God Doesn't Work In Mysterious Ways, He Works In His Way

I have been talking to a friend of mine that I knew very well in High School. Alot has happened since then, and when I talked to her, I realized how much she has grown in Christ, and how much she talks to Christ on a daily basis.

We have been talking about plans to grow Christian Life ministry. I have expressed that it is very frustrating at times that things don't move faster. But when I stop to look for a minute, there is so much happening all at once, that things probably couldn't go any faster. She told me about a book called "Just Enough Light for the Step I'm On" and recommended that I read it sometime. I purchased the book, and took a quick glance at it. I realized something that I have known for a long time, but seemed to have temporarily forgotten in all my busyness. All the things that we are doing are for the Glory of God. Every little step is a planned step by God. For those that keep their eyes on Him, the steps we take are His steps, and in His perfect timing.

All of us have heard the old cliche, God works in mysterious ways. Well, I used to believe that too. I don't believe that God works in mysterious ways any more, however. I think that God works in His perfect way! And the more we pray, the more we read his word, the more we keep our eyes on Him, the more He will shed some Godly light on the step we are taking. God wants us to follow Him, and take bold steps trusting in Him.

I heard it explained this way once. God wants you to take the bold steps forward in His name, keeping your eyes on Him. Once you have taken the step of faith, God will respond with His promises. But only after you step in faith first will He respond, just as He did with Joshua in biblical times. Joshua was told to step into the Jordan River to cross the river, and once he stepped into the river, the river would part. The step of faith had to be taken by Joshua first before God would reveal His promise. (Joshua, chapter 3)

I am excited to grow this ministry. I am excited for all the children that this ministry has brought to know Jesus. My eyes are on Him, and He lights my steps. I look forward to seeing what exciting things God can do through Christian Life.

Pass It On Forward

I was coming home from work yesterday, and as I drove around the corner, I noticed a man that had driven his huge lawn mower into the swail, and had sunk the rear tires up to the axel. Frustrated, I saw him throw his hands up in the air and tromp back towards the house.

So, I turned my truck around and headed back to his driveway and asked him if I could pull his tractor out of the mess he was in. He asked me if my truck could do it, then took a look at my truck and responded, "nevermind...sure!"

I drove my truck over to his tractor, backed it up, and hooked my tow strap to it. My truck is a very large diesel F250 4x4, and it pulled it out of the hole with ease.

The man was really happy, and asked me how much he could pay me, to which I handed him a Christian Life Pass It On Forward card, and responded "God Bless you my friend, just pass it on forward.

Good deeds are our outward expression of our Christianity. The book of James is all about Faith and Good Deeds.

This is what I think would be cool for all of us to do. Go to the Office Depot store, or something like it, and purchase a packet of blank business cards. They are only a few bucks. Write with a marker on the cards the following:

This is a "Your Name" Pass It On Forward Card

God has Blessed you with good fortune, pass it on forward to someone else.

God Bless!

Just think of the smiles and warm hearts that will be generated because of you, and God will be glorified by it all!

Let's Pray!

Yesterday, my work required me to fly to Griffin, GA, a city south of Atlanta. After dropping off our passengers, we decided to eat lunch at a Mexican restaurant called El Toro to have some fajitas. Shortly after I received my order, a very large group of young construction workers came in and sat at the table next to mine. All eight of them were carrying on different conversations at the same time, which made their entrance extremely loud and boystrous. I glanced over to see who was making all the ruckous, and noticed that they were all very rough looking individuals: some had no teeth, most were extremely dirty from the morning's work.

Apparently all had called their orders in, because they received their food almost immediately. Then the most surprising thing happened. The young man on the end of the table announced to the rest of the group, "let's pray". Well, that caught my attention rather quickly and I turned and watched as all eight workers, ranging in age from about 18 to 24 years old, took off their ball caps, bowed their heads, and each prayed, out loud, their own prayer. It was a menagerie of praises that echoed across the room. I heard words of "thank you for the food provided", and "forgive me of my sins", and "bless this meal". It was amazing!! I have never seen a group of construction workers, that young, stop to talk to God and give thanks before eating!! I was completely impressed!

Our world is in economic crisis right now. Leaders of every nation are gathering to sort out the details and try to formulate plans that will hopefully pull us from this dilemma. But I think the world has hope. And all it takes is to stop, remove your ball cap, bow your head......and pray!

Family Quiet Times

My wife and I wanted to give our kids the opportunity to establish a closer relationship with God without making them feel like we were forcing it on them. We decided to have family quiet times 7 days a week for 20 minutes every night and 1 hour every Sunday night. We all went to the local Christian book store to find devotionals for us and both our children to read and explore the bible. We all sit together during our quiet times, and we provide answers to questions the kids may have as they explore the bible. We feel this is a good way to build family closeness as well as getting to know God and learning more about what God wants for our lives.

My daughter has especially been excited about getting closer with God. Her daily devotional verse came from Deuteronomy 6:18,

Do what is right and good in the LORD's sight...

