G-O-D FOR THE WIN

The picture I wanted to include was a giant-sized Scrabble board with G-O-D in the center taken today at the Children's Museum in Jackson. I did not stage this photo, but found it as Ben was running around (he was really interested in the rock climbing wall, for a second). When I saw it, my first reaction was, "Really? Is God only worth 5 points in Scrabble? I'd have assumed more."  That will seem cold to some people but this is one thing that I see alot, and am tired of (get ready for a rant).
          Facebook, have you heard of it? It is the stomping ground for those who are semi-religious to seem super holy. Every time I look at FB, someone is posting things about God doing you favors for reposting a message, or you going to hell if you don't, or you don't love Jesus if you don't share the poem/pretty picture.
          Can I just say that the sentiment is nice, but is absolute boo boo? The thing that gets me about this is most of the time the people doing it seem to be trying to make penance for something they have done. Maybe if they post enough pictures of Jesus on the cross or blessing posts then they will be pardoned. I'm just not seeing this when I look into Scripture.
          There is nothing wrong with using social media to share your faith, it's actually one of the easiest, cheapest venues by which Christians can spread the good news. The only drawback to this is that we have made our attempts the easiest and cheapest as well. If it won't fit under 140 characters, then it need not be said, right?
          Next week, Sara and I are accompanying CrossPointe youth to Atlanta, Georgia. There, we will be doing some mission work, along with some fun things. Can I tell you that I am more excited about this than I have been about anything in a while? Not only is this a chance to tell strangers about Jesus, that's going to be great, but I also get to be with the young people who are our future. I am excited about hearing where they are now, I am excited about hearing where they want to go. I am excited about how excited they are.
          What they are about is not to make a move through cheesy posts and guilt-trip theology, but instead to know the people around them. Instead of throwing out a blanket invitation or accusation to people, they sit side by side, one on one, and share life together. To me, that sounds  much more appealing than a post, message, or card that has no person attached to it.
          When I think about spreading the Word, that is what I think of. That is what excites me. Moving beyond the normal boundaries to experiences that only God Himself can orchestrate. That, to me, is much more exciting than a secret game of Scrabble.
          Challenges do not come along often; at least ones that are difficult. This is a most difficult one. There is a clerk, a long-lost high school friend, a neighbor, a co-worker, an enemy, a brother, a boss, a father, that maybe you haven't talked to, or have avoided for some reason. Maybe you are in a hurry, maybe that person doesn't mean much to you, maybe they get on your nerves.
          Challenge: Identify 1 person and start praying for them. Pray for their life, that they might share it with you, pray for their heart, that Jesus might touch it, pray for the day that you will interact with this person on a deeper level.
Mighty movements begin with prayer for specific things.

*Note: If you do this, please post a comment about the experience you had.

Spongey Mirrors

          Last Sunday, my pastor was talking about how what we watch influences us. For the most part, I had a general understanding of this discipline. I try not to listen to music that is vulgar and try not to watch movies that contain violent and crude elements (I'm not perfect at this, but I try). 

          Overall, I didn't feel really convicted by that part of the sermon. There were some things to bring in for sure, but I didn't see many failings. Last night, we were watching a program on tv about people with Tourette's syndrome. I initially wanted to watch this because of a bit about a person with narcolepsy, it was interesting. During the segment about Tourette's, the man that was focused on would have an episode, blabbing obscenities and making wild gestures. His story was truly sad because he had 4 children under the age of 6, and he could not help when he would say things he didn't mean in front of his children. This was heart wrenching to say the least, but what really got me was what Ben did.

          While watching the program, Ben began to imitate the man on the screen. Some might think this funny but it really got to me and Sara. We realized that Ben is watching and listening to everything we say, and everything we watch.

          My pastor drew a very important point: What you watch and listen to, what you allow into your mind, is also what those around you are exposed to. I really do not want my son repeating some of the stuff he sees and hears, so I must make a pledge as a father to protect his mind as much as possible from things that are inappropriate for him.Will I shelter him, not allowing him to experience life? No, of course not. But I will take it as my responsibility to expose things to him, in its right time.

          This past year at Mount Olive, I had students who had watched movies and played games that were extremely inappropriate for their age. To those parents who think this doesn't effect their children, you are wrong. Whether it surfaces now or later, it will come about.

