Sins of the Past

Posted on July 13, 2010 by day1of1

For though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity. – Proverbs 24:16

 
One of the most common, inspirational storylines we have is overcoming adversity.  This can come in two forms.  The first is the run of the mill, day to day issues that arise – “the stuff of life.”  Nobody likes paying for car repairs.  I don’t relish spending time with my dentist getting a filling.  But these circumstances pop up in our lives and we simply deal with them.  The second is more difficult, more stressful, and likely to impact our lives in a greater way – overcoming the sins of our past.

 
Past mistakes are designed to devastate, especially in the hands of the enemy.  Guilt and shame are powerful emotions that can cripple us, preventing us from receiving the full measure of our forgiveness and stepping forward into what God has designed for us.  Satan knows this and uses our past against us.  We can spend days, weeks, even years holding onto things.  Others can latch onto an action or an event and use the moment to define the whole person.  Both actions are not only unfair, but ungodly as well.

 
They are unfair because no one incident can define somebody.  This isn’t to say that everyone in the world should get a free pass for bad behavior, or that patterns in behavior should simply be overlooked or ignored.  But we must be careful to recognize that with the power of the Holy Spirit living in our heart, we have the chance to grow – to learn from our mistakes and to change our paradigms so that we can truly overcome.  This leads me to my point that defining a person by the moment is also ungodly.  God detests sin, no question about it.  But God sees beyond the sin to look at the heart of the sinner.  This is His desire – to have our heart.  In fact, God can use every part of our life, including our most heinous mistakes to become the catalyst to reverse a life filled with sin and mistakes into one of faith, of hope, and abundant blessing.

 
The mistakes of my past are well known to me.  I try not to focus upon them, but consequences and weaknesses have a way of bringing them back to the fore.  I can look back upon decisions made and wish I had done something differently.  I can stand pat in my current location with no plan for anything better, no hope to overcome.  But ask yourself, who would I be serving, whose goals would be fulfilled doing this? 

Mine?  No. 

God’s?  Absolutely not.

Satan’s?  Clearly.

 
Satan wins when we allow our past sins to fester in our lives.  God reminds us in Psalm 103:12 that when we are forgiven, our sins are removed from us as far as the East is from the West.  He’s not holding on, reliving the past, hanging it over our heads, so why do we?

 
In a positive sense, we must use these memories to help guide us away from similar situations and the temptations that can come from them – without continued shame, guilt, or the need to be punished further.  Instead, we take knowledge from them – they become training exercises to prevent us from making similar mistakes.  They give us insight into how we can help others avoid similar trappings.  We learn from them, and through them God blesses us.  I don’t know if the singer Luis Miguel is a Christian, but I found a quote by him that certainly sheds great light on how we must approach our mistakes as we move on in Christ.

 
“I think we all wish we could erase some dark times in our lives.  But all of life’s experiences, bad and good, make you who you are.  Erasing any of life’s experiences would be a great mistake.”

 
I know who I am.  I know what I’ve done.  I know I’m forgiven.  I know God has moved me away from that place of error and is leading me to a future of peace, purpose, and prosperity.  I know I will make mistakes again.  I know I will be forgiven again.  May I continue to seek God diligently, every day of my life, that He may be glorified and I may be blessed.

 
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 3:12-14

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Epic Fail

Posted on July 10, 2010 by day1of1

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. – Psalm 73:26

 
Wesley and Jacob are two of the most amazing people that I know – not bad considering they’re only 11 and 12 years old respectively.  Separately, they are two incredibly gifted, creative, and energetic young men.  Together they create a dynamic duo that leaves me amazed with their creativity, their comedic timing, and the joyful flair of simply being a boy.  On many occasions, I have watched them act out a scene or react to an event in such a way that I was left not only in stitches, but actually wondering why it is I pay for cable TV? (The answer to that question, by the way, is football).  They’re not perfect, but I see so many wonderful things at work within them.  To each other, they are buddies in the truest sense.  To me, they are the embodiment of what boys are supposed to be like as they prepare for their journey into manhood.

