Wednesday Morning Devotional

A Dream

And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.  Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.  — Joel 2:28

I don’t dream a lot.  I used to dream all the time.  When Tonya and I watched about 3 seasons of “24” in about a month, I had some crazy ones.  I believe that whatever we saturate our minds with produces dreams.  Ever since I have become a pastor, I have probably tripled my study time with the Lord.  The cool thing is that it hasn’t been burdensome.  I find that hours kind of zip by and I wonder where the time went.  The even cooler thing is that it is 2:56 am on Saturday and I just had a dream and God said “go write your dream.” So, here goes…

I had just driven a team to a game.  I have my CDL license that allows me to drive a bus.  I haven’t driven one since I’ve started working my new job.  I don’t know what the sport was, but when it came time to go home, I found myself riding the bus and wondering who was driving.  I was talking with my friend named Andrew.  We drove by a mountain.  I immediately noticed that it looked exactly like the mountain in all of the “Paramount” movies.  When I told Andrew this, he looked, but it was like the mountain got so big and so close that we could only see mountain and we just stared until it disappeared.  Honestly, I just thought that was kind of weird.  But, I just typed in “paramount” in Miriam-Webster and paramount means “coming before all others in importance,” as well as “of the greatest or highest degree or quantity.”  Other dictionaries say “of chief concern or importance,” and “supreme in rank, power or authority.”  Now I am beginning to understand.

As soon as we passed by the mountain, I wondered who was driving the bus…it was supposed to be me.  Andrew called somebody and told me that it was being taken care of, so don’t worry about it.  All of a sudden, the driver pulled in to this narrow road.  It was so narrow that it scraped the sides of the bus, but it did barely make it through.  We immediately parked at some restaurant that was near a park where there were lots and lots of people.  The driver got up out of his seat and said “I’ll be right back, I have to go get my friend, Adam, he is ready to meet the Lord.”  He went in, we all got off the bus, and the driver soon came out with someone I didn’t recognize.  For that matter, I didn’t recognize the driver either…I was supposed to be driving the bus.

Adam and the driver knelt down in front of me and Andrew.  We just looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders, gave each other a “this is cool” look, and put our hands on them and prayed while the driver led Adam to Jesus.  “Lord, I know I’m a sinner.  I need you to save me.  Come in to my heart and make me brand new.”  As he was praying, I felt everyone gathering round…I mean tons of people.  I looked up and my wife was there, her sister was there, my dad was there, then I just looked out at all the masses.  Adam, who had been holding his hat over his heart leaped up, threw his hand in the air with his hat in it.  He didn’t say anything, but people just started clapping.  I was weeping like crazy.  My wife was all tore up.  She kept saying “I wish I had my phone to record this.”  I said “me too.”  It just kept getting louder and louder.  There were so many people.  It was thunderous…

And then I woke up.

And then I typed this up.

As I was typing, I think I received the interpretation.

God is the mountain.  He is paramount.  He is righteous.  Without righteousness, how could someone possibly get to Him?  “Your righteousness is like the highest mountain.” (Psalm 36:6)

The Holy Spirit is the driver of the bus.  We may not recognize Him, but He is there.  He lives inside many.

The Holy Spirit will lead you to a Narrow Road…a VERY narrow road.  If you are saved, you were led to a place where you had to surrender to a man named Jesus.  You had to make a decision to receive Jesus Christ, or reject Him.  I saw a picture that someone had posted on Facebook of Stamp Creek Landing, it was the very spot that I made my decision 22 years ago.  My heart leapt.  Even though it was just me, my Sunday school teacher, God, and those quiet, still waters, I know now that Heaven rejoiced that day.  I wonder just how thunderous and majestic it was in Heaven.

Make sure you have bowed before the King of Kings and that you still call Him Lord of Lords.  Make sure you have a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.  If you say you are a Christian, where did you meet Him and invite Him into your heart and life?  Make sure that you are pointing people towards Him by the way you talk, the way you work, the way you love, the way you forgive, and the way you just simply exist.

“I tell you in the same way there will be more rejoicing in Heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.”  — Luke 15:7

I am thankful that someone showed this Adam the narrow road.  There are a lot of other Adams out there who need you to show them the narrow road that leads to life.