          So, words of warning to individuals, parents, and anyone responsible for little ones. Be very careful what you expose them to, for they are spongey mirrors; they absorb everything and reflect what they see.

FATHER'S DAY POST

     Father's Day is relatively new to me, it being only my second year of being a father. There have been countless joys that I have experienced since Ben was born. You really learn to look at life in a different way. Now I look from his perspective about what would be fun to play with, how to interpret his language, deciphering his grunts and pointing fingers, and also managing the puzzle that is toddler emotion. 

    

     I love my son and would not change a thing in this world. Last night, Sara, myself, and Ben had gone to town for a couple of essential items. I could tell Ben was getting antsy in the backseat so once we left the last store, I climbed back there with him. He was sort of restless so I got my phone and turned Pandora on. From the other day, my niece Ally had been listening to the Justin Bieber channel, so that's what started playing when I turned it on. Needless to say, Ben starts swaying to "Baby" and trying to sing the words.

     What is a dad to do?

           I start singing the song with him, pumping my fist, and even rapping Ludacris' part when it comes to it. Once we get our McDonald's fries, another pop song comes on and we continue. Some would say I should have turned Bieber off, some say I should have burned it with fire, others might say rock on, but what I knew in that moment was that it didn't matter what song was playing, only that I was with him in THAT moment. 

     Later I looked at Sara in the rearview mirror and said, "It doesn't matter if I get anything or not, this is what being a father is about."

     If you have lost your father, or are distanced from him somehow, don't let Father's day get you down. I have a great earthly father who provided for me and taught me well, but I know that if he weren't here, I would be able to lean on my heavenly Father and trust Him more than any man on this earth. 

     

     Luke 15:11-32 makes me well up in tears just about every time I read it. It is the picture of how God feels about us. As a father, and as a son, I cannot express how perfect of a passage this is for Father's day. Please find time to read this passage on Father's day. Take comfort in the fact that your heavenly father is the father from that story. 

     

     Have a great Father's day!

SHINING THE LIGHT

          Does anyone remember this movie? Joe's Apartment. I remember it for the way the roaches scattered when Joe or someone else turned the lights on. It seems unrealistic until you actually see it happen. Roaches scattering before the light. Sometimes I feel God built into nature ways of showing us our behaviors.
         
          For example, if a group of people are talking about a certain thing you do; work out, eat too much, text and drive, check your neighbor's mail, eavesdrop at work, or any number of things, you get on the defensive. They may not actually be calling you out, it may just be a general topic of conversation and you read into it your faults, insecurities, and shortcomings.

TRUTH, NO MATTER HOW IT IS PRESENTED, SHINES INTO OUR LIVES TO REVEAL AND MAKE  DARKNESS FLEE FROM OUR HEARTS.

          We run away from the light of truth for many reasons:
 1. Believe that my way is the right way.
 2. Know the truth, but don't want to hear it again.
 3. Fear of conviction or accountability.

          There may be others, but there is one serious thing about light; it shows all your faults. The other day my temp boss asked me to use the big work light to check the paint job in the kitchen. In all reality, the paint with the house lights on didn't look bad. When I brought that giant work light into the room and turned it on, every single flaw in the paint was exposed. I spent a good twenty minutes just touching up light spots. This was no fault to my boss, he is an excellent painter. But when the purity of the light was turned on the wall, even the best painter's work will reveal flaws.

          This is one of the strongest pictures to me of how we compare to Jesus. Even the best of us, when compared to Him, blatantly show the mistakes and oversights of our lives. We are to then work on becoming more Christ-like. Daily we are being sanctified through the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It's a process, continuing all through this life until we step into eternity.

          Wonder why cockroaches run from the light? they don't want to get caught.
         
          Wonder why people run from the true light of Jesus? they don't want to get caught.

DARKNESS HATES LIGHT BECAUSE LIGHT EXTINGUISHES DARKNESS.

          When you get defensive, step back and ask yourself if what that person is saying has a grain of truth to it. I'm prone to selfish behaviors so when I start acting like a recluse, then it's a good sign that I'm being selfish. Props to my wife who calls me out sometimes. This helps, husbands and wives, don't get all high and mighty acting if your spouse comes to you saying you need an attitude adjustment. Take their advice and take a look at yourself.