 
One catch phrase that has been often quoted by the boys is the term “epic fail,” or simply “EF” if one wanted to be chic.  EF’s are those moments where you just don’t miss the mark, but when you miss so badly that the mark even laughs at you.  Perhaps this is best exemplified by my attempts at playing Rock Band – which thankfully have still not been recorded and put onto You Tube.  When EF’s come, the boys will hang their heads, shaking them ever so slightly, and commiserate with the fullest measure of compassion they can muster – usually without giggling, but not always.

 
I am fortunate to have such a wonderful, simple reminder of how to process failure.  It’s not because I enjoy dealing with it, nor is it because I feel that I fail any more than anybody else.  I am no doubt stricken with the same stress, struggle, and strain that befalls anyone else with a job, a house, a family, and responsibilities.  The bottom line truth of it is this – we all experience an epic failure from time to time.  But like anything else in life, we are measured not by the circumstances or the consequences.  We are ultimately judged by our reaction and our response.  No one situation can define you.  A grade on a school report card is reflective of not only assignment, but of many over time.  But A’s, B’s or even F’s don’t tell the story of a person’s life or potential for success.  Many people who failed out of school went on to be wildly successful adults, just as many valedictorians met failure but were unable to overcome it.  A romantic dinner is no more indicative of the success of a marriage than any one messy discussion between husband and wife.  However, each of these two things will help to build up the marriage so that both husband and wife can benefit for a lifetime of happiness.

 
Great success and epic failure are two basic tools that God uses to craft us into the people we are meant to be.  Mahatma Gandhi once said, “My imperfections and failures are as much a blessing from God as my successes and my talents and I lay them both at his feet.”  In doing so, we learn, we grow, and we align ourselves with the perfect will of the Father in our lives.  Failure doesn’t define me.  I am not a slave to my mistakes.  I give and receive forgiveness freely, allowing me to move forward with a clear conscience, a greater focus, and filled with the reassurance that can only be found in the love of God.

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Winning and Losing

Posted on July 7, 2010 by day1of1

“For the LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.” – Deuteronomy 20:4

 
I had the chance to watch the movie Invictus recently.  It was an enjoyable film, but the reason why I liked it is different than I would have expected.  Yes, this is another of the long line of sports movies where the team that should not win defies the odds and overcomes – or as I often call this style of movie, “The Rocky of…” – in this case, rugby.  You know the outcome before it happens, and so it makes the ending a bit anti-climactic.  But that’s ok, because the true essence of the film is shared before the Rugby World Cup enters in.

 
Nelson Mandela, played by Morgan Freeman, is portrayed as a man who is determined to bring peace and unity to a nation that has lived for decades in the firm grasp of oppression – a grasp that included his own imprisonment for many, many years.  His positions are often met with opposition; publicly and privately, from both enemies and friends alike.  However, he is shown to be unmoved by shallow thinking and knee jerk reactions.  He has a vision of what South Africa must do in order to survive, and he is unwavering in his stance.  This exemplifies effective leadership, and with determination, you have no doubt that his cause will ultimately win the day.

 
So you see this and recognize Mandela as a winner – a man who can make the difficult things look easy.  A man like this must live an extraordinary and satisfying life.  But upon closer inspection, we see something else – a line in the sand over which the landscape changes dramatically.  At various times in the movie, we are given a peek at his personal life – one filled with far more failures than victories.  He is estranged from his wife.  His children do not spend time with him and when they do, it is evident that their relationship lies somewhere between strained and non-existent.  The mere mention of his family by an unknowing bodyguard rocks Mandela – upsetting him and giving him cause to retreat.  The political dynamo, the worldwide celebrity, the winner in the public realm is suffering from the effects of a far greater loss – a defeat within his family that has left deep, painful wounds.

