Happy Birthday, My Bride

Happy Birthday to my bride!

I don't know why. But, I've been incredibly blessed to be married to a woman who is truly one in a million. Ouida's heart is set on seeking, hearing, and following the Lover of her soul. She has confronted many fears and found faith to keep walking. When we got married, Ouida had in mind that we would have a small family of only three children. I was thinking of maybe two or three. But, it seemed like Father kept calling us to have "one more". Ouida struggled with fears about childbirth, pregnancy, and taking care of each of them. We had more than 12 children but only 12 were born. Ouida is a true mother who has laid down her life for her children.

As the years went by, we began to feel that our heavenly father was guiding us toward something different in education. After various public, Christian and cooperative schooling attempts, we ended up home educating. This was a huge challenge for Ouida and was a great motivation for prayer. She has always wanted and sought the very best for her children. This has often taken her out of her comfort zone and beyond the boundaries of self-imposed limitations. Ouida is a diamond among grains of sand.

We have prayed together many times about many different things. Many times, she has prayed for me when I've been stuck for hours on some problem at work and, strangely, things seemed to clear up after a bit. We've prayed together seeking God's direction on many decisions such as whether to move into Christian community in the country, how to educate our children, whether to get rid of the TV, how to handle relationship problems, where to seek Christian fellowship and how to handle the challenges that children bring with them. My bride is a wonderful prayer partner.

I don't like to travel alone because I've experienced how much fun I have traveling with Ouida. A trip to China to visit our daughter would seem like a waste if I couldn't share all the experience with my bride. She gets excited about things I might not notice otherwise. I remember with joy the experiences of riding in taxis to unknown destinations, walking the streets of Shanghai, and trying out our hotel's foot massage business. She has also learned to travel into the unknown challenges of camping. They were unknown to her because she had not grown up with camping experiences. Tents, rain, cold, no showers, and babies to feed and take care of. Who wants to sign up? Ouida did. We've gone camping almost every summer for close to 30 years. We couldn't have done it if she hadn't embraced the experience and done all the planning and organized all the preparation required. Many say they couldn't or wouldn't do it. But, her work, camping supplies list, DayTimer, and camping preparation crew gave us camping experiences that profoundly blessed our family. Ouida is a rare and wonderful camper.

It's on her birthday this year that we begin to move into the new house we've been building. Ouida has been intimately involved in and prayed over everything about this house. We want it to be a place of ministry rather than just a place. When building a house, one wants every detail to be "just right". But, many details will have problems. Compromises are also necessary to meet the sometimes conflicting requirements and desires. Several neighbors have complimented various things about the house. Much of the appearance, layout and materials have been the target of Ouida's prayer, searching and discernment. Her sense of what looks good is much better than mine. Ouida is a builder.

I love you, Ouida. May the Father bless you with much fulfillment in ministry, rich family interactions and deep personal relationship with Him this new year of your life.

Happy Birthday!!

Psalm 24:3-4

Good Things Happen

The word of the LORD came to me, saying, (Jeremiah 1:4)

Like many of you, I frequently check my e-mail. Others of us like to check the mail box. We hope to get some interesting news or word from family, friends or business. God is trying to send each of us a message. If we have His Holy Spirit living in us, He is wanting to give us one or more messages every day. In fact, God is more ready to speak than we are to hear.

Thousands of years ago, Jeremiah was able to tune in. In contrast to e-mail, if we really hear God's word for each of us, we will be changed. His Word has power and does not return void. So, let's grab a Bible or pull up a devotional online and ask God to give grace to hear His voice in our soul. When He speaks and we hear, good things happen.

Who?

In my younger days, I felt completely independent and thought I knew what was best in my life. And, so what if I was wrong about some decision? After all it was my life to make or mess up. But, then I got married and soon we had a new son. Because of these loved ones in my life, I began to realize that my personal decisions extended to the help or hurt of others who were important to me. Of course, I was only just beginning to recognize a truth that had always been true. My decisions always impacted others, I just lacked enough love to perceive how much I could hurt my siblings, parents, and friends.

I reached out day after day
to a people who turned their backs on me,
People who make wrong turns,
who insist on doing things their own way.
(Isaiah 65:2)

There are some who are embarrassed about some of their past actions. So now, pride tends to hold them back from fellowship. Some have chosen to become "too busy" to be involved in spiritual growth activities. A person like this may be sacrificing his family on the altar of his pride. Except for the grace of God, pride will have its own way. May God have mercy on him and help him to have the love to see the truth that we are all sinners and have all done things that we are now ashamed of.

Other men are constantly tempted to make the "things that are seen" into important goals, projects and priorities. We want bigger buildings, nicer cars, prettier women, higher pay and better seats in the arena. And, please don't bother us with words about knowing God or spreading God's Kingdom. We're too busy and too proud. Solomon carried these kind of goals to the extreme and found only -- "smoke".

