Check-up

Well the year is half over and I've had some time to reflect and get the dumb smacked out of me. It's been since February since my last post so...surprise! My wife recently spoke to me on my lack of contribution in our house and relationship. I grew into a very lazy person with all the time off from work and did just enough to get by. Oh there was a major house cleaning/ rearrangement that happened but after that I was a couch potato. I just did what I wanted to do. It was nice but waaaay overdone! God was hinting I needed to do something about it all along. My intentions stayed intentions and no action was taken.
In the midst of the dumb smacking I had the notion to read my blog and specifically the 'Word' God gave me for this year. I forgot. I had an idea what it was but I was way off. My word was 'excel'. Ouch! Excel? I was so far away from that word it wasn't funny. So far my word is decel instead of excel! I guess that is why we reflect. So God can show us what's broke. The only area I've excelled at this year has been paying our debts off. We are within a couple thousand of doing it and it's been with a limited income due to all the time off from work. It has been a goal for the past 3-4 years to get our debt under control. Our wants and needs seemed to take over and we never gained any ground. This year God opened my eyes that having this debt and being so close to not having a job is unwise.
However, this is about my whole life and not just money. I have let myself go. I let the world do whatever it wanted and joined in when only dragged to do something. My wife has patience and grace but they do run out and her tank is almost dry. So she opened my eyes to how bad it was and I actually listened. I know her love language is acts of service. I have that much going for me. I know how to fix this with God. I just need to be unselfish in everything instead of selfish. Also, spending time with Him needs to become a habit.
Well that's all for now. Don't want to over do my comeback :-) Keep me honest and keep me in prayer. Too many people depend on my gift of encouragement, whether they know it or not. If I just have my words and not His the encouragement doesn't last or isn't as effective. I need the confidence that only He can give.

Save me

I was reading Psalm 69 yesterday and it spoke some reality to me. It is vividly descriptive and pretty accurate to today's surroundings. It is a picture of how David feels with his enemies hot on his trail. I know I found somethings in there I could relate to and thought you might also.
Here are the first four verses:
1 Save me, O God,
for the waters have come up to my neck.

2 I sink in the miry depths,
where there is no foothold.
I have come into the deep waters;
the floods engulf me.

3 I am worn out calling for help;
my throat is parched.
My eyes fail,
looking for my God.

4 Those who hate me without reason
outnumber the hairs of my head;
many are my enemies without cause,
those who seek to destroy me.
I am forced to restore
what I did not steal.

In verse 4 I found two things that are prevalent in my life. The first is people who hate me without reason. I am a nice guy and try to be friends with everybody but I do have some who just hate me for no reason. The other is being forced to restore what I did not steal. Bad stuff happens, sometimes on purpose. People can steal from you or blame things on you that make you the thief or person that messed up. God tells us not to take revenge on a person because that's His job. He is the true judge of our motives and actions.
I find these two things in life to be very difficult sometimes. I'm sure David felt pretty bad too considering he compared his situation to drowning and exhaustion. This is where we need to put our trust is God's promise of revenge and that He'll take care of all our needs. To take your situation and just ignore the wrong done to you is very difficult unless you truly trust in Him. He really is our provider. He can replace stolen things or use a situation to speak to another because of your attitude being displayed.
I think we can be encouraged by these verses just because it was David speaking these things to God. He was the man after God's own heart, after all. So if you're feeling overwhelmed or exhausted continue to call out to God because He is there and He wants to take care of you. He can fix anything and give you peace before you even see any change. Trust Him.

Empty Me

Here is Chris Sligh. He was a contestant on American Idol and sings this awesome song called "Empty Me". I found a video that shows the words like church so you can sing along if you'd like. Listen and be drawn closer to our Lord while you empty me.

A Fight to the Finish (Part 2)

OK this passage is titled 'Tearing Down Barriers' but it reads in the same line as yesterday's verses.

2 Corinthians 10:3-6
The world is unprincipled. It's dog-eat-dog out there! The world doesn't fight fair. But we don't live or fight our battles that way—never have and never will. The tools of our trade aren't for marketing or manipulation, but they are for demolishing that entire massively corrupt culture. We use our powerful God-tools for smashing warped philosophies, tearing down barriers erected against the truth of God, fitting every loose thought and emotion and impulse into the structure of life shaped by Christ. Our tools are ready at hand for clearing the ground of every obstruction and building lives of obedience into maturity.

This is from the Message Bible again. I like how it clearly separates us and from the world. I think we all from time to time need to be reminded that: "we win". When it is all over, we win. The evil one may have our number for the day, week, month or year. However, if we do not faint, give up, or ignore God, we win. If today the devil has your number keep fighting you will win. You are not alone. We all have battles. Nobody is going through anything that hasn't happened before. Jesus is right there with you. Trust Him and use the weapons He gave us by dying for us. Remember His fight? He won!!!

A Fight to the Finish

You know the passage of Scripture in Ephesians 6 titled 'The armor of God'? In the Message version it's titled 'A fight to the finish' and it reads like this:

10-12And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

13-18Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life. God's Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

I found this worthy of sharing and something we need to put into practice. I particularly like the last line because that is what I try to do here and in everyday life.