 
This isn’t the public persona, but it is there behind every smile, wave, and speech he gives.  How can it not be?  So how does he do it?  How does he separate the wins and the losses?  How can he compartmentalize his life in such a way, and in doing so, is he doing himself a favor or a disservice?

 
I don’t have an answer to this question.  I see both pros and cons to the way Mandela is shown to handle this (and I must be careful as this is based on a portrayal of an actual person about whom I’ve done little research other than watching a movie).  The pros that I see are he is able to overcome personal difficulties, to not let an issue in one part of his life derail him from meeting deadlines and reaching goals in others.  He would be no good to anyone if turmoil left him a basket case.  I also see how this helps to keep things in a certain level of perspective.  One might argue that a strained relationship with his daughter is less important than building a nation of 43 million people.  The people of South Africa need him to address their issues – that is why they elected him.  They have expectations of him and how he should live his life, but part of those expectations is the understanding that his personal problems must not interfere with affairs of state.

 
Then I look at the cons.  I am immediately struck by the fact that they are less concerned with the needs of Nelson and not President Mandela.  But you say they are one and the same – I disagree.  They are two separate people with very different goals, needs, and interests.  It’s not to say that leaders are schizophrenic, but true character and public persona are often very different.  I know this all too well.  For years, I was “Mr. Schu,” or just “Schu.”  I found it flattering at first.  There are a lot of other nicknames I could have had (and probably did in certain circles).  However, in time I came to dislike and in many ways resent it.  Mr. Schu was the funny one, the understanding one, the one who could accomplish things, who stood up for what he thought was right, and who did his best in educating children and growing a school ministry.  He made plenty of mistakes along the way, but his heart was in the right place.  At least that’s what they thought.  That’s what I thought.

 
In truth, Rich didn’t know where his heart was.  I had been chasing goals for so long that I forgot to take care of myself and the things that mattered around me.  My compartmentalization continued and I kept convincing myself that I was strong enough to be able to go with it, that if I just kept pace, then all would be well.  And so as the smile stayed on my face, the work got done, and the persona stood tall as the infrastructure of my life became more severely damaged every day.  Eventually, things gave way.  Issues that had been ignored finally erupted – their impact causing wide-spread damage whose consequences will be felt for the rest of my life.  It was a low point.  My many victories couldn’t counter-balance the losses and I was in need of rescue.

 
It was at that moment of defeat that I finally found myself seeking God in a meaningful way.  In His word, I discovered that I wasn’t made to suffer defeat, or for that matter to plan victories.  I was made to worship, to serve, and to obey.  The Bible is filled with examples of people winning and losing but never failing by remaining true to the promises of God.  The Israelites won many a battle in the Old Testament with the description reading: “the Lord delivered unto them…”  Joseph spent years in prison before being delivered.  Jacob worked seven years and was tricked into another seven in order to marry the true love of his life.  Paul experienced blindness, beating, shipwreck, imprisonment and ultimately death as he obediently served God and evangelized the world.  Christ Himself prayed to the Father, maintaining obedience to His will as he sacrificed his life for ours.  I saw God at work in these ways and two truths came into focus:  1. My problems pale in comparison to the ones He’s solved, so He’s capable of helping me.  2. God loves me enough to send Christ for me, so He wants to help me.

 
By letting go of my need to win, by releasing my fears of losing, and by fully aligning my life to Him, I have found peace, comfort, stability, and the path forward for my life.  Each day gives me another opportunity to put pieces back together, to correct wrongs, and to move ahead confidently knowing that God is leading me to that place He created for me.  By losing, perhaps I better appreciate winning.  By winning, I hope to inspire others to see that it can be done.  In both, I give thanks to my Heavenly Father for loving me – win or lose.