Later

Adam

Fighting From Victory

So this is what the Sovereign LORD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic. — Isaiah 28:16

Seven Hundred years before Jesus even got here, Isaiah was saying that He would come. That is amazing! One of the reasons it is easy for me to believe the Bible is its predictions. God said that a redeemer would come…a lamb of God who will take away the sins of the world. He came. His name is Jesus Christ. When I was 16 years old, I received Him into my heart and life. Ever since then, He has led me to places that I never dreamed possible.

One of those places is Lifeline Community Church in Westminster, SC. This past week, I was officially made the interim spiritual leader and teaching pastor. Most people upon hearing the news simply said “praying for you”, or “congratulations.” However, there were a few people who told me something to the tune of “be careful, now Satan is coming after you!” My first reaction to this…was fear. Fortunately, when I feel fear, I think of some other words that Isaiah wrote, I like the way the King James Version says it (I hear Russell Crowe in Gladiator reading this): Fear thou not; for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. (Isaiah 41:10)

When I think of the worst happening to me, my mind goes to Job. The Bible says right off the bat that he was a man who was upright and shunned evil. Satan wanted to attack Job. However, Job was so well protected by God that Satan literally went to God to complain about it. Satan admitted to God “Have you not put a hedge around his household and everything he has?” (Job 1:10) This gives me unbelievable hope. If I am an upright man who shuns evil on a daily basis, will God not put His hedge of protection around me? Why should I expect that God will not do for me what He did for Job?

Now, the rest of Job is kind of scary. To think about losing all of your children, all of your possessions, and all but about 1% of your health is scary. But, in all of this Job was never stricken with panic. Even though it caused Him to question God, it never caused Job to leave God or ever think that God was not in control.

So, I sit here thinking: “What if the worst did happen to me?” On the surface, I consider the worst to be losing my family, my home, my job, basically all the stuff that I enjoy in this life. Don’t get me wrong…that would be awful. But, the worst would be for the presence of God to not be with me regardless of my circumstances. If I am walking daily with my Lord, will I not trust that my life, along with my family and possessions are in His hands? Job wasn’t a pastor, but he still had that proverbial bulls eye on his back. The truth is, no matter if I am a pastor or just a plain ole math teacher, I should be living in a way that points people to The Lord and I should draw Satan’s attention anyway.

I say all that to say this: I have the victory! I have read the end of the book. Satan, evil, and sin get destroyed in the end. There is no stopping God and His plans. Therefore, I don’t have to fight for victory. Sure, I have to fight sin and temptation, all of which could give the devil a foothold to damage me and my home should I allow. But, if I am walking daily with my Lord, whom shall I fear? God is with me! I am more aware of that right now than I have been at any other point in my life. Whatever happens to me, if it is from Satan, that fool has to go to God and get permission to touch me, my family, and even my stuff. If God allows him to harm me, it will only result in bringing me to a better place in the end. God only has my ultimate best interest in mind…

Just as He did with Job. Here is (cue my best Paul Harvey voice) the rest of the story.

After Job had prayed for His friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as He had before. All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the Lord had brought on him, and each one gave him a piece of silver and a gold ring.

The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters. The first daughter he named Jemimah (I wonder if she invented the pancake), the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch. Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job’s daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers.

After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation. And so Job died, an old man and full of years. (Job 42: 10-16)

By placing his life in God’s hands, Job was never fighting for victory. He was fighting from it…

May you and I do the same

Later

Adam

The Hidden Things

Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the duty of all mankind.
For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil. — Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

I have this saying that I use in “counseling” people who feel like others “get away” with doing wrong things while they get “called out” for what seems like every little thing. Proverbs 24:1 tells us not to “envy wicked men.” Unfortunately, it is easy to envy those who are taking the easy way and seem to have it all…it certainly seems they have much more than you. My saying is this: “Nobody gets away with anything!”

When I got my first job at a golf course as a cart attendant, I remember my very first day. There was only one other person that was working that evening and it was our job to close up. Well, the kid I was working with found out that if you put money in the drink machine, then pressed the money return button and held it down, it just kept on spitting out quarters. By the time he was done, over 400 quarters came out of the machine. Every fiber of my being was screaming that it was wrong. He must have sensed my uneasiness because he “made” me (quotations because it was ultimately my choice) take half of the money. That “blood” money bothered me for about a week or so, but I didn’t know what to do…I was too scared to turn the guy in and I kept thinking I’d get fired from a really cool job if I did. Nobody called us out. In fact, we never heard a word about it. There wasn’t anything ever spoken about money being stolen from the machine. So, we got away with it…right?

