Finding Our Purpose: Resting in Him

So I recently had a breakdown before God. I have been through a tumultuous time recently and rather than taking my issues to God and laying them at the altar, I placed them on myself and tried to handle them with my own hands. It’s amazing what the human soul can bear before it breaks down. I wasn’t able to see that I had placed so much upon myself until I was crumbling into a million little pieces. Even strong men fall when placing the world on their shoulders. We all want to be like Atlas who had the heavens and the Earth placed on his shoulders. We weren’t designed to heap it all upon ourselves. To better illustrate my point I will borrow a line from Above the Golden State’s song, Sound of Your Name:

“The strong man falls to Him who humbles
The plans he made were bound to stumble
And only You remain
Only You remain”

The issue here is that we truly aren’t created to be Atlas. We were created to be strong, but also to depend on God. I failed to see this for a while and as life started to come at me hardcore I snowballed downhill, picking up more and more as I raced downward. I lost sight of what God had in store for me because my mind, my soul, my thoughts, my heart were clouded with the crud I had picked heaped upon myself. So how is it that we are to see our purpose in the midst of trials and tribulations. Well, then answer to that is simple and yet difficult to do…rest in the Lord.

Resting in the Lord requires letting go. That is easier said than done, especially when you feel like things are getting out of your control. It is human nature to clamp down and grab control when things are slipping away, but there has to be a point where we realize we can’t do it on our own. The same goes when we are trying to find our purpose. We can search high and low, attempt this and attempt that, spend a ton of money and time trying to discover what out purpose is, but still walk away empty handed. This is where resting in the Lord comes in to play. Rather than trying to carry our burdens through life, we need to get to a point where we lay them down at His feet so that we may walk through life without the shackles that tie us down. You see, there is an Enemy out there who desires to keep you from fulfilling your God given purpose. The Enemy will hold you back and remind you of all your troubles and faults. In doing so the Enemy can prevent you from seeing what God’s plan is. So how can we overcome this? How can we avoid the Enemy’s traps and fulfill God’s purpose for our life? Rest in Him.

You have to understand that resting in the Lord is not passive, but quite the opposite. It is ceasing from all your selfish desires and struggles to attain the life that you want. Isaiah 45:9 says it this way:

“Woe to him who quarrels with his Maker,
to him who is but a potsherd among the potsherds on the ground.
Does the clay say to the potter,
'What are you making?'
Does your work say,
'He has no hands'?”

Woe to him who quarrels with God. Wow. There is action in resting in the Lord. We have to CEASE (which is an action verb) to “quarrel” with God and we have to REST (another action verb) in the Lord. When we cease to struggle with God, we give Him an opportunity to do a work in us. When the Lord works in us He carries His perfect and pleasing will in us. I would rather spend one day in the Lord’s will than a thousand doing my own will. When we submit to God we can truly see Him work out His purpose in our lives and thusly we discover what it is we were CREATED to do.

Philippians 2:12-18 “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.
Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life—in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing. But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.”

God’s desire is for us to rest in Him and lay our burdens at our feet. It is once we do this we can truly let go of the things that hold us back from reaching the prize He’s set aside for us. I know it is easier said than done, trust me I do know this, but it is something that must be done. If you want to shake off the shackles that hold you back, rest in Him who is sufficient. Only then can you begin to see what His purpose is for you.

Finding a Light in a Dark Room

Ok, so I have been gone for a while...or at least gone from blogging. My life has been on an emotional rollercoaster over the last six weeks, actually for the last nine months, but the last six weeks have taken me way up and then way down. I just ask for your prayers there. I won't go into the details other than saying I know God has a plan for me and He is with me in the midst of this, but I am having a difficult time actually seeing Him.

