not in the sense they believe.  We deal with sin, suffering, shame, loneliness, and heartache on a regular basis.  However, the difference is the grace in which we live, compels us to the hope of more to come.  Our faith in Christ Jesus provides the foundation of this hope.

When I struggle, I think of the ways in which God has blessed me.  It really is true, that when you count your blessings, you begin to forget the things that make you feel down.  One of my greatest blessings is my children.  God has seen fit to send my wife and I three beautiful children.  Even more, they are growing in the love of the Lord.

There are numerous verses that speak of how God blesses us.  But, today I want to thank God for the bad in my life as well.  My wife told me once, "With each trial we face, we get a chance to see God in action!"  Every bad thing that comes, shows me more of who I am, and gives me a chance to grow in my faith.

Romans 5:3-5
"And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

So in this time of Thanksgiving, I pray you will be thankful for everything you have experienced in this life.  Because God is always in control.

Thanks for reading, and God bless you all!
Happy Thanksgiving.

Thoughts of Living Every Day

I am one excited individual.  This week marks the two year birthday of this blog!  Writing these devotions has been a great blessing to me.  I have seen more clearly how God can move in my life.  I have had the opportunity to expound on the things that I have learned through my experiences.  But in thinking of something to write for this week as a good 2nd birthday for this blog I was a little puzzled.  Maybe this could be from my not being able to post as often as I would like because of circumstances being what they are.  But, every time that I find myself in a struggle, God is always there.  So, today, I will begin a new commitment.  I will try to do the same for those that I see in my life.  How? Here is a list of things I will try to do everyday in my life.  Why everyday?  Because life is too short and we are none guaranteed tomorrow.

1.  I am going to pray a little more.

I have been guilty a lot of wallowing in my troubles, and not praising for the good times.  I guess that is just one area in my life that I struggle to deal with.  I get so caught up with life that sometimes God takes a backseat to what I want, and what I feel I need.  So, starting today, I am going to make it a point to pray more each and everyday.  To try never to place God in the backseat of my life, but in the driver seat.

Psalm 71:1-3
"In You, O Lord, I have taken refuge; Let me never be ashamed.  In Your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; Incline Your ear to me and save me.  Be to me a rock of habitation to which I may continually come; You have given commandment to save me, For You are my rock and my fortress."

I will trust in Him more every day.  Because I know that nothing in this world matters more than the will of the One who causes my every breath.

2.  I am going to seek to be more forgiving.

Oh my at the things that I have done wrong in my life.  If it were not for grace and the forgiveness of God, I would have no hope in this life.  I admit that I sin everyday, and I need His forgiveness.  However, sometimes I find it hard to be forgiving to others.

Matthew 6:14-15
^" For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions."

What right do I have not to forgive someone for a wrong that has been done to me.  Begging God to forgive me, yet not returning that favor to my fellow man is kind of hypocritical.  God loves that person just as much as He loves me.  And God will forgive that person, if they are truly saved, and so should I.  We are not going to get along with everyone we come across, and we will not always agree.  But we all are children of God, and we have a witness to display to the lost.  They have a chance to view God's forgiveness when they see it in us.

3.  I am going to do more to help those in need.

Sometimes I feel so ashamed for the attitudes that I carry.  God has blessed me above and beyond what I deserve.  And sometimes I fail to see that there are others around me that have less than me.  And sometimes I fear to reach out because I worry about what I want, not what they need.

Matthew 25:34-40
"Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’ Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’"

I may not have much to offer, but anytime that I am able to help those in need around me, I will try.

Again these are areas in my life that I commit to do better.  What about you?  Are there areas in your life that you feel are in need of a big tune up?  If so, why not join me in a commitment to do better this year.


Thanks for reading, and I pray that God will bless you all this week.