I asked her if she new what "the Lord's sight" was. Then I asked, "Can the Lord see you when you are under the covers at night? Can the Lord see you when you are at school and no-one is around? Can the Lord see you when you are alone at the house and Mommy and Daddy are outside?" She replied yes to all of these. So I told her that what the verse is really telling her is that she needs to do what is right and good ALL THE TIME, because the Lord can see her all the time.

Explaining verses to children in a way that they understand is not hard, just requires a little immagination. Children understand them very well. Spend time with your children in the Word, you will be surprised at how much God will speak through you to them.

God Bless!

Christians: Pray For Our Nation!

II Chronicals: 7:14 says:

And if my people, upon whom my name has been pronounced, humble themselves and pray, and seek my presence and turn from their evil ways, I will hear them from heaven and pardon their sins and revive their land.

After a day of contemplation and soul searching, I have decided to reach out to my friends and relatives and ask you to do something that has been troubling me for a long time.
Our nation is/has been on the slippery slope away from God for a long time. If you look around you will find corruption, greed, moral decay and a steady move away from the things that made us great. The principles upon which this nation was founded are no longer our backbone.

However, we can reverse this trend.

In God's word he states, "if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

I am convinced that we must pray for our nation and its leaders and ask for forgiveness. So I ask you to join me in this plea to our lord. Would you please take 10 minutes every night at 9:00pm and ask God to forgive us as a people, as a nation, and ask for His guidance. Pray everyday at 9:00pm. I have sent this note out by email to everyone I know. Imagine if every person who reads this note prays all at the same time, what the impact that would be to God. We will lift up millions of prayers everyday day to our creator. He will hear us and in faith will answer.

Let me just add a quote from Ronald Reagan - "if we ever forget that we're one nation under God, then we will be a nation gone under." I truly believe this is why the United States of America is in the shape we are in today. Most people have forgotten that we are one nation under God! Let us as Christians stand up and remind people of this. ~ Have a blessed day!

Listen: This is My Plan For You

Teaching a young child to listen to God can be a very difficult thing to do. Unless you know what you are listening for, it can be an arduous task even for most adults.

Today in Sunday School, I gave the kids an example of why it is so hard to hear God talking to us. I told them that I had found a website on the internet that claimed to have a 1 in 3 chance of winning the lottery. The gentleman that owned the site had had a track record of hitting the lottery once every three times he played it, and he shared his secret on his site. I told the kids that I had the numbers for the next lottery drawing and for them to get their pens and papers out so that I can read them the numbers. I told them that winning the lottery could change there lives drastically. (I did not tell them for the better or for the worse.) As soon as I began to read the numbers off, I blasted the radio up full blast until the last number was read, then I turned it off. "Did everybody get that?", I asked excitedly. Obviously the answers resounded "NOOOOOOOOOO!". So I read them out loud again, again turning the radio up full blast.

Our lives are much like that example of the radio blasting in our ears. God has a glorious plan that will change our lives drastically, but our lives are so busy, and filled with so many distractions, we never hear God speak.

I was talking with my father a while back, and he told me that God speaks, but ever so softly. He said that if I wanted to hear God speak to me, I needed to focus on Him, and then listen intently, with no distractions. He said, "If you would just listen, you will hear God speak." I think those are very profound works that apply to all of us, but are so hard for most of us to do. Which leads me to my next thought.

Some kids have often asked "Why doesn't God answer their prayers or requests?" I have often thought the same question as an adult, and had a difficult time trying to realize the answers. Again, in a conversation with my father, he made it very clear to me. He said, "Son, it's like this: If your father has asked that you do something, maybe a chore or a task, and you ignore him time and time again. Then you come to him later with a request of your own, do you think that he will grant that request? Or will he ignore the request until you learn to obey him?"

Suddenly, things became very clear. God speaks very clearly. We need to listen very intently. God has asked that we spend time in the Word, and in James 1:22 it says that God wants us to not only listen to the Word, but to do what it says. If we get ourselves into this type of regiment in our lives, I believe that God will bless us in unimmaginal ways. Kinda like winning the lottery, God's plan for our lives will lead to great joy and happiness, if we would just listen!

Encouragement from a Child

I became a Christian in 1978 at a teen’s Christian Camp called Windy Gap in the mountains of North Carolina. For years after that however, my walk with God had been sporadic at best. Like most, I seemed to gravitate towards God only when times were bad and there was no-where else that I could go. Even so, God was always there for me. As I grew older, the emptiness in my heart that could only be filled with God’s love became more apparent to me. I began to talk to God during all aspects of my life, good or bad. The joy that He brings to me on a daily basis is far more than I have ever expected. He is there all the time for me, and I can feel His presence when I talk to Him. It is sad that I did not come to know Him at this level when I was much younger, but am eternally grateful that He never left me alone.

My son, Travis, became a Christian and was baptized this passed year, something that I am extremely proud of him. Even though I have been a Christian for years, I had never been baptized as an adult. My son's leap of faith encouraged me to do the same and yesterday, March 8th, 2009, I was baptized. It was a moment that I will cherish for all my life. I want to publicly display my commitment to God and my commitment to be the spiritual leader of my family. Furthermore, I want to re-affirm to God that I will follow Him with all my heart, with all my soul, with all my mind, and with all my strength. (Luke 10:27)