People are “hiding” things like this every day. I mean, if I hadn’t told you that story, you would have never known. There are men that look at pornography after their wives go to bed, and their wives never know. There are hidden alcohol and drug addictions. There are people that are gaining money in dishonest ways. Maybe they’re stealing from their employer. Maybe they’re stealing credit card numbers. Maybe they’re hacking into computers to steal identities. Who knows? They think nobody knows, but God knows! He sees what we are hiding, and nobody gets away with anything. For God will bring every deed into judgment.

These verses say “whether it is good or evil” We can do hidden things that are good and be judged for them as well. If you seek to conquer sin in your life, you’ll be rewarded! (Check out Revelation 2:26…and there are lots of these in Revelation.) If you read the Word and pray in complete privacy, I mean nobody knows but you and God…you’ll be rewarded! (Check out Matthew 6:5-13.) If you are seeking Him, and going after Him with all your heart, you’ll be rewarded! God knows the motivation of your heart!

He knows if I’m playing the guitar or doing my job for Him, or simply doing it for myself! He knows if the reason I preach the Word is to make myself look good, or if I’m really trying to advance His kingdom. He knows if I am a fake. Since I started WMD, I’ve been called a “false prophet” by a few people. Some people think I’m spreading “lies.“ I’m okay with that…let’s face it, God knows everything and nothing is hidden. He knows my heart I beg Him every day to make my heart pure and clean! I absolutely hate what I find in my own heart sometimes. But, God is faithful and He gives me grace and mercy. Every time I repent of a “cancer” in my heart…He fills it up with more of Himself. He’s making me more and more like Himself every single day. Have I arrived? Nope, never will…at least until the day He calls me Home.

If there are hidden things that you don‘t want God to judge you for…repent now while you still have time! If you still do those kind of things, stop immediately…or at least begin to pray for Him to help you stop. If you don’t have the hidden discipline of studying God’s Word, praying, giving, and fasting in your life, there‘s no better day to start than today. Instead of asking God all the time for forgiveness because of hidden things that you’ve done that are wrong, start doing the hidden things that are right. He will change your heart, and you’ll never regret the time you spend with Him.

Later

Adam

It’s a Wonderful Life

If any man be in Christ he is a new creation, old things pass away, all things become new.  — 2 Corinthians 5:17

So I’m just chilling with my dad on New Year’s Eve watching a 3 piece band rock out some tunes.  They played some Skynrd, some Tom Petty, SRV, and many more.  These guys were probably in their 60’s and you could tell they had been together for a while.  They had guys asking about their equipment (including me), praising their abilities, and just inquiring about their band in general.  You could tell that this was what they lived for.  Somewhere in the middle of it, I saw myself up there in 20 years.  If I had followed my teenage dream of playing music for a living, that most certainly could have and probably would have been me.

I am not trashing that life at all.  There are people that God has called to live that life and are honoring Him while doing it.  That life just isn’t what God had in mind for me, and I almost hate the fact that something in me still gravitates toward it every now and then.  When I pick up my guitar to play a bit, it is ridiculous how many of those old “bar tunes” I still play.  However, as it stands, when I got saved 22 years ago, God changed my heart and made all things new.  Every time I played those songs for people, I just wasn’t happy.  I felt conviction.  That still, small voice in my head would not shut up, and to be honest, I wanted it to go away…until the day I was offered the opportunity.

I will never forget the day God gave me an ultimatum.  He was telling me in my spirit that I was to either follow Him and His leadings, or follow my own wants and desires.  I just knew that if I chose my own way that God was done sending His strong conviction within my heart.  The strength of it was already fading in intensity as the months and years went by.  I knelt by my bed and chose Him.

So, I bring in 2014 by remembering what God has brought me out of and what He has brought me to.  I am becoming very aware of what it means to make an eternal difference.  It would not matter one bit if I played music for the entire world, made millions of dollars, had every kid wanting to be able to play like me, and had all of the fans, groupies and girls that life had to offer.  I would not know the life I have now.  I wouldn’t know what it was like to be crazy in love with one woman the past 14 years.  I wouldn’t know what it even means to love God, love other people, have the presence of God, lead others to Him, point others back to Him, write WMD’s, and starting this Sunday…preach the Word on a weekly basis.  I will be honest with you, I’m a bit nervous and scared, but I know God is with me and that with Him, I cannot fail.