I also do see something coming from this...my purpose. I am struggling with what that is and I am praying hard that God will reveal that to me. It's funny, well maybe ironic or sad to say, but last night I watched LOST and saw one of the beloved characters attempt to hang himself. He was doing so because he has lost his faith and lost his purpose. Now I am not saying that I instantly jumped to the thought of "hey...I should do that" but the thought did cross my mind. I think that's when God really grabbed ahold of me. I felt absolutely hopeless last night, like I just can't go on anymore. This pain I feel is about the most intense pain I have ever felt. My heart is broken in a million pieces, my life looks like it is in shambles, and I feel like I have nothing to show for 28 years of existence. But again, God is in control.

Maybe my first 28 years are a wash and maybe God has some big things in store for me in my next 28 years. I have to hold on to that hope and I have to seek out what it is that He wants me to do. So I am just asking for your prayers. Please pray that God will show me what His purpose is for me. I am having a difficult time seeing it, but I know He's calling me...that much I can feel. Love you all and God bless!

President Barack Obama

I don’t like getting political in my blog…in fact I don’t think I ever have, but since we are here today about to make history, I thought it prudent to bring up politics. President Barack Obama. Two years ago did anyone honestly believe we’d be saying that? I know I didn’t. Heck, I didn’t really even know anything about him. Now we flash forward to today and we as a nation are about to make history. And you know what? I for one am thrilled. President Obama brings something different to the office of President of the United States and after the past forty years…that can’t be a bad thing. No, I didn’t vote for President Obama, but I can tell you this, he’s my President and I stand behind him. So Chavez…you and me…we’ve got some beef.

I was talking to a friend back in October about how important this election was for the nation. For the first time ever we had a legitimate chance at seeing a woman be the President and/or the Vice President. In addition to that milestone, we had Barack Obama. I am proud to say that in my lifetime I was able to witness an African American go from small time candidate to legitimate front runner to President. Just the thought of him taking office swells my chest with pride. His story is the American Dream. He overcame adversity that so many people could never imagine and now he is our President. I don’ care what political affiliation, religion, race, color, creed, or gender you are…you have to admit that January 20, 2009 is a special date. I believe seeing him take office instills hope in all Americans that “yes, it is possible to accomplish great things…no matter who you are or where you come from.”

In addition to President Obama overcoming the odds, let’s look at something I consider to be incredibly important…he doesn’t fit into the typical Washington D.C. mold. That’s a great thing! I had my doubts on whether or not he is a uniter, but from the days after the election till today I have seen a man help heal the divisive wounds. He definitely doesn’t fit into the typical D.C. mold. I am already impressed with the way the nation seems to be coming together and he's assembled one heck of a staff. Again, I didn’t vote for him and I am sure I will disagree with his choices at times, but that’s one of the perks of being an American…you don’t have to agree with the President. I can tell you this; however, I will support my President.

I have to say that he has grown on me. It’s because of this that I am challenging myself to be in prayer for him. He will need it. I can’t imagine the pressure and stress of being the President of the United States. I also want to challenge all those who read this blog, be in prayer for our President. In addition to that, be in prayer for our outgoing President. If ever there was a time to pray for this nation now is the time. We have a chance to see peace, unity, and change come to this nation. It is a great time to be alive here in the United States. God bless this nation and God bless each of you.

A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!

It’s funny how little things stick with you over time. It’s those little things that you see, that seem insignificant at the moment, that tend to have a long lasting impact on you. Of course it could just be how my mind works. I seem to always be looking for little signs here and there. It might be because I have watched one too many episodes of Lost, but I personally believe that’s how God hardwired me. I tend to look at nature, whether it’s a sunrise, rainstorm, or bull moose emerging from an alpine stream, and try to hear and see God in that. I personally believe that God speaks through His creation. Luke 19:40 says this “’I tell you,’ he replied, ‘if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.’” God uses His creation to speak to us. Whether it’s a talking donkey, and yes…it happened…see Numbers 22:21-41, or rocks crying out, God is all around, working in His creation, talking to us. And that leads me to the point of my rambling. No, a donkey didn’t talk to me, close, but not quite.