King Solomon had incredible wisdom and was able to organize huge projects, judge difficult cases and compose proverbs to guide others. He is even the writer of a few books in the Bible. Yet, his incredible personal wisdom was not sufficient to sustain him for his whole life. He failed to continue to seek to know God's ways, God's priorities and God's love. As a result, Solomon experienced the frustration expressed in Ecclesiastes. Which of us is wiser than Solomon and, therefore, no longer need to seek God? The "wisdom" of man doing things his own way has destroyed so many families, nations, and churches.

Look at that man, bloated by self-importance— full of himself but soul-empty.
But the person in right standing before God through loyal and steady believing is fully alive, really alive. (Habakkuk 2:4)

Let's move closer to God and start giving a little more time, maybe 5 or 10 minutes, every day reading His Word, seeking His priorities and knowing His love. Incredibly, the Creator, the King of Kings is reaching out to us. The great I AM is inviting each of us into a deeper relationship with Him while Pride calls us to trust ourselves. Who are we listening to?

King Sennacherib's Threat

Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent this word to Hezekiah:
"God's Message, the God of Israel:
Because you brought King Sennacherib of Assyria to me in prayer,
here is my answer,...
(Isaiah 37:21+)

"Here is my answer." We long to see and know God's answer. Yet, too often, I keep trying to muddle along with some major struggle in my life without explicitly turning to God with it. God had heard Sennacherib belittle the god of Israel. But, that did not motivate God's response. It was Hezekiah's prayer that led to God's intervention. It's interesting that a powerful prophet, Isaiah, was on the scene but it was not his prayers but the prayer of the leader of the nation that brought about the defeat of Sennacherib. My wife is a real prayer warrior but there are some issues over which I have responsibility that depend on my prayers.

At one time or another, I've struggled with "Sennacherib" issues such as health, feelings, temptations, relationships with children, my relationship with my wife, relationships with neighbors, fears about my job, anxiety about my wife's pregnancy, concerns for income versus expenses and so on. In many or most of these situations, I eventually got around to fervent prayer. But, I frequently struggled too long trying to find a way to solve the problem with my own pitiable resources.

I suspect that most of us have a "Sennacherib" threat hanging over our heads. Have you brought your King Sennacherib to God in fervent prayer?

A Joyful Harvest

For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, (Romans 8:6)

What does it mean to have one’s mind “set on the Spirit”? It easy for anyone to understand a mind set on the flesh with its appetites for recognition, wealth, power, toys, trinkets and getting “my way”. As one grows older, this focus on the desires of self will lead to a sense of meaninglessness (Eccl 1:14). Being guided by the desires of flesh or selfishness is guaranteed to lead to regret and death. It will destroy dreams, relationships and lives. But, what is focus on the “Spirit”?

God does not delight in the power of a car;
He does not take pleasure in the legs of a man,
The Lord favors those who fear Him,
Those who wait for his love, kindness and mercy.
(paraphrase Ps 147:10)

The Holy Spirit is Love alive. When we have the Spirit of Christ living in us, we will have self-sacrificing love for others and for God. A focus on the Spirit means a growing love of, knowledge of and relationship with God. It means a love for neighbors that leads to activity for their sake. When the self-sacrificing love of Christ’s Spirit guides our thinking, our relationships will be touched with his healing power, our goals will have eternal purpose, and we will experience a dynamic, meaningful life. Self-love can sometimes look like real love but it will eventually yield a bitter harvest. The activity of God's Spirit will always bring a joyful harvest.

Galatians 5:18+

Here are some more questions to consider.

Are my goals for today primarily focused on me or on loving God and others?

How do we get Christ’s Spirit in our life?

• Is it related to Jesus' statement that he who is forgiven much loves much?

Can we get more of His Spirit?

A teenage 'rebelution'

Do Some Damage!

But as for Israel He says, "All the day long I have stretched out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people."

It is not only Israel that is disobedient and obstinate. I have, too often, found myself in that same category. One does not set out to be disobedient. No, it comes quite naturally to humanity because all that's necessary is to say, "I'm going to do what I want." This is quite a contrast to being able to sincerely say, "Jesus is Lord."

Many Christians are currently barely distinguishable from anyone else in their neighborhood. One reason may be that we have basically the same values, goals and "wisdom" as everyone else. But, if we look at the early Christians, we see that they were "continually devoted to the apostles' teaching, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread (communion) and to prayer." They were not only different from their neighbors, they would also be different from most of us.

By God's grace, let's stop for a few minutes and ask ourselves, "When was the last time I spent even 30 minutes to personally read Scripture and pray over my values, goals and family?" Many of us are missing something vitally important! No wonder our hearts are growing cold, our marriages lack love, our children leave the Church and the world embraces us. Too many of us are walking into a minefield with ears that don't hear and eyes that don't see. But, if we will actively seek God's Kingdom in our own lives, He will begin to guide us in unexpected directions. God is eagerly looking for men and women who want to be devoted to Him and who are willing to change their priorities and the activities of their families in order to seek Him. The devotion of the early Christians was a result of their yielding to the impulses of the Holy Spirit. And, that devotion resulted in an explosion of spiritual power into their marriages, families, neighborhoods and into all the world. Instead of being casualties, let's do something to cause the enemy some damage!