I say all that to say this:  Follow Him in 2014.  Maybe you have been saved for years.  I was saved for a lot of years before I decided to follow Him.  I can guarantee you two things.  First, it will be REALLY difficult when you truly decide in your heart and go for it.  In fact, circumstances for me got worse and I wondered for about 2 years if following God was worth it.  Second, if you stick with it, you will realize that following Jesus is absolutely the most rewarding thing a person can do. There Is nothing like being a new creation in Christ and growing spiritually! It’s just one of those things…you can’t accept another’s word for it; you have to experience it for yourself.

So, I took one more look at those three guys, listened to them play one more song, and walked away.

I never want to go back to my old life.

Happy New Year

Adam

A Changed Heart

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  — Isaiah 9:6

As I watched my children get absolutely anything and everything they could possibly want, I wonder when my wants changed.  I don’t think it was that long ago.  I do remember a few gifts that I opened that excited me…my Nintendo, my Castle Greyskull, my Sega Genesis with Mortal Kombat, and several times that I received hundreds of dollars to go towards buying myself something expensive.  Those are the first things that come to mind out of the countless gifts I have received.  I recently found my Merlin game that I received when I was 8 or 9 years old.    I remembered so much about that Christmas at my Grandma’s house.  I really can’t believe the game still works.  American made is definitely better than China made.

I am just now learning that I can have the presence of God.  I have felt His presence in such a real way this past year that I am chasing it now.  I expect it to happen at some point every day.  It comes in some strange ways.  I was watching the WestJet Christmas Miracle on YouTube just the other day and God leaped on me for about 30 minutes.  I just sat there and marveled that as extravagant as they were on that day, God is even more extravagant with me.  The tears just kept rolling as I was on the mount of transfiguration with my Lord.  I have learned that this feeling is the best thing that this life offers.  I will continue to chase it every day for the rest of my life.

What if Jesus had never come?  There are many who honestly have convinced themselves that He didn’t come, and the Bible is just a book written by men to control people.  They don’t believe that the Bible is true, much less the Words of God Himself.  What if I didn’t have the hope that it offered?  What if I had never received the words of eternal life that I was offered as a selfish 16 year old teenager who couldn‘t get enough of worldly pleasures and temporary things that it offers?

I’d still be lost.

I’d still be thinking that enough money, the right job, or the right girl would make me happy.

I’d still be a slave to my immorality.

I would not know Him as any of those things Isaiah calls him.

But as it stands right now…I am free.  I am free to pursue God because I am a new creation.  In Christ, old things really did pass away and all things became new.  I am caught up in this growing process that will literally never end.  Every year that passes by I realize that more of the old has died, and more of the new has been birthed.  I think I have finally realized that there is always a new level with God.  There will continue to be a new level with Him for all eternity.  I will continue to love Him more and more year after year forever and ever.  That is amazing!

So here I am on Christmas morning waiting for my kids to wake up and rambling away on this WMD.  I just want to say thank you to all of you for your encouragement and support over the past several years.  Many of you have prayed and still pray for me constantly.  We are all in this fight to become Christ-like together.  None of it would even be possible if God had not sent His Son…who is Christ the Lord!

…and the feet come downstairs.

Merry Christmas

Adam

Four years ago my wife wrote a WMD about my friend, Greg.  He is going through a rough chunk of life right now.  I ask any and all who will to pray for him and his family this Christmas season.  I pray that he remembers this as he reads and God just floods his soul.  I pray that he finishes 2013 well and 2014 is the best year of his life. 

My Desire

So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.  2 Corinthians 4:18

But seek first his kingdom, and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. — Matt. 6:33

“Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” When we learn to let the Lord be THE lord of our lives, it is amazing to watch Him in action. I absolutely love to see God in the small details in people‘s lives. I find myself looking for these experiences. When a friend is sharing a story with me, I often ask myself, “I wonder what God is up to?”.

On Palm Sunday, Adam was supposed to help serve communion during the service. He was late getting to the pre-service meeting, so the pastor that was organizing the communion part of the service asked a friend of ours to fill in for Adam. As I was sitting down, Adam joined me and told me that Greg was taking his place. He said Greg was overwhelmed at the opportunity. Greg grew up in a church where only the deacons could serve communion, and his daddy was one of the men that did that in his church. His daddy is now in Heaven. He was so touched to get to do this. He knew how proud his Daddy would have been of him.