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Never Alone

Posted on July 3, 2010 by day1of1

Think of the most frightening places you could be.  Thoughts of dark alleys, graveyards, and war zones will pop into your head.  And while these situations are scary, I’d like to offer up the possibility that they are not the most frightening place you will ever visit in your lifetime.  These locations are common, but for most of us they’re avoidable.  What makes the place I have in mind most frightening is that it this place is much closer than you might think.  In fact, you may be surprised to know that you come to this place every day of your life.

alone
 
As I see it, the most frightening place in the world is that place where we find ourselves alone with our thoughts.  Now you may disagree with me, and I would understand why.  There is no physical threat, no high probability that you might be harmed, robbed, or killed.  In fact, some might go so far as to say that time alone is healthy; a beneficial way to spend time in meaningful contemplation.  This would be inaccurate and a dangerous assumption to make.  Being alone doesn’t add, doesn’t build, and certainly doesn’t help us. God created us with a need to seek companionship. After all, it was God who noticed that Adam needed a helper. At times, it is good to get away but long periods of time in isolation can be very damaging. But even when we find ourselves away from other people, we can take comfort in one simple truth: we are never really alone.  Remember the words of Jesus Christ in John 15:5…

 
I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

 
God is always with us, surrounding us with His love.  Now because we have free will, we can walk away from God in order to find out what it’s like to be alone.  But when we choose to separate ourselves from God, we still aren’t alone.  This is when the enemy steps in.  Satan will immediately take that open space, filling our minds with doubt and our hearts with fear.  Keep yourself busy throughout the day and you can avoid coming face to face with these thoughts, but when the lights go out and your head hits the pillow, when you are alone with only your thoughts to attend you, the onslaught begins.  And don’t be surprised – that’s what Jesus told us would happen if we tried going it alone. Up against Satan with nothing but our own strength and ability to sustain us.  Could there possibly be a more dangerous encounter?

 
So when we declare that we want time alone, what we really ought to be asking is for time to be connected with the One from whom we must never separate – our Father in Heaven.  Taking time to quietly sit in the presence of the Lord, to seek His will and to feel His peace is an entirely different thing.  It refreshes and refocuses us as continue toward our destiny, all the while keeping us safe from the enemy’s attacks. 

May you find comfort and strength each and every day of your life as you let God fill your heart in safety, peace, and quiet, now and always.

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Who’s Responsible?

Posted on June 30, 2010 by day1of1

I like the TV show M*A*S*H. There were 251 episodes of the show and I am fairly certain that over the years I have seen them all. I liked the show in its early years – before the writing and the focus became more political. But even after it jumped the shark, the show was still one of my favorites.

 
The character of Hawkeye Pierce was the biggest politician on the show. In several episodes, he took his angst out upon President Harry Truman by writing him a letter. One of these episodes featured a letter with a simple question: “Who’s responsible?” In that instance, Hawkeye wanted to know why they were in Korea. The letter caused a stir, Hawkeye got in trouble, but he was able to escape the consequences and live not so happily ever after. A bit corny and contrived, but what TV show isn’t after that many years on the air?

 
Who’s responsible is a question that many people ask in their daily lives. Who is responsible for the things going on in my life? Look at society as a whole and you see so many people jockeying to take responsibility for some things and to deflect it for others. It’s like a moral game of hot potato. Who came up with that great idea? – that was me. Who made them so angry? – that was him. But it goes beyond the simple day-to-day problems. When a lady can set a cup of hot coffee between her legs while driving, hit a bump, burn her lap and win a lawsuit against McDonald’s for not warning her that the coffee was hot – that’s absurd. When a man can attempt suicide by jumping in front of a New York subway train, fail, and then sue the city and win millions of dollars in a settlement – that’s absurd. Fewer people today want to take responsibility for what they do and those who are strong enough to be responsible end up taking so much blame for what happens around them they often buckle and decide it’s not worth it. And we wonder where the leaders have gone?