          God will use the people around us to point out our flaws, and man does it suck when we recognize it. Most often we pick out the behavior in other people:

          "Oh girl, did you know that she has been running her mouth all over town?"

          "I sure did, I can't believe someone would do that. Did you hear about...."

          Try it next time that you notice someone's particular attitude or behavior and ask yourself, do I do this? It's easier to recognize because it's already so familiar and particular to yourself.

          One great way to get started in this process is to read Scripture. I find that Proverbs has a wide range of ill human behaviors to look at. Meditating on these can help you to understand what needs to be done. For example, "Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control" Proverbs 25:28.

Take this verse and meditate on it.
     1) a city without walls is easily defeated
     2) a city has no resistance to outside forces
     3) a man with no defenses is a man defeated
     4) a man with no self-control has no control

Scripture is rich with knowledge of God and how to live, but be careful, for it is not just a good read with helpful tips, there is also powerful Light that will shine into your life, revealing your flaws and bringing you to conviction and hopefully repentance.

HOW THINGS HAVE CHANGED...

          One popular saying nowadays is, "My how things have changed." This is normally presented by an older gentleman who is leaned back in his chair, hands folded neatly on his chest or belly, while he observes something very odd or different from when he was a young one coming up. I've typically seen them as good men in faded blue overalls with a clean checkered or plain white shirt underneath. His boots are broken in and well-used. The hat on his head carries the insignia of a farm supply store, fertilizer company, or his favorite brand of vehicle (Chevrolet). In his eyes are the signs of many years of hard work, on his skin are the proofs of such toil. This in my mind is the man I think of when I hear that saying.

           While things like technology and culture change, most of us tend to shrug this off and decide the comment is just old-fashioned. That those old men are just on their way out and to not listen to them. Today, we are progressive, today, we are smarter, healthier, and more concerned about others. And yet, I was reading a passage in Jeremiah the other day that shows how little humanity actually does change.

Jeremiah chapter 7 is a must read. It's not exactly Moses-parts-the-Red-Sea kind of action, but there are several points about how we actually haven't changed at our core, even though external things change all the time. In verses 8-11, God basically says that His people do whatever they please, whenever they please. They worship other gods, the Baals, the Asherah and then come into His house, declaring His name, and saying, "We are delivered!"

          I just wonder if we substituted what the people of God were doing with things we do; let's try.
- His people do whatever they please, whenever they please. They get drunk, slander and hate, overeat, and then come into His house, declaring His name, and saying, "We are delivered!"

          Today, we are progressive, today, we are smarter, healthier, and more concerned about others?

          Too often we overlook valuable lessons from the past because we just do not know our own history; as an individual, as a nation, as a person of faith. Jeremiah was sent with a message to remind the people of their past, and what was to come if they didn't learn from the mistakes of those who had gone before. I wish there were more young men and women that would take an hour or two of their time and sit beside their grandfather or grandmother, or just their old neighbor down the street. We really cannot understand how much we can learn from them. That even though the cars are faster, the tvs brighter, and the phones smaller, we are all really just people caught up in the ebb and flow of this world.

          I'm not a Bon Jovi fan, but he modernized an old saying that will leave you with a reminder about how people really are.

The more things change the more they stay the same
The same sunrise, it's just another day
If you hang in long enough they say you're comin' back
Just take a look, we're living proof and baby that's a fact
You know the more things change the more they stay the same
Never and forever just keep comin' back again
Don't hold out for tomorrow or hold onto yesterday

GOOD NEWS ON VACATION

          Today's post is long... but worth it.