As Adam told me this story, I looked down at the front row where the servers were seated. When I spotted Greg, he had his face buried in his hands giving thanks for the opportunity to serve. The tears started to flow for me! If you knew his story, you would know how far he has come over the past few years. He is an example of someone that delights themselves in the Lord. He hungers for more of God…the more he gets, the more he wants. He is an encourager to many around him.

Okay, it gets even better!! When we got home, he and Adam had been texting back and forth. Not only did he get this blessing of an opportunity, his Mom was also at church that morning. She also got to share in this wonderful event in his life. AND, I got to experience one of my favorite things too…seeing God in the small details of somebody’s life.

When we are living our lives for God, our desires begin to change. My desires are not for material things, although those are really nice. Those are my wants. If I get it, that is awesome, if not, it is not a big deal. They are temporal. My wants change with the wind. A desire is a longing. Longings don’t come easy, and they take a long time to happen. They are eternal. That means that we must focus on Jesus day to day. He wants us to experience the good things that come only from pursuing Him. Love. Joy. Peace. Patience. Kindness. Goodness. Faithfulness. Gentleness. Self-Control. When Adam and I are out on a date, we usually end up going shopping. Before Easter, we were in Target looking through the toy aisles for bubble machines when we saw a Sleeping Beauty costume. Caroline loves Sleeping Beauty! Of course, we had to buy it for her. The thing was… we had to wait until Easter to give it to her. We really wanted to give it to her that night, because we knew how happy she was going to be. It made me realize how much our Big Daddy does that all the time. He wants to give us those special blessings in our lives, but too often, we are making Him wait. We are too busy living our lives to please ourselves and not Him. He is waiting on that moment when He looks at us and says, “Great job Kiddo, you are doing a good job pleasing me!” Just like he did for Greg on Palm Sunday morning.

Let’s work on it! Decide today that the things that you long for are worth pursuing on a daily basis. Live to please God in EVERY decision. It is hard…I struggle with it all the time. But I do know this: the more consistent we are in doing it, the easier it gets.

So what is it you desire? I know what I long for. I desire to see my children grow up to be strong in their faith. I desire that every year that Adam and I spend together that we grow deeper in God and closer to each other. I desire to see all the members of my family saved. I desire to see the way God works in the small details of people’s lives. I desire to see my story be a part of His plan.

Take delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart — Psalms 37:4

Looking forward

Tonya

What does it mean to have a Mary Christmas? Luke 2:5 says “He (Joseph) went there (to Bethlehem) to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.” Think about it, Mary was literally carrying Jesus on this painfully long Journey. Joe didn’t walk her out to the SUV and make her as comfortable as possible. I’m sure you ladies can imagine being in the 3^rd trimester of pregnancy and riding on a donkey almost 100 miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem. It was long, it was hard, and it was extremely uncomfortable. She was miserable, but she did have Christ growing inside of her.

Let me start with those who are on a long, hard road right now.  Some of you have given your life to God and things just are not all that great.  Maybe you’re more hurt than excited that it’s Christmas time.  Maybe you’ve lost loved ones. Maybe you never had a real family to celebrate the holidays.  Jesus flat out tells us that in this world we will have trouble, but He also tells us that He has overcome the world.  Your life, like Mary’s, might be very uncomfortable ride right now.  Fortunately, we know the rest of the story!

If you have asked Jesus to forgive you for your sins, you have Him growing in YOU! You are the one carrying Him on this journey called life! Is He growing in you? Can you feel Him move inside you? Is it obvious to the people you love that you are pregnant with the King of Kings? Galatians 4:19 says “My dear children for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you.” Is He forming in you? Let me tell you how you can know.

When a woman get’s pregnant, her appetites change. She may want pickles and ice cream or something crazy like that. When you truly get saved, you want the Bible, praise and worship music, preaching tapes, Christian books, devotionals, and simply to hang out with other people that love Jesus…basically, you want what the world would say is “crazy stuff like that.”

The pregnancy progresses, and there comes a point when she feels the baby start to move. She tells everyone to “come and see,” “come and feel,” “experience this NEW LIFE inside of me.” In a similar way, time goes by after you get saved and God starts to move in your life. Have you told somebody that you have NEW LIFE in you? Have you told them that life hasn’t been the same since He came into your heart?  If you tell them what is going on inside of you, many will probably think you are crazy.  You eventually get to the point where you don’t care, the new life is far better than man’s approval.