 
Deuteronomy 8:11-20 speaks to all groups. To those people who look to take credit for everything they can, God reminds them who is ultimately responsible for everything we receive. God brought Isreal out of Egypt, provided for them in the wilderness, established them in the promised land and made provision to give them every good thing (verse 13 provides an glimpse of what God had in store for His people). But what did the people need to do? Remember who was responsible. God is clear in verses 17-18, “You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today.”

 
So when this breaks down, who is responsible? The answer is obvious, but because of our sinful pride, hard to accept. The leaders had to remind themselves that it was God who would continue to provide for the people victory in battle, nourishment for their bodies, and direction for their lives – their role was to follow that leading. Following the commands of God then fell upon every member of the nation of Israel. The leaders couldn’t blame their obedience issues on the people, the people couldn’t blame their struggles on the poor decisions of the leaders.

 
We too must understand that while it is not easy to do, we must silence our own desires to take credit for what isn’t ours and to refuse taking responsibility for what truly is ours. Thankfully, we turn to God for the strength to do that as well. God is big that way. Relying upon Him is hard, but it is rewarding to those who put their trust in His commands.

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

No Turning Back

Posted on June 23, 2010 by day1of1

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace – Ephesians 1:7

 
As a former school principal, I often think back to some of the wonderful opportunities I had to spend time with young people as they discovered new and interesting things about themselves through the experiences given to them by God.  The fact that many of these discoveries took place after being invited to my office only helped to better frame the acquired knowledge into their consciousness.  But seriously, I did enjoy taking time to sort out issues and find resolutions to problems that had otherwise upset the equilibrium of my school’s learning environment (that’s “big-word-eese for I liked helping solve problems).

 
Often times, the issues were simple – someone created offense, the offense was reciprocated, and then the problems just grew from there.  As part of the reconciliation process, there was almost always the opportunity for apologies and forgiveness to occur, and while some of these scenarios were more successful than others, forgiveness was key to any chance that unity would be restored.

 
Is forgiveness really that important?  I mean, after all, some sins are really big and have long term consequences to both the sinner and the person against whom the sin is being committed.  This isn’t always easy, and it can be an incredibly difficult process, but for forgiveness to truly occur, it must be complete and final, without any opportunity or desire to go back.  Picture it in this way.  Two children are trying to get into a swimming pool filled with cold water.  The first child enters by walking in slowly, taking each step one at a time, trying to convince himself to go further.  To alleviate this feeling, he steps in and out of the water time and time again.  By the time he gets in, if ever, he will have felt the fullest possible measure of discomfort that the water can bring, prolonged over an extended period of time.  Once in the pool, the experience of getting in will likely limit his enjoyment and shorten the time he’ll spend in the pool.  The second child recognizes that the water will be cold and it will have an impact on him, but makes a decision that he is ready to accept it.  In an instant, he jumps in.  Even before his toe has hit the surface of the water, he is committed.  His decision is made and there is no turning back.  Yes, the initial shock may make him uncomfortable, but once he emerges from beneath the water, his body will immediately begin to settle in to his newfound environment.  In minutes, he will be comfortable in the water and will go about his way – swimming and playing for as long as he would like without additional struggle.  The difference is in the decision.

 
In his book, “The Five Love Languages,” author Gary Chapman offers a simple, yet powerful insight on the topic of forgiveness.  He says, “Forgiveness is not a feeling; it is a commitment.”  It’s not up to me to feel like I ought to forgive somebody, or to change my mind about forgiveness after I’ve had a little time to reflect upon the situation and the way it has affected me.  Forgiveness is a choice that I make – and one with which I must be comfortable as I move forward.  To do anything less would indicate a level of insincerity in my actions.  We’ve all made mistakes and frankly, some of them are whoppers.  We’ve all be wronged and have had exceedingly good reasons to seek recompense or retribution.  But to live in perpetual sorrow or anger over past sin is not what God desires for us.  Instead, God gives us forgiveness to allow us to move forward from these moments with the confidence that can only come through the grace of a loving God.  Author Lewis B. Smedes describes it like this: “Forgiveness is God’s invention for coming to terms with a world in which, despite their best intentions, people are unfair to each other and hurt each other deeply.  He began by forgiving us.  And He invites us all to forgive each other.” 