About a year ago I was driving up to Dallas from Katy/Houston. I love taking what I lovingly refer to as the “back roads” to get to Dallas. I can’t stand Interstate 45 so I head through the back roads till I get to Highway 6 and take that to I-35 then onward to Dallas, but I digress. My little story comes from an observation I made while on the “back roads.” I was driving on this little two lane farm-to-market road when I saw something profound. On one side of the road there were about ten or so horses moving around in a moderately sized, fenced in area. It wasn’t huge and the horses didn’t seem to have a great deal of room to maneuver about in. On the other side of the road was a lone horse in a fenced in area that seemed to have no end. The lone horse had all the room in the world to gallop, explore, and just enjoy the freedom that the horses across the road did not have. But you see, it wasn’t the size of the horse pen that I noticed, it was what the lone horse was doing that caught my eye. He sat there at the fence along the road, staring at the ten horses across the way. Now let me paint for you the picture of this horse. He stood about as close to the fence as possible so that he might be able to be as close to the other horses as possible. His head was outstretched as far as it could be in an “almost there…almost there” kind of pose. As I continued by I wondered why this horse didn’t just simply turn around and enjoy his freedom. He had all the room in the world to run around. It didn’t click with me until I realized how much I am, how we all are, like this horse.

The lone horse had freedom; he had something the other horses across the way didn’t have. He had room to run around, take a drink from a cool stream, and just be out in the open, but that’s not what he wanted. What he wanted was to be with the other horses. You see the world and the Kingdom of God are similar to this little horse scenario. On one side is the world and all that it has to offer. On the other side are the things of God. How many times have we as Christians been just like that lone horse? We have freedom in Christ and yet we sit at the edge longing to participate in the world. Why? If we would just turn around and look, we would see that the Lord has given us freedom from the world. We are free from the penalty of sin. Let me repeat that, we are free from the penalty of sin. What is the penalty of sin you ask? Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” We are free in Christ and what a freedom we have. The Lord paid the ransom for our souls on Calvary. That price has been paid, turn around and enjoy the freedom you have in Christ.

Now ideally not only should our goal as Christians be to enjoy the freedom that Christ gave us, but we should also look to bring as many of the other “horses” over into our “pasture.” Heaven is exclusive in the sense that there is only one way to God and that’s through Jesus Christ. John 14:6 “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” While Heaven is exclusive in that sense, the opportunity to get there is for all. And that’s an important thing to remember. We shouldn’t be longing to be of the world. We are set apart and our minds should be on higher things. In addition to that we should also be looking for ways to bring others to the Lord.

So we need to not be like this lone horse, longing to be in the world while the freedom in Christ is right behind us. Let us all revel in the freedom that has been freely given to us and invite others to share in the joy of a life lived in Christ. May your life be well lived and may it be lived to serve Him. Praise the Lord for nature, for I know He still speaks to us through His creation.

From a Father to a son

I sat down and prayed on the first morning of 2009 to usher in the New Year. As I sat there and reflected on what has been and what is to come, I felt a stir in me. I have never been one on New Year’s resolutions...and I won't be starting today, but what I did get from my quiet time was a good Father to son "guide" on how to move forward into this New Year. I want to share what God laid on my heart that morning...(this is from God's perspective)

My son,

As you move into a new year, I want you to remember a few things that will greatly improve the quality of your life and those around you.

-Smile more and watch as others follow suit
-Listen more than you speak
-Don't sweat the small things
-Laughter IS the best medicine and it’s contagious
-How you see yourself is how others see you...so see yourself through My eyes
-Patience is more than a virtue...it’s a necessity
-Being late...who cares
-Have fun and seek joy
-Stop and soak up My creation from time to time
-Love more...even if it is risky
-Be a true friend and a good friend
-You're never too old to play tag with your niece
-Dancing in the rain is good for the soul
-Lie down in the grass and stare at the clouds
-Be intentional about your actions...but never intentionally hurt someone
-Don't be too proud to ask for forgiveness
-Be quick to forgive others
-Don’t run away from problems
-Let go of bitterness before it grabs onto you
-Put others ahead of yourself
-Rejoice at the sunrise, for each day is full of new promise
-Don't be afraid of getting hurt or falling down
-Relationships are more important than rules
-Do take time to stop and smell the roses
-Don't let golden opportunities pass you by
-Don't let busy-ness cause you to miss out on a full life
-Never be afraid to shed a tear
-Take care of yourself spiritually, emotionally, and physically
-Times may get tough, but I will be there to guide you...or to carry you
-Take time to serve for it renews your spirit
-Take time out of your day to spend with Me...I cherish that time with you
-Trust in the Me