Lord, forgive my prayerlessness!

Lord, give me more of your Love and more of your Spirit.

Lord, help me to seek, hear and obey.

Lord, send laborers into the harvest!

Lord, send me!

Turning To The Right

Romans 6:17 - Thanks be to God,

Even though I grew up in a Christian home, if I had had my way, I would have slowly drifted further and further from Jesus. I had already found "reasons" for my laziness and neglect in regard to going to Sunday School and Church. In addition, my mind and eye were becoming more and more interested in the "pleasures" of sin. But, "thanks be to God", He had mercy on me and intervened in this death spiral.

Romans 6:17 - even though you were once slaves of sin

We've all experienced the harsh force of being a slave to SIN. This verse reminds us that God knows where we have struggled and failed to be free from the power of sin.

Romans 6:17 - you have become obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed,

We are no longer obedient to ourselves, to our wrong desires and to SIN as lord. He has done everything possible to open the door of Mercy for us. All we need to do is to cry out to Him for help. God knows our heart and how we have given it to Him as the savior, love, master and power of our life.

Romans 6:18 - and having been freed from sin, you become slaves of righteousness.

By our death in Jesus and resurrection into His life and spirit we have freedom from the slave master SIN. Praise the Lord that we no longer have to succumb to temptation. We are FREED to be able to do what is Right.

The Right thing to do is not always the cultural thing.
It is not necessarily comfortable.
It may not be easy.
It may be humbling.
It will be powered by God.
The Right thing will help love to grow.
It will reveal Jesus.
We can turn to the right and do right only by His Spirit in our heart.

Power in the Dungeon

we also exult in our tribulations.. (Romans 5:3)

A few weeks ago, my bride had to have some dental work done. When she returned, she revealed that there were complications in her mouth and dental surgery would be required. After telling me this news, she asked me what I was thinking. Strangely, a scripture I had been memorizing had popped into my thoughts as she was speaking. So, she was surprised when I said, "We Exult in our tribulations." As a result, we took a few minutes to pray and to praise God for how He could use the tribulation of dental surgery.

It does not come natural to exult in tribulation or to "rejoice in EVERYTHING." My natural responses are to complain, to get angry, or to worry. Exulting in tribulation definitely requires grace and strength from God and an act of the will. Our emotional response to disappointment, failure, persecution, betrayal, loss or pain can take over our thinking and our response. But, we are called to a living and active faith that says God can use any and all of the "bad stuff" and turn it to good in our lives. By God's grace and because of the hope we have that His Word is true, we can sing songs at midnight while sitting in a dungeon after a severe beating.

Our faith is "the victory" and our faith will lead to manifestations of God power to those around us. Anyone can complain and be depressed. But, God's power is required to praise Him even when everything is falling apart. Faith changes things. Jesus' power to heal and to do miracles was affected by the faith of those who heard him. Maybe we don't see God's power "in the dungeon" because we've been forgetting to exult.

Slay the Blood Sucking Monster

And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us, and has given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor.

The things we bring into our lives should be extensions of our dedication to God. If we are tools in His hands, then our "things" should also be His tools. If we use any of the stuff in our life primarily for self-indulgence instead of as a tool then that thing may have a negative effect on our life, goals and relationships. Things like houses, cars, TV's, music players, computers, media-phones, beds, clothes, and so on can obviously be of great value. But, if any of them begin to drain valuable time from our lives because we are pleasing our "self", then that thing may need to have a different focus.

I spend many hours in front of a computer screen because it is a tool I use for work, communication and learning. But, I can sometimes get drawn into spending too much time reading or watching the news. If I don't watch it, I can waste an hour or more at the screen and end up with basically nothing in exchange for that valuable time.

The same thing can happen to any of us with hobbies, cars and especially TV. If our wife, parents or friends object to how much time we are spending on one of these things, it may be an indication that we've let a tool become a toy for self. That toy may be stealing our life or future. It may have become like some kind of monster sucking vitality out of our goals, marriage or education. It may get an hour or two or more every day of our time. But, we may not recognize that that time had a leverage effect because time or other resources invested in growing ourselves has been found to give a return of at least five to one. Take a one or two hours away from that toy every day and invest it in learning, exercise, or relationships. That time will have a fantastic return in skills, love, achievement or in building God's Kingdom.

Toy time may have great pleasure but at what expense? Let's pray and ask God to show us our toy time and ask Him to give us grace to change.

May the Lord help me and each of you to slay the blood sucking monster of self indulgence. Let's give ourselves and our toys to the King of Kings. It will be a sweet-smelling sacrifice that will bring God's Kingdom into our personal life and into our family.