This leads me to my last point! After several months goes by, it’s obvious to everyone that comes into contact with a pregnant woman that she is about to give birth. The woman may try to hide it for a while, but towards the end, she just doesn’t care who knows. The baby is there and is about to come out of her. After several months of growing in the Lord, reading His word, spending time with Him, feeling Him inside you, you should get to a point where you don’t care who knows. What you have in you is so great, so powerful, so wonderful…you just want everyone to know that there is this new life pouring out of you! Let it be known that you are a child of the King!

Here’s the thing: We have some messed up thinking. We actually think if the Bible was back to being taught in school, things would change. The Bible is being taught in churches, and I would say the majority of the people in church don’t live any different than the people that don’t go at all.  We actually think if all the stores plastered “Merry Christmas” on their entrances things would be better. I hate to be the one to break the news to you…nothing would change.

Things will change when true followers of Jesus have a Mary Christmas and actually start denying themselves, carrying their crosses, and following Him. I know that cross gets heavy.  I know it is inconvenient, especially in America today.  However, I also know the rewards.  Rewards which can not be matched!

Instead of being mad about the store sign, tell people about what He has done in your life. Live like He’s actually growing inside you! Live like He is with you ALL the time, because He is! I don’t know of a single person that saw “Merry Christmas” on a department store door or window, was moved to tears, repented of their sins and became a follower of Christ.

I do know plenty of people that read or heard Luke 2:10-11 and it changed everything:

Do not be afraid, I bring you GOOD NEWS of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.

Mary Christmas!

Adam

Work at it

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.  It is the Lord Christ  you are serving..  — Colossians 3:23-24

This has been probably my most often quoted verse of the Bible.  I make my best effort to do this every day.  I spent Black Friday cleaning out my gutters and taking care of my leaf problem.  I didn’t really want to do it.  So, I brought this verse to mind and tried to work like I was working for Him.  3 hours went by in a flash.  It felt so good to accomplish so much.  When I was done, I wasn’t even tired.  I had just spent 3 amazing hours with the Lord continually on my mind.

The reason I write about this verse again is because of the line “you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward.”  I always thought this verse meant that if I reluctantly did the things that I didn’t want to do, but had to do, then I would receive a great reward in Heaven.  Well, what I am discovering is that the inheritance is Him.  If I can figure out how to constantly work, play, or whatever it is that I am doing, if I can keep Him in my mind and do it all like I am doing it for Him, then I will not only get it done and get it done better, I will enjoy it.  This has been a fantastic revelation that has brought truckloads of peace into my heart.

I think back over my work career.  I worked at a golf course as a “cart boy” for 7 years.  I loved that job, but it never crossed my mind that I needed to work that job as unto the Lord.  When I was 22, I became a math teacher.  For about 6 years I did it, but did not really enjoy it.  Once again, the thought had never crossed my mind to teach like I’m working for the Lord.  I was one of those “minimum requirement” guys.  I was going to do the least I could possibly get by with.  Then, I read Colossians 3:23.  This was the first time I had ever thought about my attitude towards my job.  In light of this verse, my attitude was awful…I had to change.  I spent the next 10 years actually learning what it meant and what it took to be a teacher.  More specifically, a teacher working “as unto the Lord.”  I can honestly say it has been the best 10 years of my life.  God has already rewarded me greatly.

I say all that to say this.  I don’t know what 2014 holds for me.  The Lord is opening some doors that I never in a million years thought would possibly open for me.  Please pray for me as I simply strive to live day by day the very best that I can.  Today, I am supposed to relax, rest, write this WMD, and spend time with my family and my God.  Tomorrow, I am to go to school and be the best teacher and the best influence I can possibly be in the lives of my students.  Keeping this approach just makes life simple.  I like simple.

I don’t really know why the Lord had me type this up.  Maybe there is a few of you out there who are reading this and are miserable at work.  Take a few moments to think about what it would look like to do what you have to do for the Lord.  What would you have to do different?  What would you have to start doing?  What would you have to stop doing?  Consider everything you can possibly bring to mind, maybe even write those ideas down.

Whatever that something is that you do…put your heart into it.  Work at it as if God Himself is watching every minute detail.  Enjoy having Him there with you.  It won’t be long, you will start enjoying what you do.  You will also have people ask if there is something wrong with you.  After all, nobody is supposed to be happy at work.  It is then that your very purpose in life comes to fruition.  You get to tell them about how the Lord changed your heart and life, and how you are simply trying to do what it is you do for Him.