These things are simple and don't cost you anything, but time. Don't waste the time I have given you, spend it and spend it wisely. And never, EVER forget my son...I love you!

Love,
Your Father

What great advice from a Father to a son. I hope that everyone who reads this sees it not as an impossible task, but instead as a way to really find joy in life. I know I have already started on this and it’s already greatly improved my life. So here’s to a blessed New Year! May this year be your best year yet!

You Give and Take Away

2008…has been…a rough year. Well, maybe just for me, but I am willing to bet others can say the same. I’ve had this mentality for a while that I just can’t wait to waive goodbye to this rotten year. This morning, however, I got hit in the head by a lightning bolt from God (not literally…but you know). I have been reading through the letters of Paul for my quiet times and instead of starting a new book this morning (as I finished 1 Thessalonians yesterday) I decided to find something in the Red Letters.

Matthew 6:25-34 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

I definitely needed to hear that this morning. 2008 has been a year of great adversity in my life, but you know what? 2008 has also been a year of GREATER triumph for me. I had fallen into a funk in my life…emotionally, physically, and spiritually. I became…well…boring. Through a time of hardship I was blessed with an opportunity to spend some Father(God)/son time in the mountains of Colorado. I emerged from that trip a different man. The Lord began to heal the broken things inside of me. It has taken time, but I have witnessed a miracle in my life. My Abba Father, my Daddy has shifted the paradigm. He brought me to a place of restoration with Him. Emotionally, physically, and most importantly spiritually I have changed. With the changes that He has made in my life, why then should I sit and worry about tomorrow? The Lord provided for me in the mountains, He’s provided for me in the valleys, and I trust He will continue to provide for me in the in-betweens.

It hasn’t been easy and the troubles I have faced haven’t come without their fair share of tears being shed, but God has proven time and again that He will provide. All I have needed to do was to rest in Him. If that isn’t proof enough of what God has been trying to tell me, then I submit to you one other example. This morning on the radio as I was nearing work a song came on. The name of the song is “Blessed Be Your Name” by Tree63. I want you to read part of the lyrics and maybe you can see what I see…

Blessed be Your name
When I'm found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed be Your name

Every blessing You pour out, I
turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say...
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

Blessed be Your name
On the road marked with suffering
Oh, There's pain in the offering
Blessed be Your name

Every blessing You pour out, I
turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say...
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name

You give and take away
You give and take away
My heart will choose to say
Well Blessed be Your name

Blessed be His name. He gives and takes away, but my heart will choose to say blessed be Your name. So yeah, it HAS been a rough year…not particularly one I will want to relive, but with the right attitude I can press forward. God is calling me; He’s calling all of us to live in Him. If other’s around us do not, cannot, or will not…that’s not up to us…that’s on them and the Lord will deal with them accordingly. For me I don’t want to sit back and whine about how much trouble I have seen.

I want to usher in 2009 on a good note. The Lord has given and He has taken away, but you know what? I know that the end result is far better than what I can see. God sees the finish line; I can barely see three feet in front of me. Praise the Lord for that. 2009 is coming and I am ready for it, but I refuse to look back on 2008 with contempt. It was a hard year, but the Lord did a mighty work in me and for that I will not be bitter about 2008. Praise the Lord for 2008 and the adversity faced. It has shaped me into the man I am today and I am better for it. So for you, I challenge each one of you to look at your hardships and look for God in it. God is there...He's never abandonded you or forsaken you. Let go of the bitterness and let God do a work in you. God bless you all and much love to everyone. Happy 2009!