The Real Black Friday

I simply love this time of year.  Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday.  Taking a specific time out of the year, and yes away from work, to do nothing more than to be thankful for all that God has blessed me with.  I also enjoy this time of year because I was born on Thanksgiving day.  It always seems nice to mix the turkey, dressing, and all the fixings with birthday cake!  And as much as I had dreaded my next birthday this year (saying goodbye to my 20's), I felt the need to look at my life and see all the ways that I had been blessed these 30 years.  And with those blessings in mind, look to the future at what God may have in store for me in the next 30 years.  I am truly thankful for all the things that I have been blessed with.  Most importantly, my personal relationship with Jesus Christ, who is my Lord and Savior.  Now I know you may be thinking, where is he going with this since to post is titled about this coming Friday.

Psalms 95:1-3
"O come, let us sing for joy to the Lord, Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation.  Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving, Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.  For the Lord is a great God, And a great King above all gods,"

It is an odd thing to me at what happens this time of year.  Now I will admit that my wife and I do get a lot of shopping done on the day after Thanksgiving.  But we do not let it take away from the joy of this time of year like many people do.  It is amazing that the people in this country that I love will spend an entire day being thankful for what they have, and the next day act like rabid animals to try to secure what they want.  It just seems peculiar to me.  Now I am not including everyone in this, because I have friends that view it just the same way I do.  It is a good chance to get a lot of gift shopping done for a low price.  My wife and I usually make a date day out of it.  A time to enjoy being with each other away from the kids.  But for a lot of people, where is the thanks?  The only conclusion that I can come to is the lack of Christ in their lives.  One who is truly saved has the mindset of the psalm above.  Singing, whether aloud or just in our hearts, for the joy that we have in our salvation through Christ Jesus.  These are one of the things that should be foremost in our minds, not just one day a year in Thanksgiving, and then truly forgotten the day after.  So I would like to turn attention to what I feel is the real Black Friday of Christianity.

Luke 23:33-49
"When they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves. And the people stood by, looking on. And even the rulers were sneering at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if this is the Christ of God, His Chosen One.” The soldiers also mocked Him, coming up to Him, offering Him sour wine, and saying, “If You are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!” Now there was also an inscription above Him, “THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”
One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” But the other answered, and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!” And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.”  It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour, because the sun was obscured; and the veil of the temple was torn in two. And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” Having said this, He breathed His last. Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he began praising God, saying, “Certainly this man was innocent.” And all the crowds who came together for this spectacle, when they observed what had happened, began to return, beating their breasts. And all His acquaintances and the women who accompanied Him from Galilee were standing at a distance, seeing these things."

I will be honest with you.  I was lead to this idea over Facebook last night.  My wife found a picture on Facebook referring to this idea, and when I checked my own page, I found that quite a few on my friends list had shared it as well. These events that took place on a Friday are the fundamental basis for all that we as Christians should be thankful for.  For if it were not for his death on the cross, we would have no hope of eternal life.  He paid the ultimate price for us as a gift of life.

Romans 6:22-23
" But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." 

Our life no longer belongs to us.  By being declared sanctified, and receiving eternal life through His sacrifice we must become slaves to His will.  Now I know that term "slave" is not a popular one.  However, it is repeated all throughout the scriptures.  Some versions have made it sound nicer by using the phrase bond-servent.  But the original Greek word there in those places is literally translated to slave.  Which, in essence means that we live to serve Him.  It does not matter how it may affect our live styles and the things that we want.  It is all about Him.  And if it were not for Him, we would all go to Hell.  As Paul wrote to the church at Rome above, the wages of sin is death.  Death is the only payment option valid for the sin in our lives.  Jesus paid that price for us.  And for that, we should be forever thankful.  Thankful that we have the opportunity to go to heaven when our time comes.  It is the only way.

It is my prayer that I and those around me will be thankful everyday for this gift, not just this Thursday.  However, I also pray that each of you that read this make it a point on Thursday when you are with family and friends celebrating this time, that you would openly voice your thanks for the sacrifice that was made for you on the Christian Black Friday.  Even if you have family there that are not believers.  What greater opportunity does that provide us to share the gospel with those who do not believe.

Thanks for reading, and I hope that you have a very enjoyable and "Thankful" Thanksgiving.  May God Bless you all!