 
God demonstrates His great love for us through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ so that we can have the forgiveness we need and the eternal life in Him that we could never achieve on our own accord.  His decision has been made and finalized.  Our forgiveness has been granted, received, and shared.  And now there’s no turning back as we move ahead in Him.

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Time

Posted on June 17, 2010 by day1of1

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live. That everyone may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all his toil—this is the gift of God. I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him. – Ecclesiastes 3:11-14

 
For most school-aged children, June is the greatest month of the year.  This is because June houses that wonderful day known as “The First Day of Summer Vacation!”  I know that Christmas, birthdays, and Halloween are also big calendar moments each year, but overall, I don’t think they match the joy of day 1 of summer vacation.  Think about it – you’re as far away from a school day as you get throughout the entire year.  Your whole summer; filled with cookouts, swimming, bike rides, and vacations awaits you.  But have you ever notice how even that joy can change as the years go by?  I have two kids.  My five year old daughter is amazed at how long the summer is – overjoyed by weeks of playing on the swing and toasting marshmallows.  To her, summer and its possibilities are endless.  In time, however, that view will change.  Take my soon to be twelve year old son.  He too is happy to have started his vacation, but he realizes that June is already half over, soon the days will begin to get shorter, Independence Day is just around the corner, then it’s only a few weeks before “Back to School” sales appear in the stores.

 
Now one could look at these opposing views and merely conclude it’s all in your perspective – the glass is half empty or half full.  I don’t think it’s that simple.  Don’t believe me?  Then tell me truthfully that you have never longed to go back to a scholastic summer vacation schedule, or that you have never stopped midway through your one or two week vacation, frozen by the realization that you’ve only got a few days left before you head back to work for the next 50 weeks.

 
One of the more interesting concepts of life that we deal with is time.  Historians are paid to study days gone by.  Effective leaders must be able to use indicators to plot a course for the future.  Inventors and science-fiction writers dream up things that will completely alter the way we live.  Mp3 players were unheard of when I graduated from high school, as were cell phones and notebook computers for the previous generation.  Things we enjoy grow old and leave us wondering where the time went.  Think of your favorite TV shows.  It’s been 6 years since the finale of Friends.  Seinfeld’s been gone for 12 years.  Cheer’s ended its run 17 years ago, and the last episode of MASH aired 27 years ago.  Where did the time go?  Conversely, what will we be watching 27 years from now?  With new technologies being introduced, filled with greater capabilities and conveniences, it’s hard to imagine what life will be like in the year 2037.

 
Ecclesiastes 3:11 explains this best when it says that man “cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.”  If you look at life with your peripheral vision, you’ll see what I mean.  Though it seems like yesterday, my son was born twelve years ago.  Though it feels like it’s an eternity away, in only twelve years from now he’ll be a college graduate, starting a career, and possibly married.    That’s scary, this is scarier: twelve years from now my daughter will be seventeen.  While this revelation is still rocking my world, I take comfort in the knowledge that this phenomenon is natural.  It’s a part of God’s design for creation.  So instead of clinging to the past or charging toward the future, I can best serve Him by simply living the life He has created for me now, here, today.  God directs us to do this in verse 12: “I know that there is nothing better for men than to be happy and do good while they live.

 
Appreciate yesterday, anticipate tomorrow, but accentuate today.