          Vacation was this past week. As I am typing, we are finishing up the pile of laundry produced after a few days away from home. How do three people wear so many clothes? Anyway, I have been on a bit of a journey the past couple of months. It's one of those times that God teaches you great things but during the process you want to say, "Please just let me off at the next exit."
          Towards the end of this past school year, I was non-renewed for a contract at my school. This simply means that my contract wasn't terminated (fired), but that I would not be offered a new contract for the upcoming year. Tough thing to deal with. I had planned on looking for a position closer to home, but not exactly with this sort of motivation. Needless to say, I've been on the hunt.
          Until this past week, the job search hasn't been fruitful. To be honest, in an economy like we have, employers are only hiring their exact ideal, not taking chances. Me, being a second year teacher, am kind of still a chance. There have been worries, fears, insecurities, doubts, and freakouts. Overall, I know and understand that God will provide. That I have never doubted and referred to in my last post. But there is a tangible fear that humanity throws in our face: bills, wife, child, food, shelter, transportation, health.
          These things have weighed on my mind, heavily. My heart has been burdened by what to do. Wednesday morning, I loaded up my family, along with Sara's cousin and her family (who I claim as family just as much as she does), and we headed out to Gulf Shores for a couple of days away. My mantra for this trip may have been Hakuna Matata, but was more like; God will provide, quit worrying. So I did.
          The picture at the top of this post is of my son, Ben, holding his bottle and looking at the ocean from the balcony. Can I tell you that in that moment, being there with my family was all there was. There were no non-renewal letters, interviews, refusal letters, empty promises, dodgy phone conversations, or any of the like.
          I knew, really knew, that God was going to take care of me. Not just me, but also those he entrusted me to take care of, namely Sara and Ben. *Soapbox: Get that guys (if any guys read this). Your primary responsibility as a husband or father (future or present), isn't to make it big at the office, to strike it rich in your career, to have the best toys, to hang with the boys, make alot of noise, and I'm out of rhymes for that. But your charge is to take care of those entrusted to you; mainly spiritually, emotionally, and physically. There is a balance here. Don't pawn it off on pastors to take care of their spirit or psychologists to take care of their emotions, because that is your job. Ramble tangent....
          After my epiphany, we settled down and went to sleep. The next day, and watch this, I got an interview for a job and another small-time side job, all in one day. That may not sound like much to most, but it's definitely on the up and up. God had to bring me to a place of full faith in him before he would let me see just a smidge of what he has planned. More and more I see his faithfulness in my life, and more and more I realize just how small of a man I really am.

          If you are in a place of limbo right now, in between jobs, relationships, life situations, whatever, begin to seek God, not really seeking your job title in Leviticus 2:9 (dummy reference), but to seek who God is. He will not fail when you seek Him. Just don't put a timer on God, He's been around a while and His plans are typically better than yours.

I MUST DECREASE, HE MUST INCREASE.
       

THE LITTLE THINGS

       
          Yesterday I was in the doctor's office with Ben for a routine checkup. There were two things I noticed: One, that I was the only man by himself with his kid; Two, money doesn't mean anything about raising kids. Odd way to start off, I know, but it's to make a point.
          One parent was obviously less well off. She had two kids with her, one boy about 2 years old, and a little girl about one. All of their clothes weren't the best quality. The lady had a skull tattoo on her forearm and a cherry tattoo on her leg.
          The other parent came in with a girl of about ten years old. Both were dressed very well. Obviously both mother and daughter were well provided for and taken care of. The mother had a Kindle and the daughter had an iPod.
          These two parents, living two very different lives in very different circumstances, might judge one another if asked or inclined to do so. Judgements based on external appearances might prevail, but I saw other things that made me look beyond clothing and possessions.
          The lady that was well off with the Kindle never spoke to her daughter while in the waiting room, neither did the daughter speak to the mother. This bothered me. They were inches from one another, but miles away in thought.
          The other lady with the two little ones was doing everything she could to teach. She quizzed her little boy about the animals on the wall, she played with her daughter and tried to reinforce obedience in the waiting room. No electronic devices, no distractions.
          Today I was in a comic book store in Hattiesburg, thinking about how awesome it would be to have all the coolest superhero stuff for Ben. I know one day he probably will (Nana and Papaw) but today I just enjoyed being with him, listening to him and interacting with him.
          What is most important in raising a child, as a parent of 2 years, is to pay attention to your child. This may seem asinine to have to say, but thinking about the last time you really paid attention to your child, or children you are responsible for, could help you to be more like the woman who was not as financially secure, but more loving to her kids.
          I myself would rather be scraping by with the joy of being blessed with a child, than begrudgingly taking care of a child. Jesus said whatever you do to the least of these you have done unto me. Think about that the next time you brush aside your child, or scold them for getting on your nerves when you are distracted by a game, tv show, or app on your phone.
       
          ENJOY THE LITTLE THINGS, BECAUSE THE LITTLE THINGS ARE WHAT YOU REMEMBER WHEN YOUR LITTLE ONES ARE GROWN.