Showing God's Love in Bad Situations

This week, so far, has probably been the hardest for me as a believer. I have always been one to look for God in all things good and bad. I have counseled many people on dealing with trials. And I finally felt that I was at the point of full reliance on God in every situation. I felt that I had obtained an understanding of true love for people of this earth. Whether they were a brother or sister in Christ, or a lost person, I have tried to deal with them in understanding of the big picture of things. But, in this, God showed me that I still have a lot of work to do.

Two days ago my wife, Jennifer, was involved in a bad automobile accident. She had spent the day with a good friend from the church. She had our three year old daughter, and our 11 month old daughter with her. On the way home, someone had crossed the yellow line in a curve. My wife swerved to miss the car, and ended up up-side down in a ditch full of water. My two little girls hung up-side down in their car-seats in the back of the vehicle. The man that ran them off the road fled the scene. My wife was in an area with barely any cell reception, and is not sure how long it was before someone saw the car in the ditch, and stopped to help. Thank God, they were okay. My two little ones did not have a scratch on them, and my wife has no cuts, scratches, or broken bones, but is pretty banged up. I am just so thankful that I was able to put them in my van and drive them all home from the hospital in relative good shape that evening.

The problem in this was my feelings toward the man that ran them off the road and did not stop. I felt feelings of anger and disdain for him. Why did he flee? Why did he leave my wife and daughters in that situation without even checking on them. I had a lot of bad things to say about that individual while I was at the scene trying to console my wife and take care of my girls. Thoughts come to my mind as to what I would do if I found out who he was. This is where I fell. I let my anger for this person to cause me to fall into sin.

Here are a few verses that come to mind when I came to the realization of my sin.

Matthew 7:12
"In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets."

Luke 6:27-33
"But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either. Give to everyone who asks of you, and whoever takes away what is yours, do not demand it back. Treat others the same way you want them to treat you. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same."

You know, it seems pointless to let anger and hate come into your life for someone that you do not even know. Will I ever know who was responsible? Probably not. Have I forgiven him? Yes, although I have to remind myself to do so every time I see my wife in pain, or look at the wrecked vehicle. But what other alternative do I have but to forgive him. Doesn't Christ forgive me daily for my sins? He died because of mine. So what right do I have not to forgive when, as bad as it was, the outcome was minor compared to what Christ suffered? I do not know what was/is going on with that person right now, but I pray for him too when I pray for my wife.

So what have I learned from this awful account? I have learned to cherish the time I have with my loved ones. Because the fact that they can be taken away at a moments notice has become very real to me. I have learned a hard lesson about forgiving and praying for those who hurt me, whether I feel that they deserve it or not. I have learned also, that there is far more for me to learn about God's grace, love and mercy.

Thanks for reading, and God Bless you all this week!

Thanksgiving

You know, Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays every year. There is plenty of time spent with family, some of which I do not get to see very often. There is also an abundance of food. It is one of a couple of days that I do not watch what I eat. And an added bonus to all of this, is that my birthday runs the same week as Thanksgiving every year. But probably the best part about Thanksgiving is the meaning behind the holiday. A time to give thanks. Thanksgiving is the only American holiday that is based solely on Christianity. Christmas and Easter have their non-biblical aspects to them; Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. However, Thanksgiving is all about giving Thanks to our God. Now I know that it is July and not November, and some of you are probably thinking, Why is he talking about Thanksgiving now? Well, why do we set aside just one day a year to give Thanks for all that God has blessed us with? Psalm 7:17 reads "I will give thanks to the LORD according to His righteousness
And will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High." King David here did not wait for a specific day to give thanks to the Lord. He felt the need to do it continually, which is a common theme throughout the Psalms. Hebrews 13: 15 reads "Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name." It says "continually." We have been blessed with so much in our lives. All of which we should not let a day go by that we do not give thanks to God for what He has done. He sent His Son to die on a Cross for us. A love that is more abundant than any other in this world. He gave us our families and food to eat. All that we are and have accomplished are because of Him. I have worked very hard on my children to say Thank You every time someone compliments them or does something nice to them. And for the most part, they do remember to Thank people, as do most of us. However, God does so many good things for us on a daily basis. Do we say thank you for all of them?

Thanks and God Bless You all this week!