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Engaging

Posted on June 4, 2010 by day1of1

“Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.” – Proverbs 31:29

 
It’s June, and you know what that means – it’s wedding season.  Got a wedding (or two) to attend this month?  Need to stop by the card shop and pick up some anniversary cards?  That’s not really surprising.  When it comes to the most weddings in the United States in any given month, June is the leader.  People no doubt pick June because of the warmer weather, the blooming flowers, summer vacation, and just the fact that it is a bit of an American tradition.  Once again, this isn’t really surprising.  June offers many things that couples want in order to make the memories of their wedding day special for the rest of their lives.  Of course, this got me to thinking about the many choices that come along with weddings: where to have it, what to eat, where to honeymoon, who to invite, how to decorate, what kind of music, and so on.   But throughout that list, one question of significance has been (and often is) left out. 

 
Am I marrying the right person?  This is an important question for both participants in an engagement, but I’ll pay special attention to the man’s perspective in this – after all, he is the one who buys the ring, drops to one knee and asks the question.  How does he know that she’s the one?  If only there were a checklist of the Scriptural attributes and qualities a man ought to look for in choosing a wife.  Well, as luck would have it…

 
Do you know a Proverbs 31 woman?  If you’re not sure, take a few moments and read Proverbs 31:10-31.  Once you’ve read it, you’ll know right away if you have ever met such a woman: noble character, valued by her husband, lacking nothing, diligent in her work, strong, smart, compassionate, resourceful, faithful, and one who brings blessings upon her family.  What woman would not want to develop these traits?  What more could a man desire from God when he prayerfully considers taking a wife?  God spells these things out for us so that we can clearly see what a Godly wife brings to a marriage.  It also encourages men to be better husbands by showing them the great blessings they and their family will receive from living with a Proverbs 31 wife and mother.

 
A Proverbs 31 woman is a rare find indeed.  In today’s modern age, ability, faithfulness, and beauty have been commonly replaced by shock value, notoriety, and sexuality.  Women realize that their fifteen minutes are dependent upon their ability to be relevant by any means necessary.  And by desiring and encouraging these types of behaviors, men bear a sizeable responsibility for this shifting focus as well. With this in mind, it becomes even more important to develop and support the women who diligently live their lives to the standards spelled out by Proverbs 31.  So as you seek the man or woman God has designed for you, seek also His will for your life so that you might prepare yourself properly to serve Him throughout your marriage.  If you are already married, ask God to build up in you the skills needed to achieve a maximized blessing by completing your roles as husband and wife.  It is then that you will know the fullness of what God intended for us to have in the gift of marriage, in peace, with joy, with purpose, and in love.

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Who Am I?

Posted on May 30, 2010 by day1of1

Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us. – Titus 2:6-8

 
If you ever get the chance, I would highly recommend a visit to Holland, Michigan.  What an enjoyable little town.  Now I’m sure that it has its pros and cons like everyplace else, but whenever I visit I always find several things.  First, the town is quaint – and not that touristy forced quaint.  It is the type of place where you can walk around and enjoy store fronts, restaurants, people, and of course tulips.  Next, there’s a great coffee shop – JP’s Coffee (probably more of a personal preference, but hey, this one is about me).  And finally, I always come away a better man than when I arrived.  Now that’s a hard claim to make, and one you won’t see on the chamber of commerce’s website, but it’s true and I’d like to tell you why.

 
Dan Webster is a friend and a mentor with whom I meet (at the coffee shop in the heart of the quaintness) every so often.  He builds Christian leaders by trade (his website is the Authentic Leadership link on this page) and in the midst of his busy schedule has graciously offered blocks of his time to meet and talk with me.  I sat down with him just a few days ago.  We talked, caught up, and discussed a few points of concern on which I was seeking his thoughts.  As we were talking about keeping a schedule, God revealed to me the real reason why I was talking to Dan. I realized that the struggles we were discussing were small symptoms of a bigger issue.  I found myself facing a question that I needed to answer: What kind of man do I want to be?

 
It’s funny that I would italicize the word I.  It’s the smallest word, but in this context it has the greatest significance.  I know the man that God wants me to be and with the help of the Spirit I pursue that daily.  But between my own two ears, the vision of who I want to be has always been lacking.  I’ve tried to be who other people want me to be – as a son, brother, father, and an educator.  But until I fully come to terms with who I am, I will be held back from the destiny that awaits me.