If you say you are a Christian, it is the Lord Christ you are serving at whatever it is that you do.  Whether at school or at work, may you and I both do our jobs to the best of our ability.  May there be no other person who puts more of their heart in what we do than you or I…regardless of the behavior of others.

Serve the Lord with gladness;

Come before His presence with singing.

Know ye that the Lord, He is God:

It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves.

We are his people and the sheep of his pasture.  — Psalm 100:2-3

Later

Adam

When Thanksgiving becomes Praisegiving

She (Leah) conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.”  So she named him Judah.  Then she stopped having children.  — Genesis 29:35

It is difficult to believe that Thanksgiving is once again upon us.  2013 is almost gone.  I haven’t attempted to make a thankful post every day this month, but I am certainly thankful.  In fact, I believe thankfulness is pretty easy.  It is super easy to think about all of the stuff that benefits me and my life and be thankful.  So yes, I am thankful for Jesus who gave His life for mine.  I am thankful that my wife chose to marry me eleven years and eleven months ago.  I am thankful for my kids, my parents, my health, my job, my church, my home, my cars, my guitars, my abilities and my books…especially my Bibles.  I am thankful for countless other things that don’t even come to my mind because I am beyond blessed.

It is interesting to me that almost every person who is asked what they are most thankful for will say “friends and family.”  To me, this means that people are the most grateful for the fact that they are cared for and loved.  This also quickly makes me think about the Leah’s in this world.  On the surface, I bet everyone thought she had it made and had it all together.  She came from a wealthy home and married a wealthy man.  Unfortunately, if you know the story, she was deceived when she got married.  Her dad tricked Jacob and pulled a true wife swap on what was supposed to be his and Rachel’s wedding day.  I would bet that Laban convinced Leah that Jacob was “a good man” who would “take care of her.”  She probably bought into it despite the fact that she knew Jacob only had eyes for her younger sister.  So, she goes through with it.  How did that turn out for her?  Genesis 29:31 says that the Lord saw that Leah was not loved.

In a strange twist of fate, Leah was able to have children, but Rachel was not.  So, Leah does what a countless number of teenage girls have done.  She does what a countless number of wives have done who married immature “boys” who would rather hunt, play golf, play video games or “hang with the boys” than love their wives (and yes…I was one of those immature boys).   She has a baby thinking it will be the difference maker.  She thinks that will fix everything and her husband will all of a sudden magically fall in love her.  She repeats this process two more times saying things like “Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him 3 sons.”  I can’t imagine how desperate she must have been for authentic affection.

I know that there are a lot of hurting people in the world.  My job consists of working with lots of kids who are hurting.  On the surface, they act all tough and act like everything is cool, but I have heard some of their stories.  As I have listened, they all seem to mention a great moment of hurt.  Somewhere in their lives they felt used and insignificant…just like Leah.

Leah made babies trying to get her husband to love her.  Teenage girls by the millions are hopping in and out of bed with boyfriend after boyfriend hoping that sex will bring them love.  Teenage boys by the millions are using drugs and alcohol in an attempt to be accepted by a crowd that they think are friends.  I bought into it as well.  I remember buying certain clothes in an attempt to “be cool.”  I remember drinking that alcohol that I didn’t even like so I could blend in with the party crowd.  I remember sleeping around simply so I could brag and be like the other teenagers and young adults who sure seemed so happy living life that way.  None of that stuff ever brought peace.  It was simply a never ending cycle of searching for the next “fix.”

I never received peace until I did what Leah did.  When she had tried and tried to do it the world’s way and received nothing in return, she said “this time, I will praise the Lord.”  In other words, “I am done trying to win the attention and affection of people.  I am going to put my life in the hands in the one who made me and who loves me simply for being His creation.”

Maybe your heart is full and you are so thankful this Thanksgiving that it is very easy to come up with reasons to be thankful every day and even post those reasons on Facebook and Twitter for the world to see.  If this is genuinely you, then I don’t have to tell you to enjoy your holiday season.  On the other hand, maybe you are hurting.  Maybe you are living life in a way that is simply trying to please people around you and you feel like you are receiving nothing in return.  If this is you, there two options.  Either keep doing what you are doing, or make this Thanksgiving your first Praisegiving.  Praisegiving consists of disregarding your present, unfavorable circumstances and praising God.  Most people will choose to continue their same dead end cycle.  But, a few people will do what Leah did.  This time, they will praise the Lord.

Keep in mind that her circumstances didn’t change…

Her focus did.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Adam