The Shack

So I thought I would take some time to do a little book review with some talking points about this wonderful treasure of a book called “The Shack.” It was a present from my sister this Christmas. After sitting down and reading it in a span of a few hours I may just say it is the best Christmas present I have received in years. The book was so moving and so touching that quite a few of the pages in my book have tear stains. Never in my years have I read a book quite like it. I can promise you this, if you go into the book with an open mind, knowing that it is fiction, yet still backed by Biblical principles, it will change your life.

“The Shack” is about a man who lost his daughter in a tragic murder. Years later he receives a note in the mail inviting him back to the place of his deepest, darkest sorrows. The letter appears to be from God. Mack wrestles with the idea of whether or not to go back. Of course he decides to go to the shack and there is where it gets interesting. He has a chance encounter with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. In the span of a weekend Mack’s life changes and he is able to release what has been holding onto him. He releases the hatred of the man who murdered his daughter, he is able to finally forgive himself, and finally is able to forgive God. The book, while no one can truly know how a weekend with God might play out, brings a good lesson to the table. If you are looking for a book that is quote after quote of Scripture, this isn’t the book for you, but if you are looking for a book that will challenge you to the very core of who you are, how you view others, and how you view God…then this IS the book for you.

Many of us have not had to endure what the main character of this book had to endure, but I can say without a doubt that we all carry wounds. We all have a “Great Sadness” in our lives. It is something we don’t like to talk about. Maybe we are in the midst of the “Great Sadness” or maybe we have tried to push it deep down inside so we can pretend to have a normal life. Well, let me tell you, unless it is dealt with it will never go away. One of the lessons I took from this book is that sin happens in this world and that’s why bad things happen to good people. It isn’t God sitting upon His throne, punishing his children. It is God allowing for His children to make decisions and from those decisions good and bad consequences come. Now just because you have a wound, that doesn’t mean it’s of your own doing. God gives all people free will and you may be unfortunate enough to suffer a wound at the hands of someone else’s bad decision.

All this, however, doesn’t mean that you should sit back and sulk. God’s purpose for us is to life FULL lives. As long as we hang onto the shadows in our lives…we will not live full lives. And that is the big challenge. How do we go from the shadow to the light? Well, we let go and lay it before God. God truly does love us. And “The Shack” does a wonderful job of illustrating that. I can’t even begin to describe just how much He loves us. It’s hard to put into words, but what I can say is that He loves us so much He endured the Cross for us. He wants nothing more for us than to live in the freedom that comes from the Blood of Christ. And that really is the main point of the book. Really, it is the main point of the Bible. It isn’t about rules, it is about relationships. I fully believe that if we as Christians focused more on building relationships (aka bridges) instead of rules (aka walls) we’d see the amount of wounded Christians decrease.

I know that in my own life, if I had focused on relationships…I wouldn’t be in the midst of my own “Great Sadness.” But the clincher for me is that I have the ability to let go of my “Great Sadness” and live a full life. My prayer is that it does in fact happen. Hearts will need to be changed, paradigms must be shifted, and perceptions must be checked for change to happen. The author states it like this: “Paradigms power perception and perceptions power emotions. Most emotions are responses to perceptions - what you think about a given situation. If your perception is false, then your emotional response to it will be false, too.” How many times have we let our emotions get the best of us? This to me is what keeps us in the darkness. Acts 17:11 “Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” Even in the Book of Acts we are shown that we must examine our faith and the Scriptures. May we not sit back and trust our emotions and what we “know” to be “true.” Instead may we each day examine our hearts and rid ourselves of the cancers that will constantly keep us from growing in the Lord.

Overall the book delivers a good message. I would encourage all who read it to remember Acts 17:11 and to not be tripped up on things that seem…out of Scripture. Take the book and use it as a tool to reexamine your own life. What do you have in your life that is a wall? Knock it out so you can knock down the wall. Look to build bridges and develop relationships. God loves you, so let that love overflow.