It's my Fault

These are three words we never want to have to say. Usually when we say "It's my fault" we made a big mistake. Remember when you were little and 'somebody' did something they were not suppose to do and mom or dad said, "Who did this?". When "It's my fault" was finally said they got a whooping. How about at work when a project does not work out or you lose a customer. It's your fault and you just want to run and hide but somebody has to take the hit. In each case the parent and the boss will figure out the culprit so you had better come clean.
Whenever I am at fault I feel like a failure. I can't help it. I look at my progress in life and expect a certain level of performance. If I fail to meet that level, I become frustrated and want to blame somebody else for my mistakes. I may start yelling at every little thing that sounds like an accusation or put down. I have my eyes off of Jesus and onto the problem. If I could just keep my focus on His word and the promises He gave us, I could quickly get past this learning moment and see that His plan is still in place for my life. I could respond properly because I know what is right if I take time to think about it. If I had no answer I could ask God for wisdom and He would give it (James 1:5).
For some reason I tend to lean towards self preservation and avoid being hurt. Both of these get me into further trouble. Problems are not solved but only ignored. The more you try to protect yourself the more work you create. It can work it's way throughout your whole life. Problems grow at work, at home, in your health, in your marriage, at church, in your relationships, bills get behind, and your walk with God suffers.
In the end you start saying "It's not my fault". You could be so far down the wrong path that you actually start to believe it. In reality, it's all your fault and it won't change until you start taking responsibility for your faults. Confess your sins to God, get forgiveness, and walk in the right way. To know the right way you need to read the Bible, pray, and go to church. Spiritual disciplines cannot be ignored. To be in the right state of mind in peace and grace to walk effectively, we need to have a personal intimate relationship with God. Without contact the connection becomes corroded and we don't hear Him or remember what's right in a given situation.
So, being responsible in life takes courage and sometimes saying, "It's my fault". I struggle too much trying to escape this responsibility and need God's help to keep me connected and on track. Friends are another way to remember what's important in life. Talk about Jesus every now and then just to see where we are in our hearts. Sometimes one's desire to please the Lord awakens that desire in somebody else. Together our impact can be contagious. The very life around us can change just because we talked about Jesus. Joy becomes your strength and courage and the only thing that matters is making a difference in somebody else's life. You and God can change the world just by living to be a blessing. Give more than you get.

Know Your Enemy

Here's another Lion and Lamb Publications' 'Microburst' by DaNella J. Auten. I have got to tell you, this little devotional is very good. Just like she applies these 'Microbursts' to her life, you get to use them in yours. I read this one and immediately saw the application to my life right now where God has me.
The title is 'Know Your Enemy':
"Cabbage palm trees grow stealthily. You think they are grass, so you mow them down and keep mowing the little fronds thinking you are just mowing grass. Then when the actual tree begins to stalk out, you have to mow around it and let it grow or excavate it.- Excavate: to dig a lot around an object in order to extract all of an object or objects.
The palm tree is like a little sin; you think it isn't a problem; it is so small, so you ignore it, but then it grows, and grows, and grows. Before long, it is an actual tree of sin growing deep within us. No longer just a tiny sin; now it has become so large that it will take a major life change for us to get rid of it. Satan knows how to fool us; he knows we would reject an outright sin, so he sends a sneaky sin instead.
Just as God is a personal God, satan is a personal satan; he adapts to us far too quickly. We need to be aware of our areas of weakness because that is where satan is going to attack us.
Romans 7:21 So I find it to be a law (rule of action of my being) that when I want to do what is right and good, evil is ever present with me and I am subject to its insistent demands. (Amplified Bible)
This fits where I was, how I got there, and now what I need to do. Satan had me fooled for about two in a half years. I bought into his lies to ignore a problem in my marriage. (Ignore a problem it will go away, right?) The problem remained and it was so easy to just check out that it became a lifestyle. I ignored responsibilities and the Holy Spirit. Well I already told my turn around a while back. I knew things had to change and I was forcing the issue by begging God, going to a few friends for prayer, and doing every little thing I believed the Spirit was telling me. The turn around was quick. Within two weeks I was reconnected with God, walking upright, and seeing answers to prayer. It was and is amazing!!
Life goes on and God has new things that need changing in my life. I hadn't heard any specifics from God in a while. I met up with a new friend and we connected just like the first time we talked. God gave him a word to share with me that he was afraid to give because it was correction. God won. He gave it and it was so perfect and delivered in such a loving way that it didn't even seem corrective. I pondered that word all night and God just starting pouring out all kinds of stuff I needed to change in my marriage and for my marriage. I had ignored my wife's needs and concentrated on my own for so long that I was blind to my error. I had let satan win in my weakness and every attempt I made to change, he threw out his best to stop it. His attacks kept me in my lowly state and the way out was too high to climb out of. That 'cabbage palm tree' that looked so innocent was easier to ignore then deal with it. I let it grow and take root in my life until it needed a major life change to excavate it. That is my current position in life...uprooting that thing. I realize the difficult process and know there will be pain and heartache but it has to be done. I cannot prune it, stop watering it, chop it down (leaving a stump to grow back), or mow around it while not paying it any attention. I have to remove it totally. I know it is too hard to do in my own flesh. I already tried remember? I just don't like pain of any kind. That is why I put another all alert out to a few good Christians out there to hold me up in prayer. I can only get this 'tree'(sinful lifestyle) out of my soil (soul) through God and the prayers of the saints. I lie weak and humbled before God and all of you so I can be lifted up once again. God is so good. 16 years of marriage and we are still growing together. Our faith may waver but now we know our enemy and its not each other. Our attack will be against the real enemy and with the power in the prayers we say and have surrounding us, victory will be ours. Amen!! If you pray lift up my marriage and pray for motivation for me to stay on course and continue to seek Him.