 
Since that day, I have found myself reflecting upon this idea.  To begin, Dan charged me with simply writing it out.  As that document comes into form, I have continually asked myself a question: “Am I the type of man who…?”  I’ve filled in the blank dozens of times.  I am the type of man who lives in a clean house, who meets deadlines, who takes pride in his yard, who fulfills obligations, who is committed to improving, who lives his faith.  Each day has been filled with these reminders, and not coincidentally, every day since has been more productive, more focused, and filled with growth.  It’s still early and I have a long way to go, but the foundation of a much needed paradigm shift is underway and I thank God for what He is doing in me.  With His ongoing help, I will be a better son, brother, father, educator, and man of God.  How do I know this?  It’s because that is the man that I want to be.

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Life Labels

Posted on May 25, 2010 by day1of1

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it. – Isaiah 30:21

 
I recently completed an online test to determine my life expectancy based on my current levels of health, diet and lifestyle.  The results – 91.  Not bad.  Of course, I’m still working to improve my health, and so I fully expect that number to increase to 123, leaving me many more years to share with the people I love, doing all of the things that God has called me to do.

 
As I sit here and think about the life I’ve lived and the life still to come, I am struck by the labels we place upon our lives.  Infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood, our teenage years, college years, child raising years, golden years, our 20’s, 30’s, and so on.  This list is incomplete, and the periods are in many ways repetitious and varied.  In all of this, I see one thing in common: each label features a length of time that lasts at least a year.  In most cases, these periods of time span several years or even decades.  It’s funny to me how our “life labels” are by nature so lengthy, because looking at life in such big chunks only disguises the truly important things.  We plan the wedding for months, but the act of God joining husband and wife happens in an instant. Set your schedule for the day, only to experience sudden chest pains and watch your life change immediately.  Your plan for the rest of today may get thrown out the window before you even finish reading this blog.  Simply put, we weren’t made for the long haul.  Life is now. 

 
Don’t believe me?  Think about it for a moment.  You have heard time and time again about the importance of long-term planning for health, finance, career plans and so on.  So tell me, how does your retirement grow?  Just set the money aside and spend it when you retire?  No.  Effective planners will tell you that you systematically review your investments to maximize profitability.  Career driven people are regularly updating their resume or vitae in preparation for future opportunities.  Couples who remain happy together for decades do so because they work at communicating and sharing love daily.  Long term success hinges upon short term effort. 

 
Here’s another favorite of mine.  Ever meet somebody for breakfast or a morning cup of coffee and hear them tell you that they’re having a bad day?  Can they really make that assessment at 9:00 a.m.?  Statistically, that’s impossible – you haven’t experienced enough of the day to make that claim.  No trophies are awarded for leading lap 6 of the Daytona 500, which is why you couldn’t possibly convince a driver to slow down and concede defeat at that point.  Our lives are the same way.  Satan and our sinful flesh try to convince us to label and categorize time so that we might overlook the simple interactions that mean the most to us.  We race to get to the benefits of the next level of life only to bemoan losing the blessings of the previous levels.  So if you’ve had a bad morning, call it that, but look for ways to improve in the afternoon, or the next hour, or for the next five minutes.

 
Life is about the moment. Take time to consciously live each moment, learning the lessons and completing the tasks that God has placed before you.  We should strive to be careful about moving forward too quickly and missing our call.  We should be equally careful to not look back with sweeping generalizations that would cheapen the experiences and life lessons God has provided us in preparation for today’s work.  And in all things, may we constantly turn to our Father in Heaven to guide us down the path He has prepared for us.  God will never move us too quickly nor will He leave us behind.  Our life is His, and He loves us in every moment.  May we return that love, moment by moment, for the rest of our days.

Posted in Devotional | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment