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I’m Just Here for the Boo’s

Well happy Halloween, everybody. Anybody still dress up on Halloween now that you’re not a kid anymore?

The event wasn’t a huge thing for me as a kid. I do remember one year, though, I got a paper knight’s mask from Denny’s or some other restaurant, my parents wrapped some kind of box in aluminum foil, gave me a little cardboard sword (also wrapped in aluminum foil), and I used a pot lid as a shield. I was one mean-looking knight, let me tell you. I was, probably in my second or third year of college?

No, just kidding. I was a kid, probably 3 or 4 years old.

The fun part about Halloween (aside from the candy) is getting to dress up and pretending to be something you’re not. It’s fun for a few hours. Some people unknowingly embrace a lifestyle like that, though. Jesus called some people out for doing this.

Pharisees and those highly educated on the law held positions of authority and were responsible for teaching God’s word to a people who didn’t have ready access to their own copy of the scriptures. Rather than focus on justice and mercy, the spiritual leaders harped on strict adherence to the tiniest aspects of the law (even going so far as to institute laws God did not command). They did a great job tithing even to the smallest detail (giving the appropriate portion of their herb gardens) and made sure they sternly warned anyone who dared to walk too far on the Sabbath, but they completely neglected the things God actually valued.

When Jesus confronted them on it, here’s what He had to say: “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.” – Matt 23:27-28

(That was only a portion of what Christ said during an exchange where He didn’t hold much back.)

Jewish law forbade people from touching graves, which caused ceremonial uncleanness. Tombs back then were whitewashed on a regular basis, their brilliance causing them to stand out and warn people away from them. It also helped them look very clean and neat. In combination with sometimes having ornate decorations on the tomb, you could get the impression that these were very nice places to be, almost forgetting the decay, uncleanness, and defilement residing inside.

My point? Sure, have fun dressing up for Halloween for a little bit, but don’t forget…it might be easy to hide your true self from others, but God can peer right through your best costume and knows exactly who you are. If that’s not something you’re happy about, maybe it’s time to make some changes in your life.

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Race to the White House: Under Two Weeks To Go

Well here we are, less than two weeks out from the election.

We’ve reached the point in election season where polls have begun tightening. This is normal, and is kind of a predictable thing. This explanation for why this happens is going to sound a little conspiracy-theory-ish, but you can go back and look at data from past elections and find it holds true in many cases.

To be honest, polling data isn’t super useful except for giving news commentators something to talk about. If that’s true, why start showing polling information months ahead of the election? The answer is a little counterintuitive. Poll results are released very early for the purpose of beginning to shape public opinion, not to measure it. Pollsters are very rarely politically agnostic. They want to steer the public toward a certain outcome, either by disheartening people supporting one candidate or by making them want to throw in with the winning team. This is why you’ll hear campaigns sometimes refer to their internal polling data. They wouldn’t need internal polling if the publicly available polling was reliable.

All right, so pollsters want to shape public opinion, but why do polls start tightening as the race nears an end? Well, it’s because pollsters aren’t stupid. After this election, there will be another election, and then another one after that. As political races near their conclusion, pollsters begin conducting polls more accurately, enabling their future selves to showcase accurate examples of their past work, including working with solid methodologies and appropriate sample sizes, to potential clients. As those methodologies change, they move away from tactics used for shaping opinion, and more toward those used to capture accurate snapshots of it. One way that’s done is by moving toward a more equal balance of both sides of an issue in the polling data (instead of an early poll of 1043 people comprising 573 Democrats and 470 Republicans, they’ll move closer to a 50/50 split, for example).

Just a note on why Donald Trump’s actual level of support is normally more than what shows up in polls. Political pundits, the news media, and a variety of others have done such a good job demonizing Trump, making people think he’s “unhinged” or a “threat to Democracy,” that people are sometimes reluctant to express support for him to anyone outside their trusted friends/family. They just don’t feel safe being honest with pollsters looking to get an idea of the level of support each candidate has. They’re more likely than Kamala Harris supporters to either skip answering a survey altogether or answer “I’m undecided” instead of verbalizing their “controversial” support for Trump. I think this is one of the biggest reasons Trump’s level of support gets underestimated. I think Trump is more likely to have this “hidden support” than Harris is. If that’s true, Harris’ level of support in the polls is about as good as it’s going to get, but Trump could still have some additional room to run.

As far as the national poll, the Democratic candidate usually wins that one. It’s not how you win the White House, though. Our elections are not decided by popular vote; they’re decided by the Electoral College method. National polling is essentially meaningless. You win the presidency by getting to 270 electoral votes, not by winning the popular vote. That’s why accurate polling from battleground states is so highly sought after.

If you live in a battleground state, you’re probably sick of seeing political ads on TV, hearing them on the radio, or getting them in your mailbox. I can’t help with the TV and radio versions, but I can tell you how to cut back on the amount of junk mail, phone calls, and door knocks from campaign volunteers you receive. Campaigns can be very smart with the money available to them. They don’t often spend money on canvassing or flyers when they don’t need to. Kamala Harris doesn’t need to campaign in Massachusetts or Maryland; she’s going to win those states. It would be a waste of money then, to send political flyers to supporters in those states. That money would be put to better use in a state or area where the outcome is less certain.

You may already know that your voting record is publicly available. Not your record of who you’ve voted for, mind you…your record of past elections you’ve shown up to vote in. Cost-minded campaign officials target the people with a demonstrated history of voting. As early- and mail-in voting begins, election officials remove the names of people who have voted from the pool of remaining eligible voters. This data is available to all campaigns. If they know you still haven’t voted, they see you as someone they still want to send advertisements to. If you want to help a campaign financially without actually donating to them, vote early so the campaign can spend its resources on someone who may still be considering voting. If you want to stop getting phone calls and junk mail, vote early. Doing so will remove you from the list of registered voters still eligible to vote, rather than you.

One final tip. Let’s say you’re not happy with either candidate but will still show up to vote for your choice of Senator and Congressional Representative. Many people doing this will skip over the presidential portion of the ballot. That’s something you don’t want to do. Doing it this way enables somebody without scruples, whoever that might be, to hijack your legitimate ballot and vote for their preferred candidate, having it count as much as every other ballot during a recount. Still don’t want to vote for either of the major party candidates? Choose somebody to write in. I hear Mickey Mouse consistently appears as one of the top write-in candidates. Writing in someone’s name, even if it’s not a real person, prevents the ballot from being misused in that capacity.

Keep the elections in your prayers. No matter where we are two weeks from now, almost half of the country is going to be unhappy with the outcome. Pray that the process would be secure, that people will trust the system, and that the winner would be a president for all Americans. We know nobody in power gets there without God’s allowing them to, but outcomes can still be tough to accept when your will doesn’t line up with God’s.

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I Never Even Tried Before. Why not?

Boy, I don’t even think my parents know about this one. When I was in 11th or 12th grade, I did something very uncharacteristic of me. I decided to try out for the school play.

Now you have to understand, this was a very unusual thing for me to pursue. There must have been a cute girl in the cast or something. I can’t think of who it would have been, though. Honestly, I think I just wanted to try something totally new.

I can’t even remember what the production was, but I remember I decided to read for the part of a major supporting character. It wasn’t a lead role or anything, but it was somebody who’d grab a lot of attention when on stage. Think ‘Franc’ from “Father of the Bride” or a detective in some other play.

I’d never done a school play before (aside from stuff in elementary school). I went to the interest meeting, got a copy of the play, and grabbed a packet to fill out. In that packet I wrote down the part I wanted to play. One of the questions they asked was something like “if you don’t get your preferred role, are you willing to accept a different part?” I thought it over for a bit, then answered “no.” At some point I turned in the packet, and eventually received information for auditions.

The faculty member in charge of the play was an English teacher I’d had sometime in high school. She knew me from class, but I’d never worked with her in an acting capacity. Whatever the role was, I gave it a shot during the audition. I thought I did fine, but didn’t know the teacher’s thoughts on it. Ultimately, I didn’t get the part, and I don’t know who did. Since the “try something new” thing didn’t pan out this time, I didn’t even go see the play.

With the benefit of hindsight, I totally get why I didn’t get the part. Even if I had a really good audition, I had no track record for the director or other students to rely on. The director can’t take an unknown and throw him out on stage in a prominent role. Will he freeze? Will he nail it? There’s just no way of knowing. Besides, if we’ve got Joey over here, trying out for the same role, and the director’s worked with Joey before, she knows a little better what she can expect from him. Unless the director’s short on cast members, there’s really no upside to picking the brand new guy who’s only willing to play one particular role rather than someone who’s been in plays before and is willing to consider multiple roles if it helps the team out.

Christianity can be a little like this. When it comes to leaps of faith and following God’s lead in your life, track records of past experience are important. The twist here, though, is that past performance doesn’t help God trust you any more, it helps you trust God more as He provides for you in subsequently bigger and bigger ways. With the benefit of hindsight, you can see how your previous struggles and challenges helped prepare you for subsequent larger struggles and challenges. Again, this doesn’t build the Lord’s trust in you, but you get to look at your history of being faithful and seeing God at work in and through you. Seeing that, you trust Him more.

I’d also urge you to be willing to play something other than your preferred role. We can get comfortable in the ways we serve God, and become less and less willing to step out of our comfort zones as time goes on. The Lord loves a willing heart. I’ve heard it said that as Christians, we’re always in the furnace or on the anvil. God spends a lot of time honing us and shaping us into who He wants us to be. I believe a willingness to follow His call into waters deeper than we’re comfortable with is a great way to demonstrate our obedience both to Him and to ourselves.

If you have no track record of faithfulness to the Lord, why not start today? Start small. Begin reading from the Bible every day. Start tithing. Stop doing things you know you shouldn’t be doing. Get rid of stuff you know you shouldn’t have. Being faithful in the small things helps build that history, that lifestyle of obedience. As you follow through on those small things, God will give you bigger opportunities to make a difference in someone else’s life, or lots of other peoples’ lives.

But it all starts with small steps of faithfulness. Start building that track record today.

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You’ve Got Me Seeing Stars

I enjoyed showing various video clips to my kids when they were little. When she was a toddler, I showed my youngest daughter a computer-generated animation accompanied by “Twinkle, twinkle little star.” It was slow-paced, so it easily held the attention of young little eyes. This particular version, about two and a half minutes long, featured an owl who looked up at the night sky and decided to fly up high to get a better look at a star hovering above.

As he flew to a great height, the star came to greet him. The two new friends frolicked along the tops of clouds for a bit, to the owl’s great enjoyment. It was utter happiness for the two, sharing these magical moments. Alas, all things come to an end, and eventually the owl began to fall back to earth as the star watched, waving goodbye, ending this brief friendship.

My daughter watched, captivated, until this part. As she saw the look in the owl’s eyes, along with the star’s farewell wave, a profound sadness came over her and she began to cry. This was a completely unexpected reaction. Of course children want to be in the presence of their own mother from a very young age, but it turns out even a child too young to write her name understands the importance of togetherness and the pain of separation in others. Communion and fellowship are hardwired into us; we need others.

After we slip from this life into the next, there are only two possibilities for how we’ll spend eternity. The first is joyful bliss in the everlasting presence of the Lord. The second is the shock and pain of isolation from Him. When we picture Hell, we often think of fire. While eternal smoke from unbelievers is described in the Bible (Revelation 14:11), I think we usually miss the fact that folks in this category have no chance of ever getting right with, and spending time with the Almighty, other than standing before Him in judgment. While Christians can rest in the idea of Christ’s love, those who reject Him will themselves be rejected and cast into an existence of separation from Him (and likely everyone else).

Just a little reminder of what’s at stake here. You might very well be the only person to speak Christ to someone else. Don’t worry about messing it up. They’re already facing the worst-case scenario: eternity separated from the Lord. You can’t make it any worse, but you can help them gain the only thing that matters. Start a conversation today.

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A Vivid Reminder of His Goodness in my Life

Years back our family took its first plane trip. We visited family in Colorado, had a lot of fun, enjoyed our time quite a bit, and went to the Denver airport for our return trip as travel pros.

I have a gigantic book of Sudoku puzzles I brought with me on that trip. I’d dink around with it on and off during the flight. Trying to switch things up to reduce boredom for our kids, we moved them around to different seats part way through the flight. My youngest daughter, who was four years old at the time, would be sitting next to me for the landing.

During final approach when we started to really drop in altitude, she developed a nose bleed. It was the worst possible time to do it, too. The seatbelt signs were on, the flight attendants were all buckled in, and I didn’t have any tissues or napkins or anything. I called to my wife across the aisle, hoping she’d have some tissues. She did, but they were in her purse, stowed in the overhead bin.

It was such a helpless feeling, not being able to help my little girl when she needed me and couldn’t do anything to help herself. To my great relief, someone in the row behind me heard what was happening and gave us some of her tissues (thank you!).

Once we got home again, we unpacked our things, did all kinds of laundry and grocery shopping, and life began to return to normal. After things had returned to normal I sat down with my Sudoku book. I opened it up to the page where I’d last been working, and was almost startled to see blood on the page until I remembered where I’d been the last time I used the book. To this day I don’t think I remember anything else about that flight, but I remember the bloody nose adventure.

The Bible recounts multiple instances of the Israelites setting up markers, recounting stories to their children verbally, celebrating feasts, and using pneumonic devices to remember what the Lord had done for them. God set up these circumstances and commanded these reminders so that, in an age without notebooks, plaques, or screens, people would be able to easily remember the Lord’s actions on their behalf.

Although this little reminder of mine pales in comparison to being led out of captivity or being established in a land flowing with milk and honey, I’m nonetheless very grateful for the Lord’s provision for my daughter in a time of need. I wouldn’t even recognize the “tissue woman” if I bumped into her, but I’m glad our paths crossed for a few moments years ago.

Do you have any reminders in your own life of the way God’s moved for your benefit? It could be a scar, a vivid memory, or perhaps some trinket, memento, or photo. The Lord still moves in peoples’ lives today, and it’s good to remember His involvement in your life. Keep that in mind as you face new challenges in your daily living.

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Quick Hit: Now You’re Speaking my Language!

My dad grew up in a house where Norwegian was spoken frequently. He also spent at least one of his childhood summers with an aunt and uncle living in Norway.

Living stateside, even if Norwegian was the only thing spoken in his home, he still had exposure to plenty of English (friends, school, etc.). Making the transition for a summer to an environment where he was totally surrounded by people speaking a different language, he could speak English and some people would still understand him, but he eventually started switching over to speaking Norwegian because it was just easier to communicate that way. He said the weirdest thing was how, after doing this for awhile, he began to think in a different language.

Ever been faced with text you can’t read?

This is like what Christians are faced with in their lives here on Earth. Though this life figures prominently in our thinking and what we spend our attention on, this place is really only our temporary home. Even though Christians are citizens of Heaven, we’re deeply immersed in a foreign culture that shouts loud enough to drown out the values and ideals of our eternal home. Without maintaining connections to God-approved values in the form of Bible readings, prayer, Bible teachings, and Christian fellowship, it’s easy to be overcome by the persistent influence of this world.

Even though we’re only here for a brief lifetime, it’s important to maintain these connections to “back home” where we’ll be spending the bulk of our time. We’re in this world, but not of it. Don’t get too attached to the things your home culture places no value on, and don’t let your thinking be overtaken by the culture we’re only visiting. We’re going home someday, after all.

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When Pushing too Hard can Push Others Away

I like to take different types of personality tests. It’s fascinating to answer a bunch of questions, then get results accurately describing the way I approach life. I’m one thing on the Meyers-Briggs, I’m something else on the Enneagram, and I’m a variety of other things on other tests. It’s always humbling to receive such accurate descriptions of myself from complete strangers, and then realize no matter how detailed those descriptions get, my creator knows me at an even deeper level. He knows not only my strengths and weaknesses and how I deal with conflict, but the failures and victories still ahead of me, how I’ll respond to challenges He knows are coming, and to what degree I’ll rely on Him through it all.

One of the tests I’ve recently taken focuses on the way I communicate with others. I’m what’s known as a “Challenger.” A Challenger transmits courage and awakens calling. That means when I see people, I see greatness inside of them, and I want to both convince them and motivate them to unlock it. If you’ve poked around on the DareGreatlyNow website, in the “about us” section or in past posts, this may not be a surprise.

It saddens me to see people with untapped potential. I want to help people, especially Christians, believe they can achieve the improbable things God’s called them to do with their lives. I want Christ-followers to see they don’t need to sweat all the details, or even have a clear view of the big picture; they just need to do their part, whatever it is, and trust not only that God knows what He’s doing, but also that He’s weaving all the lives and efforts of other believers into a masterpiece to fight evil, save souls, strengthen faith, and glorify Him.

A pitfall for me is being susceptible to always pushing for more, always urging higher and higher levels of dedication or performance, at the cost of failing to stop and celebrate wins. “That was yesterday’s victory, we need new sacrifice to win today’s battle!” I’m in danger of pushing the people I communicate with away, making them think “will I ever be enough for this guy?”

So let’s meet in the middle. Right now I’m talking to my Christian brothers and sisters out there. How has God been at work in your life lately, and what wins in your spiritual life can you celebrate? If you’re trying to establish or improve devotional habits, for example, celebrate a win like “I read the entire passage I was supposed to read for my devotions,” or “I’m still extending my longest streak of daily devotions.” Those are wins, and they should be celebrated.

If you’re trying to get established in a habit or spiritual discipline, let me offer a tactic you might find useful. I’ll use the example of going to the gym, but you can use it for building time spent on devotions, prayer, volunteering, giving to the offering, and any other habit you’re trying to improve. If it’s been a long time since you’ve been to the gym and you’re pretty much starting from scratch, follow this simple rule. For the first week, go every day you’ve decided to go (three days a week, five days a week, etc.), but spend no longer than 5 minutes inside the building. You can walk in, get on a treadmill for 3 minutes, then walk out. Finish week one? Do the same thing for week two. Do it again in week three. What this is doing is helping you master the art of showing up. You’ll get tired of spending more time traveling to and from the gym than actually working out. Once you prove to yourself you can make room in your life for the habit, show yourself you can improve on it. Instead of 3 minutes on the treadmill, do 7, or instead of 3 mph, do 3 and a half. Turn a set of curls into a set of curls and a set of flies. Instead of two laps in the pool, do four. Celebrate those wins as you reach new milestones. While you’re reaching those new milestones, you just might realize you have it within yourself to reach for even higher goals.

In a complete left turn, here’s another way of looking at this. Sometimes artwork speaks to me in a way nothing else does. I came across this picture while looking for music to listen to while writing. More than any other picture of friends embracing, wildlife beside peaceful waters, or a single set of footprints on the beach, this picture challenges me to move toward what I want to be spiritually. We see a soldier, having fulfilled the task he’s been assigned, taking a moment in his exhaustion before rising to his feet. It’s been a long fight, and his strength is practically gone. He’s been fighting so hard for so long he’s got to mentally push himself to even summon the strength to stand. He’s come under fire, he’s probably lost companions, but the equipping he’s received enabled him to perform the feat to which he’s been called. He can’t see the bigger picture, but he doesn’t need to, because he trusts his commander to use him the best way possible. Yes, he’s been intimidated, overwhelmed with fear, and knows there’s no guarantee he’ll see tomorrow, but he knows those are only excuses for not putting forth everything he’s got. By focusing on the things he can control and not worrying about the things he can’t, he can channel all his energy into what he’s been charged with doing.

Though it’s not part of the picture, I imagine a scene taking place later, when this same soldier kneels before his ruler, having brought honor to him through his obedience, faithfulness, and tenacity. Receiving a hand on his shoulder and a joyful “well done” from the figure he wants most in his life to honor would bring him to tears.

It’s a metaphor of the way I want my life to look when it reaches its end, and it’s what I want to urge you toward in your own life. What strength are you holding back and not committing to your calling? Is there a tough choice you’ve been avoiding, because you know it will cost you something you’ve so far been unwilling to give? Celebrate the wins in your spiritual life, but don’t ever think “this is it. This is as high as I can go. God can’t use me any more than He already has.” The path to your greatest potential might just lie through your greatest fear.

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I Thought I had More Sand in the Hourglass!

I recently received a powerful reminder about the importance of using the spiritual gifts you’ve been entrusted with.

Coming home from work within the past couple of weeks, I drove right into a traffic jam. It was a road I’d driven a thousand times before, but this time the traffic stopped and barely moved. Sirens behind me drew my attention to my side-view mirrors, and I could see cars pulling off to the side to let emergency vehicles through.

Things weren’t totally shut down yet, so there was enough movement for us all to slowly merge into a single lane of traffic. Between the light at the next intersection and something going on up ahead, progress was slow. As I finally came around a bend in the road, I saw fire trucks with lights flashing, blocking most of the intersection. Lots of firefighters were out of the trucks, walking around, and one of them knelt next to a guy lying on the ground. A motorcycle lay on the ground a little further up the road.

As I neared the front of the line, a vehicle blocked most of my view of the guy who had been involved in the accident, but I could still see his feet. All I could see were his jeans and his work boots. I sat there wondering about the details of what had happened, when another firefighter, not in a hurry, came out and stood at the fellow’s feet, opened up a sheet, and spread it over the man lying on the ground.

Talk about a wake-up call!

I’d like to share two things with you today. The first is that life is precious; it’s fleeting, it’s fragile, and it’s over quickly. I’m sure that guy didn’t wake up thinking it would be his last day on Earth.

The second is more important. As Christians, we’re equipped with spiritual gifts, and the world is dying for us to use them. You don’t know how much time you’ve got left to put them to use. Don’t take your gifts to Heaven; Heaven doesn’t need them.

Between the time I write this and the time the post goes live, there will be countless additional tragedies around the world. I don’t know what the Lord has planned for your life if you accept His invitation to be used in His kingdom, but maybe you can prevent, mitigate, or bring comfort in the midst of some of those tragedies. I’m sure that sometime in the past few days, you’ve either personally been involved with, or you’ve heard about some unfortunate or terrible event in the news. Wherever you are, please take a moment to pray for comfort for the loved ones of those involved, and for the Holy Spirit to show you how you should put your spiritual gifts into action. The world shouldn’t have to wait for us any longer.

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Well THAT Almost Ended Badly!

Late August/early September is when college students usually head off to school to continue their education. I had some fun jobs during college. One of the ways I kicked off my senior year was by starting a job as a Teacher’s Assistant during a half-semester kayaking class.

In my senior year I was Vice President of our kayaking/whitewater rafting club, and had already spent a good amount of time playing with kayaks in the college’s pool. I liked the job because it had hours that worked for my schedule and was fun to do. A lot of it was simple stuff: setting up and putting away equipment, helping students get sized for their boats, helping them get in and out of the water, and just kind of being another set of eyes while a class full of novice paddlers grew in their ability to operate out on the water.

On our first day the teacher went over the different types of equipment we’d be using. Early on we just focused on the boat itself, the paddle, and the skirt. The skirt is so named because it resembles that article of clothing. You step into it, pull it up around your waist, and cinch it snugly around your waist. When you sit in the boat (still wearing the skirt), you stretch the rest of the skirt (the hemline, if you will) around a lip lining the boat’s opening. When paddling through rough water or you end up capsizing, the skirt prevents water from entering the boat and swamping it.

Skirt with a red loop at the front

It takes a little practice, but it doesn’t take long to get proficient at attaching the skirt to the boat. If you find yourself in a situation where you have to get out of the boat quickly, there’s a big loop at the front of the skirt you can tug on, easily breaking the seal and allowing you to exit. For safety reasons, one of the first things we did in the pool was practice flipping upside down while in the boat, then yanking on that loop so students got familiar with how to safely get themselves out of a capsized kayak.

If you’ve never used a whitewater kayak, they have sort of a different feel to them as far as how they move in the water. The keel is shaped differently from canoes or flat-water kayaks, so they handle differently. Designed to be more maneuverable in volatile currents, it’s easy to flip whitewater kayaks over if you try to turn them without flexing your hips to present more of the boat’s bottom toward the water you’re heading into (that might still be unclear; just know that it’s easy to flip the boat in a turn until you figure out how to do it). To gain experience, the teacher had everybody get into their boats, get in the pool, and have a friendly game of kayak water polo (no paddles, just hands).

It was a fun way for everyone to get used to how the boats felt in the water. Every now and then someone would hit a turn in a way they didn’t expect and end up tipping over. That team would be down a player while they dragged their kayak out of the pool (with some help from the teacher), got it drained, and got back into the game. It was a good way for the students to start putting together some of the basics.

The game continued for awhile, and everybody began gaining proficiency, so some of the students got more competitive. I raced against one of them to the ball, and I think the only reason I came away with it was because I knew how to anticipate the turn. He got there quickly, but he flipped his boat either reaching for the ball or trying to turn without doing the hip thing.

Whenever someone flipped during the game, we paused until we saw them safely exit the boat and their head broke the surface. I floated very near his boat, waiting, but he didn’t come up. I saw the boat shaking and his hands grabbing the underside of his boat, as though trying to push himself up and back, out of the kayak. For whatever reason, it wasn’t working; the guy wasn’t getting out of his flipped boat and he couldn’t get his head above water to breathe. Fortunately, we were in the shallow end of the pool. I pulled my skirt and rolled out of my boat into the water, then got to his kayak as fast as I could. Since time was a factor I skipped trying to help him exit the kayak and grabbed the stern of his boat, then twisted the whole thing hard so he was right-side up and could breathe again.

As the excitement faded and heart rates started coming back down to normal, we figured out the loop of his skirt was tucked underneath its hem. In his haste to get into the water, he had only focused on securing the skirt around the boat’s opening, and hadn’t paid any attention to ensuring the loop was easy to grab. When the time came to use it, it wasn’t there. It was like a fighter pilot needing to eject, but the ejection handle wasn’t there.

Is there any safety measure in your life you’ve been neglecting? The Bible gives plenty of advice about wise living. While few of its passages address situations as urgent as this, they nonetheless confront challenges every bit as dangerous. Are you hanging out with people influencing you negatively? Are you in a relationship the Lord wouldn’t approve of? The wisdom books of the Bible (Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon) provide plenty of insight on things to avoid and things to pursue. It explains the power of having friends you can trust (Ecc.4:9-12), the value of holding your temper (Prov. 19:11), the personal character we should strive to have (Psalm chapter 15), and numerous other bits of wisdom that can vastly improve the quality of your life.

Read these books, and then read them again. Reflect on different passages that stick out to you, and memorize them. When they help guide how you think and live, they help steer you away from the types of danger others fall victim to.

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May You Enjoy the Blessing of Becoming Who You Were Born To Be

I wouldn’t say I’m an authority on the issue, but it seems to me there’s a natural pattern of progression and growth Christians follow.

Before I get into that, I feel it’s important to state God works according to His plan and schedule, not ours. If someone spends much more time in a given phase than someone else does, it could be because God wants it that way. It could also mean they’ve stalled in their growth, but if that’s the case I feel it’s the Holy Spirit’s job to hound them, not ours (though I’ll concede there’s a difference between lovingly confronting someone and hounding them).

I’m going to describe the Christian’s progression in five phases. Again, I’m not an expert on this, it just seems like this is a regular pattern based on my observations. The lines can easily get blurred. People might skip ahead, revert back, or repeat some of them, but in general, it seems to consist of the following pattern.

The first of the Christian’s phases is conversion. No surprise here. This is the switch from Satan’s kingdom to the Lord’s kingdom. It’s that recognition and acceptance of reality: “I’m a sinner, and I can’t meet God’s standard of perfection.” It’s here they recognize their shortcomings and their need for Christ’s sacrifice. Hell lost another one, and it makes the angels celebrate.

The second phase is thankfulness to God. Often there’s a sense of “there’s nothing I can do to repay Christ for the gift He’s given to me.” That can be very difficult for some people to accept, especially those who’ve worked hard to earn what they’ve got. Those people may spend the rest of their lives in this second phase. A heart full of genuine thankfulness and praise is often a hallmark of this phase. Think of the thief on the cross next to Christ. He spent a small fraction of his life as a believer, yet it seems to perfectly dovetail with God’s plan.

Third is a dedication to living a God-honoring life. People in this phase read the Bible and soak up its lessons, becoming a new creation in Christ. This phase can look very different for people. While Christ breaks the bonds of addiction for some almost instantly, others walk a long road toward recovery (with Christ walking alongside them every step of the way, even if they never fully get there). Some people turn their backs on their old ways or non-Christian friends and leave their surroundings while others become infused with Christ and bloom right where they’ve been living. For some this could mean fleeing an oppressive environment for one more conducive to cultivating a Christian life. I think of converts to Christianity in areas of the world where such declarations are dangerous; once you can no longer hide your conversion even if you might want to, you’re probably at least in this third phase.

The fourth phase is stepping into one’s calling. All Christians are empowered by the Holy Spirit with spiritual gifts at the moment of salvation. Taken together with their natural inclinations and interests, these characteristics generate opportunities for Christ-followers to roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty. It’s when they step into the role they were made for. This is where they live out Romans 12:1, becoming a living sacrifice. A big part of getting to this step is realizing you don’t need more training. You don’t need to pursue any more degrees. You already have everything you need to start doing what you’ve been called to do. It’s time to get out there and impact the world through your God-given calling, whatever that is. It’s not your job to feed the 5,000; it’s your job to bring the loaves and fish.

Finally, phase five is mentoring. Christian mentors have been believers long enough to offer the benefit of their experience as they see brothers and sisters in Christ struggle with various challenges. It’s difficult to overstate how life-giving it can be when, while facing something incredibly difficult, you find someone who’s been where you are and perfectly understands your fight. I think of infants’ moms wrestling with post-partum depression, overwhelmed immigrants in a strange new land, couples struggling to adapt to their new marriage, and young pastors getting ready to throw in the towel. The beauty of this phase is it doesn’t take any special training. You probably already possess the hard knocks experience required for the role. You just need to be open to coming alongside someone who needs you.

Again, I want to emphasize the importance of not turning this into an ego thing and judging success by the phase number reached. Each of these phases has their own brand of challenges and God custom-builds different people for different roles. Maintain humility and do your best to live a God-honoring life in whatever phase you find yourself. Do your best to do what God made you for, and phase numbers won’t matter.

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Is There Really Any Purpose To Being Made To Wait?

Lately there’s been a beautiful stretch of weather where I live, but it’s not always this nice in August. The current low-humidity 70s and 80s are very nice, but once upon a time I worked in the field of residential construction, and I’ve had to deal with some nasty weather conditions.

I don’t even remember this dude’s real name, but everybody called him “Lumpy.” (The origin of the name, I think, had to do with some poorly mixed spackle or grout.) One hot August day Lumpy and I were working in Jersey somewhere, and it was time to call it a day. We jumped in the company truck and got on Interstate 80 to drive back to Pennsylvania. Everything went fine for awhile, but we ended up running into a wall of red brake lights on the highway.

I stopped the truck and we just sat for a bit, waiting for the jam to start breaking loose. Only it didn’t. We just sat there, waiting. The truck idled so long the fuel gauge began dipping. Brake lights turned off as people put their cars in park and killed their engines. Eventually people got out of their vehicles and walked around.

Not knowing how long we’d be there, we shut off our engine, too. The cold air from the A/C stopped blowing, and rather than bake in a hot vehicle, we opened the windows and got hit with hot, humid air. As we sat there sweating, we saw people get out of their cars and go sit in the shade of the trees, either talking on their flip phones or Blackberries, lighting (or bumming) cigarettes, or wandering into the treeline to find an impromptu restroom. People rolled down their windows and began talking with complete strangers. Lumpy wasn’t the most talkative guy, so we just sat there, listening to the radio and waiting for something to happen. What else could we do? We were powerless to get ourselves out of the situation.

I don’t know how people sensed movement, but at some point they started getting back in their cars. The brake lights turned on again as they cranked engines and put cars into gear. I can’t think of many times I was more relieved to see a traffic jam start to move again. I was psyched to hit 30 mph. I have no idea what snarled traffic so badly, but we made it back without further incident.

Sometimes you find yourself in a period of waiting, where all you can do is watch beyond-your-control circumstances play out. They are agonizing at times, often emotionally draining. This example is much more lighthearted than what a lot of other people have to deal with, but it illustrates the concept that sometimes God just wants you to wait. Maybe it’s to teach you to rest in Him, maybe it’s to force you to deal with something you’ve been avoiding. It could be a time where something’s being prepared for later. I know it’s hard. Sometimes it’s really hard. This is one time I can’t provide much insight, as God’s purpose in making you wait could be tied to any number of reasons. Spend time in the Word and in prayer, listen with everything you’ve got to what the Lord may be saying to you, and look for ways to make the most of this unusual season. I don’t know when it will be over, but seasons don’t last forever.

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The Past and Future, Both Predicted Long Ago

Let’s build a little off the last post, which went through some reasons to take the Bible seriously. This one gets tricky to visualize though, so I’m going to use movies to tackle a tough biblical subject.

It seems like lately Hollywood ran out of original ideas, so they started rolling out sequels to decades-old movies. Some of them are fun and work well (Top Gun, Creed), others not so much (Indiana Jones), and a whole bunch I haven’t seen so I don’t know (Beverly Hills Cop, Blade Runner, Tron, Mad Max, Bill and Ted, Coming to America, etc.). One such franchise is “The Matrix” series.

The Matrix came out in 1999, followed by two sequels, both in 2003. Then, much later, a final (I hope) Matrix movie came out in 2021. Three different timeframes, all part of the same story. We’re going to use this scenario to help frame our discussion of Daniel’s prophecy of the 70 weeks, which I believe to be one of the most interesting prophecies in the Old Testament.

I have to give a little disclaimer here. There are a few different possibilities as far as the way things can be interpreted, so I’m going to present the way that makes the most sense to me. Things don’t jive perfectly the way I’m going to explain it, but they’re close enough that it makes you say “yeah, there’s something to this.” Just know I could easily be wrong about some of the details, but I encourage you to look into it for yourself and see what people much smarter than me on the subject have to say.

In Daniel 9, verses 20-27, Daniel receives one of the most interesting, but difficult to understand prophecies of the Bible. Daniel, a very godly man, is given the future timeline for some of the world’s most historic events.

Before jumping in, it’s important to have a little context. When you and I think of a “week,” we think of a seven-day period of time. They certainly used this term back in Bible times (God created the universe, earth, and humanity in a week in Genesis, and only a few verses after our text, Daniel mourned for a period of three weeks in Daniel 10:2-3). That’s not the only way the word “week” is used, though. The week you and I think of is a week of days. In this prophecy, a week refers to a period of seven years. Thus, the prophecy of 70 weeks totals a period of 7 x 70, or 490 years.

Here’s the Matrix tie-in. Remember how the movies didn’t all come out in the same year, but were kind of close together in the beginning, then had a big gap between the middle installment and the last one? That’s similar to what happens here. There are 490 years involved, but they’re not all consecutive. Daniel 9:25-27 breaks it down, though not in the most intuitive way. The 70 weeks is going to be broken down into three chunks: seven weeks, 62 weeks, and one week (49 years, 434 years, and seven years, respectively). The first two chunks run back-to-back, and the third one is off floating around by itself. What events are these chunks marking? The answer lies in those same few verses. “From the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem until Messiah the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty two weeks; the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublesome times.” –Dan 9:25

This was written before Christ arrived on the scene. If we look back at history, we can figure out when that command was given and work our way forward. We know from the last post Judah was carried off to Babylon. That city changed hands, falling to the Medo-Persian Empire while Daniel lived there. When Daniel wrote down the prophecy of the 70 weeks (probably sometime between 536 and 530 B.C.), he was serving in the same city while Jerusalem lay in ruins. In the year 457 B.C. the Persian king Artaxerxes gave the Israelite priest Ezra permission to re-inhabit Jerusalem (Ezra 7:6-10). This starts the clock ticking on the first seven weeks from Dan. 9:25. I can’t point to a specific event, but 49 years later, Jerusalem once again had Israelites living in it (including a rebuilt wall and gates courtesy of Nehemiah’s leadership) and Malachi, the final Old Testament prophet, had spoken the last word from the Lord before the Messiah’s arrival. The world then entered a 400+ year period of silence from the Lord (the Intertestamental Period between the Old and New Testaments).

If we do some math here, 49 years plus 434 years comes out to be 483 years. If you add 483 years to that initial “re-occupy Jerusalem” green light in 457 B.C., you’re very close to the year 30 A.D. That’s the year Christ entered Jerusalem riding on donkey, one week before His crucifixion. (If you want to be more precise on the math, 27 A.D. is closer to the mark, which is when Christ began His earthly ministry.)

Okay, good, so Daniel’s 70 weeks prophecy is holding up so far, but we’re still short one week/seven year period. Everything we’ve covered so far is retrospective; the prophecy’s math makes sense based on the events that have already taken place. Now we shift gears and look to the future. We’re looking at that final movie sequel, the one that was separated from the earlier installments by a much larger period of time. Daniel 9:26-27 gives some more insight into things. This period refers to the rule of the Antichrist near the end of time, and takes place immediately following the rapture of Christians (when the Lord pulls His followers out of the world to spare them from the horrors about to take place).

That last week, also known in Revelation as the Great Tribulation, can be split in half. Following the confusion and fear accompanying the disappearance of a large fraction of the world’s population in the Rapture, a smooth-talking politician is going to burst onto the world stage, he’s going to calm the panic and broker a peace deal between Israel and its enemies, and everything’s going to feel like it’s fantastic for the first three and a half years. The Bible also refers to these halves of the final week as 42 months or “a time, times, and half a time” (one plus two plus one half). Then, at the mid-point of the seven years, he breaks the treaty, bans Jewish sacrifice, and demands that he be the only one anyone worships (Dan. 9:27, 2 Thess 2:4). It doesn’t give a timeline for when that final week commences, but when the Rapture happens, the Antichrist arrives on the scene, if not before.

There’s a great deal more to what happens during this time in the book of Revelation (chapters 6 to 18), but I recommend using a study Bible with a good deal of notes to help explain it. I believe the point of including this prophecy is to say “look, only God could predict these things with this much specificity, and if the first couple components of the 70 week prophecy have come true, the last part is probably worth taking a look at.”

Finally, let’s suppose you’re not a Christian, but you’re intrigued by what you’re seeing here and in the Bible verses I referenced. Either the Bible is true…or it isn’t. If it’s true, that means the whole thing is true. In light of that, don’t you think it might be a good idea to look around at what else the Bible says? Specifically, I’m referring to humanity’s inadequacy to meet God’s standard and our corresponding reliance on Christ’s perfection and sacrifice on our behalf.

The study of the End Times is fascinating, but for all its razzle dazzle, it’s not nearly as important as the central message of Christ dying for our sins and extending the invitation for us to join Him for eternal communion with God after we pass from this life. As I said toward the beginning of this post, it’s something I encourage you to investigate for yourself.

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How Do I Know if the Bible is True?

You might be a skeptic who’s not really into the whole “Christian” thing, or maybe you’ve been a Christian for awhile but haven’t spent much time exploring the Bible for yourself. If you’re in any type of situation where you’re thinking about checking out the Bible, trying to figure out where to start reading it can be a challenge.

I’m not going to tell you where to start, but in this post I’ll help you understand a little more about how the Bible’s laid out and some of the things that make it so compelling. Bear with me for some of the stuff you may already know, and then we’ll get to the interesting stuff.

Let’s start with the basics. The Bible is a huge book, and it wasn’t all written by the same author. We (Christians) believe God separately inspired multiple people to write down what we now know as the books of the Bible, and those various writings collectively form the Word of God without contradicting the doctrinal points of any of the other authors. Those authors’ lives spanned multiple centuries. Moses recorded the first few books of the Bible, but at least one book (Job) was probably written before Moses even came on the scene.

The Bible is broken into the Old Testament (the books written before the birth of Christ) and the New Testament (written after Christ’s birth). The Old Testament is made up of 39 books, and the New Testament has 27. The Old Testament (from Creation and the start of humanity until about 400ish years before Christ’s birth) spans a much larger time than the New Testament (from Christ’s birth to about 95 years after His birth, with a look forward to the end of time).

Many people who aren’t familiar with the Bible don’t realize just how spectacularly the whole thing ties together. Remember…there are many authors of the Bible, spanning over a thousand years. Sometimes it’s hard to get two people in the same room to write similar papers that don’t somehow contradict each other. There are many verses from earlier parts of the Bible that forecast what will happen later in the Bible. Skeptics figure since the Bible is so old and has been around for so long, its ability to accurately predict these things is easy to fake. This is where it gets interesting. It’s not a monolith; it’s 66 different books, all written at different times. While some of their dates of writing are known pretty well, we have to ballpark others. Some of the predicted events pertain to forthcoming “religious” things (like where the Messiah would be born, what tribe He’d be from, how He would die, etc.) and others were focused on more secular events on the world stage (like the rise and fall of different empires).

The Bible spans so much time, parts of the Old Testament actually predict events that come to fruition later in the Old Testament. For example, the Kingdom of Israel split into two separate entities: Israel and Judah. When they both stopped depending on the Lord and started worshiping other gods, the Lord gave them lots of warnings through the prophets He sent. Eventually He had enough. In Hosea 9:3 and 11:5 He warned Israelites Assyria would carry them into captivity if they didn’t repent. They didn’t repent and Assyria conquered them. In Jeremiah 25:8-14 God gave a similar warning to Judah: Babylon will conquer you and take you into captivity if you don’t repent! Guess what? Judah didn’t repent and found itself carried off to Babylon. Recordings of those captivities are elsewhere in the Old Testament, but these geopolitical events are also verifiable outside of scripture, and these two prophets of the Lord accurately predicted them before they occurred.

One really tricky part to understand, especially for the people living when these books were written, is that the Bible often refers to two future things at once, one in the not-too-distant future and the other waaaaaay down the road. Jeremiah chapters 30, 31, and 33, for example, talk about the restoration of Judah and Israel. Context helps determine whether it’s talking about restoration from its human captors (near-term) or restoration from its sin-tainted past (at the end of this world). Similarly, Isaiah chapter 13 talks about the importance of the city of Babylon both before it became a major player on the world stage and then again when referring to the distant future, “the Day of the Lord” when Babylon represents humanity’s final uprising against God.

Likewise, there are plenty of prophecies (predictions) about the Messiah. Almost all of them were about things outside a normal man’s control. Even if Jesus were an exceptional con man, he’d still have to be the luckiest dude in the world to fulfill all the messianic prophecies he did (have a look at the verses listed in the graphic below). What nobody really expected was that the Messiah would come to Earth twice. Nobody really anticipated Him showing up for awhile as a poor and humble average Joe, then visibly stepping off the world stage for almost 2,000 years (and counting) before coming back in full power and majesty. While the Bible does say the Messiah will be a mighty conqueror, it evidently referred to the second time He’d be coming. Everyone figured it would all happen at once. That’s part of the reason some of the most devout religious figures of the day scoffed at Christ. They expected a mighty warrior king to free them from Roman oppression, and when lowly Jesus didn’t meet their expectations, they wrote Him off, no matter how much sense He made scripturally, regardless of the miracles He performed, and irrespective of all the other prophecies He checked the box for.

In a future post I’ll take a look at a prophecy from the book of Daniel that involves some timelines offering further proof of the Lordship of Jesus. Part of the reason the Bible records these prophecies is to help its readers understand that there’s something supernatural at work here. How could something predict the future with such great accuracy unless someone with knowledge beyond time was involved? If you’re a truth-seeker, chew on that for awhile.

For now, though, where does that leave us? The prophecies that still haven’t been fulfilled give us an idea of what to expect. We’re still looking ahead to when the prophecies of the second coming come true. Internet searches for bible verses connected to “End Times” or “eschatology” should return verses from Revelation, Daniel, 1 Thessalonians, and many more. There’s lots of your own research to do here. The more you research, the more you’ll see how it all ties together.

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Ever Feel Like Someone was Trying To Put One Over on You?

The world is plenty tense right now. Sometimes you just need a smile. I didn’t make it as a SERE Specialist (survival instructor) in the Air Force, but I heard some of their fun stories. Here are a few I hope you’ll enjoy.

To become a SERE Specialist, you’ve got to conquer many hardships. Aside from a very vigorous physical training regimen, you endure hunger, thirst, lack of sleep, conditions that are very cold, very hot, very wet, very dry, very demanding, and that require a great deal of perseverance. These people have learned that overcoming obstacles sometimes requires tremendous grit or discomfort, but the prize is worth the struggle. That’s why they get very annoyed when they’re charged with students who whine about having to perform easy tasks out in the wilderness during survival school.

The people attending survival school are people facing an elevated risk of capture. While those in some jobs are more accustomed to dealing with discomfort and challenges than others (Special Operations Forces, for example, tend to whine less than students from other career fields), the instructors at survival school also teach people who have never spent the night outside, or who have never had to face challenges requiring them to dig down deep within themselves to keep going. Other career fields showing up at survival school include pilots, navigators, flight engineers/crew chiefs, airborne linguists, aerial refuelers, door gunners, etc.

Adding to the dynamic is the general “wussification” of training requirements over time. I don’t know how tough things were before I went through, but I know things got easier after I attended the course. Students had to carry less weight, or walk shorter distances, or they received more food, or got more breaks. You can probably start to get a sense of a SERE Specialist’s ire when one or more of the students they’re escorting complains about how tough it is to carry their little 15-pound improvised ruck sack up two hills in a row.

Sometimes the SERE folks like to have a little fun with the students. They’ll mislead them every now and then when the opportunity presents itself. Even though the SERE Specialists are teaching valuable skills like land navigation, fire craft, shelter craft, and pointing out naturally occurring edibles, that doesn’t mean it has to be taught in a dry way. I heard one instructor recount how he was driving in a bus full of students to the wilderness training area when they came across an unusual sight. Loggers had stripped a hilltop bare, and the only feature on the now-naked hillside was a dirt road that encircled it, winding around and around until reaching the top. One student asked about it, and the instructor replied “those are topographic lines. They match the ones on your map. All mountains have them, but these are more obvious because we paid to have all the trees removed so you could see them. They’re not usually that easy to see when you’re navigating out in the field, so you’re going to have to pay close attention out there.”

On a different occasion, a class was making its way on foot from one point to another, building their land navigation skills. Students at this point are usually rationing their food and getting a little hungry, so instructors don’t want to do something blatantly mean, like eat a meatball sub in front of them, but they might have a cheek full of sunflower seeds as they walk along. One particular instructor brought a bunch of peanuts with him, still in the shell, and he ate them as they walked along. While they all stopped for a periodic break, he decided to play a little joke. Most of the time, peanuts still in the shell have a little slit on one end. If you squeeze the shell just right, the slit opens up a little. While the students were drinking water or checking their azimuth, this guy squeezed a bunch of peanut shells and hung them on the branches of a small tree. Then he called everyone over to share in his discovery. “Hey guys, come check this out! Oh, man, did we luck out, we found a peanut tree! We should pick this thing clean, these are hard to find! Everybody get in here, grab what you can, don’t leave anything for anybody coming behind us. Anybody allergic to peanuts?” Some people, of course, got the joke right away, but there are a lot of people out there who don’t know how peanuts grow.

One more. SERE Specialists have to be prepared for all kinds of serious situations in a difficult environment. They need to be prepared to deal with medical emergencies like broken bones, dehydration, heat injuries, allergic reactions, snake bites, puncture wounds, all kinds of stuff like that. In cold weather, the ability to quickly start a fire can mean the difference between life and death. There are all kinds of products available for quickly starting a fire. Out in the wilderness training areas, one of the most versatile is fire paste. Think of a tube of toothpaste, but the stuff you squeeze out of the tube is flammable. It’s great stuff, you can use it in a lot of different scenarios. One instructor used fire paste to try to combat some of the “wussification” I mentioned earlier. On a land nav break, he pulled up a half-buried rock, smeared some fire paste on the bottom of it, then tucked it back in its hole and packed the loose dirt back down so it looked undisturbed. “Hey everybody, get a look at this! Boy, did we luck out! This right here is a fire rock!” Lots of people with confused looks came and gathered around, and to their amazement, when the instructor held a lighter up to the rock, it caught fire. “Oh, man, this is gonna be great! Everybody else is gonna be jealous when you come rolling into camp tonight with fire rocks. You’ll be able to get a fire going in no time, and that’s good news when you’re trying to set up camp in the dark. This whole area’s full of ‘em. Gather up anything you can carry, we’ll use ‘em tonight!”

SERE Specialists have some unique opportunities to have fun at work. It’s good to be able to enjoy yourself and get paid for doing your job. If you spend a lot of time around the same people (family, colleagues, etc.), try to lighten the mood every once in awhile. There’s no sense trudging through your day with a frown all the time.

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The News Cycles Get Faster and Faster These Days!

Well good golly. Things are happening so fast these days, this post will probably be outdated before it goes live!

President Biden has removed himself from consideration for the 2024 election. The poor guy got pressured from everybody to drop out, and he finally gave in before they made it really ugly for him. I can’t say I blame him, though I hope I will have retired at a much earlier age than him! What does this all mean for the 2024 Democratic ticket? At this point, it’s tough to say with certainty. Right now there’s a very large effort underway to portray Vice President Kamala Harris as the nominee.

Mind you, that doesn’t mean she’s the best candidate. President Biden endorsed her the day he dropped out of the race, and people rallied behind her very quickly. This is probably a mistake on the Democrats’ part. I acknowledge the short timeline between now and the election drives a desire to quickly coalesce behind someone, but I think Democrats would be better served by taking more time to figure out who that “someone” should be.

Democratic voters have been exceedingly anxious since the Biden/Trump debate, when their candidate’s “A Game” was discovered to be at best a C minus. In hindsight, folks are realizing a lot of people have been covering up President Biden’s decline for a long time now. By comparison, Harris looks young and vibrant, and Democratic voters were quick to rally to her side because they’re more or less excited to have anybody besides the President. Right now polls suggest things are very tight between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, but I expect there to be some changes to the polling as the Veep gets out in front of more cameras or people and starts giving unscripted interviews.

Kamala Harris isn’t known for her gravitas or political acumen. (If you want a few giggles, search YouTube for “Kamala Harris – What can be unburdened by what has been (compilation).”) If she’s named the Democratic nominee, it’s definitely not for her merit as a political heavyweight, and if it’s not for her merit, we’re likely to be consumed by a fresh round of identity politics between now and the election. If she ends up the nominee, she’s going to need someone on the ticket with her who can counterbalance some of her weaknesses. Whoever it is, look for them to be a strong public speaker with a sharp wit, probably from a swing state.

But I’m not yet convinced Kamala Harris will be the Democratic nominee this cycle. Although many high-level Democrats have endorsed her as their nominee, she still doesn’t have the endorsement of Barak Obama or Nancy Pelosi. If those two give her their blessing, it’s a done deal. Until then, nothing’s for certain. When Biden dropped out of the race it freed the delegates he won in primary elections to vote for whoever they’d like; even though enough of them have pledged their support to Harris to secure the nomination, that pledged support isn’t binding. We may not actually know who the nominee is until the last night of the Democratic National Convention next month. From a strategy perspective, the best thing to do would be to let the excitement over Harris die down a little, get some more accurate polling information from Independents as people get a better handle on who Kamala Harris is and whether they want her as President, and then based on that and whoever else is available, pick your best candidate to be the nominee in a theatrical and dramatic way at the convention. I expect there are two main factions in the Democratic Party right now: the portion very vocal about supporting Harris, and the very quiet portion who’s fully aware of her flaws and weaknesses and is looking for an alternative and a way to install him or her as the nominee without severely disrespecting Ms. Harris in front of the whole world. Something that could increase Harris’s chances would be if Joe leaves the Oval Office before the convention. It would destroy Democratic unity to have Harris be president for just a couple weeks before announcing someone else will run to succeed her.

The irony of all this, of course, is that for all the talk of Trump being a threat to democracy and the Constitution, the fact of the matter is that whoever the Democratic candidate for President ends up being will have become the nominee without winning any primary elections. No everyday citizens will have voted for him or her. Kinda shady to bypass the will of the people, don’t you think? I understand these are unusual circumstances, but the fact remains the next Democratic nominee could be chosen by a small group of powerful people in a dark, smoky room without the electorate’s approval. Realistically there’s not enough time to organize a new set of primary elections so this is largely unavoidable, but this will forever be an interesting little asterisk in the history of American Democracy.

Another question is “What now happens to the ballots which have Joe Biden’s name on them already?” With President Biden forcefully insisting for weeks he’d be staying in the race, and the Republican National Convention having concluded by nominating Donald Trump as its candidate, it’s easy to understand if election officials said “go ahead and print the 2024 ballots using the names Joe Biden and Donald Trump.” Well right now only one of those candidates remains in the race. A very simple question suddenly becomes very complicated: “What happens when people vote for Joe Biden on those ballots?”

It depends on the election laws of the state the citizen is voting in, and we’ve got more than 50 different electoral jurisdictions (states, territories, districts, etc.), each with their own laws. Common sense dictates they’d be counted for whoever the Democratic nominee ends up being, but it may not play out that way. The best thing to do would be to move heaven and earth to get new ballots printed with the right names, otherwise Trump may very well end up winning some traditionally blue states on a technicality. If that happens, you can expect another storming of the Capitol Building in DC, this time by Democratic protesters.

In the meantime, look for some countries to take advantage of the U.S. disarray. China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea all have something to gain when the U.S. is weak or having a bad day, so be on the lookout for one or more of them to make some kind of move before Inauguration Day.

As always, keep our nation in prayer; we never seem to be short on unrest. No matter who wins in November, half the country’s not going to be happy about it. President Biden is still in charge, so keep him in your prayers as well. And finally, just because your neighbor doesn’t agree with you politically, help ‘em out if they need a hand. After all, Americans should come together when things are tough.

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When a Chance Encounter Doesn’t Happen by Chance

As a teenager, I worked as a lifeguard four summers. Thankfully I can count on one hand the number of times I had to take action to save anyone. There were a couple of times kids jumped into water a little deeper than they expected, and I was able to extend a rescue tube to them, but those were easy. I only had to go in after someone one time.

At the place I worked, we had two outdoor pools. One of them had both a shallow end and a deep end (three to nine feet deep), and the other one was deep all around, where the shallowest part was nine feet deep and it went to 12 and a half feet deep. It was my turn to keep an eye on the deep pool, where we had two diving boards. This pool was easier to watch because there were usually only a few people in the water at a time.

This one kid, probably somewhere in the 10-13 age range, got on a diving board and walked to the edge, then unceremoniously jumped in. It took him a bit to come back up, but he broke the surface eventually. It’s a difficult thing to watch someone who’s drowning. If they’re still fighting to keep their head above water, kicking is the first thing to stop. It’s a reflex; you kind of get tunnel vision and if you can’t see your feet, you don’t think about them. The person just stays vertical in the water and kinda slaps the water with their hands without kicking. This is what the kid was doing when I jumped in.

I totally blew off procedure. I forgot to blow my whistle to alert the guard at the other pool and I didn’t tell others near the diving boards not to jump into the pool; I just jumped in and started swimming toward the kid. Since I had a pretty good size advantage on him, I also totally skipped the technique I’d practiced countless times in training. Instead of swimming around behind him to scoop him up by his armpits onto the rescue tube, I made a beeline for the ladder nearest him and on my way past I grabbed him around the waist with one arm, holding his head above water even though it meant keeping mine under. The emphasis was on speed, trying to prevent an active drowning victim from turning into a passive drowning victim.

The whole thing was over in a few seconds. I got him to the ladder, where he was able to catch his breath. I asked if he was okay, and he gave a panting “yeah.” He climbed out of the pool and walked away, and at that point I just got severely irritated with him. I didn’t ream him out or anything, but I got instantly enraged. I didn’t say anything else, but how could he jump into such deep water if he didn’t know how to swim? If nobody was around, you would have died, dude!

For less than a minute more than 25 years ago, our two lives intersected. If I saw him today, I’d have no idea it was him. I’m clueless about what he went on to do with his life and whether he’s closer to the “dirtbag” or the “saint” side of the spectrum. He may not even remember that day so long ago, but whatever else was going on in his life at the time, it’s pretty obvious to me God wasn’t done with him yet. I’m confident anyone on our lifeguarding staff would have been able to bail him out of the trouble he got himself into, but I was the one sitting in the chair that day. The Lord allowed me to be the one to play a role in a small, but decisive part of his life.

Every now and then I think about that kid and wonder what he went on to do in his life. Think about the people you come in contact with on a daily basis. There are people you know and see on a recurring basis, but there are also plenty of people you’ll probably never see again in your life. For brief periods of time, your life will intersect with theirs. It could have been someone else, but it ended up being you. Not all those occasions will be so definitive or dramatic as pulling someone out of danger, but some of them might very well be (literally or figuratively).

Embrace those little encounters, whatever they end up looking like. You may have been put there to make a much-needed difference. Don’t squander the opportunity. Maybe one day you’ll look back and find yourself wondering whatever happened to that person. Better yet, that other person may look back and be thankful for the time they ran into you.

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Quick Hit: Why is Eden Guarded?

After expelling Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden, God posted angels with flaming swords near its perimeter to ensure they didn’t come back in. Ever wonder why?

The most obvious answer is as a consequence of their disobedience. God warned them what not to do; since they disobeyed, He had to impose consequences.

But an often-overlooked reason relates to what could still happen if humans got back in. The only limitation God put on the original pair was to avoid eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. They obviously missed the mark there, but the Garden still had a very special tree whose fruit would catastrophically affect fallen humans: the Tree of Life.

“And the Lord God said, ‘The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.’” – Genesis 3:22

Genesis isn’t terribly clear on whether they ate from the Tree of Life before they sinned, but it’s probably safe to assume they did at some point (how could you not try everything the Garden has to offer?). I can’t honestly say I understand what happens when sinless humans eat that tree’s fruit, but it would be a pretty big deal if an imperfect, sinful human ate from it. The verse above makes it pretty clear they’d be preserved in a sinful state forever. Christ still died for them/us, but without death, how can we ever be restored to true life?

In His infiniteness, God could doubtless still make a way to redeem them, but He chose, in His mercy, to prevent anyone from reaching the tree in the first place.

Still can’t get over the loss of that tree? Don’t worry, we’ll have access to it in the future: Revelation 22:1-3a notes “Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be anything accursed.” Don’t worry; you’ll get your shot at that tree (and its 12 different kinds of fruit) someday!

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The Good Ol’ Red, White, and Blue

Have you ever met someone that stayed positive and upbeat almost all the time?

Before I get into my story, I have to explain something to the non-military types reading this. When you’re in the military, there’s a lot of misery and generally terrible conditions you have to be prepared to endure. (After all, you don’t normally fight wars in the nice parts of the world.) As part of the coping mechanism, military branches and units try to buck up their troops with camaraderie and esprit de corps. There’s mixed success with this tactic, but it truly does help to know that when you’re trudging through the mud or up a mountain, your fellow troops are right there alongside you, and you’re not miserable alone.

Also, everything in the military is an acronym. Sometimes there are acronyms inside acronyms. It gets a little crazy. Don’t quote me on the history of this next part, but I think it was the Army that came up with the acronym “HUA.” It stands for “heard, understood, acknowledged.” It’s the military version of saying “got it.” It started getting applied in all kinds of situations. “Soldier, I need you to get rounds on that target NOW, do you understand me?!” “HUA!” Or maybe “we’re gonna grab some Chinese, then meet at the theater at 9, hua?” Over time it morphed into having different meanings; it became kind of a greeting, a rallying cry, or just something to say when you don’t have anything else to say. (I know a dude, long since retired from the Army, who couldn’t go more than two sentences without saying it somehow. “Hooah! Beautiful morning!” “Hooah, enjoy your day!”)

Different branches of the military are funny; a lot of times they want to do the same sort of thing but they don’t want to copy anyone, so they modify things a little. “Hoorah!” “Huh!” “Hooah!” “Oorah!” Where I spent time in the Air Force, it was “Hooyah.”

Anyway, all that’s prelude. When I tried out to be a survival specialist, we had to deal with a lot of uncomfortable, miserable, and/or physically arduous tasks. While we were waiting around for class to start, we spent the weeks doing different things like go on ruck marches in the mountains or in state parks with heavy packs, go on mini field trainings for three or four nights (think camping, but not quite as comfortable), and do a ton of physical training.

There was this one guy, Carl, who was relentlessly optimistic. Whenever he walked into the room or area where a bunch of us were, he’d greet us with a “hooyah, team!” He was so upbeat he came across as kinda goofy sometimes (this guy’s not really like this, is he?). If we’re on a ruck march, he’s bouncing back and forth to different groups of us, lifting our spirits. If we’re getting smoked during PT, he’s the one asking for more and encouraging the rest of us along the way. On one mini field training, when we’d already been out in the woods for a few days without any shower and we smelled like smoke, were tired and irritable from poor sleep and non-stop mosquito bites, and were generally over-tasked with things to do, Carl’s the guy looking for opportunities to goof off in a way that brings a smile to somebody’s face. This picture was one such moment. The other guy was hamming it up a little for the picture, but Carl saw him looking closely at the ground for a piece of gear or something and Carl seized the opportunity for a morale-boosting photo op.

One of Carl’s trademark moves was when we were all assembled at the start of the day. As the American flag was raised each morning to the sound of a bugle call, our formation snapped to attention and saluted for the duration of the music. As soon as the NCO in charge of us gave the call to “order arms” and go to parade rest (stop saluting and return to a more relaxed state), Carl would pipe up with a lone voice and shout “Hooyah, America!” Our instructors liked the sound of it so much that before long, we were all doing it in unison, every duty day.

Today’s our nation’s 248th birthday. That’s a long time for a nation to use a single constitution. We’ve had a lot of ups and downs as a country. Today it seems like the nation is trying to tear itself apart while adversaries band together. I came across the following statement and felt like it resonated with our current times. It applies to both men and women, but I wanted to present the original quote:

“Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times.”

We’ve been through some tough times as a nation, and it feels like we’re in one of them now. We can get through this one, but it will require strong people standing up for truth and justice. Hang in there, speak truth to power, and help out a neighbor or someone you see who needs a hand.

Happy Independence Day, and Hooyah, America!

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A Little Taste of That Next Level

It’s probably been almost 20 years since I last jumped out of an airplane, but there are still some fun memories of those days. Most of the skydiving you see in pictures or videos is called “belly flying,” where the skydiver is laying down horizontally. It’s a lot of fun, I did a lot of neat stuff that way. You fall about 120 mph, and you can flip, roll, do formations, all kinds of neat stuff.

But there was a brief time in this chapter of my life I wanted to try something a little more edgy. Rather than belly flying, it’s possible to do something called “sit flying” or “head-down flying,” where you position yourself vertically instead of horizontally. It’s trickier to do and takes some additional practice. You can do it right-side up (so you look like you’re standing in the air) or upside-down. Since you’re positioned vertically rather than horizontally, there’s less drag and you have a faster terminal velocity. Instead of 120 mph, you’re falling closer to 150 or 180 mph. Unfortunately it means the freefall is over sooner, but the tradeoff is faster speeds allow you to have more precise control once you become proficient at it.

I only tried this for a handful of jumps. I jumped with a coach, who stayed belly-flying until I managed to get into a vertical orientation. It was tough to do, I had a lot of stutter-starts, and it was a totally different animal than the skydiving I was used to. For a bit, I got the balance right and I started accelerating toward the ground, away from my coach. She was very experienced, so she caught up to me once I got away from her. The thing that felt really weird was when I managed to hold the right position for awhile, I started going so fast my goggles began wobbling from the wind. I was on the cusp of starting to get this totally new thing figured out when I, for whatever reason, couldn’t hold the position any longer, and I tumbled out of the vertical orientation and my body acted like an air brake and slowed me down by 30+ mph (can you imagine?). I got a little taste of that “next level” feeling, and I couldn’t hang on.

We’ll come back to this in a minute, but first I’d like to talk for just a bit about the different aspects of various ministries that excite us.

God created all of us with various interests. Even unbelievers have different hobbies they enjoy. Why? Why does someone get into stamp collecting while someone else crochets or enjoys woodworking, gardening, or painting? (Or skydiving?) None of it’s right or wrong; it’s just how God wired us as individuals. For those of us who become Christians, there’s a similar phenomenon at play. Upon being saved, many develop a desire to serve the body of Christ in some capacity, but there’s no cookie-cutter approach to how to go about doing it. We’re drawn to one or more of myriad possibilities.

Think about the different volunteer opportunities available in church. A few which come to mind are greeters, playing instruments, being an usher, singing, being a Sunday school teacher or working on the audio/visual team. That’s just in your local body of believers; beyond those walls you can volunteer in soup kitchens, hospitals, meal delivery organizations, do things like yard work for folks who can’t do that sort of thing anymore, etc. In broader terms, there are those attracted to ministry roles which care for the hurting, which help give rest to the weary, or which train Christians for something grander. There are others, limited only by God’s imagination. What type of ministry sparks your interest? If you had to donate personal time and effort to helping others in some capacity, what would you choose to allocate it toward?

For me, my particular ministry area of interest is seeing the sparks fly when people step out of their status quo lives and into the unknown, knowing only that they’ve been called to move out in faith in a particular direction. I love seeing when people recognize and then step into the role they were made for, when they start down the road of becoming who they were meant to be. It’s that moment when faith overflows into action, like Noah gathering his family around and saying “we’re building a boat.” It’s a shepherd boy saying “I’ll fight him.” It’s those “goosebump” moments in the Christian walk.

Sadly, many readers of the Bible seem to think the God of the Old Testament no longer empowers His followers today. This world is full of Christians living lives far below their potential, and I want to be a part of a ministry that encourages them to step into the role God has waiting for them. That’s why I write. If they just took that next step into whatever it is they know they’re called toward, they just might have a sit-flying experience, where their goggles start shimmying, their eyes go wide, and it takes their breath away to get a taste of the world that awaits them.

At some time or another, at least one person from all but a handful of the world’s nations has stopped in to visit this blog. Some had to circumvent firewalls to do it, others stumbled across it despite it being one blog among thousands. Of the believers among all those visitors, imagine all the backgrounds, cultures, and scenarios that exist. All of them are called to live lives honoring the Lord, and the way they do that is different for each person. What would the world look like if they all pursued God’s calling for their lives, even if they didn’t fully understand what it looked like?

Is there something tugging at your mind or heart, something God’s burdened you with, that you can’t shake? It might just be Him saying “come on, I’ve got a job for you.” Take a deep breath, pray for clarity, strength, courage, and commitment, and move out on what you know to be God’s will for your life.

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Warning: Audacity in Progress

In the past I’ve shared about how God laid on my heart the task of writing a series of fictional Christian books.

To give you some context about how audacious that is for me, consider this. Far and away, the largest writing endeavor I’ve ever undertaken is this blog. None of its entries are very long. This entry is a little over 1,000 words. The longest document I’ve ever written was for a college course, with a requirement of 10,000 words, I think. What makes me believe, despite having no writing classes other than basic English courses in college, I can write a series of 10 books, each with 50,000-80,000 words, totaling over 600,000? With “Piece of Cake” at one end of the spectrum and “Impossible” at the other end, I’m a lot closer to “Impossible” than “Cake.”

It’s very important to remember: those God calls, He equips.

Well that’s a wonderful little platitude, but how are things going, really? The idea for this project first took root during COVID lockdowns. It’s been four years. Where are we on this?

To be honest with you, it’s tough. I’ve never written a book before, let alone ten of them. I laid out a plan for what the different books would cover, then started at the beginning with the first book in the series. When I got bored with that story I’d jump to a different one, then another. What I found was this method diluted my efforts too much; I made headway, but it didn’t feel like it was getting traction. With my hectic schedule, I don’t have big chunks of time to work on stuff like this, so I only get maybe an hour and a half or two hours to work on it, sometimes once a week. Although I’m trying to surpass a half million words, this method’s not going to allow me to make big leaps forward.

I started focusing my efforts on a group of three specific books, rather than dabbling in ten books. Over time I started adding 1,000 words, 1,250, sometimes even 1,500 words at a shot. I’d mess around with the table of contents, re-sequence parts of the story to make it flow better and make more sense. A new idea would hit at inopportune times, and I’d write it down on my hand or email myself from work. The goal is still to get over 600,000 words, and I still have hundreds of thousands of words to write, but you know what I’ve learned so far?

This insurmountable goal is looking more achievable.

The progress isn’t as fast as I’d like, since I do have other responsibilities (a family, a full time job, a blog, my daily/weekly routines, a house, yard, and vehicles to take care of, etc.). In fact, the majority of my writing happens during my kids’ extracurricular activities. I drive them somewhere, and rather than come home after dropping them off, I stay there and write until it’s time to pick them up. Considering the sporadic chunks of time I have to work on this project, I’m pleased I haven’t given up on it. Persistence in small bites translates into small chunks of progress, but those chunks have begun banding together to result in some solid headway on that group of three books. With a combined target of 200,000 words for the three, I’ve written almost 125,000 words. That’s over 60% of the goal.

I’ve written another 50,000 words across the other seven books in the series. That totals almost 175,000 words. There’s still tons of work to be done, don’t get me wrong, but 175,000 out of a projected goal of 630,000 words is pretty encouraging. Don’t look now, but by remaining determined to follow through, I’ve gone more than a quarter of the way toward this unreachable goal.

Yes, of course, there will be an obscene amount of work to be done besides the writing. Finding plot holes, missing chunks of story, editing for clarity or typos, finding a professional editor and going through all the associated back-and-forth, finding an illustrator, a publisher, maybe being involved in marketing, these are all things demanding lots of attention. At the early stages of this effort, though, everything hinges on having a story to work with. The other steps can’t happen until the stories come together on paper. For someone whose longest writing was 10,000 prior to this, 175,000 is downright phenomenal.

I share this with you not because I want to wow you or try to make you think I’m cool for trying something new, but to show you, as I’m walking through this right now, that when God challenges you with a massive undertaking or insurmountable goal, the sooner you get started, the sooner your efforts will add up to something He can use. The Lord’s commissioning of this project assures its eventual success, provided I actually follow through and complete it. If I don’t, He’ll achieve His aims some other way, but this is the invitation God extended to me, offering to let me play a part in His grander story. Whatever success comes of it should be credited to the Lord, not me.

I don’t know what God’s going to do with these books once they’re done, but I have to maintain the attitude He’s going to use them either in revival or in causing unsaved readers to start asking important questions. Getting where God’s leading sometimes takes small, persistent actions over a long period of time. It’s sometimes frustratingly slow, and sometimes victory means you haven’t yet thrown in the towel, but the following Bible verse helps spur me on:

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9

Is there something in your life God’s called you to do, and you need to be reminded not to give up? Hang in there. Don’t quit. If God called you to do it, it’s entirely possible someone down the road will either join or return to God’s Kingdom because of something you had a hand in.

Don’t give up. Someone’s counting on you.

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An Early Summer View of the U.S. 2024 Presidential Election

It’s time to take another look at the political landscape and how the 2024 election is shaping up.

Let’s not mince words. Despite Donald Trump’s recent conviction, Joe Biden is the one playing catch up. He recently tied the lowest approval rating of his presidency. His numbers went underwater with the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan and they never looked back. The economy is this election’s number one issue, and far more voters trust Trump than Biden there. The only thing Biden really has going for him is the fact that he’s not Donald Trump. He doesn’t inspire much optimism and he doesn’t get people jazzed to head to the polls to vote for his vision of higher taxes, continued illegal immigration, boys competing in girls’ sports, letting violent criminals go unprosecuted, and switching gasoline engines to electric motors using a power grid ill-equipped to support them. If you’re a Democratic strategist taking a sober look at an administration who’s pushed too far left too quickly, your greatest hope, frankly, is for Trump’s recent conviction to sour enough people on him that it lifts Biden in the polls.

I think I’ve predicted in the past Biden would take just enough action to make it look like he was trying to get something done to secure the border. Well, now he has, with an Executive Order cutting back the level of illegal immigration from “inexcusable” to merely “overwhelming.” This is a bad political move for Biden. It’s far too late for his weak executive actions to have much effect at the border, but it’s strong enough to anger many “dissolve the border” enthusiasts planning to vote for him. There’s no real upside. He’s not actually interested in stemming the flow of illegal migration into the country; if he were, he would have taken much stronger executive action, and he would have done it years ago. He’s merely doing this to make it look like he’s tired of waiting for Congress to take action, and like he’s exhibiting strong leadership. (Strangely, the last president managed to take plenty of executive action to secure the southern border.)

I’m going to predict things will play out something like the following manner. Trump’s recent conviction won’t move the polling needle nearly as much as democratic strategists hoped. There will be an initial drop where Biden regains some advantage, but over time that advantage will fade in the polls and the “justice impacted” Trump will obtain an obvious advantage in the polls. As it becomes clear the conviction failed to derail Trump’s candidacy, Democrats will panic. The Democratic National Convention, where the Democratic nominee is officially crowned, isn’t held until August. Even though Americans tend to pay less attention to politics during the summer, it will become harder and harder to hide Biden’s physical and cognitive decline between now and then (in the past month, he’s departed both a college graduation and D-Day commemoration earlier than planned, looking very confused and frail in the process). The preference, obviously, would be for President Biden to withdraw from the race gracefully, of his own volition, citing health challenges and the frenetic pace of campaign season. Nobody can fault him for it; most Americans, if given a choice, would want to retire early, not have one of the most stressful jobs in the world until they’re 86. If his polling numbers don’t show any signs of improvement and he still doesn’t want to call it a career, the king-makers in the Democratic Party are going to have to get creative in coming up with a way to get enough public support to switch him out for some other candidate. If people get excited about change (in this case, Trump over Biden), it’s better to roll the dice and take a chance than it is to bet on a horse almost certain to lose. At this point I don’t know how they would do that, but two possibilities that come to mind are the President’s obvious health challenges and his son’s recent conviction. If the President’s health takes a turn for the worse or he pardons/commutes his son’s sentence even though he said he wouldn’t, the Democratic National Committee may suddenly use that event to say “we need a more energetic candidate to take on Trump” or “we can’t make a big deal of Trump’s legal woes if our candidate has questionable legal baggage of his own.” Success in swapping out candidates that late in the game would either depend on widespread name recognition (think someone like Michelle Obama) or a great resume (maybe a Democratic governor who capitalizes on some well-timed success with national visibility).

Regardless, it’s tough to imagine Vladimir Putin or Xi Jinping restraining their military or other activities out of respect for Biden’s charisma, savvy, and strong leadership. Look for actions from both of those dictators to intensify before the elections take place, because they’d rather deal with Biden than Trump and they want to get away with stuff before the possibility of a new sheriff arriving in town. If you want an interesting perspective on President Biden’s physical and mental abilities, listen to what people in their 80s have to say about it. Spoiler alert: they’re usually alarmed that someone with his symptoms is the one everyone looks to in a crisis, because they often know someone with similar conditions, and those folks don’t perform well in high-pressure, rapidly changing situations.

It’s also interesting to see the misinformation from our own American news sources. For example, news networks have often spouted something about Trump being a threat to democracy, but they don’t call attention to the threats Democrats pose. Yes, Trump gave a speech that agitated people right before they rioted at the Capitol, but who has actually tried to bar a candidate from ballots in some locations, or entangle him in oddly timed court cases so he can’t be out on the campaign trail? These are legitimate threats to democracy; this is like, Soviet stuff. If this is what preserving democracy looks like, they’re sacrificing democracy to save democracy. This mischaracterization tactic isn’t just being used in the United States. In Europe, elections earlier this week shifted the power balance toward the political right, and people unhappy with the outcome are crying that this, too, is a threat to democracy. No, this is what’s known as the fulfillment of democracy, respecting the electorate’s choice. What’s being threatened is the power of the party losing seats. Those are two very different things.

Finally, what are we, as a nation, likely to face in the 2025-2028 presidential term? As I list these things, think about the kind of person you want sitting in the Oval Office, and the fortitude, clarity of thinking, and capacity for decision making each of the two major candidates possess.

Putin and Belarus may resume nuclear testing to increase alarm and try to fracture the NATO alliance or gain an advantage in Ukraine (maybe by inciting Ukraine to use up all its remaining air defense missiles because it doesn’t know whether or not incoming strikes include conventional explosives or nuclear explosives).

China has claimed this is the timeframe it will take Taiwan by force. Anticipate Chinese forces blockading, invading, and seizing Taiwan, which will likely lead to the most intense U.S. military action in the Pacific in decades, along with a potential direct military confrontation with a hostile superpower.

There’s a high potential for an economic downturn in the U.S. as a prolonged period of elevated interest rates finally catches up with and affects the nation’s economy.

Those are some of the biggies. There are other things which will affect everyday Americans on a less certain timeline, but are nonetheless noteworthy:

The convergence of advancements in block chain, Artificial Intelligence, medical technology, materials processing (3D printing), and robotics will develop quickly and could rapidly impose major changes on our daily lives. We need to balance responsibility with the ability to innovate, so we can be competitive without our less ethical or less regulated competitors leaving us in the dust.

NASA will physically return astronauts to the moon for the first time in over 50 years at a time when lunar missions from various nations and other “space race” activities intensify.

The Kansas City Chiefs will finally fail to make it to the Super Bowl again (hopefully).

There’s a lot to think about. Pray for our leaders (and potential leaders), even if you don’t vote for them. Our leaders make decisions and take actions that affect us all, so pray God gives them wisdom and clarity in knowing what to do.

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Thankful for the Day of Days: Operation Overlord

Think back to the time in your life when you were in the 18-25 year-old age group. It’s the prime of life. Graduating high school and getting a job, maybe going to college. A lot of folks meet that special someone and start a family during that time.

Today is a very special day in the history not only of our nation, but in the history of the western world. Today, June 6th, 2024, is the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the storming ashore of thousands of men trying to gain a foothold on the Nazi-controlled European continent to liberate it from Hitler’s regime. Over 125,000 American, British, and Canadian troops, most of them aged 18-25, took part in amphibious assaults on the beaches near Normandy, France, while another 23,000 got air-dropped behind enemy lines the night before.

They faced withering hails of machine gun and small arms fire, mortars, unimaginable sights of carnage and gore littering the beach, and surf that turned red with blood. This was a challenge that could only be overcome by throwing wave after wave of men at the enemy, and almost 9,000 Allied troops perished that day. In the end, the effort was enough for Allied forces to establish a logistics hub on the beach where they could unload tanks, troops, and equipment to move inland and ultimately defeat Hitler and his war machine, freeing Western Europe.

Today very few of these men are left. Many of the ones still around are over 100 years old. If any of those who were at Normandy on D-Day are reading this, we owe you a debt of gratitude. Thank you for enduring a series of nightmares for the sake of complete strangers.

Even though it may not have happened on the same day, I’d be remiss if I didn’t also offer a word of thanks to those who took part in the Pacific fight. To the Marines out there who endured unspeakable horrors, were forced to do things no human should ever have to do, and then try to readjust to “normal” life back home when it was all over, hats off to you. The European Theater of WWII gets most of the attention, but you witnessed unspeakable things on a regular basis. Your fight only just started once the war ended. “Thank you” doesn’t begin to cover it, but it’s all I have to give.

By now a lot of movies, shows, or other productions have recreated some of these world-changing events. While I can’t claim to know how closely they compare to the real thing, here are a few ideas if you’d like to get better acquainted with D-Day or the war in the Pacific. For the amphibious landings at Normandy, check out the scene near the beginning of Saving Private Ryan. For the paratroopers dropped in and around Normandy on D-Day, watch the second episode of Band of Brothers. To see war bring out some of the worst of humanity in the Pacific theater of World War II (on both sides), take a look at the miniseries The Pacific.

These depictions are not for the faint of heart, and they are not happy events, but remembering horrible sets of events hopefully helps us avoid future versions of the same thing. We owe much to the men (and a few women) who showed up 80 years ago for the biggest battles to put down the Axis powers. If you know someone who was there, please thank them in a way that’s meaningful to them.

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Quick Hit: Time for a Heart Checkup

Did you know you can tell what’s in a person’s heart by what comes out of their mouth?

The contents of your heart are important; they overflow your heart and come out of your mouth, acting like a window for others to see the type of things your heart contains.

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.  Luke 6:45

Think of this as an opportunity for a self-check. What kind of things are coming out of your mouth? Are there any changes you need to make?

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Some People Have Skeletons in Their Closet; Mine’s Packed With Gear

Adventure-wise, I’ve done a lot of weird stuff in my life. I have logbooks, journals, and other things that helped chronicle adventures now long gone. I’ve invested thousands of dollars into equipment most people don’t normally get a chance to use. Here’s a partial list of gear I’ve either owned in the past or still own today:

Cross-country skis, poles, and boots

Skydiving container, parachute, reserve parachute, jumpsuit, wrist altimeter, goggles

Semi-dry suit, wetsuit, buoyancy control device, dive computer, regulators, extra weights, booties, fins, gloves, mask, snorkel, various accessories

Multiple climbing harnesses, four different climbing ropes, 15+ carabiners, rigging plate, pulleys, 100+ feet of webbing, figure 8s, ATCs, ascenders, block & tackle, assorted cordage

Paintball gun, paintball mask, CO2 cylinders, thousands of paintball rounds

Cold-weather gear, rain gear, boots

GPS receiver, two-way radios, headlamps, lanterns, flashlights, spotlight, flares, glow sticks, binoculars, glacier glasses, gear bags, backpacks, various knives, fire-starting metal match, 550 cord, tarps

(I don’t think I’ve ever put together a list like this, and looking at it now, I have to express how fortunate I am to not be maimed, seriously injured, or dead as a result of eccentric hobbies. I have no idea how many waivers I’ve signed in my life. Lord, thank you and please pass along my thanks to my guardian angel(s) for me! But that’s not the point I set out to make.)

It’s fun to still have a lot of these relics from long ago. Many of these items are intended for very specific uses, while others can be used in a variety of situations. When I look at some of this gear now, it’s beat up or well worn due to heavy use. Other pieces are almost brand new, even years later, because they either haven’t been used or I only used them lightly. Some of my most well-worn gear includes my cross-country skis and the climbing harnesses and ropes (considering the condition of the climbing gear, those guardian angels deserve another shout-out!). Other stuff that was pretty much a waste of money includes the semi-dry suit (I used it one weekend and still have it, almost 20 years later) and the wetsuit (I’ve had it the same amount of time, but never even got it wet).

At one time or another I owned all of that gear, so it was up to me how often and in what fashion I used it. Users know every piece of gear must one day be pulled from service because it doesn’t last forever. I sometimes had to make the conscious decision to say “you’re starting to wear out, I’m going to sideline you on this smaller adventure so I can save your remaining utility for something bigger,” or “no, I’m not going to bring you along with me this time because based on what I intend to do, I won’t need you this time.”

If, at any point, any of that gear had said to me “I don’t think I’m up for this,” or started repeatedly protesting the manner in which I intended to use it, I likely would have altered my plans for using it. I probably would have started viewing it as unreliable or not worth the hassle. If you look back at the list of gear I wrote down, most of it is used for activities where you can’t accept the use of questionable equipment. If I have unreliable gear but still have my mind set on taking part in the activity, what am I to do? I can either replace it with a piece of more reliable gear, or figure out another way to do what I’m trying to do using the rest of the stuff I have on hand.

Some of the more worn pieces of equipment I have are the ones that have been most reliable, and I have specific memories of how they’ve come through for me when I asked a lot from them. When you consider that we, as Christians, are tools wielded by the Lord to be used for His purposes (purposes we don’t understand or get a say in), it should be our goal to be up for the challenge whenever the Master opens the doors to his gear racks and looks through what He’s got to work with. If that’s the attitude we maintain, by the end of our lives, we’re going to have a very well-worn quality due to heavy use. That’s a good thing.

Make it your goal to, by the end of your life, lose the shine that accompanies lack of use. We shouldn’t be hung up in the closet, still bright and colorful; we should have frayed seams, some chips and dings, and be a little faded. For those of you who have lived your life serving the Lord, or who have temporarily parted ways with loved ones after their years of faithful service to Him, take comfort in the fact that He has fond and specific memories of the ways you and yours have come through for Him.

One day that shine and color will be renewed, even brighter than the original.

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There’s a Fine Line Between Hooligans and Criminals

Here’s a story that hopefully gives you a chuckle.

Early in my time in the Air Force, I tried out to be a survival instructor. The class only started twice a year at Fairchild Air Force Base near Spokane, Washington. While waiting around for the next class to start, we did lots of exercising and other physical training to prepare our bodies for the rigors of the upcoming course.

One of the things we did on a weekly basis was load up our ruck sacks and go on long hikes in a state park or some weird trail or on public land out in the boonies. The idea was to keep our bodies accustomed to bearing heavy loads for a long time as we moved over miles of terrain, and along the way practice some land navigation. We were fortunate enough to have some pretty relaxed superiors while waiting around for training to start, and since we’re talking the Air Force (not the Army or Marines), they told us “hey, as long as they’re decent, you can wear civilian clothes during this ruck; the only guidelines are that you wear the issued boots you intend to wear during the course and you must bring a loaded ruck.”

Now, when you go for long hikes once a week, it doesn’t take long before you start repeating trails. One of the sergeants in charge of us had an idea to help break up the monotony. He had family an hour or two away from the base; his parents lived in Idaho somewhere, I think. He worked out a plan to have us go for a hike near their location, then we could spend the night at his parents’ house, and we’d come back to base the next morning. As far as training goes, this was very casual and actually a really generous thing for his parents to do. (Would you be willing to host 20-30 very fit and very hungry males with an extra dose of testosterone at your home? I wouldn’t.)

When we went on our hikes, we physically took up a lot of room. There were a lot of us, and we each had a large ruck sack, so we normally took a big bus that was pretty much a navy blue school bus with a very “for official use only” look to it. We piled in, drove off to whatever trail we were going to hit that day, and did our hike.

I don’t remember the details, but for some reason, when we finished our hike and got back to the bus, we needed to kill some time before we could go to the house. We ended up driving into town where a high school baseball game was going on. I think maybe the sergeant wanted to say hi to the coach, who was an old friend or something. We didn’t really know, our attitude was “hey man, I get on the bus when they tell me, I go where it takes me, and I get off the bus when it stops.” Well, they told us to leave our rucks on the bus and come outside to watch the game.

As we spread out on the grass, dozing in the sunshine, shooting the breeze, or watching the game, we looked around and started noticing some of the locals looked uneasy. None of us could figure out why. We hung out for maybe 20 minutes to half an hour, then got back on the bus and rolled out to wherever we were going next. We later found out they thought we were from a nearby prison and were out on a work detail whose very limited supervision was chatting up the baseball team’s coach and not paying much attention to the bunch of rough-looking guys, wearing the same boots, with similar haircuts and no facial hair, all piling off the government-issue bus.

I guess if I had to pick a moral to the story, I’d say even though it might not be your fault, sometimes people are going to make assumptions about you based on how you look or the vibe you give off. Before you get mad at them, don’t be afraid to step back from the situation and maybe even laugh at yourself a little. Cut them some slack. You might’ve jumped to the same conclusion if you were in their shoes. Or boots.

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Hoping for the Best is Not a Course of Action

I went into college not knowing what I wanted to major in. That kind of thing is fine, as long as you figure it out a semester or two into the degree. I didn’t figure out what direction I wanted to go until I started running out of general education classes and had to decide what to start concentrating on. I’ve written before about how the choices (or lack thereof) I made early in college affected how the rest of my college career turned out.

I think I was halfway through my sophomore year when I figured out I was going to pursue a degree in biology. If you’re majoring in any kind of science, you’ll need to complete a lot of science classes (imagine that!). Science classes normally come with a lab session that occurs in the afternoon, so a typical science class meets for three hours during the mornings of a week, and one afternoon a week there will be a three-hour lab session. If you stack up two or three science classes in a semester, you start running out of room in your schedule. You can see how it’s nice to spread out the required classes over eight semesters rather than five.

Since I found myself running a little behind schedule, I looked around for opportunities to catch up. It turns out my school offered something called a May term. After the regular spring semester ended and most students went home, a handful of classes were available. One-credit courses like tennis lasted a week. Two-credit classes went two weeks, and so on. One of the options was a four-credit science course I’d need for graduation. I ended up enrolling in it and stuck around after the spring semester wrapped and all my friends went home for the summer.

That class had to be one of the most stressful classes I took for my whole degree. The course material that was normally spread out over a semester got compressed into four weeks. Class all morning, take a lunch break, then meet in the lab for three or four hours every weekday afternoon. After that, grab some dinner, go back to your room and work on a paper or read the next chapter for the following day. I would read the material, but my mind just didn’t have the time to absorb it like it did during a normal semester. The lab sessions relied heavily on genetics experiments we did with fruit flies, which had a 14-day life cycle, and we needed to get at least two generations to have results for our final paper, so there wasn’t much room for error. While students in other classes spent their afternoons playing ultimate Frisbee or sunning themselves on the quad, I spent my time worrying about bug larvae.

The weeks went by, and as the shorter classes finished up, fewer and fewer students remained on campus. I was so stressed. I was the oldest person in the class; everyone else was an honors student who had spent the second half of their freshman year doing a semester abroad, and this class was mostly available to help them keep up with their pre-med degree plan. I wasn’t quite on the same level as them academically.

I eventually made it through the class, but it was a rough go for awhile. Here’s the important thing: I did this to myself. I didn’t do it on purpose, but it was my lack of planning ahead that led to this predicament. I had to live with the consequences of my own actions.

As Christians, we have the hope of the life to come, but first we have to make it through this one. People of all races, nationalities, and backgrounds are Christians, and Heaven will be full of incredible diversity as we’re united in Christ. All of us, however, will have had to live with the consequences of either our actions or someone else’s actions. That could mean broken relationships, poor credit history, self-inflicted medical issues, or a variety of other challenges.

As a Christian equipped with spiritual gifts, how are you empowered to either help yourself or help others through the unique challenges in life?

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You Won’t Know how Strong you are Until Being Strong is Your Only Option

I’d bet few of the people reading this have given much thought to the types of rope used in rock climbing. Climbing ropes are meant to catch somebody who’s lost their grip and taken a fall. As you might imagine, if you’re going to be betting your life on the integrity of your equipment, you don’t want to use just any old rope.

When used properly, the gear used in climbing can withstand harder shocks than your body can. The human body itself is the weak link in the system. To help the climber endure hard falls, the rope itself is designed to have some stretch to it.

As you can imagine, it’s very important that the rope’s owner/user keep track of the number and intensity of falls the rope sustains. Some falls are very easy on the rope; sometimes a climber just kind of slowly loses their balance or their grip and rolls away from the wall without actually falling. In this case the rope holds the weight of the climber, but doesn’t absorb a shock. On the other end of the spectrum, if a climber freefalls 8-10 feet before the rope starts going taut, not only is the climber going to be wincing in pain, but the rope will have used up a great deal of the stretch it’s capable of. That portion of the rope is now both less stretchy during a future fall, and it has less tensile strength and is more likely to break since the stretch is gone. After enough falls, that rope can no longer be considered safe, has to be pulled out of active use, and is retired.

In the last post we talked about succession and training your replacement. This time I’d like to focus on people that may feel like they’ve been forced into something different.

Although many times God will move you from one challenge to a larger one, there are other times He seemingly pulls you out of something and just kinda…leaves you hanging for awhile. Whether it’s ministry or some other profession, or something in your personal life, sudden changes can throw you for a loop. A job loss, a sudden injury, or maybe retirement that came sooner than expected are all examples of a situation leaving you scratching your head and saying “well, what now, God?”

In college I had a professor who taught us about how to safely set up ropes for climbing. He taught us all about knots, setting anchors, and proper care for ropes and gear; these are all technical skills needed for safely scaling or descending walls. As a part of the course he gave all us students a piece of climbing rope about a foot and a half long. He expected us to bring the ropes to class and we used these ropes to practice different knots throughout the course. He didn’t just take a new rope and chop it in pieces; it was a retired rope repurposed to be useful in a different way. Cutting up an active rope to serve this purpose would have worked, but it would have cost the overall enterprise.

If you’ve been forced into a position you wouldn’t have chosen, it’s certainly something easy to grumble about. Maybe you simply can’t perform the same way you previously could, and others that have been waiting for a shot at the role you held are getting a turn at it now. Don’t think that means you have less value. It means your value is going to be used differently. If lots of people can do the job, maybe it’s better to move into something fewer people can do, like a role benefitting from hard-won experience. Just because you can no longer do something you formerly could doesn’t mean you’re without purpose; it means your purpose has changed.

That same professor told a story about when he was younger and managed a nearby ropes course. Since the course was fairly secluded, it was inconvenient to carry ropes back and forth each time the course was going to be used, so the staff had a shed or a box near the course where they secured the ropes after being used. He arrived at the course one day to find the shed had been broken into and one of the ropes stolen. Strangely, a few days later the rope showed up again at the shed.

Not quite sure what to make of this, he knew better than to trust the rope. It had been outside of the ropes course staff’s control, and could not account for the activities that had been done with it. He later heard through the grapevine some students had “borrowed” the rope to pull a car out of a snow bank or something. If that’s true, it was probably a few guys that simply didn’t know their use of the rope would cause it to be retired. I don’t know what my professor ended up using the rope for, but there are plenty of other possibilities. Aside from cutting it up to be used for instruction, rope can also be used for hauling gear up and down a wall, lashing gear to packs, tying down equipment to keep it safe during high winds (or in the back of a vehicle), acting as a drying line for wet gear, improvising shelters out of tarps, etc. After its retirement, the same rope can be used for all of these purposes before they stop being useful.

If you find yourself in a situation where a few bozos made a snow bank-like blunder that ended up costing you, I’m sorry things went down that way. It’s understandable to be upset for a bit, but I have to ask…how long will you dwell on it? If you’ve still got plenty to offer and you’ve got the desire, what other ways can you use your knowledge and experience to benefit others?

It’s never too late to be who you might have been. –Mary Ann Evans

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Have You Thought About Training Your Replacement?

Not long ago I went to an estate sale. I don’t know that I’d ever been to one before. For those who don’t know, when someone passes away and their heirs/loved ones begin the process of emptying out the home, there’s often a lot of “I don’t need this, I don’t want this, or I have no room for this.” The heirs set aside what they want to keep, then hold an event where pretty much everything left in the home is up for sale.

It’s both very interesting, and very sad. On the one hand, you’ve got this eclectic collection of items that tells a story about the person that last lived here. “This lady obviously loved sunglasses, ravens, and hedge trimmers.” On the other hand, you see just how much clutter they lived with, and it’s a little depressing to see crowds of complete strangers coming in, picking through the departed’s belongings, and haggling over already-low prices. “Why in the world would anybody hang onto this, and why in the world wouldn’t the people putting on the sale throw it out before starting the sale?”

A few years back, I chronicled the story of how our family unexpectedly lost my wife’s dad, Lee, to some health struggles. We thought he’d made it past the most difficult part of his health challenges, but it turns out God wanted him to come home more than He wanted him to stay with us. Lee was a devout Christian, and everybody who knew him understood his faith to be an important part of who he was.

As the pastor concluded Lee’s memorial service, he issued a challenge. “Today we’re saying goodbye to a very godly man. I ask you, who here will take his place?”

Today I’d like to talk about the idea of succession.

Think for a moment about the capacity in which you serve the Lord. It could be any number of ways, and none of them need to come with a fancy title. The day will come when you no longer fill that role. My challenge for you today is to think about this: are you helping to prepare someone else to fill the vacancy you’ll one day leave behind?

In some cases you won’t be able to see the transition coming, and you may not be available to offer advice or insight during that chaotic time. In other cases you might still be around to lend your expertise. I’ve written before about how once you complete a task God’s laid before you, there’s often another, larger task waiting for you. I once heard a famous leader say “if you’re still excited about the same thing you were excited about five years ago, you’re not growing.” Part of the reason you should regularly think about training your replacement is because if you consistently demonstrate faithfulness in smaller things, you should expect God to “promote” you into something larger. It doesn’t mean you’re giving up on something; it could mean God’s used you to set up a situation for someone new, it’s time to move you into another challenge, and now it’s time to turn things over to someone else who’s stepping into a larger challenge of their own so they, too, can keep growing. What feels like closing the door on something is actually a profound opportunity for you to demonstrate leadership and expand your Christ-focused influence.

What does that type of preparation look like? The possibilities are limitless. Some of them are on the process and technical side of the house, like CEOs, family businesses, specific ministry work or leadership roles, etc. Others include volunteer roles, or maybe even roles without titles. Some examples include Sunday school teachers, mentoring someone younger in the faith than you, being the person that shovels the driveway of an elderly neighbor, brings meals to a shut in, or drives someone to a doctor’s appointment or to go grocery shopping. “Grandmother” is a title that carries a lot of weight, and being a godly influence in your grandchildren’s lives comes with an opportunity to have a lasting impact years after you’ve taken your last breath. These roles are less about technical skills than they are about willing hearts and people skills, and those attitudes need to be lived out or demonstrated to others before they can learn them.

Think of the Christian leaders in your own life and the influence they’ve had on you. They don’t need to have held an official title. You don’t need a degree or special training to offer God-honoring advice to a friend, neighbor, or co-worker. You just need to use the influence you’ve got to show others around you what Christian living, especially in difficult times, looks like.

Succession planning is a natural part of any endeavor. You can cling to something if you really want to, but are you giving careful consideration to the idea that the thing you’re refusing to let go of may suffer because of your unwillingness to let go, and you may even be preventing someone well suited for a new role from having the opportunity to grow into it? “Today we’re saying goodbye to a very godly man. I ask you, who here will take his place?”

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Consequences Come Whether or not You Know the Truth

The older I get, the tougher it is to maintain the same weight. I used to be able to eat a ridiculous amount of junk food and my metabolism would laugh and say “bring it on!” As I age, my margin of error for staying inside that desired range shrinks smaller and smaller.

I’ve been very fortunate with my overall health. These days, when I know I’m going to be involved in a particularly messy project around the house or in the yard, I’m able to pull on one of my old stained or ripped pairs of jeans I wore when I worked in construction more than 20 years ago.

I can still fit in those pants because I’m at or near the same weight I was back then. The main reason that’s true is because almost every morning I step onto the scale to get hit with the cold, hard truth. The scale doesn’t lie. On some occasions I know ahead of time it’s going to be bad. Sometimes there’s a jaw-dropping “no, that can’t be right!” Monday mornings are usually the worst. Other times there’s a mental fist pump.

The harsh reality is that the scale always speaks the truth, and even though the truth can hurt, I need to know it. Accepting what the scale’s saying has to happen before choosing what to do with the information. What the scale fails to do, though, is speak the truth in love. Christians, while it is our duty to inform others in the world about the truth of their need for the savior, we have to remember the importance of doing it with compassion and love.

Put yourself in a nonbeliever’s place. It’s not easy to hear someone tell you you’ve been living your life in a way that means you’ll miss out on Heaven. It’s even tougher to maintain an attitude open and willing enough to say “what can I do to make it right?” It’s not enough for us to proclaim “you’re a sinner, and you’re destined for Hell.” All that does is turn people off to what you’re saying. God can use any of our botched efforts, of course, but come on, have a little empathy and compassion.

Obviously, presenting the difficult truth of humanity’s shortcomings is important. Coming alongside people and letting them know not just about the bad news, but about the way out of the bad news, allows them to see the hope instead of just the stuff they don’t like thinking about. Speaking the truth in love is going to make all the difference.

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Need a Confidence Boost?

Most of my posts are somehow geared at being willing to step out in faith to accomplish tasks you think are beyond your reach, yet which God has enabled you to perform. While I absolutely believe in that idea and use it as the blog’s central theme, it’s also important to help lay the mental groundwork for meeting such challenges. If you think of my normal blog posts as a movie, think of this one as their prequel.

I’ve learned through experience that if you’re willing to take risks in just about any aspect of your life, usually one of two circumstances hold true. The first possibility is that your back is against the wall and you’ve got no real choice; the risk you’re taking is probably the best of your bad options or it’s your last resort. While I acknowledge this as a driving force behind some risky behavior, it’s not the one I want to focus on.

The second possibility is that if you’re willing to take risks, you’re secure enough in who you are that the idea of failing doesn’t paralyze you with fear. If Christ is your savior, He will call you to do things you’re not comfortable with. It’s a risk to obey. You might fail. You may look like a fool. It could cost you.

I don’t know who I’m talking to right now, but you need to hear this. If you’re a Christ-follower and feel God’s called you to some challenge requiring a lot of faith, let me remind you: you are a child of the One True King. Walk down the path with the confidence that comes along with your position. If the Lord commissioned you to pursue a specific undertaking, remember the enemy can harass you, but he cannot harm you without permission. Your idea of what success looks like might not jive with God’s take on it, but it’s part of the life your Lord called you to, so take that next step.

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Is Your Horsepower Put to Good Use, or Just Idling?

In the world of high-performance cars, horsepower plays a crucial role. Speaking generally, the greater the available horsepower, the more speed is attainable. Two of the essential components of maximizing horsepower are adequate amounts of air to facilitate combustion and adequate amounts of fuel to ignite in the combustion chamber. If either one of those components suffers a reduction, the horsepower drops.

Sometimes vehicles with a lot of horsepower are illegal to use on normal public roads. For people who own one of these cars and want to use them out on the streets, one of the options for making them “street legal” is to install a restrictor plate. This is a physical barrier that reduces the amount of air making it into the engine, leading to a loss in combustion efficiency, and causing a corresponding loss of horsepower and drop in speed. It’s kind of a shame, really.

We’ll come back to that in a minute. The world seems like it’s getting darker at a more rapid rate these days. The news media doesn’t often carry good or uplifting news that makes you think positively about humanity’s future. The demise of morality leads me to think it’s not a stretch to believe that some people alive today will still be alive when the Rapture occurs.

If this is true, I believe two things are going to happen along the way. The first is that evil will become more blatant and more prominent. Things formerly only done in secret will be accepted out in the open. A few months back (as our family was driving to church, no less), we stopped at a red light, and I saw the car in front of us had a bumper sticker that said “Satan loves me.” It was disheartening for sure, and I felt a profound sadness for the young lady driving the car and for anyone believing this lie.

The second thing I believe will happen is a more potent display of God’s power through His saints. What that looks like I don’t know, but supernatural involvement will be obvious to any witnesses who are intellectually honest with themselves. Sometimes it will mean believers doing things they shouldn’t be able to do. Other times people will show up in places without knowing why they traveled there, only to find they’re part of some unlikely series of events that unfolds to reveal God’s hand in the process. People will testify of God’s provision in their lives, either by having their material needs met in unusual ways or by receiving hope in very dark times. In some cases, likely growing in frequency, Christ-followers will be killed because of the Master they serve, but God will empower those saints to rise to the challenge placed before them.

Not a rosy picture by any stretch, I know. Yet it gives me hope to know God can and will equip those who trust Him. This brings me to the main point of this post. Though you may trust Christ as your savior, you’re the one that decides how much to limit His ability to use you for building His kingdom. Although each of us has unlimited potential to do the Lord’s work, it’s His call as to how much He wants to let each of us accomplish, so that’s out of our hands. What each of us can decide is our minimum level of willingness. Imagine if Moses had persisted in making excuses until God said “fine, I’ll send someone else.” Imagine if Billy Graham had said “no, I think I’ll avoid anything to do with public speaking, thank you.” Are you willing to accept some discomfort and unknowns for the sake of letting God use you more than He’s currently using you? I’m not just talking about being an usher at church or singing in the choir (though those are good things). I’m talking about the stuff you’re ill-equipped to do and is outside your comfort zone, yet you still feel God tugging at you and saying “this is the direction I want you to go.”

Said another way, you are your own restrictor plate when it comes to serving the Lord. You can’t guarantee high performance, but you can absolutely guarantee you don’t reach your maximum potential of using your spiritual gifts and abilities to be a productive agent of the Lord.

I’m impressed by today’s young people. It seems those in high school and college are consistently a different type of passionate for Christ. Somewhere between that age and mid-life, many of us peter out in terms of our willingness to boldly step out in faith to follow where Christ calls us to go. We get our own place to live. Some of us get married. We achieve career milestones. We have kids. These can all be good things, but somewhere along the way, many of us lose that awestruck attitude of “Christ can do anything through me,” trading it for one that’s more like “but this is probably as good as it gets.” We don’t allow God the chance to do big things on His behalf through us because we close the door on the possibility of Him doing them. We walk away from Isaiah’s attitude of “Here I am, send me.” (Isaiah 6:8)

Everyone, of course, must make their own decisions about how much they’ll let God use them. From now until the time your heart stops beating, though, I’d urge you to be on the lookout for opportunities to step into roles Christ offers you. Darker days mean opportunities to shine brighter for the Lord. God’s gonna do what God’s gonna do, but someone’s eternal fate might switch from lost to found because of your willingness to be used by the Lord. Isn’t that something you’d like to be a part of?

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Beauty’s in the Eye of the Beholder, But Don’t Give His Eyes Too Much

This one’s kind of tricky because it’s easy for this post to get crass quickly. I’m talking mostly to my sisters in Christ here. I have to say right up front…the information in this post has the potential to be very helpful for others if you use it well, but you can also harm them tremendously with it. Please, please, please…use it for good. If it turns out you’ve been doing some of this stuff unknowingly, it doesn’t mean you’re a bad person. If you use it with bad intentions though, you’re going to have to stand before the Savior and answer for it someday.

In some way or another we’re all guilty of saying to ourselves “that’s not how I think” or “that thought never even occurred to me.” Okay, well, that might be true, but not everybody thinks (or doesn’t think) the same way as you. Believe me, this is a thing.

Have you ever just been going along, minding your own business (even trying to be on good behavior), when BAM! A thought from left field comes and completely derails you? Sometimes you know what triggered that derailment, other times it’s a mystery. Now imagine discovering you’re the one that derailed someone else in that same manner.

Unfortunately there’s no way to look at someone and accurately judge their character flaws, so you’ll have to treat the following statement as if it’s true all the time, because you just don’t know. While it’s certainly not universally true, a lot of us men are pigs. There’s not really an easy way to say this. Ladies, many of you are making your brothers in Christ stumble because of the wardrobe choices you make.

Here’s the part I’m trusting you to use good judgment with. When it comes to the female form, our piggish eyes tend to be drawn to at least one of three areas (aside from your lovely eyes, of course): chest, caboose, and legs. I know this from years of being a guy and from years of being around guys in the field of construction and in the Department of Defense. If you’re blessed in one or more of these three areas, believe me, there are lots of dudes that are very, very happy for you, even prompting some to spontaneously praise the Lord. Unfortunately, there is a very large number of men out there that struggles with lust, and the struggles that come from our sisters in Christ seem to be unnecessary.

Now some will balk and say “oh, come on, it’s nothing they don’t see everywhere.” While absolutely true, that’s the problem. If you let a guy see a little too much, it’s one more knick in the “death by a thousand paper cuts” idea. The choice of whether or not to indulge in sinful thoughts or actions ultimately lies with the individual, of course, but if you’re his sister in Christ, the way you dress shouldn’t prompt thoughts that shouldn’t be there. Shouldn’t a man be safer from temptation-inducing thoughts when he’s around a fellow Christ-follower?

Now I’m not saying you need to wear a burqa or puffy clothes everywhere, not at all. Here are some things I’ve noticed, though. In church, I’ve seen dresses or tops that are a bit more low cut than they ought to be. Is that dress or are those pants a little too tight in the rear? I’ve seen dresses or miniskirts with hemlines higher than the wearer’s extended fingertips. Probably the most common “visual stumbling block” to your brothers in Christ out there now is the prevalence of leggings/workout pants. I totally understand wanting to avoid loose-fitting clothes when working out or participating in activities where you don’t want clothes flapping around, but if you’re not engaged in anything like that and you’re walking around in skin-tight pants out in public, you can see how this might be a problem for a guy who’s trying really hard not to look. Heaven help us when we go to the gym and there are attractive, fit women wearing clothes that draw attention to all three of these areas. Again, the individual man is responsible for his thoughts and actions, but he can’t always control the things that prompt certain thoughts. Imagine if you’re a recovering alcoholic and when walking down a busy sidewalk, store owners are handing out samples of booze. No, alcoholics know they need to avoid certain places, but for “lust-aholics,” church, along with environments known to be populated with a high prevalence of Christians, should be safe places to be.

If you’re already aware of this phenomenon and dress in a way that makes it easier on us, thank you. Fellas, I’ll bring you back into this now. I’d ask that you, along with your ladies, please influence your sisters, daughters, nieces, and granddaughters with these things in mind.

For the young ladies out there, your clothes go a long way in determining the type of guy you attract. Dress like you respect your body and you’ll probably attract one that treats you better over the long term. Dress like you want guys to ogle your body and you’ll attract the kind that might treat you really well in the short term, but the nice treatment probably doesn’t last real long and you’ll likely end up going through more relationships. Believe me, the quality guys will notice too, but they’ll be crowded out or intimidated by the chuckleheads licking their chops while circling you.

Now, within the context of marriage…how do I say this? Green light. Full throttle. Go to town, especially if you worked hard for it. Christians don’t need to be prudes. Have you read Song of Solomon? If you got it, flaunt it (to your one and only). Try to make the hubs say “God created woman, and he saw that it was goooooood.” Desire is a powerful thing, and marriage is the only place God intended it to be fulfilled. For both husband and wife, don’t give up and throw in the towel on your appearance after the “I do’s.” Honor, respect, and appreciate one another for the long run, in all kinds of ways.

Finally, for those out there that may be struggling to find their calling…maybe someone reading this needs to consider trying the very challenging task of designing or making new lines of very fashionable, yet perfectly appropriate clothing. It could be any type: street clothes, professional clothes, athletic apparel, you name it. Give it a shot. God will probably bless you if it’s your calling.

On a lighter note about the differences between male and female bodies…

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Only Jagger Moves Like Jagger. Try Moving Like You.

In my early Air Force days, I pursued training to become a survival instructor. The Air Force is the only branch of service where you can spend a whole military career as a Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) Specialist. The other military branches have them, but they’re only temporary assignments, something you do for a few years at most before returning to your regular job. Anyway, that’s free info; now back to my story.

The main SERE school is at Fairchild Air Force Base near Spokane, Washington. The course all SERE Specialists were required to pass only started twice a year, so folks put together a program to keep us busy and out of trouble while we were waiting around for class to start. We were together just about all the time. Every weekday we worked out in the mornings, and then afternoons varied. One day a week we’d do a full PT test in the morning and a timed 7-mile ruck march after lunch. One afternoon a week we’d have details (more or less do chores, restocking supplies, cleaning up or repairing things around our building). Once a week we’d go to a state park or something similar and go for ruck marches up and over mountains, where we’d practice our land navigation and keep our bodies accustomed to carrying heavy weight for a sustained period. There were lots of other odds and ends to keep us busy while we waited for class to start (help unpack moving vans for the families of students who had started class and were out in the field, help perform maintenance on the equipment getting used by the class ahead of us, etc.).

One of the standard activities we did was to spend time in “the back 40.” The back 40 was a section near us where we went to learn and practice some of the skills we’d need once we started class. Here we learned to sharpen and swing an axe, how to start fires with the stuff around us, how to build a shelter out of parachutes, all kinds of skills you’d need to survive in the wild. The course we wanted to pass had a high failure rate, and the instructors found that this type of orientation helped prepare students for the training, resulting in fewer washouts.

We were all part of a very physical career field, and as a result, it seemed like someone was always heading to the doctor. Although we’d all gather at a certain spot before heading out to the back 40, it became common practice for those returning from appointments to meet up with the group at a certain spot the group passed on their way to the back 40. One day we were all heading out to the back 40 when we saw a guy in the same uniform as us, wearing his ruck sack just like we were, standing motionless and waiting for us at this spot. Someone among us asked “who’s that?” We all took a look up ahead, trying to figure it out. Someone said “he stands like Jones.” A quick look around the group verified that Jones wasn’t among us, and as we got closer, it turned out that it was indeed Jones. We spent so much time together that someone in our group was able to identify someone off in the distance, who was dressed just like us and had the same haircut, simply by the way he stood.

There’s a story in the Old Testament where something similar happened. In 2 Samuel chapter 18, an aging King David was waiting for news from a battle. As he sat near the city gate, the watchman on duty announced two separate men running toward the city. While they waited eagerly for the messengers to arrive, the watchman said in verse 27 “I think the running of the first is like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok.” Here again is someone who’s able to identify another from far off by the individual’s kinesthetics. The way their body moves, or their posture, gives away their identity. Each of us is so different from one another that the way our bodies move gives us away, like a fingerprint.

Of all the people God could’ve chosen to live the life you’re living, He chose you. We’re unique individuals God stitched together, with no two looking, moving, or behaving exactly alike. In all that uniqueness, God prepared challenges for you in this life that you’re superbly qualified for. Other people could do it, but God chose you to do it. Embrace your uniqueness, whatever that looks like, and live the life God’s called you to live. You’re the best person for the job.

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What do Giraffes Have That Nobody Else Does?

The answer, of course, is baby giraffes. Let’s talk a little bit about Evolution.

Before we get into that, though, I’d like you to think about a traditional mousetrap. It’s a simple machine that’s been mass produced and has sold millions of units. Yet what would happen if any of the mousetrap’s components was removed? Take away the trigger, the holding bar, the spring, or anything else, and what happens? Removing any single component means the trap isn’t catching any mice.

Instead of a mousetrap, think of a complex biological machine, say, the human eye. Evolution says that simple, one-celled organisms changed over many generations and long periods of time to become highly complex living systems. If this is true, there had to be a series of pretty spectacular leaps forward to move from a single-celled organism to an organ that can sense light, then again to today’s human eye. It just doesn’t make sense. What was the immediate predecessor to the current version? What can you take away from the human eye and have it be almost as capable as the version we know today?

The theory of evolution has a problem. Animals that need to evolve fall into one of two categories: they either fail to evolve quickly enough (and thus fail to pass along genes that will enable future generations to acquire new characteristics), or they undergo massive mutational changes during a single generation (which seems very unlikely). Let’s use the giraffe as an example.

Let’s assume for a moment that Evolution is true. Imagine what giraffes looked like before they had long necks. It was more like a funky moose. For this conversation we’ll call it a stubby giraffe. Evolution claims that as food got scarce for individual stubby giraffes, they were forced to look for sustenance in areas beyond their normal reach. Let’s look at a few possibilities for what happened next.

Possibility number one: starving stubby giraffes did not consume enough calories to carry and give birth to baby stubby giraffes, so they died without birthing any healthy calves. – Unsuccessful evolution.

American, North Korean, and South Korean (left, center, right) soldiers

Possibility number two: the bodies of stubby giraffes, in the span of a single lifetime, while suffering from malnutrition, activated biological mechanisms which altered their own established DNA blueprints and triggered explosive leg and neck growth (while malnourished), enabling its survival. Malnourished bodies, however, experience stunted growth, not accelerated growth. North Korea’s people are starving and its children don’t get enough food to eat during their bodies’ crucial stages of physical development. As a result, many North Korean adults have a much smaller stature than their counterparts in other countries who had sufficient nutritional support during those stages of physical development.  – Implausible.

Possibility number three: stubby giraffes did not experience rapid alterations, but they did experience incremental amounts of extraordinary growth (growth beyond what its DNA stipulated) with each passing generation. As these “hybrid giraffes” gained the ability to reach food they hadn’t been able to access before, they consumed all the food stubby giraffes could reach, and the stubby giraffes died out. But the same problem remains: if hybrid giraffes weren’t getting enough to eat and were forced to either evolve or die, how did their starving bodies find it within themselves to boldly step outside the bounds of their DNA and add inches or feet of bones, muscle, and corresponding tissue and blood vessels? On the other hand, if they were getting enough to eat, why did they need to evolve any further, and why haven’t they shrunk since then? After all, in terms of calories and energy, extra muscle mass is expensive.  – Implausible.

There’s no logical scenario where this kind of evolution happens. Logically, people would have to buy into possibility number four: the giraffes you see today are similar (both in appearance and genetically) to the first giraffes that walked the planet. Hundreds or thousands of giraffe generations all followed the same DNA blueprint, passed that blueprint along to the next generation, which passed it to the next, and so on. Whoever designed these things established the originals along with a pretty solid process of reproducing themselves.

Did you know that a giraffe’s neck is strong enough to support the weight of a human climbing on it? Also, I got banned from the zoo today.

Here’s an example that will make you think. What if I, as a human, suddenly needed to evolve quickly enough to be able to hold my breath for 10 minutes? With practice I can increase my breath-holding capacity to over two minutes, but if I’m thrust into a situation where I need to hold my breath for 10 minutes, I’m not going to make it. That’s a Pass/Fail test, and it’s not looking good for me. What if we take a more incremental approach to this problem, though?

The Bajau people of Southeast Asia have long relied on their skills at free-diving for their livelihood and for food. They spend an extreme amount of time repeatedly holding their breath and diving below the surface to obtain food and pearls on the seafloor. This lifestyle has led to enlarged spleens among the Bajau. (The spleen plays a role in the oxygenation level of blood, among other things.) This adaptation enables divers to stay underwater longer. Here’s the interesting part though. Even non-divers among the Bajau people have enlarged spleens. This finding suggests conditioning the body has an impact on DNA, but it also means this adaptation was not the result of an “evolve or die” scenario, because death was not imminent before it occurred. Is it possible that evolution is taking place here?

I can’t find it online, but when I was in high school I was taught something I think called “Color Theory.” It helped explain the wide disparity in physical characteristics of people across the globe. I’ll run through a few examples. The Massai people of Kenya and Tanzania in eastern Africa have one of the tallest average heights in the world, at around 6 feet, 3 inches. They have tight curly hair and very dark brown (or even black) eyes. Spending many generations primarily as herders of livestock, they’ve traditionally spent long hours in the hot equatorial sun. Their height enabled them to see predators sneaking through the grass to attack members of their herd, and their dark skin, dark eyes, and tightly curled hair provided various forms of protection from the intense sun.

In Asia, the Gobi Desert straddles Mongolia and China, two of the world’s oldest and most storied cultures. The desert played a significant role in the type of genetic characteristics that manifested themselves in people that lived in the area. Being over six feet tall and having curly hair is no picnic during and after a sandstorm. The people in the region were generally much shorter, had straight, coarse hair, and had eye shapes and structures suited to providing protection for their vision. All of these characteristics made it easier to cope with the realities of living in regions with large volumes of sand blowing around.

Finally, the people of Scandinavia in northern Europe have their own unique characteristics. Living at high latitudes means the sun’s rays are not nearly as intense as other areas of the world. Weaker solar rays warrant fewer protections from the sun, so those traditionally living in this region are normally fair-skinned, have thinner (or more fine) hair, and have light-colored eyes. This makes them well suited for geography where, for months out of the year, the sun’s max intensity approximates dawn/twilight.

I share this with you to illustrate the following point. These four examples (Bajau divers, Massai, those around the Gobi Desert, and Scandinavians) all have unique adaptations for their native geography, but none of them are on their way to starting a new species. They are all unquestionably human, and they are all undoubtedly going to stay that way. They in no way represent a departure from the human race.

We are all human because God made us all in His image. We all descended from sinners and are sinners ourselves. Accordingly, we all have need of the same Savior, and that is Jesus Christ. If you’re one of His, there are plenty of other people out there who are waiting for you to share Christ with them, even if they don’t look like you. Take up the challenge to spread the good news with them.

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The Principle of Progressive Collapse

In the 1960s and 70s, the U.S. military extensively used the UH-1 Iroquois helicopter. Better known as the “Huey,” it gained widespread fame in Vietnam for its ability to carry troops in and out of battle and conduct medevac missions in hot combat zones.

Huey (foreground) and Blackhawk (background)

The venerated chopper has served its nation reliably since the 1950s, but it doesn’t have the best safety record when it has to make a hard landing. It doesn’t have many safety features to help occupants survive a crash. In the 1970s, a new helicopter came on the scene: the UH-60 Black Hawk.

Versions of the Black Hawk are still widely in use in today’s military. It’s larger, smoother, tougher, and more versatile than the Huey. It also has some safety features built in to help protect the crew from hard landings.

In 1993, U.S. Special Forces served in the African nation of Somalia to intervene in a situation where local warlords were taking advantage of a severe famine. On one particularly bloody October day, local fighters were able to shoot down a U.S. Black Hawk chopper during a military operation in the capital city of Mogadishu.

The pilot, Mike Durant, was the only survivor of the crash. The impact knocked him unconscious, but when he came to, he was surprised to find that he could no longer see over the “dashboard” of the helicopter. As it turns out, the front seats in the Black Hawk were designed to withstand a certain amount of force, after which they’d progressively collapse to the floor. This safety feature was intended to spare the seats’ occupants from absorbing all that force with their own bodies. By building the structure of the seat this way, the large amount of force that would have been transferred directly into Durant’s spine got dissipated enough to allow him to survive. The crash still broke his back, but he eventually recovered (despite being captured and held hostage) and returned to duty. The events of this operation are depicted in the movie “Black Hawk Down.”

The front seats in a Blackhawk are designed to absorb a portion of the force in a crash landing

Nowhere in scripture are Christians promised a life free of hardship. On the contrary, we will be hated and made fun of, and our lives can quite possibly be made more difficult by announcing our religious convictions to the world. The heat will get cranked up and all will get to see what our faith is really made of.

In those times, sometimes we’ll be made to bend, but not break. Other times we’ll be broken, but not killed. I wouldn’t go so far as to say that God never gives us more than we think we can bear; yes, that happens to people. The tough times I’ve been through pale in comparison to what some others have endured, but it seems like God’s purpose of the pain, the “why,” is never apparent during the pain. It also seems, however, that He designs situations in such a way that parts of you, or perhaps parts of your character, are protected while others crumple and break around you. When it’s over, the parts that He didn’t want are broken and have fallen away and the parts that are left are the parts that He still wants to be there. It may very well be that He arranged that set of circumstances specifically to refine your character or your outlook on life.

If you’re going through something really hard right now, hang in there. It won’t always be like this.

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This Is Probably the Only Time I’ll Do This

Sometimes God asks basic, or even mundane, things of you. Other times, though, He’ll challenge you to do something you might only get a chance to do a few times during your life.

Here’s a pretty unremarkable example, but I hope it helps illustrate my point. About 49 times out of 50, whenever I post something new on this blog, the post goes live on a Thursday (the exception is during the week of Thanksgiving). Today is Thursday, but this is a special Thursday.

Today is Thursday, February 29th. It’s Leap Day. It will be four years before we get another Leap Day, but it won’t be until February 29th, 2052, that Leap Day falls on Thursday again. That’s 28 years from now. At this point I’m unwilling to commit to this website for that long. (Any guest authors out there?) That means today’s post may be the only daregreatlynow.com post that ever gets posted on February 29th.

God many times moves in your heart to do “ordinary” things. There’s nothing wrong with that; in fact, the consistent and reliable service of committed saints is what makes many ministries possible. Volunteering in the church’s nursery, helping out an elderly neighbor after a snowstorm, or visiting with someone who finds it difficult to leave the house are all things that serve God’s kingdom by being the hands and feet of Christ. Every now and then, though, He challenges you with something extraordinary.

There are limitless possibilities, and they often tie in with your unique circumstances, means, and interests. I can’t do the things you can, you can’t do the things I can, and that’s why God put you and I exactly where we are. Whatever that big thing is, the thing that scares you even though you know God’s whispering in your ear, I just want to encourage you to press on. It could be making a very large financial donation to something God-honoring, reaching out to someone you wouldn’t ordinarily engage in a meaningful way, or filling a gap somewhere where you seem to be the only one who notices. There is literally no end to the options that are out there.

I believe that if God led you to serve in those consistent and predictable ways, you should follow through on them. But like Queen Esther, sometimes God weaves the circumstances of our lives into opportunities for us to step into water that’s over our heads and be part of something extraordinary. Don’t pass those up, because they don’t come along very often.

Yet who knows–maybe it was for a time like this that you were made queen! –Esther 4:14b (Good News Translation)

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You’re Exactly When You Belong

Do you know what happened in the year 1380? I didn’t either, until I took a look to see what major events took place. For the whole year, across the entire globe, “the Google” only listed three things: 1. In July, Thomas of Buckingham’s invasion army lands on Calais (no idea who that dude is); 2. In September, Moscow’s great monarch Dimitri defeats the Mongols, beginning the decline of the Tatars (haven’t heard about this, either); and 3. In November King Charles VI of France was crowned at age 12 (hey, I’ve at least heard of France!).

Granted, there were a lot fewer people in the world to make news in 1380 than there are in 2024 (about 350 million then vs. ~8 billion now), but still, there were only three things that happened on the world stage for the whole year? I feel like we have three major things happen on the world stage every few days in 2024.

Know what’s really neat to think about? Before he even breathed life into Adam, God had history all mapped out. He knew what was going to happen and when. I wouldn’t claim that He did it this way, but imagine if God had a mugshot-style photo of every human that would ever exist, and He had them all hanging up in His office. He also had a huge whiteboard with an immense timeline. He went through and made conscious decisions about when on that timeline He wanted each of those people to be alive and breathing. “Let’s see, I’ve got two souls left; I’ve got an opening for a Philistine in 1010 B.C. and I need someone to be an American in 2024 A.D.” He made his choice. One ended up being a Philistine that cornered King Saul on his last day, and the other ended up being you.

Now this probably isn’t what happened, but it’s sort of an “outside the box” way of making the point that God knew what He was doing and clearly put some thought into the undertaking of selecting at what point in history you were supposed to be on the stage. Young or old, God made a conscious decision to have you be the exact age you are, right now in 2024, so that you could fit in with His plan.

The people you influence, the places that you go, and the things that you do…all of them are pre-known by the Lord, and He selected you to be the one doing those things in your lifetime. It’s not an accident that you’re in the here and now. God hand-picked you to be here for a reason.

In this life you’re going to do things that please God, and you’re going to do things that miss the mark. It’s important to pursue the life God wants you to, but it’s also important not to stop trying when you mess up. God saw your successes and your failures coming long ago, and uses them both for the stories He’s stitching together. Use your gifts and your time here in 2024 to tee up events in 2025 and beyond, so that Christ-followers who come behind us will be better equipped or gain otherwise-unlikely opportunities to spread the news of Christ with those around them.

Lord, though I may not understand why, You’ve placed me right here in this time for a reason. Please help me live my life in a way that honors You, help me not get hung up on details I don’t need to know, and be blessed by peeks into the ways You’re using me in Your grand story. Amen.

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Living Through a Tangible Example

This coming weekend is a three-day weekend for a lot of people, and it reminds me of an annual retreat our youth group participated in years ago (and probably still does). Every President’s Day weekend our youth group went to a nearby Christian conference center for a mini retreat. Many of the other churches from our denomination’s district brought their youth groups as well. It added some excitement to the mid-winter doldrums for a lot of our high-schoolers. It was always a very uplifting time that saw many kids dedicate or re-dedicate their lives to Christ.

One year during this retreat our youth leader, Allen, took part in an annual tradition for the retreat. He arranged to make pizza available for purchase, and our youth group would then meet together (just us in a smaller setting…no other church’s youth groups) for some deep discussions.

As you may be able to imagine, a large number of teenagers can go through quite a bit of pizza. Everyone was told ahead of time to bring some extra cash specifically for the purpose of buying however many slices of pizza they’d want. Allen announced that he’d get a slice count first, then collect the cash afterward. He went methodically through the roster he brought, keeping a record of how many slices each person wanted. Upon tallying all the orders, he asked “okay, last call, does anybody want to make any changes before we call in the order?” There may have been one or two changes to the orders, but it wasn’t long before he tallied up the final count.

As everybody started pulling out their cash, he announced a surprise. An anonymous member of our church was a big fan of the effect this retreat had on our youth group, and had volunteered to pick up the tab for the entire youth group’s pizza dinner. While buying pizza may not sound like much, it was a very real and practical way to love on the kids from our church attending the retreat that year. As jaws fell open, many of the boys, especially, tried to revise their orders higher, but Allen had seen it coming and purposely double checked before announcing the news.

This was a great way to demonstrate to teenagers the concept of having their debt forgiven. While this was an infinitely smaller debt to overcome than Christ’s redemption of our souls, it was an example that struck a chord and brought a tangible joy with it.

For those who have maybe heard of Jesus but might not be real familiar with Him, He serves as the bridge for us to cross an impossible gap. You’ve probably heard of Adam and Eve. For a time, Adam and Eve walked in sinless fellowship with the Lord. It wasn’t until they sinned (went against what they knew was right in God’s eyes) that death became woven into the human experience. Only someone without sin would be able to escape the lasting consequences of death, and only Jesus Christ has lived a sinless life. Since Christ was fully man, He wasn’t impervious to death, but since He was also fully God, He was impervious to staying dead. Since death has no power over the sinless, Christ was able to stare death in the eye and do as He wished. Although His sacrifice created a way to redeem us if we accept it, all of us are still destined to live with the consequences of our past sins. Everyone reading this will one day pass from this life into the next, but only those that have accepted Christ as their savior will spend the next life with Him in heaven.

I pray you’d experience a similar example of having your debt forgiven, and gain an increased appreciation for the gift Christ offers all of us. For those that have been Christ-followers for awhile now, please pray that those who are seeking truth would find it, and that God would move mightily in their lives, and in the lives of the teens gathering for the winter retreat this weekend.

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History has a Tendency To Repeat Itself

The other day my daughter pointed out to me that 2024 is starting out an awful lot like 2020 did. The 49ers are playing the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. This month has an extra day at the end because it’s a leap year. It’s looking more and more likely that it’s going to be a Biden/Trump presidential election. And at least at this point in the year, the Olympics are scheduled to take place this summer as long as a worldwide pandemic doesn’t change things.

Well obviously, I don’t have the inside track on how any of those things are going to turn out (though I’m hoping the 49ers can pull off a win over the Chiefs). Despite not liking to put many political posts on this blog, I feel it’s important to sometimes address things before they happen, hopefully helping you to prepare mentally for what’s ahead.

President Biden is polling abysmally right now. I mean, it’s bad. He listens to extremist advisors and espouses policies that are difficult to justify if the goal is to make America and its economy better (raise energy prices, force electric vehicle adoption in a market that isn’t interested, ban gas appliances, forfeit energy independence, etc.). Between many of his supporters wanting him to do more to punish Israel, along with Independents (and a big chunk of Democrats) saying “you know, I think you’ve gone too far with the border situation,” he’s got a shrinking pool of people he can rely on. At this rate, his only real chance is to make the other Presidential candidates look even less appealing than he does.

Nikki Haley is still in the race, but she’s going to have to pull off some convincing wins here very soon if she wants to realistically remain in the conversation. If she somehow pulls off a massive upset and gains the GOP nomination, Biden’s going to have his hands full trying to convince the country that he can do a better job than she can. I don’t really see her being much more than a nuisance to former President Trump on his path to the nomination, though.

I’m not sure of the latest numbers, but at one point there were over 90 criminal counts pending against Trump. That’s not a small thing. If he’s guilty, he should face the consequences. I do question the timing of the four cases, though. It strikes me as odd that no charges were brought until after it was evident he’d be running again. It seems suspicious that everything seemed to hit at once, almost as though it was a coordinated effort to keep someone in the courtroom rather than the campaign trail and force them to use money on legal defense instead of being used elsewhere. Between that “legal coordination” and attempts to keep him off ballots, I don’t feel it’s Trump that poses the biggest threat of election interference or threat to democracy.

Now I can’t honestly say I know what all those charges are, but based on the sheer number of them I’ve got to imagine he’ll be convicted on at least one of them. Those are all felony counts. Here I’m showing my ignorance on the legal system, but I would think that not all felonies are created equal. There are different levels of “badness” in the felony category. If he’s convicted of the most minor felony count, it can still truthfully be said that he’s been found guilty of a felony (even if he appeals and wins). If that happens, that’s the only thing you’re going to hear out of the White House, out of Biden surrogates, and from protesters between now and the election. They’ll hope a felony conviction of any sort will be enough to cause a sizable portion of voters to withhold their support from him.

This may just shape up to be a contest to see who can avoid looking the worst. Trump’s facing 90+ felonies, but Biden just got caught either lying to the American people or showing that he doesn’t quite have a solid grasp of the situation. Regarding the border bill that fell apart earlier this week, Biden has repeatedly claimed that its passage is necessary to empower him before he can solve the border crisis. The last president somehow managed to do quite a bit to secure the border, and the Democratic Senate that’s been in power since then hasn’t taken away any of the President’s powers. My guess is that Biden will tighten up the border just enough to say “look, we’ve reduced the number of people crossing into the U.S.” to try to take away Trump’s biggest weapon, and you’ll hear “felony, felony, felony” or “fascist white supremacist” about Trump.

Also like we saw in 2020, there are probably a lot of people that are going to say “I don’t like either candidate.” In an interesting turn of events, this year there’s a third-party candidate that’s benefitting quite a bit from a general dislike of the two-party system. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is picking up some steam. He comes from a more traditional Democratic platform, from before extremists took over the party. At this point he’s the most centrist candidate in the race, and he’s gaining support from people on both sides (though more of that support probably comes from Democrats). As we draw closer to the election in November he’s probably going to get more attention because a lot of what he says makes sense to people who are looking for less drama out of the White House.

What I’m about to say assumes that Kennedy gets a LOT more support between now and November, so keep that in mind as you read it. Presidential candidates win elections by gaining more than half of the nation’s 538 electoral college votes. You need 270 to win. If RFK Jr. peels off a state or two, he could conceivably prevent any candidate from reaching 270 electoral votes. In that case, the outcome of the election gets tossed over to the House of Representatives.

To reiterate, we’re talking about kind of a long-shot scenario here. If the House gets to pick the next president, it’s going to be under tremendous pressure to “do the right thing.” The “right thing,” however, is open to interpretation. Is it the candidate that got the greatest number of electoral votes? Is it the candidate that got the most popular votes? Will it come down to a party-line vote, and if so, how will that work if a few of the representatives are in the hospital or are otherwise unavailable in one of the narrowest House margins in history?

It’s still a very difficult time in our nation’s history. There’s no candidate that everyone will support. We’re stuck once again with picking the least bad option. No matter what party is in power, please pray for our president and officials in Congress. God allowed them to be there, so please pray for His hand on them, steering them toward what He wants to accomplish.

Lord, thank you for the blessings we enjoy by living in this country. I ask that You watch over our nation’s leaders, give them wisdom, and help them make God-honoring decisions. I ask in Your name, amen.

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Behold, the Tax Man Cometh!

It’s that time of year again. Unless you’re an absolute champ and already have your taxes done, you’re probably gearing up to file them in the next couple of months. In this post we’ll ignore Washington’s inability to spend less money than it takes in, and instead focus on your taxes at a personal level.

Taxes are sort of a necessary evil. The government needs taxes in order to function, and unquestionably has the right to tax its citizens, but my view is that you shouldn’t pay any more taxes than you legally need to. I don’t have the time or space to get deep into taxes here, but I’ll try to provide some basic tips for those of you to whom taxes are a mystery. If you’re already well-versed with your own tax situation, this post probably isn’t for you.

With a few exceptions, every dollar you make is subject to tax. The obvious and most common source of income is your job, but in most cases if you’re receiving money that’s not a gift, that money’s taxable. If you have a side gig, or you have a yard sale, maybe you win the cash prize in your fantasy football league, or you win a bet with a friend, any time you’ve been given money in exchange for something, that means you’ve generated income, and that income is taxable. You’re responsible for reporting it come tax time. If you’re not reporting it on your taxes and the IRS can prove you received it, you have nobody but yourself to blame.

The U.S. has a progressive tax code. That means everybody is taxed lighter at low income levels, but income is taxed at higher and higher percentages as income levels rise. The lowest tax bracket right now is 10%, but rises to 12%, and then 22%. There are higher levels than that, but if you’re in a tax bracket above that level, you’re probably not going to learn much from this post. The system is a little deceiving if you haven’t ever paid close attention. If you’re in the 22% tax bracket, it doesn’t mean you’re paying 22% tax on every dollar you make; it means you’re paying 10% tax on all your income up to the cap of that first bracket, plus 12% tax on every dollar that’s in the next highest bracket, plus 22% tax on all the remaining dollars. That’s way better than 22% of every dollar you make. After you add up all the money you made last year from various sources, you can do a search for 2023 tax brackets to see where you fall.

Let’s say you’re married filing jointly, and between the two of you, you earn $60,000 a year. The government recognizes it needs to give people a break by not taxing every single dollar they make. Uncle Sam helps people out in the form of something called a deduction. If your tax situation is fairly simple (you rent your home instead of own it, you don’t donate much money to charity, and you don’t mess around with stocks or real estate), you should probably go with the standard deduction. It’s a value that’s updated every year, and in the 2023 tax year the standard deduction for a couple that’s married filing jointly is $27,700. That means you can subtract $27,700 from your annual salary of $60,000 (which shields almost half of your income from the tax man), and you’ll only have to pay taxes on the remaining $32,300. Deductions are good because they reduce the amount of your money that gets taxed, ultimately reducing the amount of tax you need to pay.

A second kind of deduction, called “itemized deductions,” is an option, but doesn’t make sense for everyone to take. For itemized deductions to provide you more value than the standard deduction, your itemized deductions (things like donations to charity, mortgage interest, property taxes, etc.) would need to add up to more than the standard deduction. It’s possible to do it with income of $60,000, but it probably doesn’t happen consistently unless you own a home and/or give a sizable chunk of your money to charity. If you’re making $60,000 as someone who’s married filing jointly, you’re probably going to want to take the standard deduction.

So if you continue with this $60,000 example (where you’re only taxed on $32,300), you calculate the tax according to the tax brackets. Ten percent of the first $22,000 (the upper limit in the lowest married/filing jointly bracket) is $2,200, and then you have to pay 12% on the remaining $10,300 ($32,300 minus $22,000). That comes out to $2,200 plus $1,236, for a total tax bill of $3,436. Don’t lose heart, you probably don’t have to cut a check for that much.

That’s the simplified version. If you have kids that are your dependents living with you, and you’ve provided more than half of their financial support for the year, you get to claim the Child Tax Credit. Depending on the child’s age, you get to subtract up to $2,000 per child directly from your tax bill. Tax credits pack more of a punch than deductions do, because while deductions knock a percentage of a dollar off the tax bill, a tax credit removes 100% of a dollar’s worth of tax liability for every dollar of tax credit you receive. Deductions = good, credits = better.

The last thing I’ll quickly cover is tax planning. Nobody likes to be surprised by a big tax bill when it comes time to file. Some people like to get a refund when it comes time to file, and others would rather pay at least a small amount when they file so they don’t have to give the government an interest-free loan with the money that comes out of each paycheck). I’ll let you decide what’s right for your situation, but the ideal tax planning scenario would be to owe no tax and be due no refund. If you know how much tax you’ll owe at the end of the year, it’s usually pretty easy to ballpark how much tax should be withheld from each paycheck.

Let’s use our example from above (assuming the couple has no kids and no major tax credits). They’ll owe $3,436 in taxes. If they’re paid every two weeks, we can divide 3,436 in taxes by 26 paychecks a year to find that if they withhold $132.16 from each paycheck for federal taxes, at the end of the year that amount should fully cover the tax they owe. They’ll have to readjust for raises or substantial changes in deductions or tax credits, but that’s the gist of it.

It’s too late to make adjustments to Federal withholding for the taxes you’ll be filing over the next couple of months, but since we’re only a month into 2024, you have a great opportunity to choose how much money you accrue by the end of the year to use in paying your ’24 taxes in the winter/spring of 2025. If you know roughly how much money you’ll make this year, you can also ballpark how much money should be withheld from your paychecks. Just make sure to account for the fact that some paychecks have probably already come in and the withholding from them might be different from what you want it to be for the year’s remaining paychecks. Your pay stub usually shows how much is withheld from each check, along with how much has been withheld so far in a given year. Once you determine what you want withheld from each paycheck, get in touch with your payroll department or submit an updated W-4 form to your employer’s payroll support provider.

I can’t even begin to tell you how complicated the U.S. tax code is, so please understand that this is very basic information. There are all kinds of additional considerations to look at (like filing single, married filing separately, and filing as head of household). The way you earn money also affects your taxes; if you’re married filing jointly and one spouse collects a paycheck while the other makes money babysitting, it’s likely that tax is only being withheld from one of those income streams, but both of them figure into the amount of total tax that’s owed, so you’ll need to plan accordingly.

This is only enough information to get you pointed at areas you want to learn more about. I’ve only discussed federal taxes here. State and local taxes vary by location and are in addition to federal taxes, so don’t forget about those. Of course, the best way to ensure that you’re getting it done right is to pay a tax professional to do it, but if you’ve got a fairly simple tax situation and don’t mind working with numbers, you can probably file them yourself. Tax software makes it easier to do on your own, and can often get it done cheaper than paying someone else to do it.

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There’s no Business Like Snow Business

In the last week or so here in the DC area, we’ve had the most snow we’ve had in a couple of years. Though it’s just about completely gone by now, the snow and accompanying cold snap we’ve had has got me thinking of days gone by when I spent more time in the snow.

I took up the sport of cross-country skiing when I was in college. I took a half-credit class my Freshman year, and man, did I enjoy it. After I got bit by the bug, I got a job repairing/maintaining the school’s skis (which meant I could take them out whenever I wanted), I went out and bought my own skis, and I spent a lot of time skiing around the college’s cross-country running trails. I can only remember cutting class once in college, and it was to go out XC skiing on new fallen snow on a Friday afternoon.

One of the things I liked so much about cross-country skiing was the mobility I had in places I wouldn’t otherwise go. When you couple that freedom with the peacefulness that’s out there in nature, with sounds muffled by the snow, it was something I enjoyed very much.

Well, I need to tell you about a dopey move I made on skis. The college I attended had its own mini ski slope. It wasn’t anything major, but it was great for teaching people who have never gone downhill skiing before. For those that aren’t familiar, these are two very different types of skiing. Downhill skiing is the stuff you do when you get all bundled up and ride on chair lifts, and cross-country skiing is the stuff that NordicTrack tries to simulate. This ski slope had a green circle (bunny slope) to teach students the basics, a blue square to give students more room and a steeper slope to try out their skills, and a black diamond (more of a blue square plus) with a still steeper slope to let students pick up some greater speed.

One night a buddy and I wanted to go take advantage of the fresh powder that had just fallen. One of the best places to go was near the ski slope. The ski slope was closed and there were no lights in the area, but after being out in the dark for awhile my eyes adjusted, especially with the snow making things brighter.

Now cross-country skiing isn’t exactly the most relaxing sport. You’re doing a lot of work; you’re always either kicking with the skis or pushing with the poles. Since you’re the one providing the propulsion, the sound and cadence of skis and poles moving through the snow are ever present. That constant effort makes you really appreciate the free trip you get when going down hills, and it can seem almost otherworldly to glide down a hill without all the noise.

The powder on this occasion was deep enough that it prevented me from building up a lot of speed. It was just the right depth that I could go sailing straight down the main ski slope without bombing down the hill at a breakneck pace, something you don’t normally get to experience on cross-country skis. Only the front tips of the skis stuck out of the snow, and as they blazed trails through the unspoiled powder, snow the consistency of powdered sugar sprinkled with salt caved back in on the skis and covered them, all while I moved down the hill with no more than a gentle swishing sound. It was a delightfully serene moment I wanted to capture as best as I could.

I had my camera with me (back when people carried cameras but not phones), and even though I knew it wouldn’t do justice to the real thing, I wanted to try. I took out my camera and turned it on, and looked through the viewfinder (remember those?) to get the view of my skis that I wanted. I pressed the button, and a brilliant flash from the camera, which then reflected off a totally white surface, blinded my perfectly adjusted night vision as I continued straight down the hill.

Very quickly I realized there was a decision I had to make. There were trees, machinery, and other stuff at the bottom of the hill that I could crash into and get seriously hurt, but I figured I would probably miss it all. My vision might even come back early enough for me to make out any dangers before I got close to them. I could also start turning across the slope to buy myself some time for my vision to return, but then I would be heading toward some trees for sure. Cross-country skis don’t turn as easily as downhill skis, especially in powder, so that would also be an action that would benefit from being able to see.

Well, I probably could’ve made it to the bottom safely, but the choice seemed to be all risk and no reward, especially considering how soft it would be to fall down in that much powder. I intentionally fell over and waited until I stopped seeing stars. My serene moment was fun while it lasted, but it ended when I slumped down into a frozen white blanket until I could see again.

It’s a pretty unremarkable picture if there’s no context

Whatever the weather’s like where you are, I hope you’re healthy and well, that the first month of the new year has been treating you right, and that in the coming weeks you get some weather you enjoy.

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There’s No Getting Out of It; Primary Season is Here

Well, political primary season is here. Despite what it may seem, I don’t really like putting political posts on the blog, but sometimes I feel like it’s important to put information out there that doesn’t get much attention.

Here’s the bottom line up front: Primaries can be more important than general elections, so it’s very important that you study up on the candidates and participate in the process. It almost seems inevitable that we’re headed for a rematch on the Presidential ballot, but that’s only the most prominent part of a very large picture. It’s also important to consider the Representatives, Senators, and local officials you’re choosing to compete later in this cycle. If a district is solid red or solid blue, the November election is more or less a foregone conclusion. The actual decision point, where voter turnout matters, is going to be the primary election that selects which candidate subsequently appears in the general election. If you’re not voting in the primary, you’re really just letting someone else determine who gets into office. This is especially important for those of you that vote Democrat.

Here’s what I mean. The Democratic Party of today in almost no way resembles what it used to be. The values are different. Now it’s nonsensical and extreme. Don’t feel like you need to completely buy into what they’re putting into their national platform, which seems like it’s a contest to see who can be the craziest. Despite what you feel like you’ve been told, it’s perfectly acceptable to be a Democrat that wants secure borders. Even though the media doesn’t want you to think this way, it’s also totally fine to be a Pro-Life Democrat. Forget what the party platform says; I know there are plenty of Democratic voters out there that think “no, boys should not be able to compete in girls’ events by saying they’re girls.” They’ve become the party of sowing division, rather than unity. How is that good for Americans? What happened to this party? The state we’re in is a result of primaries selecting extremists whose views represent only a small percentage of the actual base. You didn’t leave the Democratic Party, the Democratic Party left you during its leftward march. It’s up to you to take back your party.

While obviously there are problems on both sides of the aisle, the problems listed above are Democrat-owned. Republicans are trying to solve them but don’t have enough bipartisan support, either at the national level or at the local level (including school boards, in some cases). I’m not saying you have to vote Republican. Don’t worry, even if we find common ground on these few issues, there’s still plenty to distinguish the two parties!

If you’re not voting in the Democratic primary for candidates that are more centrist and less extremist, you’re probably going to find yourself stuck between voting for a Republican and voting for an extremist Democrat in November. Come November, there are a lot of people that vote only on the basis of whether the candidate has a “(D)” or an “(R)” next to their name and don’t know the actual positions of the candidate, and that’s dangerous.

There’s a lot of posturing politicians have to do with regard to taking hard-line stances against the opposing party when they’re in front of the cameras, and I understand that. Members of all parties are supposed to work together, though. They don’t have to be friends, they just have to work together. Right now the political atmosphere is one of tangible hatred, and that’s not going to get us to a better place than we are right now.

Do your homework. Find the primary candidates in your district’s election that align with your values and vote for them. Take back your party, and let’s hold our elected officials accountable.

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You Might Be Surprised To Hear This, But Men and Women are Different

(If you’ve got an extra minute or two, have a read over the diary entry below. If not, feel free to skip it.)

We’ve all got quirks. They start when we’re young, but they don’t always resolve themselves as we get older (sometimes they become magnified). I think this becomes most evident in long-term relationships.

My wife and I have been married for over 17 years now. We definitely have quirks of our own. Some of them are stereotypical for men and women, others are maybe more specific to us as individuals. By way of example, if I’m looking for something specific in the refrigerator, I can open the door and turn the fridge upside down trying to find it, even looking right at it multiple times, and still not see it. Then my wife comes along and with a “seriously?!” expression, homes in on it in under a second and a half. At the same time, she can have a song in mind, and it sounds just like the real thing inside her head, but when she tries to hum it, no matter what it is, it always comes out sounding like Smooth Criminal.

I’m blessed to have a spouse that’s pretty easy for me to be married to. Even so, we have to deal with differences of opinion, different perspectives, and quirks in general. She’s very patient and polite when I hear a random voice inflection or odd combination of words or music notes that somehow reminds me of a movie scene from my childhood, or some bizarre scenario reminds me of a Calvin & Hobbes comic strip, and then I take an unreasonable amount of time to provide the context and summary of that scene or comic, which ends up being pretty unremarkable.

While not true in all cases, by and large, men tend to have a more compartmentalized mental arrangement as they go about their day. If you could peek inside our brains, you might see our conscious focus addressing only one thing at a time. There’s the wakeup routine. Then comes the commute. Then he’s at work, thinking about work stuff. Afterwards he has to run errands on the way home. All of those things tend to stay within their respective zones without much bleedover unless some sort of unusual circumstance affects things. My mind works this way most of the time, and is very helpful when it’s time to put certain things on hold. When I leave work, it’s time to stop thinking about work. When it’s time to sleep, I stop thinking about stuff and I’m usually out within two minutes of closing my eyes.

Women, on the other hand (again, not in every case, but more often than not), have “spaghetti brains.” There are no different sections of the brain that conscious thought is split into. It is literally everything, everywhere, all at the same time. There are individual lines of thought that touch on wildly vacillating topics. One may lead to the next, but they may just as easily have nothing to do with each other. All of the following thoughts can occur within the same minute: “Where did I put that thingy I don’t need anymore?” “I can’t believe Charlotte thought I took her yellow sweater in 7th grade; I should look her up and see if she’s sorry.” “Puppies!” “Don’t forget to pick up snacks for the kids’ soccer team.” “LAUNDRY.” “I’d eat a bug if they let me sleep in tomorrow.” “My bra hates me.” “Lose weight, lose wei…CANDY!” “Children are a gift of joy wrapped in toil.” “Organize 1,087,017 pictures into a slide show.” “The check engine light came on.” It’s a constant barrage of swirling and churning thoughts that would bring me to my knees. My wife and I can go to bed at the same time, but she’ll be awake much longer than I am because a lot of those thoughts need to fizzle out before sleep comes.

You can imagine that the communication styles of these two vastly different brain structures also require some give and take. I can do some multitasking, but I prefer to focus on one thing at a time. If I have an idea about something else while I’m working on my main task, I write down the other thing or email it to myself, so that I can focus harder on it when I have an opportunity. In conversations, I look for transitions to help prompt me that we’re moving on from one topic to a different one. I find that sometimes I’m ill-equipped to handle my wife’s communication needs. She can unleash a conversational stream of consciousness that I can’t possibly follow along with, covering a myriad of topics in a single breath. I struggle to see the connection between the different topics we’re zooming through. If I had a video of myself trying to keep up, I think I’d see myself listening with one eye squinted shut tight and the other bugging out of my head as I try to hang on just a little bit longer. Yet this conversational style is effortless when she’s among her sisters or close friends, while us brothers-in-law/husbands use about a fifth of the words they do (on a good day) and just kind of nod periodically.

These are some fun examples, but they’re meant to help illustrate the following point. We are different, and while sometimes those differences are great, other times those differences drive us nuts. Humans in general are hard to get along with, much less live with. Even so, God put a whole bunch of us here. A lot of the Bible is about how to get along with other people. Marriages are the basics for family life. I understand that not everyone is blessed to have two parents married to one another, but that’s what God intended. Those marriages require work, and they often require grace.

Our culture today says that you should be you-focused. “Do what makes you happy! You deserve it!” In reality, marriages are “we-focused.” You’re a team, and teams need to work together to move forward. You’re not perfect, and your spouse isn’t perfect. That’s why you both need to extend some grace and flexibility. It’s not easy, but it’s worth it in the long run.

Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Ephesians 4:2

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Looking Back Can Encourage You To Look Ahead

About a month ago I mentioned that I’d do something of a “year in review” for this blog. At the time I was discussing the importance of following through with the remaining opportunities the Lord gives you to do His work in this life. During lengthier endeavors I think it’s good now and then to stop and reflect on how far you’ve come, recognizing that God is heavily involved and deserves credit for any success.

A little over five years ago God laid on my heart an absurd task: start a blog that honors Him. I say “absurd” because: 1. I don’t really use social media anymore, which seems like it would be kind of an important element of trying to gain attention for a website; 2. I’m an introvert and don’t relish the idea of trying to connect with nameless, faceless people out there in the electronic ether; 3. I’ve had little or no classroom writing training, so a writing-centric effort doesn’t seem to make a whole lot of sense. Despite those misgivings, I decided to obey and let God do whatever He wanted with this whole endeavor.

I can’t claim that I’m some kind of massive Christian influencer. In fact, some of my posts here don’t even mention God or religion. What I can say, though, is that my blog’s reach has extended beyond what I initially expected it to. The intent behind this post is not to say “look at me and how cool I am” or anything like that at all. By sharing this information what I’m really hoping to do is drive home to you the importance of taking small steps of obedience to Christ, because over time they add up and serve as opportunities God can use to work in other peoples’ lives. Even more than that, I’d like to show how a pattern of faithful consistency builds into a cumulative body of something larger. You don’t have to do one huge, mind-blowing thing, it’s probably more beneficial to do a lot of smaller things regularly. To help prove my point, here are a few interesting 2023 stats for the blog and what I take away from them.

During the year the blog hosted 51 new posts, once a week for almost the whole year. While it’s no surprise that IP addresses from the United States score the most number of hits on the blog, the U.S. is far from the only country that had someone stop in for a visit. Besides the U.S., DareGreatlyNow.com had hits from over 50 countries during 2023. Most of those countries accounted for only one, two, or three hits during the whole year. Of course, it’s impossible to claim any of those hits resulted in bringing anyone to Christ, and I have no actual insight into what people do with the posts they read on the blog. Many times God uses conversations, songs, articles, and myriad other things to speak into a person’s life, and I hope God uses my work here to do that very thing in others’ lives. For now I have to trust that God brings the right posts to the right person at the right time, and I have to be okay with knowing that I won’t get filled in on just about any of the details until after Jesus comes back or calls me home.

Of the website’s top 10 visiting countries from 2023, it’s not a shock that most of them are either English-speaking or have large percentages of English-speakers in their populations. Aside from the U.S., the rest of the website’s top 10 patron nations are, in descending order, Canada, China, Ireland, Germany, Norway, India, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Sweden.

Broken down by region, I see seven countries/islands from North America and the Caribbean, three from Central and South America, 20 from Europe, 14 from Asia, seven from Africa, two in Australia (Australia and New Zealand), and four in the Middle East.

Few or none of these stats are a result of my own personal work to promote the blog. I simply don’t have the time to work on drawing more attention to it. I write and post stuff, and God guides people to the site to bring them to see whatever He wants them to see. I have no idea what individual concepts He’s guiding them to. Sure I would love more people to come and read, but if I’m honest, that’s the flesh talking. I’d say that all these posts were worth it if one person decided to trust in Christ as a result of reading one of them. I believe that’s true, but I also know that the blog isn’t really geared toward non-believers, it’s geared more toward Christians that aren’t fully stepping out in what they’ve been called to do for the Lord. What truly needs to happen is that the right person sees the right post at the right time. While some posts are very time-sensitive and lose relevance quickly (current events, especially), many posts on the site age pretty well, and hold true from year to year. In fact, of the five most-viewed posts in 2023, three of them were posted prior to the start of 2023. I sit here reviewing some of these stats and get confused about why posts from 2019 or 2020 are doing so well, but just accept that God’s still using some of my older submissions to work in people.

Often you are the determining factor in whether or not a post has reach. Facebook is the top referrer of people to the site, and that’s not me doing that, that’s because of readers like you liking and sharing individual posts, which then sometimes take on a life of their own (that wouldn’t happen without you, so thank you!). After Facebook, search engines are the next-highest referrers bringing people to posts. Then there are a handful of other blogs that link directly to portions of the website, so thanks to other bloggers out there!

There are other insights to glean from last year’s numbers, but it’s time to wrap this up. If I had waited these last five years to follow God’s lead, these kinds of stats would probably still be five years away. Please keep this perspective in mind when God calls you to pursue different “absurd” tasks in your life. I want this post to serve as encouragement to take up the challenge He’s extending to you, and to do it without delay. Your tasks on their own, whatever they are, may not move mountains or get your name in history books, but if God’s placing the assignment in your path, it will add to the collective effort of other saints He’s got working on various projects and could very well lead to you someday hearing the wonderful words “well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.”

“Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.” Zechariah 4:10

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To My Friends (and Potential Friends) in China

Here in America most peoples’ normal routines are disrupted this week, and few people are likely to really pay attention to this week’s blog entry. After U.S. readers, Canadians are the top patrons of my blog. Though they probably don’t shut down to the same degree we do in the states, there’s still some of that because they celebrate some of the same big holidays we do. It turns out that’s not the case in the country rounding out the blog’s top three. Today I’d like to focus on my readers in China.

I suspect that most of you in China (or in territories China now controls) that read this blog are reading it for the sake of censoring it from your nation’s citizens. You’re not terribly interested in hearing what I want to say, this website just showed up on one of your lists to continue monitoring. If that’s the case, you’re probably some of the only people in your country that are even able to read what I write. Since I probably can’t reach the country’s average citizen, I’ll focus on you because you, too, need to hear this information.

Although many in our two nations maintain an aggressive posture toward one another, this is a shortsighted view. Regardless of the choices we make, someday all of us will pass from this life. I would like to speak to you briefly about the state of your soul after you die.

Despite what you see on American television and social media, many of us in this country are religious. We believe in God and that He created every human across the entire globe with a natural desire to know and pursue Him. All of us here on the planet come from common ancestors, so people from every country share in that same kinship. Our earliest ancestors, who enjoyed the privilege of walking and speaking with God when He came to visit with them in the cool of the day, made a terrible mistake. Unfortunately our ancestors could not follow even the simple rules God presented. As a result, imperfection entered the world, and all of humanity, everywhere on every continent, sailing on any ocean, and orbiting above the planet, now lives with this imperfection and separation from God.

After centuries of limping along with temporary ways to reconcile humans to God, God provided a more permanent solution. He sent a man to walk the earth and live His entire life without violating any of God’s rules, and this man achieved this goal, dying without any shortcomings. Through this man’s perfect life, we enjoy restored access to God’s presence. You know who this man is, but I’m avoiding use of His name here in the hopes that more people in your country will have access to this post without it being flagged. This door of reconciliation to God is open to you, and it is available regardless of political affiliation. God is bigger than the American Government, and God is bigger than the Chinese Communist Party. He wants people to accept His gift to humanity, and this gift is available to people from every country and all walks, even if those people think they are enemies in this life. Please take some time to consider what happens after you take your last breath. We can have peace with one another by joining in our pursuit of God through His son.

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Don’t Lose Sight of the Objective

Though our world continues to darken, there is always hope in Christ, and it’s our job to reflect that hope.

This past week some controversial news came out of the Vatican. I’m not Catholic and I’m not familiar with many Catholic practices, but it seems the Pope has made some changes that now allow blessings for homosexual couples under certain conditions.

To be clear, he’s not changing the Catholic Church’s view that marriage is between a man and a woman, but he’s enabled blessings to take place which formerly could not occur. I’m not real familiar with what exactly a blessing means in this case. If a blessing is something you give to everyone that comes inside, like a handshake or a fist bump, it’s probably not such a big deal. If, on the other hand, it represents the Church saying “we sanction your behavior,” then we’ve got serious problems. I suspect it’s not at either of those extremes. The guidance is that such blessings must not have the appearance of endorsing gay marriage. It is, I think, a relatively minor change to those familiar with Catholic practices and protocols, but again, he has changed policy to enable blessings for people who could not have blessings granted previously. Overall, Pope Francis is trying to make the Church appear more welcoming to homosexuals.

He’s in a tough spot. The number of people that claim to be Catholic (or Protestant, for that matter) is in decline, and he’s trying to do something about it. Unfortunately, when church leaders around the world ask “how can we make the people of the world be more open to attending church?,” the only real answer is “make the church look more like the people of the world.” That’s a mistake.

Christ knew He came with an offensive message, and we, the Church, are to purposely stand in stark contrast to the darkness around us, echoing that offensive message. “You’re all sinners, and therefore unworthy of Heaven.” While that will certainly make you feel defensive the first time you hear it, it’s not the whole story. The rest of the story is that Christ made a way for all sinners (regardless of skin color, wealth, gender, age, political persuasion, social status, etc.) to get to Heaven and spend eternity with God. There are two ways to Heaven: 1. Live a perfect, sinless life, or 2. Ride the coattails of someone who already has. Since option 1 isn’t possible for anyone reading this, we’re all depending on option 2. The only person who’s lived a sinless life is Jesus Christ, and He wants you to accept His offer, which He gladly extends to all without prejudice. The audacity of standing in contrast to what the world says is acceptable is exactly what makes Christ stand out.

I see what Pope Francis is trying to do, but I think if sinners don’t feel welcome in church, that’s as much our fault as it is the fault of upper levels of church leadership. Different churches absolutely have different feels to them, but their primary goal should always be twofold: 1. knowing Christ and 2. spreading Christ. If you’re part of a church that isn’t doing either one of those, it’s probably time to start asking some questions.

We should be going out of our way to make sinners feel welcome at church. After all, we’re sinners, and we’re there, aren’t we? Life is messy. People are broken. No church can fix them, but Christ can. If people are seeking truth, do what you can to make them feel welcome at church, which in turn can help them find the truth of Christ, especially this Christmas season.

Merry Christmas to all, and may you know Christ deeper in the coming year!

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Despite all the Mentions of “Peace” in Christmas Carols…

I have a daughter that looks forward to Christmas all year round. Sometimes we catch her humming Christmas carols in the summer. Once Halloween passes, she starts to crank it up into full gear. You can imagine how full of the Christmas spirit she is right now.

In a lot of Christmas carols, as well as certain Bible verses that are more prominent in December, “Peace” gets a lot of attention this time of year. There are a lot of Christmas carols out there that mention the word “Peace” somehow (sleep in heavenly peace, Peace on earth and mercy mild, his law is love and his gospel is peace). A lot of Bible verses point to it, too (…and he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. Isaiah 9:6). It’s as though the very presence of Jesus is somehow synonymous with Peace.

Yet despite all this mention of Peace, there’s a verse in Matthew chapter 10 that seemingly contradicts this concept of Christ bringing peace to the earth:

Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. –Matt 10:34

Now what does that mean? This doesn’t sound the least bit peaceful.

It’s actually a warning from Christ himself that His arrival did not bring peace to the world. In fact, wars have been fought in the name of Jesus. People have been disowned by their families for converting to Christianity. Though it’s not directly related to Christ, the world is currently in the greatest state of unrest in recent memory. Where’s the peace?

In Old Testament times, the fall of man severely damaged the relationship between God and humanity. God’s wrath and pure holiness prevent the relationship from continuing in the same way it previously did. The chasm between the two could only be temporarily bridged by animal sacrifices and priestly intercessors. Now Christ has changed the game and permanently bridged the gap on our behalf. This wasn’t possible before His birth. Christ didn’t come to bring peace; He came to make peace. There’s now an enduring pathway back to a restored relationship with God that could only have come from someone that fulfilled all the requirements of the law.

May you enjoy the Christmas season, knowing that despite all the imperfection present in the world, there’s a way back to a relationship with the Prince of Peace.

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We’ll Never Know the Cost of Saying No

I’ve written previously about God placing certain ideas or desires on people’s hearts. It’s usually manifested as a sort of supernatural notion, it’s an unexplainable sense of “I can’t explain it, but I’m supposed to do this thing.” Anything from “I’m supposed to stop and talk to that stranger” to “I’m supposed to give that person some money” to “I think God wants me to start a new business,” or any number of other possibilities. I’ve referred to it in the past as “God’s nudge.”

I can remember one time as a kid, I received one of these nudges. It was probably my first one. I can’t remember what it was, but I clearly remember that I ignored it. Whatever I felt like I was being prompted to do, I thought “No, that doesn’t make sense. Why would I do that? That’s ridiculous.” I wish I could remember what it was, but whatever it ended up being, the action that was supposed to be taken…didn’t get taken (at least by me).

I’ve also written before that God doesn’t need us to be a part of fulfilling His plan, but He invites us to be a part of it. This is one case where I refused the invitation. As a result, I missed out on something, and this side of Heaven I won’t ever know what it was. It may have been something limited to that day, right then and there, or it might have been on a grander scale, setting back a lifestyle of “saying yes to God” (and the corresponding level of positively impacting the world) by a period of years. I essentially told the Holy Spirit to buzz off. As you might imagine, that has its downsides; I couldn’t tell you how long it was after that before I received the next nudge.

This probably isn’t a commonly discussed concept, but every Christ-follower has a certain number of these nudges they’ll receive between the time they accept Christ and the time He calls them home. It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach, I imagine there’s quite a bit of variation from believer to believer. Like me, I’m sure many people have declined to accept a nudge at least once. It’s impossible to know what we’re forfeiting by not taking part. Here’s how I see it though. One of your goals as a believer, from here on out, should be to respond positively to 100% of the remaining “nudges” you get from God. I don’t have any idea how many that means; you could be shooting for one out of one, 50 out of 50, or 1021 out of 1021. The goal is 100%.

Think of that 100% fraction, whatever the size of the denominator, as being “full.” Then, looking through that lens, see if the two parts in the second half of this verse hit you any differently:

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. –John 10:10

Instead of “full,” many translations say “abundantly.” Not only does Christ come so we can have life, but so that we can have it abundantly. I believe the abundance, the fullness, discussed here goes hand-in-hand with those nudges and our response to them.

I started this blog as a result of a nudge God gave me. I’ll be the first to admit not every post is great. Some of them are just plain mediocre. As I look back over time, though, I see how God can use simple persistence and faithfulness in a fallen human to build something bigger than I once thought I would. I started posting in the Fall of 2018. It’s now been a little over five years, and this is my 300th post.

I don’t have a massive readership. Most of the people that subscribe are family, friends, or friends of family. I can tell you this, though. People from all over the world somehow stumble across the blog. I don’t see any details about who they are, all I see is that someone from country X clicked on post Y. The part about that that’s really cool for me, as an introvert who gets drained talking to people, is that I’m advancing ideas that come from God, not only to people I’ll never meet in person, but it’s happening while I’m sleeping, while I’m at work, while I’m on vacation, and when my thoughts are far away from blogging. When God gives a nudge, don’t worry about outcome. Worry about obedience. Obedience is your responsibility, and outcome is God’s responsibility. There are now 300 different posts that God can lead people to, and He can bring them to just the right one, exactly when they need to find it.

Probably in the early part of next month, I’ll fill you in on some of the insights about the blog’s readership for the year 2023. My intent is not to brag, but to show how a guy with no particularly relevant credentials, demonstrating only faithful obedience to God’s calling using the talents God’s entrusted to him, creates opportunities to reach and encourage people that he would have never had a chance of influencing before. I want to help give you the confidence to follow the nudges YOU receive. God has invited me to take part in His story, and it’s humbling to start to see how, years later, He uses my acceptance of His invitation to enable me to live my own life more abundantly. My intent is to show you for the sake of encouraging you, too, to accept His invitation. He doesn’t need us on the journey, but He wants us to come along. What better way to live our lives than in a way that brings Him glory?

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“Today You Get To Be the Wind Dummy”

I’ve written before about a skydiving misadventure where a friend and I ended up landing at the bottom of a quarry rather than the wide open terrain of the airport. As it turns out, my very next jump had a memorable landing, too.

As you might expect, skydiving is a very weather-dependent activity. In order to have a successful jump, you need to plan the jump from the ground up, and a lot of the planning is dependent on wind. You almost always want to land into the wind, so the direction the wind is blowing at the surface determines your final approach. The wind commonly blows different directions at different altitudes, though, so that complicates things. Going further up in altitude, you need to be aware of the direction the wind is blowing at the altitude you plan to open the chute, so you allow enough time and space to move into position for your final approach. Likewise, it’s nice to know which way the wind is blowing at the altitudes where you’re experiencing freefall, because even though it has a smaller effect on your spatial orientation, it does play a part. Putting all these details together determines the desired flight path of the jump plane and the location along that path where you want to exit the plane.

The problem is that, especially for the first planeload of the day, we don’t always know which way the wind is blowing, and how hard. That’s where some guessing comes in.

At the drop zone where I learned to skydive, we had tiny planes where you could only fit four or five jumpers. On most flights there was somebody that did a “hop ‘n pop” jump. This is where a jumper exits the aircraft at a relatively low altitude, skips the freefall, and almost immediately opens the chute. (It adds to your jump count, but doesn’t add much to your freefall time.) Once that jumper got out, it made the cabin roomier and the plane lighter, enabling it to climb faster for the rest of the jumpers.

To get your first-level skydiving certification (your “A license”), you had to successfully demonstrate the ability to perform a hop ‘n pop. It just so happened that doing a hop ‘n pop was next on my list of objectives on my way to earning my A license. It also just so happened that I made the plane roster for the very first flight of the day. Since I was going to be getting out early, it meant I was going to be the very first jumper out of a plane that day. The person with that distinction is affectionately known as the “wind dummy.” They’re the ones that get to go out and see what the actual conditions are, deal with whatever the reality happens to be, and correct or confirm the planning assumptions for future planeloads of jumpers.

All the people there that day collectively had tens of thousands of jumps under their belt. I think this was my 24th jump. Naturally I deferred to their planning experience and trusted them to plan the best route using the information and experience they had. They walked me through the flight and exit plan, and I was set. We did our safety checks, got in the plane, and took off.

As we lined up for me to exit the aircraft, I got out right where I was supposed to, jumping out at 4,000 feet. The chute opened and all my gear functioned the way it was supposed to. The problem was that the winds were a lot stronger than all of us expected. The headwind was stronger than my parachute’s forward velocity. Rather than heading toward our bulls-eye near the skydiving hangar, I was pushed backwards toward the fence line. It quickly became apparent there wasn’t any chance of having a short walk back, and for a long time it looked like I wasn’t even going to land inside the fence. I did whatever I could to make things work out. I skipped some of the safety maneuvers (doing turns to make sure the steering worked) because: 1. spending even a little time not flying forward increased my chances of landing in the scrub outside the airport, and 2. I was flying straight ahead and didn’t need to do any turns. I hung on my front risers to try to get the canopy to dive faster to get below the worst of the headwind.

In the end, the winds mellowed as I got closer to the ground, and God must’ve given me a little push. I made it inside the fence, but not by much. I still landed pretty far away, near the end of the runway. Airports look nice when you’re looking at overhead images of them, but you really lose the sense of scale and how long of a walk it is from one spot to another, especially when carrying a bundle of 190 square feet of canopy, string, and canvas over one shoulder while wearing a jumpsuit and harness that aren’t comfortable for walking long distances. It was probably close to half a mile. The other people that stayed in the plane made it all the way up to their planned exit altitude, jumped, landed, and made it back to the hangar and got their gear off before I reached the hangar on foot.

Sometimes you can plan well (or think you’re planning well) and still be surprised by things you didn’t see coming. You can get mad about it if you want to, but most of the time, you’re not getting back to that hangar until you make the trek. You can go ahead and grumble, but make sure you don’t do it until after you pick up your stuff and start walking. Sure, you can blow off some steam, but make sure you put more effort into the solution than the complaining. (And don’t forget to learn from the mistakes. Maybe next time let someone else be the wind dummy!)

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In Everything Give Thanks

Thanksgiving is this week! We’re moving into the time of year where a lot of people have mixed emotions. Brokenness, loss of loved ones, and relationships that simply didn’t work out as hoped all contribute to some people having a difficult time during the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons.

Then there are those whose hearts are overflowing with joy during this time of year. For some this serves as an opportunity to count their blessings, reunite with those they’ve been separated from, and catch up on things that have happened since they were last together.

Whether you’re one extreme, the other, or somewhere in between, may these words from 1 Thessalonians shape your outlook to be more like what Christ wants it to be:

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. -1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

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For Now This Rental’s Our Home

Christians are citizens of two worlds. We know in our minds that we’ll one day enter into eternity in Heaven, but there’s so much happening in the here and now that Heaven can sometimes seem very far off.

In the Old Testament, the Israelites were downright terrible at keeping their end of the covenant God made with them. Time and again they failed to live up to their responsibilities, and God showed enormous patience with them on many different occasions. When punishment finally did come, it was only after He provided plenty of warning.

In the book of Jeremiah, false prophets ran around proclaiming peace and security when in reality God was planning to hold the Israelites accountable. Jeremiah came along and preached repentance, but to no avail. After generations of not paying God the proper respect, He used the Babylonians as a means of chastising them, carrying the Israelites away into exile.

As far as exiles go, this one was pretty relaxed. Sometimes captives are made into slaves, or split up and distributed across the nation to ensure they can’t band together and rise up. Instead, the Babylonians allowed them to continue practicing their customs and allowed them to preserve their corporate identity. Even in this punishment, God took it a lot easier on them than He needed to.

In this new land the false prophets resumed their habit of proclaiming messages that people wanted to hear, rather than what God was actually saying. They claimed that it would only be a matter of days or weeks before God rescued them from captivity the way He brought them out of Egypt. Jeremiah came and set them straight. Can you imagine how crestfallen you’d be if, caught up in the excitement of orators confidently claiming an imminent return home, a man of God comes along and tells you “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.” –Jer 29:5-7

That’d be a hard pill to swallow. It sounds like at least a generation or two! Then comes the part that makes you weak in the knees. Remember, these false prophets are in the middle of proclaiming an imminent return when Jeremiah hits them with This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.” –Jer 29:10-14

Seventy years! That all but guarantees that, if Jeremiah’s right, you’re not making it back home. We know that Jeremiah’s words ended up being true and the Israelites remained in Babylon for that length of time.

You can see the similarities between them and us. The Lord could snatch us away today, but we have to plan for the long haul. Settle in, you’re probably going to be here awhile.

In the meantime, use the opportunities you have to serve the Lord. Do His will where you are, in the circumstances in which you find yourself. Life doesn’t have to go the way you planned it in order to be faithful to the Lord.

We’ll have a permanent place in Heaven someday, but for now this rental’s our home. Do a good job taking care of the things God’s charged you with doing, but don’t get too comfy here, because one day we’re all headed to our “forever” home.

Lord, thank You for being faithful even when we’re not. Please help each of us to heed your call, trust Your timing and plan, and contribute to the work You’re doing. Amen.

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Guard Against the “Prepper” Mindset

Nobody knows when Christ will come back, but if you look around at the state of the world today, it’s hard to imagine we’ll still be “business as usual” 20 years from now. (You never know, there could be massive revival and turning to God between now and then, but at least right now, it’s tough to imagine that happening.)

If you’re a student of Christian eschatology – the study of the End Times – you probably fall into one of two major camps. The first, and probably more natural, train of thought is to shake your head in disgust at what the world is turning into, and take “prepper-style” actions to safeguard yourself and your loved ones. With prophecies of the world’s end sprinkled throughout the Bible, it’s tough not to think about making preparations of some kind. I’d guess that at some time or another, just about every believer has looked at the news and considered withdrawing from society and spending their time almost exclusively with other believers. I get it, but I’d caution against it.

(See a past post on the difference between the Rapture and Christ’s Second Coming here)

The second camp acknowledges that even though difficult times are coming for Christians, Christ will snatch the Church out of this world before His plans upend normal life on earth. Current events testify to a rise in chaos, natural disasters, moral decay, and international conflicts. We don’t need to fear the wrath of the Lord acting corporately on us. This is a bittersweet situation; despite the apparent nearing of being yanked out of a fallen world to escape its most terrible conditions, it also means we have less time to do things that will have an eternal impact. We have to be intentional with the time we have remaining. Being “salt and light” means we’re helping point others to Christ, and it’s tough to do that by staying secluded in literal or figurative shelters that we’ve built for ourselves.

Of course, there’s no way for me to guarantee your safety or well-being if you follow Christ’s calling for your life, so please don’t think I’m promising something I can’t deliver. Living for Christ comes at a cost. Just know that since God has plans for your life, it wouldn’t make much sense for Him to allow you to get derailed when you’re walking the path He’s laid out for you. Without a doubt, you need to expect opposition; if you’re running with the ball, people are going to try to tackle you. If you’re living out your calling, though, opposition isn’t something you need to fear.

Time is short. The fields are ready, but the workers are few. Get out there and use the things God’s entrusted to you, because being called home while you still have something in the tank isn’t going to help anybody.

(Are you a literal prepper that’s resolved to separate yourself from society because of the turmoil and moral decay you see? Maybe an ideal ministry opportunity for you is to host Christians that are hamstrung by the anxiety they face from current events. Provide a place for them to seek respite while they steel themselves biblically for a return to their own ministry.)

Lord, people have been anticipating Your return for thousands of years. All of them have been wrong so far about when that day is. Whatever Your timeline, it’s obvious that the world needs You, and we know that You’ve put us here to help spread the good news of the sacrifice you’ve made to save us. Help us not get wrapped up in predicting dates, but instead to focus with urgency on employing the gifts and opportunities You’ve charged us with. Help us bring You glory. I ask these things in Your name, amen.

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The Difference an Hour can Make

If you weren’t aware, we’re changing the clocks this weekend in the United States. Since we’re “falling back,” it means we gain an hour of sleep on Sunday morning, the sun will be up earlier in the mornings, and it will get dark sooner in the afternoon.

There are some unsung heroes I’d like to remind everyone about.

Military members get paid by the month. That means no matter how many hours they work, they get paid the same; they don’t get overtime pay.

Years ago, when I wore the uniform, I spent a few years doing shift work. In our unit there was always a crew on duty, no matter what time of the day or night or what holiday it was. We worked 12-hour shifts and we changed over at 6 or 7 o’clock, if memory serves. We worked three and a half days, then had three and a half days off.

Twice a year we’d change the clocks. For those lucky folks on duty during the springtime clock change, it meant their 12-hour shift was actually only 11 hours long. The way the rotation fell, I think I was on duty a couple of times for this event. On the flip side of the coin, however, there was a crew right around this time of year that had their 12-hour shift get stretched into 13 hours. I don’t remember ever falling on the wrong side of things for that clock change, but there was always a crew that had to deal with it.

There are lots of people out there who deserve our thanks, not only year-round, but especially this weekend. Hospital workers, police officers, fire fighters, military shift workers, security guards, and all sorts of other people (right down to the gas station and convenience store workers) are pulling an extra hour this weekend to ensure there’s no interruption in service or capability. If you know one or run into one, give them an extra “thank you” in the next few days.

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Don’t Lose Sight of the Big Picture

About 7 months after joining the Air Force, I washed out of SERE Specialist training. My knees couldn’t cope with the physical rigors of the job, and I wasn’t allowed to continue to the next level of training. I’m not gonna lie, it was a rough time for me. It was probably the first real time in my life that I failed to achieve something I’d set out to do.

Fast forward through all the self pity, and I decided to stay in the Air Force but train to do something else. I decided on a role in intelligence. After the paperwork came through, I transferred from Fairchild Air Force Base (AFB) in Washington State to Goodfellow AFB, Texas.

It was a tough adjustment. Everything about the change was difficult. I went from an environment where I had been given a lot of freedom, trust, and responsibility to an environment where I was given virtually none of that. Most of the students at this base were fresh out of Basic Training, and needed a high degree of supervision, whereas I did not. The water in the area (and as a result, everything cooked in or prepared with the water) tasted gross. We were in the middle of two wars at the time, and in order to maintain sufficient student throughput the training programs involved multiple shifts of teaching each day. The base’s population seemed like it was maxed out. There weren’t enough dorms to put all the bodies, so they had to re-open old ones or put off shutting down dorms that were scheduled to be shuttered. Chow halls were open at midnight to accommodate those in class at night (or preparing for class to start). Students were sleeping, exercising, and attending classes at all hours of the day to try to maximize the facilities available.

I eventually adjusted, but it wasn’t a fun place to be. Goodfellow AFB is in a town called San Angelo. This place is about three hours from any big city. It’s a fantastic place to live if you’re raising a young family or enjoy a slower pace of life. Like, no kidding, people just pull out camp chairs and hang out in the Walmart parking lot on Friday nights (or at least they did when I was stationed there). The locals there love the military, and are truly wonderful folks. Most of the Airmen that came to Goodfellow, however, came there because the Air Force sent them there to learn a new job, and most of those people were young, single, and got bored easily. When young single people get bored, it usually leads to trouble. We had people get in trouble for underage drinking, breaking curfew, “inappropriate relations,” leaving base when they weren’t supposed to, and just about anything else you could imagine. One of my classmates even attempted suicide.

Between my time spent in college and the time I’d already chalked up elsewhere in the military, this was about year number five of dorm life for me, so you can imagine how it was getting old by this time. I figured out early in my stay at San Angelo that my sole purpose, the only reason in the world that Uncle Sam had sent me to this place, was to learn the core skills and knowledge I’d need for doing my job once I got to subsequent duty stations. As far as I was concerned, it was in my own best interest to hunker down, do well in class, and graduate on time. All else was secondary, and graduating was the fastest way to get out of there. I had already done a lot of the growing up that many of my fellow students still needed to do, so I saw things differently than many of them did.

Since the weeks were spent in an oppressive military environment, I spent a lot of time on weekends away from the base, at the nearest skydiving drop zone I could find. The drop zone was about an hour and a half away. Since there wasn’t much else to do except hang out with someone that would probably end up getting in trouble, the long trips weren’t such a bad thing. It would have been easy to just sneak away and not tell anybody what I was doing, but I had seen so many people get in trouble over stupid stuff that I decided it was better to just play by the rules. I went and got permission from our squadron commander to go skydiving. Every Friday before my weekend excursions I would go and get the same stupid safety brief from people that had no idea what kind of safety tips to brief me on when it came to skydiving. I got the dumb paperwork saying that I had received the brief and kept it on file. I did it right.

By the end of my time at Goodfellow, I had numerous classmates that had gotten themselves into some kind of trouble. One had some kind of security violation. Another one got administratively punished for violating something or other. One got pregnant and wasn’t sure for awhile who the father was. Because of my mindset that I was only going to be here for a short time and that the best course of action was to focus on my purpose for being there, I managed to avoid a lot of the headaches and hassles that a lot of other people got caught up in. I forfeited a lot of the “good times” that others took part in, but in hindsight, I really didn’t miss out on much. There was plenty of time for fun stuff after moving on from there.

A lot of Christians remind me of my former classmates in certain ways. They forget why they’re here and start focusing on things that don’t have lasting impact. Being a Christian isn’t just a Sunday morning proposition. After getting saved, we’ve really only got one objective in our lives: glorify God by taking part in the purpose He’s placed us here for and equipped us to do. I know that task often lacks clarity. It usually ends up being a question that takes patience to receive an answer to. That’s why many stop asking.

There are a lot of rules in the Bible (do this, don’t do that, strive for this, etc.), but they’re there for a reason. I’m not advocating for legalism, but if you live according to the way scripture says you should live, you usually lead a life that isn’t full of complications, which enables you to focus on your objective better. It would have been easier for me to just drive off base on Saturday mornings and go skydiving without having to jump through all those administrative hoops, and I probably would’ve gotten away with it most of the time. All it would’ve taken was one time getting caught, and it could have resulted in restriction to base or other privileges being revoked. Those hoops were a headache, but they weren’t hard. Doing the right thing was worth it, because it allowed me to pursue my goals while staying out of trouble.

This life is a flash in the pan. It’s over so fast. I’m not saying you should stay home in a corner praying or only wearing clothes made from camel hair your whole life. Quite the opposite, our joy in Christ is supposed to be evident to all. What I’m saying is that God arranged for your life to be powerful and meaningful in its ability to bring glory to His name, and that it’s up to you how much of that potential you want to fulfill. Use the gifts and talents God’s blessed you with. If you ditch the distractions, you can run your race well and “graduate on time” (hopefully, “with honors”). There will be time for lots of fun and celebration, but that comes after passing the tests and doing the hard work. Don’t be distracted from doing what you were put here to do.

God, it is absolutely unbelievable how You’ve interwoven our lives and how the faithful use of our gifts can impact each other and the world. I know that the vast majority of us won’t live up to our full potential for Christian obedience to Your call, please forgive us for that. Help us be sensitive to the opportunities we still have left to honor Your name, and give us the clarity, wisdom, and boldness to pursue what You’d have us do. I ask these things in Your name, Amen.

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What’s the Difference Between the Rapture and the Second Coming?

The world is generally out of control right now. We’ve got wars in Ukraine and Israel, mass looting in cities, economic uncertainty in lots of countries, the breakdown of law and order, dissolution of America’s southern border, and general unrest all over the place. It’s natural to wonder if we’re in the period the Bible refers to as the Tribulation.

Well, the short answer is that unless a ton of people have already up and vanished without a trace, the answer is “no.” If you’re not one to do a lot of Bible reading, or even to connect certain parts of the Bible, it’s easy to jumble together a lot of the events related to the natural end of time (the part where God decides He’s had enough and shows up in a big way).

There are two major cataclysmic events at the end that will stop people in their tracks. The first is the Rapture. This is where Christ comes back from Heaven to pull His people (the Church) out of the world. This is a removal of the faithful, sparing them from the turmoil that’s about to take place. If some major fraction of humanity has up and vanished and that fraction doesn’t include you…no matter what sort of explanation is provided (I’m guessing aliens and UFOs), take a closer look at who’s disappeared. There’s sure to be a lot of confusion initially, but when the dust starts to settle and a clearer picture emerges, you’ll see that they’re all Christians. I’d guess that this linkage will try to be hidden, so you may have to go looking for evidence to connect the dots on your own. Yes, there will be church-going people, even clergy members, that did not disappear, and they’ll be hit with a hard truth: they did not have a saving relationship with Christ as Lord of their lives. People of other religions, along with other people of fine morals, good people, will also remain. The Christians’ disappearance will hasten the downward spiral of humanity. The churchgoers are the ones slowing humanity’s decay right now (October 2023), but once they’re gone, it’s a whole new chapter in the progression of unspeakable evil. It’s as though God says “I’ve been telling you for millennia how to live, and you rejected me this whole time. You know what? Fine. Have it your way. See how that goes for you.” The good news here is that there’s still time to embrace Christ.

The second event is Christ’s Second Coming. Moments after the Rapture all the Christians will have disappeared, but by the time of the Second Coming, seven years after the Rapture, more people will have become Christians. They’ll still have to endure some very difficult circumstances, but they’ll have the hope of Christ. For everyone else still on the planet, they’ll face a reckoning. At this point everybody starts to realize the jig is up, that there’s no getting out of this one, and that they should have paid more attention to what they heard earlier about Christ forgiving sins. Now it’s too late to change their minds.

There’s no question that these two events are easy to get blended together, but here’s a list put together by the late Dr. Norman Geisler to help separate them out. They give the reader a better picture of some of history’s final events. I have to warn you that some of these are a little tricky and don’t say much at first glance, but a study bible helps see beyond the face value, the deeper meaning, of the verse in question.

If the rapture hasn’t happened yet, study these verses and the ones near them so you can better understand what’s happening as events unfold. If the rapture already took place and you’re still around to read this, it’s even more important to get your hands on a bible (preferably a study bible that has additional notes and context on what the verses mean). If you believe the entire bible, you believe that Satan and his fallen angels exist. Well, they can read it too, and they know what’s coming. In my mind, I believe that’s why UFO activity has been ramping up in the past few years. These fallen angels are setting the stage to have a plausible explanation for the mass disappearance of a significant percentage of humanity. “They were abducted! They had to have been abducted, there’s simply no other explanation!” It’ll be quite the coincidence that a lot of those abducted people loved Jesus. Once that common thread gets out, don’t be surprised if you also hear things like “see what happens to people that follow Jesus? Let’s round up all the bibles and other commentaries about it and destroy them before this happens again!”

Anyway, we’re not in the Tribulation yet, but it increasingly seems like it’s not too far away. Think of this as an opportunity to focus your studies of God’s word on what’s coming.

Lord, if this blog is still around after the Rapture has occurred, I pray for those reading this. They’re dealing with mass fear, confusion, and many types of hardship that are turning or will turn their lives upside down. I pray that this post will help point them to You and the truth, that they would embrace You as Lord. As they approach the end of history, may You be glorified, God. I pray these things in Your name, Amen.

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Every dog has its day. We do, too.

I know a married couple that has two dogs. One of the dogs, Maggie, is on the older side at this point and was rescued from the streets earlier in her life. She lives in a safe environment now, but you can still see echoes of that dark phase (she doesn’t do well with loud noises, she’s quick to bare her teeth when she feels even the slightest bit insecure, etc.).

For the other one, “massive” is the best way to describe him. Murphy is a bull mastiff. He’s so big he doesn’t even realize how much room he takes up and how his size affects others. He’s lived in a safe place his whole life, and between his secure upbringing and his sheer mass, there’s not much he’s afraid of. He’s a confident dog.

Murphy’s size dictates what others in his life can do nearby.

The two are an odd pair, but from a security perspective, they do a great job. If Maggie even thinks she hears something outside, she starts barking away, hanging back from whatever’s happening but alerting everyone else to it. Murphy, curious to see what Maggie’s barking about, silently gets up and walks to investigate, moving directly toward the potential danger. I’ve personally seen a distracted delivery driver recoil in surprise as he dropped off a package near the door, only to look up and see a  175+ lb monster looking back at him with a cocked head through the storm door.

Maggie starts barking because she’s afraid. Murphy walks toward the danger because he’s not afraid. Imagine having that kind of confidence.

For most of us, I’d say we’re probably not often afraid of physical dangers. We’re more afraid of things that might happen. Particularly in our spiritual walks, it’s easy to be distracted by things that simply aren’t true. “What if God stops loving me?” “What if I lose my salvation because I can’t stop sinning?”

I don’t really believe it would be in our best interest to impersonate a bull mastiff, but we can take a lesson from the traits he displays. Our confidence and assurance are not to come from ourselves, but from one we can depend on even more than ourselves. Here are some Bible verses to help remind you about the confidence you’re entitled to as a Christian:

Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. -Hebrews 4:16

But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation. -1Thessalonians 5:8

so that we confidently say, “The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?”-Hebrews 13:6

In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence, and his children will have refuge. –Proverbs 14:26

By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. -1 John 4:17

For You are my hope; O Lord God, You are my confidence from my youth. –Psalm 71:5

This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. -1 John 5:14

For the Lord will be your confidence, and will keep your foot from being caught. –Proverbs 3:26

Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. –Hebrews 10:35

For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. –Philippians 1:6

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Explainer: Government Shutdowns and House Turmoil

The news cycle is so short these days that this post already feels like old news. It’s been in the headlines a lot lately, but what exactly is a government shutdown? You may already know a lot of this, so if you’re pretty up to speed on the subject, feel free to skip ahead a bit.

It’s not totally realistic to compare a federal budget to a household budget, but we’ll start there. Whatever sources of income you have…that’s the money you have available to spend. If you spend more than you take in, you’re running at a deficit and you end up going into debt if you keep it up. For the average Jane or Joe, you can’t just continually spend at a deficit and go further into debt without running into some serious problems. If you die with debt, the debt still exists somewhere and gets passed along somehow. The federal government, so the argument goes, never actually has to pay off its debt because unlike a normal citizen, the government doesn’t actually die. The thinking here is that you can keep running at a deficit indefinitely.

That might be true if the debt was kept at reasonable levels or if you have years every now and then where you pay some off. Unfortunately, our government loves to SPEND money. We spend money on things that are necessary (interstate highways, a military, disaster relief, etc.), and we spend money on things whose value is more difficult to identify. We spend a lot of money on special projects that don’t benefit anyone other than constituents of specific political districts.

Our politicians, like others around the world, do what they have to do in order to remain in power. In our case, the House of Representatives is in charge of putting forth the budget every year. Representatives in Congress run for reelection every two years (meaning they’re constantly either in a campaign or are preparing for one), so they look for opportunities to throw extra money at organizations in their Congressional district in an attempt to gain favor, and to have something positive to point at in their next campaign season. We’ve got 435 Representatives, so you can imagine how, with each of them trying to throw a little extra green at their home district, this quickly adds up to numbers that extend way beyond the basic budget.

Now, here’s a curveball. Most of the drama leading up to a shutdown is intentional. Everybody (especially those in Congress) knows that there’s wasteful spending in the federal budget. You could argue that the fairest thing to do is to cut all the extra pork out of the budget, but that will also affect representatives differently. Because it’s a complicated issue, most Reps opt not to change what’s already been decided. Our Representatives in the House know that if they avoid taking meaningful action until very late in the process, it builds pressure on the entire body to approve temporary extensions (called “continuing resolutions”) that continue funding the government at the rate it’s been using. It does nothing to modify spending levels or remove any wasteful spending, it just keeps doing what it’s been doing for a little longer.

Here’s where the brouhaha from last week comes in. In the last election cycle, Republicans won back control of the House, so they obtained the right to decide how to lay out the budget (though the Democrat-controlled Senate and White House both have to sign off on any budget proposals). Republicans ran on the idea of reigning in DC’s out-of-control spending. The way they planned to do it was by passing individual bills for the obviously necessary parts of the budget (the Farm bill, funding for the Department of State, the Department of Defense, etc.), meaning that funding for a large amount of the current wasteful spending would simply disappear. If this had happened, this would have saved us a huge chunk of money as a nation.

The problem is that they couldn’t get it done in time. There was some brinksmanship, some games, some intentional pressure-building, and in the end they said “hey look, we want to continue with this ‘fund the essentials’ approach, but we ran out of time. Let’s pass a 45-day continuing resolution to give us the time we need to pass about a dozen of these bills that will fund the stuff we really need.”

Toward that end, the Republicans passed an extension of a Democrat-designed budget (including very high spending levels for the priorities laid out by Democrats) in order to try to enact an approach that requires the agreement of a bunch of people that don’t truly want it to succeed. A few of the Republican reps in the House said “we have to draw the line somewhere,” opposed the proposed bill, and then lashed out against now former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy when he framed the budget to gain support from some Democrats. This week McCarthy was voted out of his Speakership role and has announced he does not want the job again.

Now all real work in Congress (including work on those multiple bills that will fund the crucial parts of the government) stops until the House can vote in a new Speaker. Last time they had to pick a speaker, it took four days and 15 rounds of voting before McCarthy got enough votes. The clock is still ticking on those 45 days, and many of the House’s representatives are just fine with bumping up against that new November 17 deadline without a permanent budget in place, because it increases the chances they’ll pass another continuing resolution to keep funding the pet projects that are meant to make people in their home districts happy.

The sad truth is that our government consistently spends more money than it takes in, and the national debt has reached mind-boggling levels with few politicians willing to do anything about it. While all the focus has been on the debt ceiling, the national debt has ballooned to unsustainable debt-to-GDP ratios. We have so much debt at this point that, due to debt and high interest rates, we now have to use almost a fifth of our budget to service our debt. A fifth! If you had to use 20% of your income to pay off credit card bills, imagine the financial freedom and new possibilities that would open up to you if you didn’t have that expense. The government is using our tax dollars very inefficiently, and as our credit rating keeps dropping, it will affect all of us at the personal level by having a higher floor for interest rates. All the folks in DC get to shrug their shoulders and point at someone else.

So that’s what we’re dealing with. Hopefully the House will be successful in passing some clean bills this month or next so we can start paying back some of that debt.

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What’s Going on Behind the Scenes?

Let’s pretend for a little bit that you and I are democratic strategists. Our chief goal is to retain control of the White House in November 2024.

Despite unprecedented legal problems for a presidential candidate, Donald Trump looks like he’s shaping up to once again be the Republican nominee. He’s so dominant in the polls, in fact, that he’s skipping debates and doesn’t appear to be suffering for it.

How confident are you that our horse can beat Trump in a rematch? This early in the election cycle, with polls tied in a statistical dead heat, we’re not confident at all. The incumbent normally has an advantage, and if the two are tied in the polls with more than a year to go before election day, it’s not looking good for Biden.

So what should we do? If you’re a democratic strategist working for Biden, your main focus is to try to fend off a primary challenge. Biden certainly has the advantage in being the nominee this coming cycle, but he has to demonstrate he’s still got enough spring in his step to handle the job. His gaffes have become more prominent in the news lately, and as ambitious potential candidates smell blood in the water, it’s going to get tougher to get the whole party to fall in line. The contenders most likely to pose a legitimate threat to his nomination need to be brought into the campaign or otherwise buy them off to prevent them from causing a problem.

What if, however, you’re not a democratic strategist working for Biden, but rather are focused on keeping the White House under democratic control with or without Biden? The media is starting to turn on Biden, his disapproval rating is at a record high, he’s dealing with a possible impeachment, and his son is nothing but a headache. It’s becoming impossible to conceal his cognitive decline. If we want to win, we’re going to have to get rid of Joe.

So what’s the play? Who do we have on the bench? Kamala’s a non-starter; she’s unelectable. Nancy Pelosi? No, if we want to attack Trump’s age, we can’t have someone older than him. Try Hillary again? I don’t think so. Governor Gavin Newsome of California? Maybe. There are a lot of unknowns there; that’s why we’re doing this Newsome/DeSantis debate soon, as a test run to see what kind of reaction he gets on the national stage. He’s from the far left wing and might be too radical to be a good presidential candidate, but we could be surprised. Biden’s so old and frail that anyone would look energetic by comparison. Let’s use this coming debate as a test to see what kind of traction he can get.

If all else fails, we could pull Michelle Obama off the bench. She had a very high popularity rating, played well on high-profile stages, and doesn’t have a whole lot of negatives. It’d be a dream come true for progressives. The big question is: can she be convinced to run? You have to be both very ambitious and a glutton for punishment if you’ve already spent eight years in the White House and want to go back for more. The White House has a way of making you claustrophobic. She’s never held an elected position before, so she’d have to be paired with a running mate that knows the system and probably one that’s viewed as a bit more centrist. Maybe we can find a democratic governor or senator that fits the bill. If that’s the play to be made, we can’t keep a lid on it for much longer; the deadline to file for the earliest primaries is early in 2024, and we can’t parachute her in until after Joe announces he’s decided not to run, and he still needs some convincing.

To win we’ve got to win over the independents. We won them last time by having a COVID death counter on the news all the time, but that only worked because we were able to make COVID the issue everyone cared about. This time it’s the economy, and that’s a tougher sell. Joe’s been out pushing Bidenomics, but he’s not getting real far with it. People just don’t believe that they’re better off in this economy than they were three or four years ago, and that’s a problem. The southern border is a similar issue; we overplayed the sympathy angle and now even democratic mayors of big cities are tapping out. We can use both of these topics to our advantage to oust Joe; we can hang the economy around his neck, “evolve our thinking” about the immigration issue, and admit that we need a different approach, and that opens the door to bring in someone new.

We also need some new lever issues. We’ve been pushing the insurrection angle pretty hard, but it’s running out of steam. People are starting to realize that even though the insurrection happened in January 2021, we waited two years to pursue any charges, and the timing looks suspicious. The Defund the Police and Black Lives Matter movements have largely stalled, and we need something fresh. Though there’s corruption in both parties, one potential angle is make a big show of rooting out corruption, giving us the moral high ground. We’ll start with Senator Bob Menendez. He’ll put up a fight, but we have enough dirt that we can lean on him hard enough to make him go. By the time he’s gone, more information about Biden’s involvement in his son’s influence-peddling scheme will be public, and we can express regret as we show Joe the door, gravely announcing that there’s no room for corruption in the Oval Office and hoping to turn some independents from Trump in the process using this show of “walking the walk.”

See? It can be kind of fun to take an alternative perspective. I don’t know how much of this is true, but it’s useful to look at things through someone else’s eyes every now and then. If Biden and Trump end up being the two nominees again, I’ve got to think Biden will lose, even with Trump’s legal problems. Joe’s fading in the polls already. That’s why there will likely be efforts in the coming weeks and months to prevent both Trump and Biden from becoming the nominee.

Whoever you vote for in your state’s primary, don’t let someone else tell you how to vote. If you’re all in for Biden or Trump, vote for him. If you desperately want someone…anyone…other than one of those two guys, cast your vote for that person. It’s your vote, not someone else’s. Let your voice be heard.

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Annual Performance Review: Be an Overcomer

I’m sure it irritates folks that are hostile toward religion, but there are still some things in our culture that stem from Judeo-Christian beliefs. I like that we still have “In God We Trust” on our money, but at this point I think we’re probably kidding ourselves about its accuracy for the nation. Maybe the one that will stick around the longest is a seven-day week. Those aren’t the only examples though.

Strangely enough, it appears some of our corporate culture is modeled after Jesus Christ’s example.

If you’ve ever spent time in a work role that involves giving or getting formal feedback, you’ve probably seen this firsthand.

If you’ve ever been a supervisor, you’ve probably had to have some uneasy or unpleasant conversations. When I was in the Air Force, practicing this very thing in a class, all of us got to do a hard one. I think I had to sit down with a fake subordinate and let them know that they needed to shower more frequently or something like that. Not such a fun task.

Usually giving feedback isn’t quite so drastic, but there are times when hard conversations need to happen. If you’re dealing with a stellar performer, you want to let them know you see how great a job they’re doing, but you always want to give them some kind of constructive criticism. If you’re dealing with someone that’s barely avoiding a pink slip, the conversation is harder. The model typically followed is:

  1. Start with something positive about their performance.
  2. Call out the ugly.
  3. Chart a path forward for getting back on track.
  4. End on a positive note.

You may ask “this model is in the Bible?” Why yes it is.

The book of Revelation is the last book of the Bible, most famous for its cataclysmic account of history’s culmination. Less flashy is the part early in the book where Christ provides feedback for seven kinds of churches (chapters 2 and 3). These seven churches were actual churches in named cities in the first century, but I imagine most churches that profess Christ as Lord today fall into one of these categories. They are the loveless church, the persecuted church, the church that compromises, the corrupt church, the dead church, the faithful church, and the lukewarm church.

All seven of the churches are initially commended for their works, suggesting that pretty much all churches do stuff that’s looked upon positively. Some of the churches in these two chapters are commended more robustly than others. “I know your works.” “I know your works, tribulation, and poverty.” “I know your works, your labor, your patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil.”

Five of the seven (not the persecuted or the faithful church), however, have some kind of flaw that needs to be addressed. “Nevertheless I have this against you.” “Nevertheless I have a few things against you.” “But I have a few things against you.”

Then Christ gives instructions for correcting the flaws. “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.” “Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth.” “Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.” “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.” Repenting is a common theme. In the modern workplace, it’s akin to the person receiving feedback acknowledging that yes, there is a shortcoming of some sort and a correction needs to take place. This blog post isn’t that long, so it seems like I’m glossing over the whole “hey, get your act together and start performing like you know you should” thing. This is obviously where the hard work begins and where the bulk of the feedback actually occurs.

After that, though, it’s very possible, or even likely, that someone’s on the defensive (or if they’re humble and acknowledge the discrepancy, are saddened) and needs a little encouragement. Finally, the Lord ends each session on a positive note. Listen to the emphasis that’s placed on ‘overcoming’ the challenges of life in these seven passages. It’s as if Christ understood that the Christian life, as hopeful as it is, is a hard thing to lead. “To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.” “He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.” “To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.” “And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations…” “He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.” “He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more.” “To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.”

So in all circumstances, you’re facing a charge to correct your actions/thought processes, you’re a little bit broken by the realization of your shortcoming, or you’re gearing up for some challenges ahead. God would have assigned someone else to the task if you couldn’t remain faithful to what you know you’re supposed to do. Don’t be disheartened. Be an overcomer.

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Anyone Else Notice You’re Getting Less for the Same Money?

You’ve likely noticed that inflation has taken a big bite out of your income over the past couple of years. Unless your income is keeping pace, you’re probably getting a little squeezed. Hopefully this post can offer some practical tips.

There are two ways to gain disposable income: cutting expenses and increasing income. You can only cut expenses so much. If you’re getting squeezed and there’s nothing left to cut, the only other option is to bring in more income. While getting a higher-paying job or a raise at your current one would be great, sometimes that’s not possible. In those cases, adding a revenue stream or two may be the way to go. Do you have a hobby or talent, or simply extra time, that you can use to bring in some extra cash (babysitting, freelance yard work, having your kids pet-sit and contribute to the household out-to-eat or go-to-the-movies plan)?

I feel obligated to say that avoiding a credit card balance is one of the best things you can do to keep your debt under control, but I also acknowledge that it’s tougher and tougher for people to sock money away for a rainy day when it’s been raining so much for so long, and they’ve come to rely on credit cards instead of savings for a backup/emergency fund. By all means, pay off your monthly balance in full, but when you can’t do that, here are some other hacks for saving some money.

Kids grow fast. Like, real fast. Shoes and clothes don’t fit them for nearly the same length of time as they fit adults. When I’m doing yard work I wear jeans I wore 20 years ago. It’s not because I’m super fit, it’s because I don’t want to buy a new wardrobe. With such high turnover rates for kids’ clothes, thrift shops can save you a ton of money. Some things are better bought new, sure, but if they’re only going to be wearing a given pair of pants less than a year, they don’t need to be designer or top notch. Larger thrift shops have more options, so if you live out in the country, you may have better results heading to thrift shops in more populated areas. Just because other people pay for rapidly growing kids to have nice stuff doesn’t mean you have to pay the same prices; many shops will randomly have name-brand items. If the kids whine about not buying brand new, let them pitch in or pay the difference between what they want and what you can get it for at the thrift store. It’s easy to whine when you’re using other people’s money, but the tune often changes when you’re the one footing the bills.

Food is a big expense. The economy and supply chain have made for some anomalies where in some cases, it’s cheaper to buy a meal prepared at a restaurant than it is to buy the ingredients and prepare them yourself. This is not the norm and it probably won’t stick around for long. At any rate, if you’re pinching pennies, you should probably avoid dining in at a restaurant and opt for takeout instead. Dining in means you’re paying for drinks and paying more for a tip than if you call a restaurant to place an order, travel there, pick up the food, and then travel wherever you’re going to eat it (remind me again why people tip when they do all the work?).

If you regularly stop for hot drinks that have some kind of flavoring, foam, or shots of something in them, you forfeit the right to complain about not having enough money. Coffee, cream, and sugar. Want a treat? Try flavored creamer.

A lot of times we start subscribing to things and after awhile we stop thinking about whether they’re worth the price. For example, unless you’re some kind of super-user, you probably don’t need a phone plan with unlimited data. If all you need is talk and text with a moderate amount of data, you can probably ditch the major carriers and go with small companies that have the same coverage but plans that better fit your needs. For entertainment, do you really need all those streaming services? Do you still pay for cable TV? If all you really want are major networks, consider buying a digital antenna and getting TV for free. Admittedly, you get what you pay for, but if you’re in an area with decent signal strength and you buy a respectable antenna, you can pick up a lot of channels. Check out https://www.fcc.gov/media/engineering/dtvmaps to see what networks you can pick up in your area. And an individual channel often has multiple sub-channels within it, so if a particular channel comes in well, there are probably a few different shows playing on the channels that are affiliated with it. I personally get channels with more westerns, Spanish telenovelas, episodes of Walker Texas Ranger, Columbo, and old game shows than I know what to do with, but I’m also a fan of older, less stressful shows. If a digital antenna’s not really your thing, but you have good internet speed, pick up a Roku device. Different shows rotate through the available channels, you can usually get some live news, and the commercial breaks come with countdown timers. Still not seeing something you like? Check out your local library for shows and movies on DVD. We don’t normally even start watching a new show unless it’s finished its run on TV. There’s a lot of cheap or free entertainment out there, so take a look at your subscriptions and make sure you’re only paying for stuff that’s worth it for you.

Walmart is both a blessing and a curse. On one hand, it’s cheap and has lots of options. On the other hand, it’s very hard to walk out of the store with only the things you intended to pick up when you walked in. What you saved by going to the store got more than chewed up by picking up all the add-ons you tossed in the cart while walking around the store. Here are a couple of ideas to help manage costs. Don’t use credit/debit cards to pay for purchases; only use cash. When we use credit or debit cards, it makes it harder to appreciate the value of the money you’re parting company with. When you use cash, it makes you much more aware that money is leaving your possession, and it makes you think harder about whether a particular purchase is worth the price. Alternatively, place a Walmart order online. Shipping is free once your purchases total a certain amount, and as long as you’re not adding things to the cart just for the sake of hitting that mark, you can be more choosy about what items you’re willing to purchase to reach that shipping minimum. If you aren’t willing to wait for the shipment to arrive through the mail, use the “store pickup” option. Employees will gather the items you pay for and put them in a locker for you to retrieve. You might have to go into the building, but you don’t have to go beyond the registers. If you don’t go beyond the registers, your chances of escaping without making impulse buys go way up. Now you just have to dodge the Scouts selling cookies or popcorn outside the door.

Finally, let’s address the issue of tithing. Tithing, or giving 10% of your income to the church body you attend, is expected even when money is tight. God knows when it’s simply impossible for you to give that much, but He also knows when you’re milking the situation a little bit. Do your best to build tithing into your budget. You’re welcome to donate money to other charities, of course, but that’s supposed to be after you’ve given your 10% to the church you attend. Ten percent sounds like a lot, and it sure can be, especially if you don’t currently give anything. I’d offer that you live your life of following Christ in expectation that He’ll do bigger things through you than He’s doing right now. If that’s the case, this current stage of your life is a prelude to things that are yet to come. Be faithful with the smaller things, and He’ll entrust bigger things to you in the future. Tough stuff, I know. If you’re way under that 10% goal, start out by consistently doing better than you are right now, and keep working toward that goal.

There are lots of other tips, but I’ve already taken up a lot of space. Who else has suggestions? Please leave a recommendation in a comment.

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Talking About it Normalizes it

If you look at how the Bible says the world ends, one of the key components is a one-world government that’s run by a very charismatic and charming fellow that ends up running an authoritarian regime.

While I believe this prophecy is inevitable, it’s impossible to know a lot of the things that will happen between now and then. Just by looking around at how our country’s going, it seems like people are all too eager to grant more power to the state at the expense of individual freedom, which only makes it easier to be subsumed into a one-world government later.

Ever notice that undefended viewpoints tend to be ignored? If Christians don’t speak up about their beliefs, those beliefs will more quickly be overrun by some kind of legislation, executive order, or social branding. In many cases they’re already on their way. It’s not the job of thought leaders, pastors, missionaries, or some kind of religious professional…it’s yours. You should spend time with people that are not believers. (How else will you influence the world for Christ?) You may be the only Christian in your social circles. If that’s true, you may be the only live link to Jesus those people ever see.

I once heard someone discussing an unrelated topic. Whatever she was discussing wasn’t a mainstream viewpoint, but she wanted to get the perspective out in the public sphere. She said she wanted to talk about it because “talking about it normalizes it.” I don’t think I’ve ever heard it put that way before, but it makes a lot of sense. So then, in all the commentary and opinion that passes for news today, you probably don’t hear a whole lot that agrees with your worldview. The focus should primarily be Christian, but there are a few others thrown in. Maybe it’s up to you to talk about, and thus “normalize” your viewpoint. Here are a few examples:

  • “I am a Christian and I try to model my life off Christ’s teachings in the Bible. That is my choice, and it is a right guaranteed to me as an American in the United States Constitution.”
  • “People can identify with whatever gender they wish and pretend their chromosome combination doesn’t affect biological reality, but they can’t force me to play along with it. My right to freedom of religion (which includes embracing truth over lies), guaranteed in the Bill of Rights in America, trumps their desire to strong-arm others into seeing the world as they do.”
  • “Schools should ensure their students get really good at reading, writing, and arithmetic before they look to broaden their scope into other areas.”
  • “If you look closely at them, ‘Greenism,’ ‘Wokeism,’ and ‘Stateism’ are all structured in a remarkably similar fashion to the way religions are. They should be subject to the rules of separation of church and state as much as any other religion is.”
  • “Science and Christianity complement one another. There are many areas of science to explore, but if you consider the system of bytes of data (which relies on ones and zeros to denote characters), it’s tough to imagine a system like that just evolving itself into existence. It had to be designed. How much more unlikely, then, would it be for DNA to arise spontaneously? Consider the complexity of DNA, the fact that it reads four characters instead of two, how every three base pairs specifies which one of 20 amino acids to link to the last one, and that these chains of amino acids can link together to form proteins that serve different functions in life. There are actually people who believe this system, more complex than, say, 90% of our most complex technology, started from nothing (even before bacteria came along), but they refuse to even entertain the notion that maybe, just maybe, someone actually designed the system.
  • This is the most important one on the list. “It’s easy to divide people. What do you say we take a look at who’s trying to unite them? Christ came for the criminals, the law-abiders, the young and the old, uneducated and scholars, men, women, people that looked like Him, people that came from far-off lands, the rich, and the poor. We therefore cannot be selective about with whom we share the Gospel.”

If you’re a Christ-follower, the world is going to align itself against the way you think. That doesn’t mean you need to roll over and get steamrolled. Standing your ground in the face of opposition may be exactly what causes an unbelieving onlooker to reconsider their position. If this is an idea you find difficult to agree with, you’re making it that much easier for opposing viewpoints to engineer the terms of your suppression. Don’t be afraid to push back.

Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. –Eph 6:13

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Quick Hit: One Look is All it Takes

The simple act of making eye contact with someone at the right time can be a powerful thing.

There are different types of situations where a short bout of eye contact can convey a lot without saying a word. I’m thinking particularly of instances where someone in authority over you, a coach or a supervisor for example, looks silently to you during a high-pressure scenario, as if to say “I know what you’re capable of, and I’m looking to you to do it now.”

Whether you come through in the clutch or you let someone down, those are the kinds of moments that stick with you for a long time.

Christ told His followers the world would hate them, but He also told them He was relying on them to carry out the great commission and spread the good news. This charge extends to Christ-followers of today and tomorrow. Having perfect knowledge of how history will unfold, the Holy Spirit empowers each Christian with gifts to be used for the glory of the Lord’s Kingdom. Now, at a time when our nation is frighteningly divided, the Lord is looking at His followers, some of which were created specifically to address this challenge, and saying “I know what you’re capable of, and I’m looking to you to do it now.”

I urge you, fellow Christ-follower, get out there and do what you were created to do. Become who you were made to be. Although the Lord is completely capable of providing compassionate or encouraging looks, it’s important to remember that He’s also capable of shooting looks that remind us of our shortcomings in our service to Him, and it’s our choice whether we’re on the receiving end of that look or not.

Then the Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. And Peter remembered the word from the Lord, and how he had told him, “Before a rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” So he went outside and cried bitterly. Luke 22:61-62

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An Apology to the Taxpayers

I’m sure you’ve heard stories of some kind of wasted taxpayer money before. Well I’m sorry to say that some wasteful federal spending once happened because of me (at least on a smallish scale).

This is back in 2004, and the Air Force was paying my salary at the time. I was stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base, near Spokane, Washington. While I was waiting for some paperwork to go through, I supplemented the folks teaching water survival.

It was a cool gig. I don’t remember what happened each day of the week, but one day out of the week was a course where they simulate being in a helicopter that crashes in the water and rolls over as it sinks. Two other days out of the week was a course where they taught students how to signal from the ocean, how to use rescue devices that were dropped from aircraft, how to use radios and distress beacons, and the course culminated in a big production in the indoor pool where the students climbed into a big aircraft simulator that then “crashed” into the ocean. There were two already-inflated life rafts lashed to the side of the pool (with ice water inside). The lights were all shut off, a thunderstorm soundtrack played from enormous speakers up in the rafters, and strobe lights simulated lightning. As the students evacuated the “aircraft” and jumped into the water, my job was to spray them using a fire hose while on a catwalk up above. I’m not gonna lie, it felt crazy to be getting paid for stuff like this.

These courses were pretty messy and took some time to set up. We used the other two days out of the week to clean up all the wet gear and reset it to prepare for the next course. Those were good days to schedule medical/dental appointments and any other type of official errands that Uncle Sam mandated.

This goober is modeling a pair of fully inflated LPUs

On one of those days, I was at some kind of appointment at the beginning of the day, then returned to the pool to help with prep. As it turned out, while I had been at my appointment, one of the instructors taught my colleague (someone that was supplementing, like me) how to pack LPUs, or Life Preservation Units. An LPU is a piece of survival gear that some aviators wear. When you’re descending toward the water while dangling from a parachute, you can pull the tabs on your LPU and two big high-visibility pontoons will inflate in a flash, providing more than enough buoyancy to keep you afloat.

Well, when I got back to the shop, my colleague showed me how to pack an LPU. Each LPU had two CO2 canisters that, when punctured by pulling the inflation tabs, quickly inflated the pontoons, even if completely submerged. Packing the LPUs meant unscrewing the old canisters, resetting the pull switches, screwing in new canisters, and then folding up the big orange/pink balloons into small compartments that could be easily worn by an aviator.

Packing LPUs

Unfortunately when my buddy showed me how to pack LPUs, he didn’t show me the right way. The two of us packed tons of LPUs and set them on the shelf, thinking they were ready for students in future classes to use. When they got pulled off the shelf and used during an actual lesson, students that ran off the diving board expecting their LPUs to inflate midair had to end up swimming for it.

While that’s obviously embarrassing for the water survival instructors, that’s not the part I owe taxpayers an apology for. The way the LPU puncture mechanism worked, it wasn’t physically possible to properly reset the mechanism without removing the new CO2 cylinders, and it wasn’t possible to remove the unused CO2 canisters without puncturing them. We had to intentionally pull the inflation tabs, knowing it would waste two perfectly good cylinders per LPU. Each cylinder that was improperly installed in an LPU had to be unscrewed and tossed on the floor, shooting all over the place like a corkscrewing balloon while turning ice cold from the sudden expansion of compressed gas.

Considering all the LPUs we packed and a rough guess that each CO2 cylinder cost about $10, we’re talking hundreds of dollars of wasted taxpayer money. It would’ve been far better to each waste a pair of cylinders by doing a quality control test after packing just a pair or two of the LPUs rather than the way we did it.

Yep, they all need to be packed

So for those of you that dutifully paid your taxes back in the 2003/2004 timeframe, I’m sorry I wasted some of your hard-earned money. The Government is funded by the people, and you deserve better than that. I wish I’d known to correct the mistake sooner! It’s been almost 20 years since I’ve been around LPUs, but that lesson has taught me to keep an eye out for ways to head off the wasteful use of resources (even if it’s as simple as making my kids finish the food on their plates before they can be excused).

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God Already Has All the Money

One morning as I was heading in to work a few years back, I had some cash in my pocket that I wanted to deposit into the bank. Unfortunately, somewhere between when I parked the car and when I got to my desk, I must have dropped one of the bills without realizing it (I think it was a $50). As you can imagine, I was pretty upset about it when I figured it out, but there wasn’t really anything I could do about it.

There’s an odd story in Matthew chapter 17. Back in Bible times, adult males over 20 years of age needed to pay an annual “Temple Tax” for the upkeep and maintenance of the temple. In verse 24, some tax collectors came to Peter and said (paraphrased) “Hey, uh, so does your teacher pay the tax?” “Yes he does,” came the reply.

Peter then went into the house, where Jesus was. Jesus, knowing what was going on, threw in a little object lesson, but then said “well, we don’t want to offend anyone, so we’d better pay it.” I don’t know if Jesus was short on cash or exactly why He did this next thing, but He took an unorthodox approach.

“Go to the lake, throw in your fishing line, and take a closer look at the first fish you catch. In its mouth will be a coin that’s enough to pay the temple tax for two people. Give it to them and pay the tax for both of us.”

This is a famous story in the Bible, and you’ve probably heard it before. By all means, it’s miraculous. Jesus had no way of being able to make such an audacious prediction and have it come true, outside of being God incarnate. Let’s take this a step further, though. Do you think He just conjured a fish with a coin in it?

While Jesus certainly has the power to do that, I don’t really think that’s how He rolls. If these events were to happen today, I think there’d be bills with verifiable serial numbers on them. These events probably involve the story of some guy whose experiences didn’t make it into the Bible. This guy, or maybe this kid, I don’t know, was probably goofing off near a dock or in a boat, playing with a coin a little too close to the water. Fumbling the coin, he dropped it into the water accompanied by a cuss word muttered under his breath as he watched it sink into the water. If it was in shallow water, he probably thought about jumping in after it. “It’s not that deep, I can get it!”

Starting to take off his sandals, he kept an eye on the coin fluttering to the bottom, only to see a fish swim up to the shiny object, gulp it down, and swim off. I imagine the guy then slumped onto a seat in the boat, dejected, wondering about what he was going to tell his dad, or his wife, or somebody else about the bonehead move he’d just lived through.

If that’s what really happened, I feel like I can relate to the guy. While I doubt that the money I lost was used for anything so noble as it was in the Bible story, God has control over even the small details of daily life. Whether the cash I dropped was squandered or used for something great after it left my possession, it happened exactly the way He wanted it to. When God miraculously provides for someone financially, it usually comes out of someone else’s pocket. I’m not thrilled about it and it’s probably not the way I would’ve chosen for things to happen, but I still got to eat that day and I didn’t have to move out of the house I was living in because of it. I’ll bellyache about it, but I survived the “hardship” of that loss just fine.

You may have experienced similar things in your life. Our gut reaction, and sometimes even our reaction even after we’ve had time to cool off, is to be upset. Try to think of it this way, though: it’s all God’s money. He can do whatever He wants with it. Everything we have is on its way to where He wants it to go.

I don’t know that it will be in my top 10, but I think one of the questions I’ll have for God when I get to Heaven is “Whatever happened to that $50?”

24 After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?”

25 “Yes, he does,” he replied.

When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own children or from others?”

26 “From others,” Peter answered.

“Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. 27 “But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.” –Matthew 17:24-27

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Anchor to Something You Know To Be True

I’d like to stretch a metaphor here a little bit and compare the Christian life to rock climbing.

Most of the time when people go rock climbing, they climb a wall that’s been used plenty of times before. These types of places are usually well-trafficked and the climbers set up the rope at the top of the wall. Then both ends are tossed down, and one end gets tied to the climber’s harness and the other end goes to the person manning the safety line (the belayer). This setup is called “top-roping” because the rope is secured at the top of the climb. The belayer keeps the climber safe by locking down on the rope if the climber loses their grip, arresting the fall.

The trickier version is called “lead climbing.” Climbers start at the bottom of a wall and no rope is hanging down from above. As they climb they hook their rope into anchors in the rock they set along the way. This is the style used when a wall is immense and the rope isn’t long enough to cover the whole climb. It requires more skill and more attention to detail, because when top-roping all you really need to focus on is the climb, but in lead climbing you need to be paying attention to how far away you are from your last anchor point. When lead climbing, if you’re climbing straight up and you fall, you’re going to fall twice the length of the distance between the last anchor and the point where the rope connects to your harness. It’s not bad when there’s only three feet of rope, but you feel it a lot more if you’re 12 feet away from your last anchor.

Evil forces are arrayed against the Christian. Compared to a generation ago, there are fewer strongholds of Christian thought. Places that were formerly safe for the Christian are now battlegrounds. Evil is more prevalent and more accepted among the public, and it seems like the percentage of Christians in the population is dropping. Today I’d like to tie us into an anchor on our Christian journey, at least here in America, knowing that this trend will likely continue, but reminding you to take heart and be bold in Christ, because we know He wins in the end.

Normally I don’t like to use language of paranoia, but I believe there are people out there that spend time plotting about how to weaken the influence of Judeo-Christian values in America. I don’t know who they are, and I don’t know how many of them are out there, but I believe they’re doing it and I believe it’s working. Today prayer cannot be led by faculty or staff in public schools, for example, and nativity scenes can’t be displayed on public property.

Between what I see with my own eyes and what I read about in the Bible, I believe it won’t be long before the law turns against Christians. The first anchor I’d like to link us into is the fact that Americans’ freedom of religion (and speech) are guaranteed by the First Amendment.

Now the way I interpret this is that you should be someone that’s a committed follower of a religion in order to claim the protections of the First Amendment. By that I mean that you shouldn’t be some bigot that inflames conversations about homosexuality, for example, and then runs and hides behind the First Amendment. If you want the religious freedom guaranteed by this bedrock American idea, your life should be consistent with someone who’s trying to live out the principles of that religion. This privilege is not restricted only to Christianity, but to any American who seriously practices their religion.

What are the limits of this protection? In modern-day America, the rise of “woke-ness” means that serious pressure can mount against someone who dares to disagree with the prevailing narrative, and with this pressure often comes some kind of monetary loss (loss of sponsorships or endorsements, loss of a job, lawsuits, etc.). Even though the religious person is likely to be found not guilty if they are faithfully following the pillars of their religion, they will often still have to endure the headache, drama, and expense of legal battles, often at the hands of someone that is better funded and connected.

Additionally, there’s a fluid line when it comes to where the limit of protection lies. If someone makes up their own religion (which is perfectly acceptable in America) and practices it devoutly, that’s fine as long as it doesn’t affect other people. If, however, this person’s religion mandates the collection of doorknobs from other peoples’ houses, and the devout person steals doorknobs from neighbors, well that infringes on the life of someone else, now doesn’t it? That should probably not go unchecked.

The flip side of the coin can be applied to Christianity. The example from earlier will help here. Our religion’s holy book says that homosexuality is one type of sexual immorality, and is sinful behavior. Even though the Bible also says all sinners, regardless of past offenses, need to be told about (and can freely receive) God’s forgiveness, there are many people out there who mistakenly believe they have a right to go through life without being offended. If you’re part of the LGBTQ+ community, I can absolutely see how some of the things in the Bible would offend you (after all, the Bible is offensive to all people who embrace sin). I’m unsure of where that legal line between the First Amendment and the pursuit of happiness is, but I can definitely see how we’re setting up a clash between freedom of religion and infringement on personal happiness that will occur somewhere down the road. My guess is that over time the line will move to favor religious practitioners less and less, until religious freedom eventually starts outright losing and subsequently takes a back seat to people who feel wronged.

If you’re blessed to have a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, He may have called you to endure hardship on His behalf. Take heart, though. The sufferings of this life, while painful in the here and now, will pale in comparison to the eternal blessings still to come.

God, this world is full of pain, suffering, and injustice. Please help us know when we should turn the other cheek and when we should stand up and fight to preserve the religious freedom we’ve enjoyed for nearly 250 years. We know the world will grow more and more hostile to Christians, so please help us embrace a mindset of being willing to follow You no matter what comes. Amen.

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I Lifted That Whole House by Myself

I used to work for a small residential construction company. During my time there we built a variety of houses or did renovations, built decks, or completed smaller jobs. Depending on how many projects we had going and what time of year it was, we had a minimal number of guys or a whole bunch of guys working.

While we built one house in particular, most of the time we only had three workers on the crew. I was the youngest and least experienced, so I ended up being the mule…the guy lugging materials everywhere while the other two assembled them and really made the house come together. I carried lumber to the cutting table, while the other guys cut boards to size and put together headers for windows and doors. I handed plywood up to the guys working on the second floor. When the windows showed up, I took them to the right locations so the other guys could install them. When the boxes of siding arrived, I carried their contents where they needed to go. The joke was that I eventually lifted the whole house by myself.

That’s just the rough assembly. Then come the finer points and finishing touches. Holes for wires and pipes still need to be drilled. After the drywall gets hung, it needs to be taped and spackled, then primed and painted. Upon adding trim around windows and doors, it needs to be caulked and painted, too. After you lay and grout tile, you need to wipe it clean. As the house nears completion, appliances need to be installed.

Think about everything that goes into finishing a new house. There are all kinds of materials that get used in the completion of a home. Deliveries to construction sites normally occur in stages; you don’t deliver the dishwasher before the roof is put on, for example. The foundation gets poured, the lumber arrives, then the roofing materials, then the siding. Windows and doors go in. While that stuff is going on, the plumbing and electrical work takes place. Drywall gets hung and finished. While there’s sometimes some flexibility, the overall process has to be scheduled and coordinated so that one area is not interfering with another. (It’s best to install the wires and pipes before hanging drywall, for example.)

Instead of being delivered in stages, imagine if someone delivered all of the materials that would be used to build the house all at once and just set them down somewhere on the property. Given enough time, would those materials eventually assemble themselves into the finished product? For that to happen, things would have to naturally evolve from a state of chaos to a complex state of order.

A lot of scientists, scholars, and others are convinced that this is how we got our planet. Given enough time, if all the atoms and mass were present, they say, it’s obvious that it would shape itself into this world that can sustain life.

There’s a problem with that.

There’s a scientific principle called “Entropy” which states that the universe naturally progresses toward disorder, rather than order. Conditions will generally evolve from more complex conditions to less complex conditions. That is, orderly conditions in an environment will generally devolve into less orderly arrangements. What happens if you stop mowing your perfectly landscaped lawn for five years? Does it become more neat and tidy or more unkempt? Does your vehicle run better if you perform no maintenance on it, or does it require some upkeep?

This is why it’s tough to accept the part of Evolution that mandates rapid change within a single generation of organisms. The theory requires that a given species evolves to overcome some life-threatening obstacle. I’m all for being optimistic and the power of positive thinking and all that, but in must-evolve situations, it’s very simple: if you don’t quickly increase the specialization of a given species, it’s not going to survive. At-risk species that don’t evolve quickly enough to overcome an obstacle don’t survive to pass along modified genes. If they pass along unmodified genes in the same at-risk environment, the new generation has the same problem as the last one.

One of the often-overlooked problems when people are trying to shoot down Creationism is the starting point for life. Sure, things evolve over time, but if evolution is correct and humans and apes came from a common ancestor, which came from a simpler species, which came from single-celled organisms, there’s still a major problem. Somewhere along the line, life sprung from non-life. What did that look like? Where did life originally come from? Such a feat has never been observed to happen in a lab, so what are we missing? I cannot accept the premise that going from “molecules to man” is something that just happened without some kind of intelligent design. (For those that say Earth’s first microbes or bacteria arrived here on asteroids, the same question still applies: how did life start?)

This poses a major problem for those that oppose intelligent design theories. If you hang your entire theory on the notion that life began through some event that is completely unsupported from an empirical perspective, does that not take an amount of faith that is equal to subscribing to some version of the theory of intelligent design? Even if life didn’t originate here on Earth, it came from somewhere. If that life originated after the big bang, how could that possibly have happened? It could only have happened if something gave life to it.

Something to think about. New houses don’t just show up on their own. Beautiful biodiverse habitable planets don’t, either.

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Passing the Baton, and Time is Short

(This has been kind of a stressful week where regular routines got tossed aside and our family had to call some audibles. Part of that change meant not having much time or mental energy to devote to a blog post. My teenaged daughter was sweet, saw that I was stressed about not having the time to write something, and offered to let me use something she wrote. So without further ado, here’s the worldwide debut of my daughter’s writing skills. Thanks kiddo!)

Witnessing to people is hard. You know that’s what God tells you to do, and you can’t imagine people you know and love going to Hell, but sharing the gospel can be very difficult.

Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 5:2 that “for you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” Thieves come unexpected and unannounced. As Christ said in Mark 13:32, “But concerning the day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in Heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

But what if you did know? What if you knew God was coming back, say, tomorrow at 3 pm? What are some things you would do before His arrival? I know one of my top priorities would be to tell my non-Christian friends. I would not care what they thought of me because I would know, Christ’s coming back! I would just want to save them from God’s wrath before it’s too late.

Well, we don’t know when Christ is coming back. But what we do know is that sometime, anytime, Jesus IS coming back. It could be tonight, five years from now, or maybe even tomorrow at 3 pm. The possibilities are endless!

My point is, God’s coming back. Those things you would do if Christ was coming tomorrow? Do them as soon as possible, for all we know, the Lord may be coming back tonight. Don’t be caught off guard.

What are some things you want to have done before Christ returns? How can you make them happen as soon as possible?

Lord, help me to live my life as if you were coming back anytime, because no one knows the day or the hour. Amen.

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The Show Must Go On, But It’s Up to You

If you follow my posts, you probably think to yourself every once in awhile “this guy talks a good game, but what does life look like for him when things get tough?” It’s time for a little bit of transparency. I’m human and I have failings, and it’s often difficult to worship God by pursuing His calling. The whole intent behind writing this blog is to push readers to use more of the potential God’s empowered them with. Here’s an update on what that looks like for me.

I’ve shared in the past that I feel led to write some Christian fiction books. The original plan was seven books that are each 40,000 to 50,000 words. From there it expanded so that a few of those seven stories had multiple volumes, leading to a goal of 10 books that are an average of 50,000 each. That’s a total of half a million words.

As I’ve shared before, this is an odd calling for me. I have a blog, but I don’t come from a writing background. I think I wrote a 10,000-word paper for a college class one time. My academic studies have mostly been science-focused, so venturing into creative writing (especially a creative writing endeavor of this magnitude) is wading into deep waters for me.

Truth be told, I’m pumped about this opportunity. My soul feels settled now that I feel like I know the purpose and manner by which I should honor my Savior. There are a lot of difficulties associated with a project like this, though. I had seven stories floating around in my head, and my imagination kept splitting its focus and bouncing between them. Where should I start? I’d sputter through some writing, but there were so many possible storylines that I couldn’t keep track of them all. Ideas kept coming and coming, and it was all I could do to write down all the ideas.

Taking a linear approach, I started with book number one, dabbled in book number two when I needed to think about something different, and put down some notes for books five and six as I went. I made some decent headway on books one and two, but the ideas kept rolling in for book five (which grew to three volumes), so I got more and more excited about that one. In the interest of focusing my efforts, I eventually stopped working on most of the other stuff and zeroed in on the book five trilogy.

The hardest part for me isn’t the enormous nature of the project. I’ve written down a lot of words. To date, I have over 135,000 words in draft for the different stories. For me the hardest part is how slow the progress is. I’ve got a full-time job, plus a family and all their extracurricular activities. I usually sleep less than six hours a night, I get home about 10 hours after I leave for work. I exercise, I write a blog, I do yardwork, and I pay credit card bills. I need to fill out another form for something? Now it’s time to do taxes. Since starting the series, I’ve twice been notified that my job would be ending and I need to look for a new one. There’s not much time (or sometimes, mental energy) to devote to writing. In fact, over the past year, the bulk of the writing I’ve done is when I take one of my kids to youth group one night out of the week. I find a quiet place in the church to write for a couple of hours while I wait for the event to be over. That usually results in 1,000 to 1,300 words a week. That’s not real fast when you consider the end goal (which, by the way, has been revised upwards to over 650,000 words after finding out just how much text it takes to tell the story you want to tell).

The frustration for me is finally having a clear vision of what God wants me to put effort into, but not being able to execute as quickly as I’d like. It’s aggravating to look at a lot of the junk that comes out of Hollywood and think “I have stories in my head that a Christian movie production company could make and Christian families would probably love, but I can’t write them down and revise them fast enough.”

And yet, despite that aggravation, it’s nice to trust that I’m working on God’s schedule. Ever meet someone that’s really eager to do something, or take on the world all at once? I guess God’s got to slow me down to meet His timing. I don’t know if that’s what He’s doing, but I have to trust that as long as I’m putting earnest effort into it, I’m going to make the progress He wants me to make.

I would love to be able to make a living off writing, but it looks like it’ll be a long time before that comes to pass. In fact, it might not ever be the case. I just know that I have to keep pressing on. Not only is this the task God laid before me, but I’ve now written too much for this to be something I give up on (I can’t just toss 135,000 words in the trash and not look back).

I share this with you not because I’m looking for pity. I’m letting you in on it because I want to be up front and honest with you. The jobs God gives you will not be easy. They’re going to cost you. Sometimes it’s a battle to even keep going. You’ll very likely ask yourself “should I give up?” I urge you not to. There’s no way for any of us to know what our obedience can set in motion, and we have a tendency to think too small about the possibilities. For example, there’s no guarantee that this is how things will play out, but what if there’s a major Christian revival that’s still to come, yet it won’t happen until one or more of the books I’m working on gets out there to shift people’s perspective? That view ought to keep me going. If God handed me a project to work on, I have to assume it’s an important one, right? It’s my responsibility to keep chipping away at it, no matter how long it takes. One of my favorite TobyMac song lyrics is “if I can’t walk, then I’m crawlin’.” If crawlin’ is the best I can do right now, then that’s what I’m going to do, but I’ll be looking forward to a time when I can stand up and walk or break out into a run.

I want this post to encourage you. Don’t quit. The Lord knows exactly what each of us is capable of, but we, His followers, are the weak link in this chain. When you receive a seemingly impossible assignment from Him, you’ve got to trust that not only is it achievable, you’re also going to have what you need at the time you need it. Don’t let a lack of resolve be the reason you don’t get across the finish line. If the Lord led you to do something, it’s got to be important either for other Christians or for unsaved souls. Please don’t let us down.

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I Know They’re Trying Hard. It’s Just…(sigh)

Years ago my two oldest kids were on a tee-ball team together. For those that aren’t familiar, tee-ball is the version of baseball little kids play before they have the skills to play actual baseball. Instead of pitching the ball to a kid, the ball sits on something that looks like a big golf tee, so the kids get to swing at a ball that isn’t moving. In the unlikely event that the fielding team is competent enough to get three outs in an inning, the batting team keeps batting until everyone on the team has had a chance to hit. Everybody gets to field the ball, and everybody gets to run the bases.

I’ll be the first to admit that tee ball is a good way to teach young kids the mechanics and basics of baseball. I’ll also tell you that it’s extremely painful to watch. You normally have nine or 10 kids out in the field, and when a batter connects with the ball, at least half of them start running toward the ball, no matter what position they’re playing. You also have kids standing around looking up at the clouds, singing songs to themselves, picking their nose, or sitting down in the outfield playing with dandelions. Usually those kids are the ones the ball gets hit to.

I remember the coach for my kids’ team also had a kid on the team. He was funny to watch. He was fine for a while during each game, but there would come a time when he would just be done with it all. He’d take off his sunglasses, hold them straight out in front of him, and just drop them on the ground and walk away, as though it was a mic drop.

Well as enjoyable as the game was to watch, we also had a very young third child, and she would only stay content in the stroller for so long. Since my wife is a better fan and cheerleader than I am, she stayed and cheered for the team while I picked up our youngest when she got too antsy, and I’d take her for a walk around the area.

On one occasion I took her out to a nearby area that had a large storm drain. I held her little hands and helped her walk around on the grass, but then another kid came over and stood on top of the storm drain, looking down into it. He seemed very interested in it, kneeling down and peering as far into the tunnel as he could see. He knelt there for a moment, and a smile crossed my face when I heard him shout down into the drain “Ninja Turtles, are you down there?”

Kids are fun, man. They’ve got big imaginations, they haven’t yet been beaten down by life, and in their minds, anything is possible. The summer months can be a little challenging if you’ve got kids with lots of energy and no school to attend, but hang in there. Love on ‘em anyway, because they don’t stay little for long. Foster that imagination of theirs, and it’ll serve them well as they get older.

And if you’ve got somebody in tee-ball right now, it won’t always be so painful to watch.

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Benchmarks Are There for a Reason; Use Them

Before all the modern tools used in making today’s maps, cartographers had to do things the old-fashioned way, with surveying tools. As you might imagine, using the crude instruments of yesteryear could be tedious, and if surveying teams had the opportunity to take steps that would save them some work on subsequent projects, they’d be eager to hear about it.

Enter the idea of the benchmark. On a topographic map, a benchmark is a spot whose exact elevation is known. A benchmark is a small disc that’s permanently installed at such a site, and it’s inscribed with numbers that display the elevation of the spot where the disc lays. Surveying teams can show up and get right to work using the benchmark as a hard and fast fact; it’s something they know is true and can be relied upon to build accurate information off of.

Today’s society could use some reminders about one of the Lord’s benchmarks.

In many places the Bible condemns sexual immorality. Sexual immorality is an umbrella term under which several types of specific categories fall. Often times it seems like Christians are quick to condemn homosexuality as sin (which it is, according to several verses in the Bible, like Leviticus 18:22, Romans 1:26-28, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10), but in focusing on just one type of sexual immorality, other types are ignored or somehow seen as “less bad.” In all cases we’re to love the sinner but hate the sin, but we also need to remember that all sin is detestable to the Lord and is something that should not be accepted, especially among Christians. Christians engaging in sin should be confronted (in love), and not be “given a pass” for something that eats away at their witness.

God intended marriage to be between one man and one woman. That’s the only acceptable combination in His eyes. (Don’t get mad at me, take it up with the Man upstairs.) Sexual activity you engage in with someone that is not your spouse is sin. The natural question is “How do you define ‘sexual activity?’” I’d say that if you have a behavior in mind that you’re already trying to rationalize, it’s probably something you shouldn’t be doing. Jesus described it this way in Matthew 5:28 – “but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Just be honest with yourself. Call sin what it is. One-night stands, quick flings, cohabitation, etc. If you’re doing something you know is wrong, come clean to God with it. (Trust me, He already knows; the coming clean part is mostly for your benefit.)

On the flip side, it’s important to recognize that we are all sinners, and all of us struggle with sin in some way. The attraction of a sexual sin like pornography that has a stranglehold on one Christian may have no power at all over another. At the same time, those that have overcome such addictions are in a prime position to come alongside a brother or sister that’s currently losing in their struggle with the sin. I urge you: if you’re one of those two types, seek to connect with someone of the other type. The fear is often “nobody would even want to associate with me if they knew what I’m keeping secret.” I understand why you may think that, but Christianity is not a spectator sport; it is to be lived in the trenches and we’re supposed to help one another in our struggles.

Sexual sin is one of, if not the only, sin where the advice we get is to outright run from it. First Corinthians 6:18 says Flee sexual immorality. Every other sin that a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. That means actively taking steps to prevent certain situations and outright extracting yourself from others. If you use a computer to access sites you know you shouldn’t, don’t use the computer unless someone else is around. Put your phone down, turn off data, or shut it off unless you’re purposefully using it for appropriate things. If you have a coworker or someone else in your life that you enjoy being around a little more than you should, actively avoid spending any more time than you need to with them. It’s on you to recognize the problem and start trying to do something about it.

You may think the things I’m saying here conflict with the messages you get from our culture. I hope so. The Christian’s message is supposed to do exactly that. We’re supposed to stand out. The messages you’re hearing from the world are the moral equivalent of installing numerous false benchmarks all around real ones. Keep track of what’s true and trustworthy, and it will cut down on a lot of the confusion you’ll otherwise face. Remember…sin is something to be avoided, not tolerated.

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Visiting a New Church: You’ll Find What You’re Looking For

It can be tough trying to find a church you like. I fully recognize that, but sometimes people take things to the extreme.

Churches can be a little too this, or not enough of that. The natural inclination is to look for a church home that meets your preferences. That absolutely makes sense. It’s important not to set the bar impossibly high, though. “The Perfect Church” simply does not exist. Even if it did, it would be ruined once you, an imperfect person, started attending there.

“I don’t like the worship.”

“I don’t like the preaching.”

“It’s not welcoming enough.”

“The people there are too friendly.”

These can all be criticisms of a church, but let me point out that when you walk into a church for the first time, you’re likely to find what you’re looking for. That is to say, if you’re looking for a reason not to like a given church, you’ll probably find one. If you’re looking for hypocritical behavior, it’s probably only a matter of time before you encounter it. If you’re looking for someone to do or say something that doesn’t jive with your preferred code of conduct, yes, it’s going to happen.

Instead, I’d like to propose that you walk into a church looking for solid Bible teaching and a congregation of people that’s imperfect but loves Jesus, loves each other, and wants to spread the Gospel. Once you find that, be on the lookout for a way to volunteer your spiritual gifts in humility. (By humility, I mean exactly that…even if you believe you’re blessed with more talent than whoever is already serving in that capacity, you should not expect to impress everyone and be given the leeway to transform an existing ministry into the version you’d like) A healthy church welcomes new attendees and looks to employ those new attendees’ spiritual gifts and willingness to serve.

Rather than looking for reasons not to attend a particular church, look for the things you know God would applaud about the church and the ways you can fill the role of the missing puzzle piece that makes the church a more complete entity. Christianity isn’t a spectator religion; you’ve got to get involved. Maybe you haven’t found the church you like because the one you’re attending is still missing the thing you can offer.

Who knows? Your contribution to the congregation may be the thing that makes a future newcomer say “yes, this feels like my new church home.”

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Life Lessons From a Sitcom

Years ago there was a sitcom on TV called “Parks and Rec.” It was a comedy that focused on the staff of the Parks and Recreation Department of a small Midwestern town in Indiana.

The main character in this show is a woman named Leslie Knope, a very energetic civil servant overflowing with enthusiasm. Leslie’s best friend is Ann Perkins, a bubbly and fun (but not nearly as over-the-top as Leslie) nurse. My personal favorite is Leslie’s boss, Ron Swanson. He’s a deadpan middle-aged guy that enjoys solitude, fine alcohol, well-prepared meats of any kind, and making government bureaucracy less efficient.

In one particular episode Ron learns Leslie is planning a surprise birthday event for him, which, in Ron’s mind, is a mortifying idea. Leslie’s panache for flamboyant celebrations is something he fears will be turned on him. Out of morbid curiosity, he asks Ann about a past surprise birthday party Leslie threw for her. You can almost sense his nausea as she fondly recalls being “kidnapped” from work, brought to a restaurant where a mariachi band sang happy birthday to her and made her wear a sombrero, then afterward heading home where virtually all of Ann’s friends were waiting to surprise her.

Ron went into defensive mode. He starts sleeping at the office to reduce the opportunities for him to be kidnapped. He starts learning of little hints that another kidnapping is in the offing. When Leslie finally comes to him with a lame attempt to get him to a specific location elsewhere in the building, he resigns himself to the fate he’d been trying to avoid. He follows Leslie to a conference room and she opens the door, where he expects someone to lunge at him.

Instead, he finds a comfortable chair at a simply set table for one. The table has a large steak, a heaping side of bacon, a baked potato with plenty of toppings, a bottle of booze to complement the steak, and two war movies for him to enjoy by himself.

As he stumbles to find the right words to say, Ron mentions the party Ann had described to him earlier. Leslie replies “I did that for Ann. Why would I throw Ron Swanson an Ann Perkins party?”

This oddly touching scene is the perfect analogy for the way the Lord commissions us to do His work. I don’t know what it is, but for some reason, when I was younger I always feared I’d have to grow up and become some kind of missionary in a far-off land. I know that’s important, but I don’t want to do that! To any missionaries out there, a thousand thank yous for the work you do. I can’t rule out the possibility that being a missionary is still somewhere in my future, but I feel blessed that God’s said something similar: “I already have people for that. I need you to do this thing nobody else is equipped to do.” Hopefully you’re hearing the same message.

As it turns out, there are plenty of roles God can use you for, and there are some we may not enjoy. Sometimes though, you may just find that God hands you an assignment and you mull it over for awhile, only to come away saying “yeah, you know, I think I could do that!”

They won’t always be fun, but you’ll be blessed each time you say “yes” to God.

Lord, thank you for knowing us better than we know ourselves, and for training, equipping, and preparing us for the things You’ll ask of us. Help us be brave when we’re asked to do something we don’t want to do, be appreciative when we’re asked to do something we like, and be confident in You at all times. In Your name I ask, Amen.

To see this “Parks and Rec” exchange, have a look here. There’s some crude language sprinkled throughout, but it’s still a fun clip.

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Aim Small, Miss Small

There are a couple of movies out there that cite the phrase “aim small, miss small.”

The movies I’ve seen this line quoted in use it in reference to shooting. If you aim generically at the broad side of a barn, the theory goes, you’ll probably be able to hit it, but if you just shot 10 times at a barn without aiming at any particular part of it, like you were firing from the hip, you’d probably have 10 hits that are widely scattered across the target.

Instead, pick a specific point on that barn, maybe a prominent notch on an individual board. Try this technique with another 10 shots, and you’re going to have a much tighter shot grouping. By aiming at something small (in relation to the target), if you miss, you probably won’t be far off, and you’ll obtain a much more consistent result.

Consider this saying in light of how you pray. Prayer should include praise and thanksgiving to the Lord, and this is very important. That portion of your prayers certainly warrants more than the passing mention that’s here in this post, but today I want to focus on the asking part of prayer. I would guess that for many of us, the most common reason behind why we pray is because we’re asking God for something.

God wants us to pray, yes. He wants us to pray often, having an attitude of prayer that lasts throughout the day. This frequent communication brings you nearer to God. But what is it that you ask for when you pray? Health? Blessings? Maybe salvation for unsaved friends or family? Revival is always something we should be asking for, and should be a frequent request.

I have to ask, though: just how specific do you get in your prayers? Do you ask generally for salvation for those nameless, faceless people you pass regularly, or do you ask consistently for God to move the heart of that cantankerous neighbor you avoid when you see them outside? Do you ask God to spark revival, or do you ask Him to show you the part He wants you to play in bringing that revival about?

Let’s assume for a moment that for the next year, God agreed to grant all your (unselfish) requests. How would that affect your prayer life? I’m guessing that not only would you spend a lot more time in prayer; you’d also get a lot more specific about the things you pray for. This probably isn’t going to be a scenario God chooses for you, but that’s no reason to skip out on that type of prayer life. Keep that in mind the next time you bring your requests to the Lord.

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It’s Up to You: Volunteer or Be Voluntold

There are a lot of bible verses about leaning on God or relying/depending on God. Lots of times they’re connected to the idea either that “this is more than I can handle on my own,” or “no matter how cool I think I am, God’s really the one in charge.”

Here are a few examples:

  • For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. –Isaiah 41:13
  • In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps. –Proverbs 16:9
  • I lift up my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. –Psalm 121:1-2
  • I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. –John 15:5
  • When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot me. –Hosea 13:6

God wants us to rely on Him, but that way of thinking doesn’t come naturally to us. That last verse from Hosea gives a little insight into God’s thoughts. When we’re happy and satisfied with our lives, we tend to drift away from God more than when we’re in the middle of some kind of crisis. During a crisis, “reliance on the Lord” becomes a hands-on lesson for us. It’s that reliance that ensures we don’t forget Him.

There are a lot of circumstances in life that drive a closer reliance on God. Loss of a loved one, an extended illness or other medical situation, a job loss, relationship problems, and on and on and on. It’s kind of the opposite of “fair weather followers;” when things are fine we don’t talk to God much, but we cozy right up to Him when we need or want something. It’s human nature.

Here’s the part that’s important to remember. If we don’t rely on God on our own, He tends to introduce events in our lives that force us to reconsider. I think it’s interesting to note that as you look at famous biblical characters (Moses, Nehemiah, and Paul, for example), they all had their personal problems, certainly, but those problems were not the primary outlets for their reliance on God. Rather, their reliance showed through when they were doing something bigger than themselves, focusing up and out rather than down and in. When Moses was focused on leading the Israelites out of Egypt, he wasn’t terribly focused on his speech impediment. Nehemiah took charge of a project that gave a ruined city its identity and confidence, allowing him to look past the anxiety he felt for his languishing brethren. Paul traveled all along major trade routes spreading the gospel, planting churches, and empowering the next generation of Christian teachers, not really sweating the small stuff like multiple shipwrecks, beatings, imprisonments, or being bitten by a poisonous snake.

Another way of saying this is that if you’re not looking at the big possibilities and purposes God is offering you, you’re limiting the options He has in your life to teach you this continual lesson. You leave only the opportunity to experience “defensive” lean-on-God moments, and by avoiding the tasks that stretch you, you shut the door on the “offensive” version. When you don’t give Him options, He creates His own, and that often leads to “crisis mode” situations. This is doubly troubling; when we do this, not only are we turning down the opportunity to do big things for God’s kingdom, we’re also unintentionally sending God the message “hey, I’m not getting it; I need you to do something that grabs my attention.”

Don’t misunderstand; even if you do everything right and jump in with both feet every time God sets a challenge before you, your personal life is not guaranteed to be free of stress and crises. We live in a fallen world. People die. We harm, betray, or steal from one another. What I’m saying is that by responding to God’s calling for your life, by reaching for something that’s beyond what you can achieve on your own, you willingly walk a life of dependence on God, and He looks on that favorably.

One final example. Peter got out of the boat and walked on water. Imagine if he opted instead to stay in the boat. God still would have had ample opportunities to use him for His plans, but He may have had to sideline Peter for a little bit to teach him reliance through a sudden personal tragedy. Peter probably would’ve learned the lesson, but it wouldn’t be nearly as inspirational as what actually happened.

What do you think, have you only been giving God “defensive” reliance opportunities? Maybe it’s time to get out of the boat and walk on water.

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Be Straight With Me. Was it Worth All That?

If you live a righteous life, you’re going to encounter opposition.

It’s a tricky thing, this balance Christians need to maintain. On the one hand, we need to have other Christians we can depend on, go to with our problems, and lean on for support. On the other hand, we can’t immerse ourselves so much in this support system that we never have contact with the people we’re meant to witness to. Our job, after all, is to go forth and make disciples of all nations. It’s tough to do that if we only spend time with other believers.

I’ve got a story to share that’s going to make me sound like I’m touting how perfect I was at a certain time in my life. That’s not my intent, so please hang in there for the point I’m trying to make. I worked construction for a couple of summers in college and then for about a year and a half after graduating. You meet a lot of interesting (translated: rough) characters in that line of work. The crude speech alone was enough to raise some eyebrows.

I stuck out quite a bit in this field. I didn’t swear, I didn’t drink, and I didn’t chase women. That’s pretty unusual for a young man in that line of work. I didn’t act in a morally superior or “holier than thou” way. It wasn’t necessary. People took notice over time. Different guys would leave or join the crew, but it seemed like everyone except me indulged in at least one of those three behaviors. One of the guys even told me “I’ve met dudes that avoid one of those things. I’ve even met a couple of guys that avoid two of those things. But you’re the only guy I’ve met that doesn’t do any of those things.”

A lot of times a few of the guys would try to prod me to let slip a dirty word or two. Occasionally a few of them would conspire to make me have a rough day, just to try to get me to lose my temper. Now why would they do that? They saw somebody more disciplined than them and they tried to get him to stumble so he’d “descend to their level.” I’m not going to sit here and tell you that people who drink or cuss or make mistakes can’t get into Heaven. I will tell you though, that blamelessness bothers sinners. I’m not perfect, but guys on that crew figured I was, and it was an image they wanted to mar for their own satisfaction. If they could make a “perfect” person stumble, it made them feel better about the way they lived their own lives.

That’s one side of the coin. There’s a very important flip side to it. When you stiffen your spine in response to consistent opposition day after day, week after week, month after month, there’s a certain amount of respect that others develop toward you. I wasn’t preachy about my faith to the other guys. In fact, I don’t know that I ever even threw “I’m a Christian” out there. One guy, who had given me a lot of grief, but who was also a very philosophical type of fellow, one day told me he had a lot of respect for my convictions. He seemed to take at least a little bit of joy in finding hypocrisy in people that called themselves religious. After months of working together and trying to get under my skin, he told me “you are who you say you are.” (I never had to say who I was.)

Not only was it a very high compliment coming from him, it was an acknowledgement to me that it had been worth the heat. Soon after that we spent some time talking about the Bible and some of the things it contained. We eventually went our separate ways, but a few years later my wife and I looked him up and visited him and his family. They had us over for dinner, breaking out some big steaks, sharing their table and their home with us. I can’t say I led the guy to Christ, and I haven’t had any contact with him in probably 15 years, but I hope to be one member of the team that takes part in his years-long journey to the Lord.

God will ask you to do things that are hard. He asks you to do it because He knows you’re uniquely suited to get it done. If He asks you to be above reproach in a difficult environment, it might just be because He knows blamelessness bothers sinners, and He’s using you to get somebody’s attention. Hang in there. God uses teams of believers to accomplish His will in any given person’s life, but you may be the one He’s chosen to get the ball rolling.

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Just Explain it to me in Plain English

When you’re a blogger, you’re always at least a little curious about which posts really resonate with readers. Unless someone says something to you, you never really know for sure. You can get insights into things like the number of people viewing the different pages on your blog. That’s about as good a proxy as you’re going to get, because you can use that metric to see what kind of posts are more popular than others. I can’t see things like the names of people that have viewed different pages, but I can see which posts get the most traffic.

It turns out that the post I wrote a couple of weeks ago about the odd politics of our nation (it’s easier for a minor to get a sex change than it is for them to get a tattoo, for example) generated significantly more hits than normal. While I fully intend for this blog’s main purpose to remain focused on pushing Christ-followers to use their lives as a living sacrifice and step into the role God’s designed for them, sometimes I also need to take my own advice and do what I’m good at, even if it’s not directly God-honoring.

Today I’d like to have another look at American politics, starting out with some of the basics and hopefully help translate a little of that into where we are today.

I try to stay away from party names like “Democrat” or “Republican,” and instead use the terms “liberal” and “conservative.” The reason is partly because people don’t often fit cleanly into one camp or the other and people don’t react objectively to labels, but mainly it’s because each party’s views can be so wide-ranging that you could squeeze multiple ideologies into each party. You’ll hear me refer to the political left (liberals/Democrats generally, but Socialists and Communists if you go further and further left) and political right (conservatives/Republicans here, but dictators if you go further right). Both sides seek prosperity or financial security, but they take very different approaches to get there.

Please understand that these are broad generalizations. Of course you can find exceptions to the things I say here, but by and large, these principles hold true. Let’s start with an abridged look at the two groups.

Left: Their view is that the people work for the government, which provides stability, services, financial safety nets, etc. for its citizens (and non-citizens, in our case). Social issues are generally the most important things our country has to figure out. Quality of life is a good thing, but the government doesn’t like when there are large disparities between the “haves” and the “have nots,” so the “haves” should pay higher and higher tax percentages the more money they make. The government will take care of you from cradle to grave in return for your loyalty in paying high taxes. Life is hard, people have extenuating circumstances; they can’t always make the most of their opportunities and they should look to the government as the solution to their problems.

Right: In this group’s view, the government works for the people, providing basic national services (federal highways, FAA and FCC rules, a strong military), but not taking more taxes than necessary and allowing local-level politics to sort out the details. The law of supply and demand plays a big part in our economy. If people are willing to pay for something, someone will come up with a better or cheaper way to provide it. Individual innovators and service providers in the private sector drive the economy and wealth creation, and the government provides only basic guidelines to make sure those efforts don’t go off the rails (as an example, think about the reasonable rules/precautions the government should pass regarding artificial intelligence right now). Ideally there should be plentiful job opportunities for everyone, and those that work hard are encouraged to go as far as their potential and drive enable them to go.

If you’re a conservative, you kind of have the political deck stacked against you. People in the two camps have very different outlooks, as you might expect. The “best minds” of left-leaning thinkers end up in government. The “best minds” of right-leaning thinkers end up in the private sector. Who, then, on the right, ends up in government? There are some good ones, sure, but often the ones that are really good decide that they can make a more lucrative living doing something other than government service, and they end up leaving public office. I wouldn’t go so far as to say our government’s Democrats are the Varsity team and Republicans are the Junior Varsity team, but it’s tough to come up with a better analogy. As a result, the country has steadily marched left, even though we’re a mostly center-right nation. Even beyond Senators and Congressional Representatives, the bench is much deeper for liberals. When liberals can’t get their legislative agenda passed, faceless regulators and unelected officials use different avenues to advance the goals of hard-left politicians. Businesses that are just trying to make a profit are impacted when their bottom line is affected by regulations that get too complicated to understand. They have to pay for the services of lawyers and compliance officers to make sure they’re doing everything legally, rather than spending that money on enhancing the quality of their product or otherwise investing in their business. (Trump cleared a lot of regulations and the economy leapt forward. Biden reinstituted a lot of them and that’s part of the reason our economic recovery is so slow. Some regulations were good ideas, others were not, but the more regulations you have, the harder it is to run a business.)

Conservatives often have the viewpoint that they shouldn’t interfere in other peoples’ lives because that’s not what they’d want to happen to them. Legislatively, liberals tend to benefit from that outlook because they don’t have the same qualms and conservatives don’t normally fight back until it’s too late. Conservatives figure that as long as politicians in Washington don’t do anything too crazy, it’ll all be fine in the end. Well, then those politicians go and do things conservatives aren’t comfortable with. That gets the conservatives to vote in the next election or two, but eventually they go back to their complacency and the cycle starts again. The result is that the country’s politics have steadily shifted leftward over the last hundred years (examples: Social Security and the New Deal, Medicare and Medicaid, the mandatory health insurance of the Affordable Care Act, today’s practice of using well-qualified mortgage applicants to pay extra fees to help support riskier borrowers, and the functional removal of America’s southern border). The political left “takes new ground” while the best that conservatives hope for is “stopping the liberal agenda.” Conservatives don’t usually take new ground. (Or if they do, it causes face-melting rage fests and riots among the left.)

Our country’s government was set up to have multiple political parties, so I wouldn’t want to see just one be completely dominant, even if it’s the one I tend to side with. It’s a little unfair to refer to the current Democratic Party as the actual Democratic Party. Over the last 20 years or so, the party has shifted far left very quickly, often to the extreme left. The Democratic platform has changed and now embraces extremism in almost every case. (Everyday middle-class Democrats who agree on almost all the Party’s main issues but disagree on one thing, like the issue of abortion, are shouted down and all but kicked out of the Party if they push their views, it seems.) People that have voted Democrat for decades out of principle maybe went along with this leftward migration, but are finding that their party traveled further left than they really agree with. Their options are to not vote, to vote Republican (which some of them will never do just on principle), or to vote for a third party. I’d argue that they didn’t leave the Democratic Party, but that the Democratic Party instead left them. They should get involved earlier, in the primaries, to try to reclaim their party and move it back toward the center, where the two sides can actually get some things done by working together.

There’s so much more to cover, but this is already getting longer than normal. No matter what side you’re on politically, please pray for our nation, that it would turn from evil and toward the Lord. Pray for revival in this land and for God to be glorified.

There’s a whole lot more, but I don’t know if you’d be interested to hear it. Want additional political posts? Want me to stay away from future political posts? Let me know. Leave a comment or use the “contact us” option to share your thoughts.

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This has a High Potential for Misuse

Ever come across a verse in the Bible that makes you go “huh?”

Matthew chapter 11 has one of those. Jesus is talking to a crowd about John the Baptist, and is letting them know that John is the fulfillment of a prophecy from the Old Testament. He more or less says “This is the guy that Malachi prophesied about when he wrote ‘behold, I send my messenger before You, Who will prepare Your way before You.’”

Christ goes on to say that John the Baptist is the greatest man who ever lived, but even the lowliest person in Heaven is greater than John.

That’s when the “huh?” verse comes into play.

Matthew 11:12 is that verse. Jesus continues: “And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.”

Time out. What’s He talking about here?

For the first part of the verse, think about John as having kicked off a new era. He’s the final Old Testament prophet, letting people know that Jesus is the guy all the scriptures have been pointing to. John was the one that announced Jesus’ arrival; he was the herald that had a part in dedicating Jesus to a life of ministry. The thing John commenced was something that flew in the face of Jewish custom and teaching. That brought violence, against John (who was beheaded), against Christ, and against many of Christ’s followers. Even so, God’s kingdom can never be subdued by human violence.

Okay, well that makes sense, but what about the last part of the verse, “and the violent take it by force?” Does this mean there has to be a certain level of violence to get into Heaven? Not at all, but there is a certain amount of tenacity involved.

Many times the gospels echo each other, and we can get a fuller picture of a given incident by looking at how other gospel writers cover the same event. Luke 16:16 says it this way. “The law and the prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is pressing into it.” Think of the two versions’ meaning this way: “The kingdom presses ahead relentlessly, and only the relentless press their way into it.”

Christ warns us that it’s tough to put your own desires in the back seat and follow Him. He knows it’s tough. That’s part of the reason why He blesses us for doing it. Matthew says earlier in his book (7:13-14) to “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”

Part of the reason few find it because it’s so difficult. Salvation is by grace alone, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. It’s not natural to submit to someone else’s rulership of your life and declare your willingness to obey His will and instruction. It takes dedication and a constant dying to self for the purpose of magnifying your savior in your own life.

Nevertheless, this is the way to enter God’s kingdom.

So when things are tough, press on. Be relentless. God sees you, He sees your dedication to the Christian walk, and He’ll make it up to you. “Only the relentless press their way into it.”

Be relentless.

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This Would Make Spock’s Head Explode

I can’t speak much for other parts of the world, but in the United States of America, turning 18 is kind of a big deal.

This is the age when you transition from being a minor to being an adult. Before turning 18, you’re still considered too young to have a firm understanding (or insufficient life experience) to be grounded enough to make good decisions.

I mean, think about it. There are some exceptions, but for the most part you can’t do these things before turning 18:

  • Get a tattoo or body piercing
  • Vote
  • Rent an apartment or buy a house
  • Join the military
  • Get married

The intent behind making it mandatory for a minor to turn 18 before being able to make the decision to embark on any of these things is because they all carry a certain weight or have long-lasting consequences. Many of these, after all, are life-altering decisions.

So you’ll understand if I express my disapproval that in many parts of the U.S., it’s easier for an 11-year-old to obtain gender reassignment surgery than it is to get a tattoo. (No, I’m not advocating that we lower the minimum tattoo age.) It is disturbingly easy to empower children to set off on a journey of permanent change without them having a firm grasp of the ramifications they’re agreeing to live with. Even if you’re a pro-trans activist, I think you’d have to agree with me on some level up to this point of the posting.

Let’s call a spade a spade here: we’re talking about mutilating children’s natural body parts and acting like it’s somehow archaic if we do not give them the opportunity to alter the course of their natural lives. I’m sorry, but if you can’t even get tattoos at that age, the government shouldn’t be allowing people under 18 to pursue such permanent reassignment surgeries.

Switching gears slightly, I have to ponder…given the prevalence of this issue in the national spotlight today, one would think there’s a tremendous amount of pent-up demand among minors. I’m not ready to hit the “I Believe” button on that issue, but for the sake of argument, let’s suppose it’s true for a moment. As responsible adults, it’s up to people on both sides of the aisle to say “hey look, I recognize there’s a lot of demand for this, but pursuing this course of action is a major decision, so we’re going to make you put it on hold until you’re legally an adult.” Why isn’t that an easy piece of legislation to get passed?

I don’t really believe there IS a lot of demand for this type of thing among kids. That begs another question. If that’s true and there’s no major demand, why such a big push for it? I mean, if politicians are making something out of nothing, what’s the political goal of such a thing?

I guess I’d have to pull in a few other things to round out the picture. “Protecting Women’s rights” does not include fairness for female athletes, and it seems that rather than create a separate category or class of athlete, the party line is that it’s in competition’s best interest to allow biological males (or those born biological males) to compete in Women’s sports. That’s just one additional item. Let’s open the aperture a little more.

It’s pretty scary how much traction the “Defund the Police” movement got within the past few years. I wouldn’t say the tide has completely receded, but I think it’s reached its high-water mark by now. The hypocrisy of the people with the loudest voices calling for such a defunding (hiring personal security details or building walls around their homes) helps illustrate that maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Kicking it up a notch though, is the District Attorney from Manhattan who announced recently he would no longer prosecute theft with the intent of establishing racial equity. (Ironically, this viewpoint justifies the use of racism to level the playing field.) What good can the police do if they catch someone robbing a home if that person is released from custody within hours?

Hang with me a little longer. Did you hear about this new mortgage situation? People with high credit scores, the ones that have made good decisions (you know, like “live within your means” or “pay your bills on time”) are now going to be required to pay extra fees to offset the risk associated with granting large loans to people with low credit scores. While I agree that homeownership creates a pathway to wealth, this is not the way to do it. This is essentially Communism by another name. “Everyone else deserves what you’ve worked hard for.”

Finally, the move from equality to equity. It doesn’t sound much different, does it? It’s only a change of two letters. It’s a gargantuan difference, though. I’m all for equality. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had it right. The person best suited for the job should get the job, whatever their background. Equity, however, means that the same outcome is desired across the board, so each person should be given whatever is necessary to empower them to achieve that result. I’m an out-of-shape white dude that’s over 40 years old. If I want to play in the NBA, equity says I should be given whatever it takes to ensure my success in that league. In games, there should be trampolines only I can use. Performance-enhancing drugs, officiating that goes in my favor, special rules…all should be on the table if we want equity.

To bring this to a close, it seems to me that all these viewpoints, with as little logical sense as they make, actually make quite a bit of political sense in one respect. If your goal is to tear down the existing system, these things will help you get there.

Now everybody knows that a nation of more than 330 million people can’t just burn down its government and let chaos reign. If you’re trying to topple the government that’s already there, you surely intend to replace it with something. And that, my friends, is the problem. In societies overrun with discontent and anger at those perceived to be hoarding resources, Communism has a very real chance at taking hold. Communism is second-to-none when it comes to political systems that cause large amounts of human suffering.

Whatever its faults, Capitalism rewards those that work hard. If there’s an inequality in the system (which, I will concede, there often is), the solution is to create more opportunities (as opposed to handouts) for those getting the short end of the stick, not punishing those flourishing.

If you’re roughly 45 years old or more, you remember the fall of the Berlin Wall and the crumbling of Soviet Communism. You remember the harsh realities behind the Iron Curtain. Very little freedom. Very little food. God is abolished and replaced with the State and state-run religion. This is where we’re headed if the present culture of participation trophies and “I’m too stressed to work five days a week” prevails. Do not accept the notion of making the illogical acceptable. Get involved in local politics. Attend school board meetings. There are more of you than you might think, but most of them are thinking someone else will show up at the meetings.

“When bad men combine, the good must associate; else they will fall, one by one, an unpitied sacrifice in a contemptible struggle.” – Edmund Burke

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Quick Hit: Lost Souls Are Waiting on You and I

If you trust Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of your life, congratulations! You are Heaven-bound!

Don’t forget, though, that there’s a lot more for us to do. There are a whole bunch of people that are not blessed the same way we are. While I’m thrilled that we’ll get a chance to chat in Heaven even if we never meet in this life, now’s not the time to take our feet off the gas pedals. This lifetime is the only opportunity we get to make an eternal difference in someone else’s life.

The obvious question is “well what am I supposed to do?” The short answer is that I don’t know the specifics for your life, but in general terms: seek God’s will for your life. Believe me, He’ll call you to serve somehow if you’re actively seeking. For some it’s being Jesus’ hands and feet by volunteering in a soup kitchen or somewhere you’re desperately needed. For others it’s evangelism either right here at home or somewhere far away.

It’s easy to see how those things serve the Lord, but what if you feel you’re not good at anything like that? Well then do the thing you’re good at, and do it to the glory of God. If you’re good at baking pies, bake pies. If you’re amazing at cutting grass, cut grass. Know engines like the back of your hand? Keep working on ‘em. Even if you don’t see how it serves God, be faithful in the little things and trust Him. Over time your role in the grand scheme will become clearer.

The Body of Christ is like a giant puzzle, with each Believer contributing a piece to the overall picture. None of us know what the picture’s supposed to look like when it’s finished, but you don’t add much to the picture by not pursuing your calling. We’re ministry partners that are still waiting to learn how our individual ministries tie together. If and when we get a chance to catch up in Heaven, let’s make that topic a must-discuss point.

For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. -Romans 12:4-5

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When the Wind Blows, is it Good or bad?

I’d guess that I was probably 8 or 9 years old when I got my first kite. It was an orange diamond-shaped kite that had a blue dinosaur on it. I didn’t really know how to use it, but I had seen kites in cartoons and seen something about Benjamin Franklin flying one in a thunderstorm or something, so I knew what kites were supposed to do. I just didn’t know how to launch one.

There was another kid in the neighborhood, I’ll call him Billy. He was a little older than me, so he had a little better idea of what needed to happen. One breezy day we went to a nearby area that didn’t have many trees, and he was able to get the kite aloft.

Once it was up in the air he kept letting out more and more string, and the kite went higher and higher. It caught more wind, and its tails fluttered in the breeze. Every now and then it would start to dive, but giving a tug on the string helped turn it back skyward.

Eventually it got so high I wondered how much higher it could possibly go. The string that came with the kite was on a roll, like a smaller, sturdier version of the cardboard at the center of a roll of toilet paper. It turns out Billy let out almost all the string; with so little left, it came unraveled and the last of it slipped off the roll. My kite blew away.

I figured that was the end of that. I was pretty bummed that my kite was gone. Billy said he was going to go look for it, but I wasn’t real hopeful. After seeing the way that thing had danced around the sky, it seemed the wind may as well have carried it to the next state. Sure enough though, he tracked it down, wound up all the string, and brought it back to me.

Kites, as it turns out, soar when they’re securely tethered to the ground and fighting against the wind. A kite’s shape is designed to lift it higher when it meets resistance. Once that anchor is lost or there’s suddenly a lot of slack in the line, it has no way to resist the wind and loses its ability to create lift, then falls lifelessly to the ground.

To all you Christ-followers out there: you live in a dangerous time. The free ride is over. America was founded as a nation that embraced Christianity, but those days are gone. People that dislike Christianity are more proficient at attacking it than Christians are at defending it. Although Christianity might represent the biggest slice of the nation’s remaining religious demographic, that slice’s voice is drowned out by culture, influencers, and other messages that run counter to it. To be a Christian and take a stand for the principles Christ taught, you have to, without doubt, stand against the wind.

You can choose to keep a low profile if you want. Keeping with the kite metaphor you can stay low, not letting a lot of string out and thus not getting high enough to really let a lot of people see you taking a stand. If you start taking too much heat you can introduce some slack, going with the flow and falling back to a lower profile where you blend in better and get seen by fewer attackers.

Or you can realize the full potential of the way you were designed: to rise higher when the wind blows against you. There will be ups and downs, no doubt, and the tension on the string will sometimes seem like it can’t possibly get any worse, but I’d urge you not to be the one to prevent yourself from soaring. Instead of self-limiting, let the one holding the string be the one to determine how high you’re allowed to go. He knows what’s coming, what He’ll equip you to handle, and what the wind’s going to do. Why not see how high He’ll let you go?

God, I know some of the Bible stories of how You used men and women of faith. That was so long ago and seems like it’s not how You work anymore. Help me remember You’re the God who doesn’t change, and that You still reward great faith. Help me stand for You and not be afraid, no matter what the wind is doing. In Your name I ask, Amen.

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Quick Hit: It’s Time To Unlock Your Potential

You are a mighty spiritual warrior in training.

Did you know that? A lot of people seem to think that Christians are supposed to be pushovers or doormats. That’s categorically false. We’re supposed to stand apart from the culture, and that’s something that often takes great courage and fortitude.

You probably don’t often feel like a mighty warrior, though. Of course there are giants of the faith, and you might wonder how you can even be mentioned in the same breath as some of them.

Listen to me. If you’re not yet at the end of your Christian walk, God can still do plenty in and through you. He wants you for who you are, not who you ought to be. Yet He looks at you and sees not who you are now, but what you can become.

The world is dark and getting darker. Let the light of Christ shine in your life, whatever that looks like in your circumstances. We need you. Other Christians need you. Unbelievers need you. You may have some thoughts right now about how you can do that in your own life. God equipped you with certain talents or interests, and He did that for a reason. Follow through, and let God use you.

There’s a song that was very popular a few years back. It was about a guy that saw some of the hurt and injustice of the world, and he cried out “God, why don’t you do something?”

God said “I did. I created you.”

It might be true that you’re not a giant of the faith…yet. But it doesn’t take a giant to start with doing some of the little things that need to get done.

Matthew West “Do Something” music video.

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When Something Takes the hit for you

Easter is a little more than a week away. To help prepare for the season, I’d like to revisit a story I’ve told before, but it’s been a few years, so I can probably get away with it.

In the years after college I took up skydiving. It was lots of fun and a whole new type of experience. When you’re early in your skydiving career, there’s a lot of stress, thought, and mental preparation that goes into each freefall jump. It’s important to stay mentally calm so your body stays physically relaxed. If you tense up, it makes it difficult to control yourself in the airstream, and your body doesn’t maneuver the way you want it to.

One day I did a jump, and I don’t remember what the objectives were, but the freefall portion of the jump didn’t go well. Nobody got hurt or anything, but I was unable to achieve the goals I’d set for myself. For whatever reason, I had either raised my own expectations too high or I tensed up and started losing control of my ability to maneuver how I wanted to. When it came time, I opened my parachute and descended under canopy, fuming the whole time I floated to the ground.

When I finally touched down safely, I let that anger out. Draped in thousands of dollars worth of gear that had repeatedly saved my life, I couldn’t go too crazy on the chute or the rig, so I ripped off my helmet, yelling as I slammed it on the ground, then kicked it in frustration. Man, I was just seething with rage over something that I don’t even recall today.

Around Easter time, we sometimes hear the word “propitiation” in church. It’s usually referring to the idea that since God and sin are incompatible, and His holy wrath toward sin must be satisfied before we experience lasting peace, there has to be some kind of reckoning.

In my case, on that skydive, I took out my wrath on that poor, innocent helmet. After expending my rage, I stood there with gritted teeth, red face, and heaving shoulders. As I began getting myself under control, the wrath was spent, and the helmet had served as the object that took the punishment.

In God’s case, He had a choice. He could either demand ongoing sacrifices of unblemished animals from His followers, or He could implement a permanent solution. Back in Bible times, sacrifices were the means of satisfying God’s wrath against our sin…those sacrifices took our punishment on our behalf. Thankfully for us, He opted to go the second route. He sent Jesus Christ, His only son, to live among us. Living a spotless life without sin (the equivalent of an unblemished sacrificial animal), Christ died on our behalf, an innocent man dying the death of a criminal. Then, in what has to be one of the most indescribable emotions in the whole Bible, God turned His back on His own son, who then experienced our due punishment in our place.

Christ died on a Friday. That Sunday, He rose from the dead in victory, having satisfied God’s wrath and forever changing our relationship with God for the better. This is propitiation. Christ took our punishment for us so we could be spared from it.

So the next time you feel the urge to either punch a wall, punt the stupid playground ball that kid’s been bouncing, or throw your golf clubs into the water hazard, just imagine how much greater God’s wrath is, and be thankful that He’s enacted a plan that offers you a way to exempt yourself from it.

Dear Lord, thank you from the bottom of my heart for dying on the cross on my behalf. This Easter season, please help me remember the importance of what You’ve done not just for me, but for everyone, whether they accept Your gift or now. Please help me to live the way You want me to live, and share this good news with those around me. I pray in Your name, Amen.

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I’m Gonna be Honest…That’s not a Surprise

You want to talk about a boring job?

I once went on a business trip to the Middle Eastern nation of Bahrain. It’s an island in the Persian Gulf that’s its own country, very near Saudi Arabia. I was there for less than a week, I think during the month of June.

One night as I was in my hotel room, I turned on the TV, looking for something I could understand. While I flipped through channels I came across the weather forecast. I didn’t catch what they were saying, but when they threw the 4-day outlook up on the screen, it made me wonder why they even had the weather as a segment on the news. The highs for the whole forecasted period only varied by a degree or two. I mean, what do you think the weather forecast in a Middle Eastern desert area in summer looks like? It was hot at night, and then…spoiler alert…sunny and really hot during the day.

Sorry for my low-quality image. Overnight lows don’t go below 90 degrees. Daytime highs over 115 degrees.

Some things you kinda don’t really need to be filled in on, but it’s nice to hear anyway.

We’re living in a longer-range scenario where that applies, too. For those of you that are Christ followers, let me provide just a little bit of that reassurance to you.

Our world is a fallen place. It’s dark, it’s evil, and it will get worse before it gets better. Those that follow Christ will be laughed at, scorned, and persecuted. Some will be killed, and some Christian practices will eventually be outlawed. Spoiler alert: despite all that, in the end God wins.

We know where we are now, and we know how things end. The thing we don’t know is what happens in between now and then. Our job in the interim is to be faithful to what we’ve been called to do. Go and make disciples of all nations. Spread the gospel and encourage other believers. Pray for revival. There are many unsaved souls out there. By living out your calling, you’ll play a part in rescuing some of them.

Lord, thank you for being in control of everything and for the blessing of salvation. Help us all to live for You and be a blessing to the world by helping to share You with others. Amen.

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American Leadership During the Years 2025 to 2029

This is a little bit of a continuation from last week’s post, where we took a look at some presidential candidates for the next election cycle. This time I’m not talking about presidential candidates, but instead will be taking a look at the things the president will need to spend his or her attention and political capital on.

We’re looking at the presidential term of January 2025 to January 2029. As the field of presidential candidates on both sides of the aisle takes shape, consider how these candidates will deal with the following issues. You never know what the most pressing issues will be, but here are some likely scenarios.

On the domestic front:

During that time period our economy will probably still be looking to really hit its stride and get inflation down to pre-pandemic levels. I can’t blame the Fed for raising interest rates, but as we’ve been seeing with a few high-profile bank stories recently, stuff is starting to break. More banks will likely follow. Prior to the bank failures, the Fed recognized that it needed to push rates higher than anticipated to get inflation under control. Now their job gets more complicated because they need to figure out a way to push rates higher without causing large amounts of collateral damage to the economy. That means they move slower, inflation sticks around longer, and it’s generally more painful for the average Jane and Joe.

Politically, we are still a highly polarized nation. There’s supposed to be a healthy amount of political debate, but when you have people getting harmed because of their political views, something has gone horribly wrong. We need someone that can create a degree of unity and foster the idea that it’s okay to agree to disagree and that political opposition is not something that needs to be silenced.

It will get harder and harder to ignore the growing Social Security shortfall. When you’re driving 70 mph on the highway and you see all lanes of traffic stopped up ahead, you can either start slowing down right away and have a gentle adjustment, or you can wait a little longer and then slam on the brakes to avoid catastrophe. The Social Security issue is similar. Something needs to be done. We can either start suggesting uncomfortable things now (shallow benefit cuts, small tax increases, or some combination thereof) or ignore them a bit longer for the sake of winning an election and then be compelled to take drastic action when the situation can no longer be ignored.

The education front has become a hot-button issue recently. Formerly, education meant that students gained proficiency in academic subjects. Many educational institutions seem to have decided that teaching kids is too hard, and instead they’ve taken it upon themselves to prioritize non-education topics above academics, seemingly to minimize the influence of parents. What is the appropriate level of influence parents should have in deciding the curriculum their children are taught? What level of involvement should the school have in steering children toward gender reassignment (and to what degree should the school intentionally keep a student’s parent(s) in the dark about the steps it’s taking to alter the student’s natural body? The education issue was a prominent one in Virginia’s election of Governor Youngkin in 2021.

While domestic politics are what usually help voters decide which candidate gets their vote, the next election will have very important ramifications as we look beyond our country. On the international front:

Hopefully by 2025 Russia will be out of Ukraine. That may be wishful thinking. By that point we may be further entangled. Russia’s downing of an American drone, followed by U.S. politicians calling for retaliation against Russian fighter aircraft illustrate how quickly this whole thing can spiral and suck us into something major. It’s very difficult to foresee how this will end. The Russian psyche is big on not surrendering, so there’s no easy way to convince Russian leaders to simply turn things around and head back home. As things get further bogged down for Russia and Putin runs low on weapons and troops, waving the white flag is not an option for him, and he’ll turn to whatever he has left in his arsenal to try to get his way. Putin will probably try to spin the capture of some small amount of Ukrainian territory into a major victory, but only if he can’t make any substantial headway in achieving his original goals. He’s avoided the use of Weapons of Mass Destruction thus far, but one has to wonder how many conventional weapons he’s got left. Naturally we tend to think things will get better if Putin were somehow thrown out of power. If that were to happen though, who would step into that power void, and would they be even more ruthless than him? They don’t have to be pure as the driven snow, but can/would the powerful people in Moscow agree to put someone more moderate in charge of the government? That’s difficult to believe.

While Russia is prominent today, China looms large during the ’25 to ‘29 timeframe, and will almost definitely be our largest international challenge. China’s backed itself into a corner. Decades of the disastrous one-child policy have led to where China is today: a population with an age demographic that’s about to see sharp increases in average age. China’s rise has been meteoric, but now it’s in a dangerous sprint. Beijing views it as important to assert (and grab) as much power and prestige as possible before it starts losing strength.

It’s very important for China’s ruling party to capture Taiwan and integrate it into the mainland’s system of government. Taiwan currently enjoys a very democratic system of government where it decides its own destiny. When China’s Communists rose up and overthrew the existing government, the deposed government’s leadership fled to an island off the coast of China, to what we know today as Taiwan. Up until the late 1960s/early 70s, China was a reclusive nation and didn’t engage much in the global arena. Richard Nixon helped coax them out of isolation, but one of the conditions was that we recognize only one Chinese Government (it’s called the “One China” policy). We’ve held to that ever since, but China’s moving closer and closer to simply devouring this island, which no Chinese nation, regardless of the style of government, has ever ruled in the past.

As China advances more and more militarily against the backdrop of an aging demographic, I expect it’s developing into a situation where as soon as its leaders feel that victory is possible, there will be no hesitating, but will move immediately and with full commitment to take over the island of Taiwan. The CIA director has stated openly that Chinese leader Xi Jinping has instructed the Chinese military to be ready by 2027 to conduct a successful invasion of Taiwan. Let’s not mince words: whoever is president during that time will be in charge of trying to deter this action, and when that fails, will likely give orders that cost American lives. This conflict could balloon into strikes on American soil, and could easily escalate very far very fast. When it comes to using nuclear weapons to deter enemies, the American President doesn’t necessarily have to be willing to employ them, he or she just needs to make the other guy believe they are. If they’re not convincing in this role, deterrence fails. We’re all probably going to hear a lot more about nuclear weapons in the coming years.

There are a whole bunch of other things that are going to happen. A new cold war and the alliances that come with it as the world chooses sides, a new space race and trips to the moon, the issue of climate change and how new policies related to it affect our lives. While we’re focused on China and Russia, opportunists in other parts of the world are taking advantage of the world’s diverted attention; what will they do?

That’s just the predictable stuff. We’ll also have earthquakes, solar storms, major power outages, hurricanes, airline accidents, mass casualty events, and on and on and on. There is no politician that will be prepared for it or get it all right. As the field of candidates expands and then begins narrowing, focus not on superficial things, but on how those still in the race will handle the issues laid out in this post. It will probably have a profound effect on different aspects of your life.

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A Preview of the 2024 Presidential Election

Well the midterms are four months behind us, and the players in the next presidential election are starting to emerge. It’s time for a little political update.

Let’s rip off the band aid. It’s possible (though I would say there’s a good chance it won’t happen) that we have a rematch of Biden vs. Trump.

On the Republican side, former President Trump looms large in the field of 2024 candidates. He’s held the office before, his vision for America contrasts sharply with the current administration, and he connects with an amazing number of people that don’t normally vote in elections. On the other hand, he brings along a lot of baggage. It probably would have been better for him to win two terms in a row than to serve one term, sit out one term, then return for a second one. One major thing he has going for him is that an awful lot of people think the country’s headed in the wrong direction, and he’s not afraid to say things and address issues that career politicians shy away from.

Right now the only other major Republican candidate that’s declared candidacy is Nikki Haley. She’s served as Governor of South Carolina and as the American ambassador to the UN under Donald Trump. She’s certainly qualified for the job, and is maybe more of a centrist than Mr. Trump, but so far she hasn’t been able to generate a significant amount of enthusiasm.

Former VP Mike Pence has yet to declare his candidacy. Due to differences in opinion since leaving office, it’s not likely that he and Trump would reunite to be on the same ticket. By most accounts Mike Pence is a good man, but something very large and unforeseen would need to happen in order for him to be elected president. A ticket consisting of Haley and Pence would likely be good at effectively governing once in office, but I could see how the pair would also be considered so boring as to be unelectable.

The biggest Republican challenge for Trump right now (and Trump knows it) is Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. He has not declared his candidacy, but momentum is building for him to do so, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he declared any day now. He’s using his position as governor to notch speaking points for a national run, but he shouldn’t wait much longer to declare. DeSantis has many of the same policy positions as Trump. He tends to be less abrasive, though is still more than willing to push back against those trying to shape the narrative for him. I think the ideal outcome would be to have DeSantis win the nomination, be advised by Trump, and have Haley or Pence run on the ticket with him. (I’ll let you be the judge of how realistic that might be.) This teaming would have a tremendous impact as far as putting the interests of American citizens first.

On the other side of the aisle, the Democrats have a problem. Not only has the widely held notion of Joe Biden being a centrist president been shattered, he’s also proven to not actually be in charge. Centrists that claim blue collar roots don’t try to ban gas stoves. President Biden goes “off script” quite often, much to the chagrin of those working close to him. On multiple occasions, he’s spoken his mind when he was supposed to just stick to the script. Many of those instances have either given insight into what he’s actually thinking or led to damage control sessions that include the phrase “What the President meant to say was…” This leads to the question “if the president’s speaking his mind and you’re walking back his comments, who’s actually making the decisions on his policy positions?”

I’m guessing it won’t be long before we see a minor civil war among the Democrats. While long-serving Dems value loyalty and will close ranks to protect their candidate, there are plenty of others that are looking at reality and seeing it for what it is. Many people know that President Biden will be a weak candidate, but there are two major problems. Number one, how do you prevent a sitting first-term president from running again? Number two, who do you run in his place?

For the first question, believe it or not, honesty just may be the best policy. “You know what? The Presidency is a demanding job. I was hoping that by this age (80+), I’d be able to enjoy retirement and the fruits of my labor. My health is becoming more and more of a concern for my family. I’m going to pass the torch.” This statement assumes the President chooses not to run. If he really and truly wants to be elected for another four years but the Democratic Party wants to clear the way for someone else, it could get ugly. My guess is that it would somehow involve investigations, legal action, or the threat of such things related either to son Hunter or President Biden’s past business dealings. They could all go away if he steps back from the limelight…

As to the second question, one of the obvious choices is VP Kamala Harris. There are major concerns about her track record, though. There has been little progress in anything she’s been placed in charge of (how’s that border crisis coming along?).

It seems like the Administration has also tried to promote the image of Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg as an up-and-comer, but it’s the job of every administration to insulate the president whenever a crisis pops up, and lately that insulation has come at Secretary Buttigieg’s expense. Recent train derailments in Ohio prompted calls for Biden to visit, but after what seemed an excessive amount of time, Buttigieg made the trip and had to face some of the wrath of affected residents in Trump country.

California Governor Gavin Newsom’s name has also been thrown around, though he’s a left-wing extremist and not likely to be competitive on the national stage. If you need someone to buck the tradition of loyalty to the president, this is one guy that would probably be willing to break norms.

Biden looks to perhaps be the best bad option at this point. Aside from them one could consider candidates with an outside shot: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, billionaire Mark Cuban, former presidential candidates Bernie Sanders or Hillary Clinton. Pair one of them with a gimmick act and you could make something out of nothing. What would happen if the election came down to Chuck Schumer and Tom Hanks on the blue side, with Ron DeSantis and Nikki Haley on the red side? Tom Hanks would probably bring in a lot of votes that otherwise wouldn’t be there. Unconventional, yes, but it may be worth looking at if you’re a democratic strategist.

We’re still early enough in the election cycle that anything can happen, but I’m guessing that whoever gets sworn in sometime in January of 2025 will be one of the people mentioned in this post. Let’s check back in a couple of years to see how well this post ages.

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The Good, the Bad, and the Awkward

If you don’t know me, let me just fill you in on a little secret…I’m sort of a weirdo.

(I feel like I can hear a bunch of virtual “Amens!” after that statement.)

A lot of people shy away from socially awkward situations. I can’t honestly say I enjoy them all the time, but I don’t really try my hardest to make them end, either.

Case in point: over the past couple of years people have been spending an unprecedented amount of time at home. I myself didn’t mind, but without anywhere to go, the four walls seemed to close in periodically. I definitely needed to get out and get some sunshine every now and then, even if the only thing I had to do was go for a walk or do something in the yard.

One sunny day a year or two ago I went for a walk, but it was a little chilly. I put on a fleece and a windbreaker, along with a hat that covered my ears. My hands get cold on walks, so I wore a pair of gloves. Sunny days call for sunglasses, so I grabbed a pair of those too.

The neighborhood I usually walk in has a bunch of cul-de-sacs, so I can do a lot of walking without actually being very far away from home. I had walked through this neighborhood many times before, and as I headed toward one cul-de-sac, I noticed a bunch of young kids, probably 5 years old or less, along with a bunch of moms, playing out in a front yard that was decorated with streamers and balloons. As I got closer, I could see that the driveway was also decorated. Someone had used sidewalk chalk to write in big letters “Happy Birthday Charlotte!”

Truth be told, I was very glad to see kids getting together in person and having fun, rather than trying to have some kind of virtual birthday party. But I also got the idea to maybe provoke one of those socially awkward situations.

Very aware of the fact that I was dressed like some thug who was casing the neighborhood, I considered for a moment whether or not I should proceed. That was probably part of the reason I decided to go for it. Slowing down, but not stopping on my trip around the cul-de-sac, I called out “Happy birthday, Charlotte!”

I had no clue which one Charlotte was, so I just kind of waited to see what would happen. There was an odd silence for a few moments. One of the moms, who I thought rolled with it pretty well, then spoke up. “Um, she’s around back, but I’ll tell her.”

I have no idea if that mom passed along my birthday salutation, but if she did, how did that conversation go? “Who said that?” “He didn’t say his name.” “Well, what did he look like?” “Eh, kind of like some guy that’s walking around the neighborhood deciding which houses to rob.”

I don’t remember if I told my wife this story or not, so when she reads this I may have just effectively banned myself from going for solo walks around that neighborhood.

Speaking of awkward situations, we’re commanded to preach the gospel to those that haven’t heard it. We’re supposed to bring Jesus to “all nations,” including our own. That can be a very hard thing to do, especially if you’re overly concerned about the awkwardness that might come along with it! It’s a very important thing to do, though. Eternity hangs in the balance.

One thing to consider is identifying ways to make the conversation easier for the other person. In the example above, I imagine that if my wife, who’s a very outgoing and smiley person, had been with me on that walk when I wished Charlotte a happy birthday, that group of moms would probably have been much more at ease than they were with just me. Consider whether it would be beneficial to address multiple non-Christians rather than just “cornering” one.

Also, if you’re one to stare at someone with an uncomfortably piercing gaze when talking to others about Jesus, well…maybe it’s time to dial it back just a bit. It’s certainly an important topic, but a high-intensity demeanor may not be the right approach. Ultimately you’ll be the best judge of the situation, and trying anything is better than not trying at all. As long as you’re not prompting calls of “stranger danger!” you’ve got the potential to get something going.

Check out this link for eight tips about talking to others about Christ.

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Be Ready; Things Can Change and Change Quickly

Ever been in a situation you thought you were prepared to handle, only to find out that conditions kept changing beyond what you anticipated? In February of 2002 I had the privilege of attending some of the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah with my college roommate.

If you’ve followed my posts for awhile, you’ve heard about this before. As college students, we had to make this trip happen on a budget. No hotel rooms, no airfare. We drove from New York state to Utah and either slept in the car at rest stops or winter camped in a tent in a national forest.

One of the things that’s most difficult to anticipate or describe about this kind of trip is the cumulative effect of constantly being in cold temperatures for a week. We only attended one indoor event (and it had an ice arena, so it wasn’t the warmest). Aside from driving from place to place we didn’t really spend a lot of time either indoors or being warm. A few fast food restaurants, a Walmart once or twice, and various gas stations and rest stops were the only real times we had a roof overhead. Between poor nutrition and having to spend more calories on staying warm, I lost almost 15 pounds on that trip. My nose was cold for an entire week.

Spending so much time in the cold was a major reason why we were so happy that it got sunny and warm on the day we went to watch bobsledding. I think it got up into the 50s, and the sun felt amazing. It was almost too warm to bobsled. They had to put sun shades over parts of the track to keep the ice from melting.

The previous day we had worn some of our warmest gear when we went to watch Giant Slalom. Walking up a mountain in hot clothing on a mild winter day led to some sweaty times. We weren’t going to make that mistake again, and we opted for lighter clothing that day. Instead of our thermal underwear, big jackets, and wool hats, we went with long-sleeve tee shirts, windbreakers, and baseball hats. I remember there was some dude there with no shirt, something painted on his chest, and he was swinging some nation’s flag around. I felt nice and warm, but not that warm.

Well bobsledding was cool to watch, but the novelty sort of wore off after awhile. The event was two days long, and we had tickets for day one. It was neat to see the sleds whip past on a vertical wall going 70 mph, and of course we kept an eye out for the Jamaican bobsled team (unfortunately they only had competitors in the two-man bobsled races that year). There were more wrecks than they show on TV, too. Overall, though, the stuff we saw wasn’t super exciting. It wasn’t like we were seeing any medal-deciding runs. I think a lot of other people felt the same way because the crowds started thinning out as the day went on.

We really noticed a change when the sun went down. We started getting a bit more chilled, and we had to move around more or stamp our feet to stay warm. Hands went in pockets and stayed there. Arms stayed glued to our sides. One guy standing near us, on his way out, said “here, I think you need these more than I do,” and handed my roommate some 6-hour handwarmers he had been using.

The bible is the kind of book that has stuff for both beginners and expert users. Some readers on the newer side of the spectrum will decide that they’ve read it enough to know what they need to know. Although I’ll concede that they can easily read enough to know the most important things, I’d argue that they’re simply not in a position to accurately predict what passages of scripture they’ll need to be familiar with. The only way to be better prepared for what God throws at you in this life is to keep reading that bible and keep engaging with Him in prayer. Finished reading one of the books of the bible? There are plenty more. Finally got all the way through the Bible? Congratulations, that’s awesome! Do you feel like you understand it all, or are there parts you need to have another look at? (If you understand it all, there are some things in there I don’t totally understand; maybe you can explain them to me.)

Another way to look at the illustration is that while you may feel prepared and equipped for the phase of life you’re currently in, there’s always change coming. Keep that bible handy and keep reading it. What about if you think it’s a stretch to say you’re prepared and equipped for the phase of life you’re in? All the more reason to study and prepare.

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; -2 Timothy 3:16

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What Absurd Things Might You be Called Upon To Do for the Gospel?

Have a unique talent or ability? God can use it for His glory.

When I was in high school I got involved in rappelling, and that interest further developed in college. I was fortunate enough to be able to take college coursework that provided me with instruction on safely using the equipment used in descending down cliff faces. It was a lot of fun; I started doing some outside-the-box stuff with it, and I’ve written about some of those adventures elsewhere in this blog. While I was in college friends and I rappelled off cliffs, out dorm windows, set up ziplines, and made promotional videos. Some of you may remember the post I made a few months back about rappelling down a cliff in a kayak.

After college, I was no longer surrounded by the same kind of people that “encouraged the crazy.” I moved back in with Mom and Dad for awhile and worked construction for a bit. During this time I helped out with our church’s youth group.

Every Presidents Day weekend, our high school youth group took part in “Winter Weekend” at a nearby Christian conference center. All the youth groups from our denomination’s district were invited to take part, and it was generally one of the high points of the year for the high schoolers.

Killing a few hours between daylight filming and nighttime filming. Some of the grease paint rubbed off when I blew my nose.

This particular year, the organizers asked Allen, the leader of our youth group, to film a video about some of the rules that would be in effect during that weekend. It was supposed to cover things like curfew/lights out times, not riding in personal vehicles, etc. To make it more fun to watch, Allen decided to add an entertaining twist. He recruited a couple of guys to be the rule-breakers in the video, and he asked me to more or less be the “bogeyman” that always caught them. I dressed in camo and grease paint for the video, and popped out of ridiculous places to catch the guys doing bad things. Then on opening night after the rules video finished playing, the plan was for the two guys to walk out live on stage, looking like they were going to do something shady. My role at that point would be to rappel down from the ceiling, gently touch down behind the two guys without them noticing, tap them on the shoulders, and then chase them out of the room. Honestly it sounded like a lot of fun, so I agreed to do it.

I had some camo gear from the Salvation Army store, and I had some leftover camo paint from something I did in college. We shot the video one cold February day and Allen spliced it together the way he wanted.

On the first night of the weekend, before they let any of the high schoolers into the auditorium, I dressed and geared up, and some people moved a scissor lift into place for me. While people were putting the finishing touches on the stage decorations, I rode the lift up into the rafters above the stage, set up the anchors and rope I’d need, and climbed off the lift onto a metal beam. They brought the lift back down, rolled it backstage, and then opened the doors for the first session of the weekend. I probably sat up in the rafters for 20-30 minutes, waiting for my next part. While I waited I painted my face up in camo, checked and re-checked my equipment, and tried to avoid having the lower half of my body go numb from sitting on a thin cold metal beam.

Once the session started, they welcomed everybody, then went over some of the things you have to cover right at the beginning. Then it was time for the rules video. It had a pretty positive reaction, and I could hear laughter from the crowd during different parts of it. As it drew to a close I slid off the beam and transferred my weight into my harness. Once I was steady I swung upside-down.

The two guys walked out onto the stage, almost right below me. The crowd started going nuts for them (everybody either missed the point of the video or they thought the two guys were cute, I dunno). I waited just a few beats for the crowd to show their enthusiasm and then started sliding down head-first. The rope I used didn’t hang down to the stage; I wore a backpack that held the rope, and I had pre-measured it so that it was just enough to safely get to the ground, but then the tail end of it was easy to pull right through the rest of the gear so I could chase the guys without having to stop.

It was a little strange. As I came into the audience’s view, the cheers of the crowd went quiet while they tried to understand what they were seeing. I came down right in front of the screen the video had been playing on, so they were probably trying to figure out if I was a real person or if they were watching something that was being projected.

I descended low enough to reach the ground, flipped rightside up, and pulled the rest of the rope through my gear so I was disconnected from it. I stepped up right behind the two and tapped them each on the shoulder. They looked at me, gave each other a funny look, and then sprinted off the stage and up the main aisle of the auditorium with me right behind them. The crowd burst into cheers again.

The photographer was a little late on this one, but it’s the best photo I’ve got. You can see my feet criss-crossed on the rope against the background of the screen. The two “bad guys” are just to the left of the “One Way” sign.

Now…did this stunt lead anyone to Christ? I can’t imagine it did. Sliding down a rope upside down just doesn’t have that kind of effect on people. The important thing to remember, though, is that Christianity is a team sport. The speaker that weekend, the various youth leaders, and the counselors leading small group discussions that weekend all did the heavy lifting in that area. All I did was help break the ice and bring a smile to the face of people who were still deciding whether or not they had made a mistake in coming to this retreat.

One of the neat things about Christianity being a team sport is that even though we don’t actually huddle together to go over the strategy, God knows exactly what His players’ strengths are, when to use them, and how to motivate them. Believers that are complete strangers can unknowingly help each other out if God sets it up that way. When He needs someone to move on His behalf, He starts working on some people three years ahead of time, but only 10 seconds ahead of time for others. In the end, His timing is perfect…you just need to say “I’m in.”

So I urge you: be open to using your unique talents. Even if they don’t directly lead to salvation for someone, you can’t possibly know how your part factors into the furthering of God’s kingdom until after you’ve done it.

The human body has many parts, but the many parts make up one whole body. So it is with the body of Christ. -1 Corinthians 12:12

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Lions Don’t Lose Sleep Over the Opinions of Sheep

Let’s go back in time 30 years. Imagine you’re an opponent of Christianity. You want to dethrone Judeo-Christian values in a country that was founded on them. How do you go about doing that?

The simple answer is that you have to introduce enough chaos into the system that it causes confusion on a wide scale. It’s a slow, subtle thing, but it’s one that doesn’t stop. Want to see a few examples of what I mean? If you went into the same church both 30 years ago and on a Sunday morning in 2023, and asked the following questions, which era do you think would have a more resounding response?

“Does God say homosexuality is wrong?”

“How many genders are there?”

“What’s more important, equality (having the same opportunities for all) or equity (being given credit for the same results as others, regardless of level of performance you put in)?”

My friends, I hate to break it to you, but those opponents are well on their way to dethroning Judeo-Christian values, merely by adding little qualifiers so that what used to be “truth” is now “my truth” or “your truth.” There aren’t any versions of truth, there’s only the truth!

Let’s put this another way. If you’re an opponent of Christianity, you want to silence any voice that advocates for Christian beliefs. The goal is to make Christian voices irrelevant and easy to stifle. Why? Because those voices preach something the world doesn’t want to hear. They become so enraged at the concept of a power that is higher than them, who has the authority and intent to judge them, that they can’t tolerate anything that represents those beliefs. “Tolerance” is only valid if it doesn’t oppose certain viewpoints.  

Given enough time, Christian/religious beliefs will be outlawed. You may think I’m exaggerating…that the likelihood of legislating against religious beliefs in a nation founded on religious freedom is laughable. Well, did you ever think schools and sporting organizations would support the decision to allow someone with a male body to compete in female sports and act like it’s legitimate?  

The progress of this erosive trend is comprehensive enough that in today’s society, people seem to think they have a right to treat unsupported statements as fact, and compel others to follow suit. Take for example a biological male that insists his gender be recognized as a female (or anything other than a male, for that matter). He, without proof, simply tells others he believes he’s not a man. He legally changes his name to a female name. Fine; that is the person’s new legal name, and he has the right to be referred to as such. But if he insists on being referred to as a she/her, that is an overreach because it now infringes on my viewpoint, and my viewpoint also carries weight and has value. This person can choose to live however he wants. He can pretend to be a woman, but he can’t compel anyone else to pretend he’s a woman. You have two diametrically opposed viewpoints that cannot coexist; why is the logically/biologically/medically unsupported viewpoint given priority over the fact-based one? Guess what? It’s only given priority if you yield your viewpoint and give credence to the false one. Push back against the erosion of truth.

(Sidebar: it’s important to note that above all, the most important thing you or I can do is share the love of Christ with them. Therefore I feel it’s prudent to also specify that pushing back for the sake of picking a fight isn’t what I’m advocating. You still want to maintain enough of a relationship with nonbelievers that you can share the Gospel with them. As a “meet in the middle” approach, refer to your colleague/acquaintance by their legal name because that’s what it legally is, but do not feel compelled to use pronouns you know to be untrue. This is sure to make for some contorted sentences, but you also have the right to live out your viewpoint. You may need to get used to saying things like “Michelle said that Michelle wants to join us for lunch.” I’m not in favor of turning “they” into a gender-avoiding pronoun, because “they” was already being used for something else and this evolution of language isn’t something I’d support. I’m open to the addition of a few new pronouns for exactly this purpose.)

Think I’m being a little over the top? This evolution of language and viewpoints tends to be a one-way flow, and by that I mean it tends to move away from the way God would want it to, and rarely back toward it. Can you imagine if somehow Christians built enough momentum to stop referring to the December 25th holiday as “Christmas” and instead called it “Baby Jesus Day?” People would lose their minds! There’d be all kinds of arguments about the separation of church and state, about how people have the right to “freedom from religion,” and about how unfair it is that religious viewpoints are being forced down the throats of Americans.

Yet, that’s how I view the growth of the power of the State. Devotion to the State is, in my viewpoint, its own religion. I think “State-ism” will be an important prerequisite to the outlawing of Christianity or otherwise hindering of churches (stripping them of their tax-exempt status, for example). That’s one of the main reasons I’m usually against candidates that embrace the growth of the role of government in our lives.

I can’t be alone in this perspective. I know others of you are out there. An AP-NORC survey from June of 2022 said 85% of Americans think the country’s headed in the wrong direction. Eighty five percent! If you’re reading this, you live in an era where you can affect change. You’re not alone. Stand up and say something.

Not confrontational? Well, in the future you may find yourself wishing you had spoken up a bit more. But if that’s something that’s really hard for you, try using this one: “I’m a pretty religious person, and that viewpoint goes against what God says He wants. I might not be the most humble guy/gal, but I’m not arrogant enough to think that I know better than God does.”

Stand up for truth. Proclaim it, because your proclamations and the simple fact that you take a stand will slow this erosion of truth.

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Sometimes A Calculated Risk Pays Off in Spades

I had to do one of my first research reports in 5th grade. I don’t think I’ve spent a whole lot of time checking into the state of Indiana before or since.

I wrote up a report on the state’s population size, its different regions, its climate, likely some stuff on its economy, and probably a few other things. My handwriting was nice and neat (for a change), and I assembled my papers and supporting graphics into one of those folders with the little brass things you stick through the holes in the paper to keep it secure in the folder.

On the day we were supposed to turn it in, I was pretty happy with my well-researched work of academic prowess. I had placed it carefully in my Trapper Keeper and brought it to class without even bending the edges.

As I looked around the class, I was horrified to realize that I had done nothing at all for the cover! While some kids had color photos, printouts, or elaborate drawings on the front of their state reports, all I had was a plain blue folder.

In a panic, I racked my brain about what to do. There was no possible way to do anything substantial before turning it in. That kid over there had cut out pictures of famous landmarks from their state and used a glue stick to fix them on the cover. Kids were already starting to hand their reports in!

The best I could do was to haphazardly draw a picture freehand. I whipped the report open to a picture of the state’s shape and committed the proportions and south border to memory, then started drawing on the front. The drawing was a little off center, but I topped it off with a star roughly where the capital city was. Then I threw the state name in big letters under it and put my name under that. The cover design wasn’t very good, but it was the best I could do in such a short time. I knew I’d get no points at all for the cover if I didn’t do anything, so what did I have to lose?

I don’t remember how I did on the report, but I remember that I got three out of 10 points for the cover portion. Not my best work, but three was better than zero.

If you’re not really ready to jump into this “Jesus thing” with both feet, ask yourself: “what do I have to lose?” Most people are tentative about having to give up some part of their lifestyle or quit something they’ve grown to like. This isn’t like a gym membership where you feel you have to get in shape before you walk through the doors for the first time. Come as you are. Let’s say you grow deeply committed and change your whole lifestyle and then it turns out there’s nothing waiting for us after death. In that case you won’t even possess a consciousness to realize what you’ve given up. If, on the other hand, Christ actually is who He says He is, you will have gained immeasurably more than what you had before. Sounds like very little risk for an immense payoff.

What do you have to lose?

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It’s Right There, Hiding in Plain Sight

When I was a young teenager, members of our youth group took a two-hour trip to go visit a family of friends that had moved away from our church.

We did lots of stuff while reconnecting. We hung out at their house, we went to a local mall, and we ran all over the church grounds playing different games. As energetic young teenagers, we needed an outlet for some of our energy.

It must have been a cold-weather trip, because the sun went down pretty early. One of the games we played was a round of capture the flag. We could go anywhere on the church grounds, as long as it wasn’t inside a building. The playing area included a paved parking lot, the main church building, and a couple of out buildings on the property, along with all the green space in between. We set up the boundaries and used two plain white knee-length socks as flags.

Normally the way these games work is that the playing field is divided into two zones, one for each team. Each team hides the flag somewhere in their zone, and you have to venture into the opposing team’s zone to search for the flag. If an opponent tags you while you’re in their zone, you go to jail in a small section within their zone. You can be set free if someone else from your team makes it to the jail to tags you. You win the game if you find the opposing team’s flag and carry it back to your zone without being tagged. Both teams are playing offense and defense at the same time.

On that particular evening visibility was bad. Since it was dark, starting to get foggy, and there was lousy weather moving in, we split into two easily discernible teams: boys vs. girls. I don’t remember numbers, but there were a lot more girls than there were boys. Between an odd layout of the church grounds and not having enough guys on our team to simultaneously do a good job defending and go looking for the opposing team’s flag, we decided that in order to have any chance of winning, we’d have to come up with an amazing spot to hide our flag so we didn’t have to dedicate anybody to protecting it. As it turns out, we came up with what I believe to be a pretty risky and bold idea for a bunch of middle-schoolers.

When both teams were ready, we started the game. It moved slowly for a long time. Even if our team tagged opponents and brought them to our jail, we didn’t have enough guys to really protect the jail and still play in other areas, so it wasn’t too hard for the other team to set their jailed teammates free.

I remember our team’s strategy was so incoherent and we were spread so thin that at one point in the game I was running from one part of our zone to another and I stumbled across a member of the other team that nobody even realized had made it into our zone. She was picking through the bushes, looking for our flag. They had figured out that if they were patient enough, they could wander in and out of our zone and all they had to do was move quietly and we probably wouldn’t even know they were there.

This went on for probably 45 minutes. I don’t think any of our guys were able to find their flag, and the other team was getting frustrated because they felt they had searched everywhere in our zone and still couldn’t find our flag. All of us were cold and wet, and our team was about to get accused of cheating, so we collectively decided to call it a draw.

Understandably, the other team wanted to see with their own eyes where our flag had been hidden. We brought them over to the area, and some from the opposing team were shocked to learn they had run past it multiple times during the game and hadn’t even considered that it could be so near. We had placed our flag, an ordinary white sock, lying in plain sight on one of the white lines outlining parking spaces in the church’s parking lot.

Humans are born with the idea that there’s something beyond this life…that there’s more to this existence than what we can see. God’s the one that put that feeling there…He built it into us. People can’t look up at the stars or at the intricacy of the human body and not start asking big questions.

The devil, knowing he cannot stop this instinctive wondering, has concocted and fostered numerous counterfeit religious ideas and worldviews with which to distract humanity. The objective truth seeker has many options aside from Christianity they must examine, and the enemy’s hope is that the seeker will tire of the search and declare something besides the following of Christ as “close enough,” that the seeker will conclude that each worldview is as meaningless as every other one, or get them established and entrenched in an inaccurate worldview like works-based salvation. Yet all that time, the answer is not hiding. It’s sitting right there in plain sight, waiting for the seeker to look closer at it.

If you’re seeking truth, take a look at Jesus Christ and what the Bible (only the Old and New Testaments…no “mandatory” additional books) has to say about Him. Humanity was initially created perfect and had fellowship with God, but then made mistakes and became imperfect, thereby falling out of that fellowship. Jesus Christ, God incarnate, lived a perfect (sinless) life, and extends to us the offer of the only bridge back to that sweet fellowship with the Lord.

It’s that simple. You don’t have to perform rituals. You don’t have to give a certain amount of money to the church or perform a certain number of hours of community service. All you have to do is embrace Jesus Christ as your Savior, acknowledging Him as your only means of escaping the judgment of your imperfections. As you walk that new path, you’ll desire to change your character to become more like His, and as a result of that, you’ll want to perform good works.

It’s right there, hiding in plain sight. I implore you, take a closer look. You might just find the thing that you’ve been looking for all along: the answer to your deep restlessness.

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When the Routine is a Painful One

Back in college there were a few of us among our larger group of friends that would hit the weight room on a regular basis. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday around 6:30 pm, Tyrone, Gabe, and I would meet up and head over to the gym.

It was a good routine for us; most of the time all three of us kept the appointment, but of course there would be times when one of us had to catch up on school work, make up some time on a project, or pull some extra hours at work, so the trio would be down a man. That’s when having a group of three paid off, there would still be two guys that could meet up and get a workout done.

Consistency was the key to results. Getting into a routine was important, and after a few weeks of regular workouts, the body came to embrace the physical stress. It was also a good mental discipline for all of us. There were definitely times when I didn’t feel like going, but knowing there were two other guys that were going to come looking for me to go with them helped get me ready to head out the door.

Now, missing a workout every now and then wasn’t a big deal. You can skip a workout and still jump back in without much of an issue. Christmas break, on the other hand, was something you had to figure out how to deal with. Bench press and bicep curls were some of the mainstay exercises we did in the gym, but neither of those exercises were something you really performed naturally in normal life. If you had a couple of weeks off from school (and the weight room), you probably missed a bunch of workouts unless you did something really creative to stay in shape, and those muscles didn’t take long to begin to atrophy.

Every January when we arrived back on campus, we kind of dreaded the first time we got back into the weight room. We still had muscle mass, certainly, but it had noticeably lost some of its density and tightness. We wanted to get back into our routine, but we were also a bit reluctant to get started up again because after you go for a few weeks without doing unnatural movements like bench press, and then you start doing it again, it becomes very painful.

What we came to realize was that it wasn’t the first workout back that we needed to fear, it was the second.

On the first workout back, we’d try to hype each other up a little bit, probably spout off something about working out harder in the new year, and grit our teeth as we pushed through. Sure, we took a couple of steps backward for that first workout, but the goal was to just get through it.

On the second workout back, we wouldn’t be gritting our teeth, we’d be wincing in pain. The acute stabbing pain in our pectoral muscles was terrible as we asked our bodies to work through the soreness that came from our first workout back. The only way to get to the other side of the pain and back into the reality of exercising without that kind of hurt was to just keep going. “If you can make it through the second workout, you’re home free,” we used to say.

As Christians, we’re entrusted with spiritual gifts. If Christ is your savior, you’re equipped with what you need to perform the work God’s asking you to do. We go through different phases and chapters in our lives and we’re capable of giving more effort in some phases than in others, but at some point during our lives God calls us to do something on behalf of His kingdom.

Perhaps it’s been a few chapters since you were willing to step outside your comfort zone to follow God’s will for your life, and you’ve been trying to get back to fulfilling your calling. Things tend to align against you and work to dissuade you from getting back into that sort of routine.

I can’t sit here and honestly tell you that you only have to get through two sessions of whatever it is that God’s called you to do before it gets less painful, but I would encourage you not to give up, and urge you to stick with it. To His followers, Jesus promised persecution, difficulties, and generally some hard times. He said that we’d need to have perseverance and grit to stick it out. I may not know you personally, but I can tell you that you’ll have challenges in this new year. Stick it out. Hang in there.

I’ll leave you with two Bible verses on perseverance. One is addressed to you as an individual who needs encouragement to follow Christ, while the other is addressed to you as an individual who’s exhorted to fulfill your calling. In both cases, note the need for persistence and perseverance.

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. –James 1:12

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. –Galatians 6:9

May 2023 be a year of persistence and growth for you, and I wish you the best in getting past your discomfort and into the routine God wants you to pursue.

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Why Do We Even Bother Going to Church?

What’s the point of church? Like, why do we have church?

Many people think it’s a place to bring non-believing friends, family members, or acquaintances so they can hear about God. It’s great if you can bring unchurched people to hear about God, but that’s not the main purpose for church services. When you get right down to it, church exists for believers to gather in corporate worship, be bolstered in their faith, grow in their knowledge of the Bible and the Lord, and then scatter for the purpose of executing different types of ministry on behalf of Jesus Christ.

If Christianity is a seven-day per week commitment, church is a pep talk. Church is where you go to hear one of God’s representatives proclaim the truth. It’s where you call sin “sin.” You’re supposed to walk away from church feeling uplifted and hopeful, but also a little convicted and a little uncomfortable. If you’ve got a pretty good handle on living the right kind of life for God, you should walk away from church with an increased sense of urgency for all the people that still need to hear about Christ.

There’s a problem that’s been happening with churches for a couple of thousand years now, though. There are too many churches that don’t want to be the bad guy by calling something “sin.” Some churches don’t want to touch controversial topics. Some don’t want to offend anybody. Others just want to do “feel good” messages.

A couple of seasons back I bought a new garden hose. The ones I had been using kept breaking near the connection where you screw the hose onto the spigot, so I bought one that had a more robust connection. It was great, I’ve still got it, and it’s still very sturdy. The problem is that I left it attached to the spigot too long, and now it won’t unscrew from the spigot.

I don’t know if it’s because minerals in the water precipitated out and solidified on the connection, or if the two different metals somehow corroded together, but the end result is the same: the two different items that were very distinct before have now become, for all intents and purposes, a single entity that’s now a liability. I shut off the water to the spigot, but can’t fully drain the hose for the winter. Assuming it doesn’t sustain any permanent damage through the winter it should still be able to function when things warm back up, but the hose has lost some of its value (I can’t for example, unscrew it and attach it to my house’s other spigot).

The reason the church exists is to act as the “salt and light” for the world. That is, it’s the means by which the earth’s decay will be slowed. The church exists to provide moral clarity for the world and to point the world to Christ. I will fully acknowledge that a greater percentage of people will ignore or choose to turn their backs on Christ than will follow Him, but that should not influence the Church’s purpose. To be effective at preserving the world, the Church must stand in stark contrast to it. Have no doubt about this: one day God will look at the state of the world and how badly its morality has decayed, He’ll look at the Church and how watered down some teachings have become, and He’ll say “that’s enough. I’m pulling all my children out of there.”

At that point, the earth will have no true church left; it will have to start over again with zero believers. There will be plenty of people that have attended church for years but have not actually embraced Christ as Savior. The earth will still have church members who are more concerned with social events and community garage sales than they are with evangelism, and those people will be confused about why so many parishioners are gone while they’ve been left behind.

Since the “salt and light,” or “preservative” has been removed from the situation, it’s at this point that there’s no longer anything holding back the acceleration of society’s moral decay. To everyone that’s left, God will say “you know what? I gave you plenty of chances. Have it your way, do whatever you want, but I’ve pulled all my people out.”

A note of encouragement to those of you that are pastors/priests/teachers. Those that have a leadership or teaching role when it comes to God’s word are going to be held to a higher standard when they stand before the Almighty, so now’s not the time to compromise for the sake of appeasing earthly voices. We’re counting on you to say it like God wants you to say it. Don’t water things down. Don’t talk yourself into thinking that the Bible means something other than what you know it’s saying. If you make a leap like that, you’re going to have to answer for it someday.

I could apply brute force to that hose to try to get it off, but by doing that I’ll run the risk of twisting and breaking the pipe it’s connected to. I can apply heat to try to cause differential swelling to break the hold, but that risks damage to the hose itself. I can try applying lubricants and penetrants, but odds are that I’m going to need to combine that method with another. In any case, there’s going to be some pain and discomfort associated with breaking that “merged” entity back into two different ones. It would’ve been much better if I’d simply removed the hose from time to time to ensure it wasn’t bonding too closely with the spigot. Let’s take the lesson here and make sure the Church’s teachings are distinct from the audience we’re trying to reach and aren’t getting too bonded to them. It will be a lot more painful to break them apart than it will be to just ensure they stay separate.

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Quick Hit: If Santa Followed the Lord

Either voluntarily or by compulsion, one day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

At that point it will be too late to make a decision about who Christ is. But imagine if people could come back from that encounter and warn others who haven’t yet experienced that event. I saw a mug last year that shows how Santa might spread the word:

You’re all naughty. Romans 3:23-24

…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. –Romans 3:23-24

Don’t forget what Christmas is really all about. God came in the flesh to permanently cover all the sins of those who embrace Him as their Savior. This amazing gift is what inspires our own exchange of presents to one another. May this event inspire joy in your heart year round, but especially this time of year!

Merry Christmas!

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Quick Hit: Christmas Carols Can Cause Mental Anguish?

The Christmas season is in full swing. While Christ is, of course, supposed to be front and center, the season has come to be characterized by shopping, hustle and bustle, extra parties, and Christmas carols.

Imagine if, right about now, less than two weeks away from Christmas, you departed for Basic Training?

That’s what I did when I joined. I left for Air Force Basic about 10 days before Christmas. You can imagine how fun the holiday was that year. We didn’t have any decorations or Christmas trees or anything like that, but we were given the opportunity to go to a couple of extra church services.

Part of the services involved singing Christmas carols, which is a nice thought. It turns out that some sadistic weirdo decided to add “I’ll Be Home For Christmas” to the song lineup for those services. For those of you that may not be familiar, the lyrics talk about how wonderful it is to be home for Christmas, and that the people back home can count on the singer(s) being home in time for the celebration. It then abruptly changes direction and decides that, well, it’s looking like it’s not going to be possible to get home in time, so “I’ll be home for Christmas…if only in my dreams.”

What kind of demented sicko adds that to the song lineup to poke at a bunch of miserable, homesick people in the days leading up to Christmas? Somebody who didn’t get enough hugs as a child, that’s who. Parents…hug your kids!

But anyway, to you military folks, you make lots of sacrifices for us all, and we often lose sight of that. We know it’s not always possible for you to be home for holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, or other special occasions. Thanks to all of you for raising your right hand and for doing whatever Uncle Sam asks of you in order to keep us free to celebrate our freedoms. I hope you have a great Christmas wherever you are. You are appreciated!

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250: That’s a big Milestone

Can you imagine being shipwrecked three times? (Well, I guess it was four, but only three had happened by the time this letter was written.) What about experiencing a sentence of 39 lashes…on five different occasions? Or being adrift in the open sea all night, then all the next day?

The apostle Paul did these things, and much more. The book of 2 Corinthians, chapter 11, verses 24-33 contains a list of Paul’s sufferings for the cause of Christ. He put together this list not because he wanted to brag about the things he’d been through, but to connect with an audience he believed needed to hear the point he was making. Constantly in danger from his own people, but also from people of different faiths, Paul survived the threat of robbers, false believers, dangers in both cities and in the wilderness, and endured sleeplessness, hunger and thirst, the cold, and the stress and genuine worry that comes along with being concerned about the well being of churches he’d started.

Paul suffered much for the cause of Christ, and that “resumé” is part of what gives him the ability to make such bold claims to opponents of Christianity. Relentlessly focused on spreading the Gospel, Paul’s experiences gave him the “street cred” to use his ministry to advance the Good News. His list of experiences would make anybody sit up and pay attention to what he had to say.

This is DareGreatlyNow’s 250th blog post. Some of the posts age better than others, but the Christ-focused messages hold up. The different entries are mostly about things I’ve experienced. In a sense, this undertaking is my testimony. I can’t hold a candle to Paul and the type of ministry he had, but I can relay my experiences in the hopes of moving toward the same goal he had: advancing the Kingdom of Christ by sharing what He’s done in my life.

Our focus areas are a little different from one another. Paul started churches and mentored young leaders, addressing corruption in the church and encouraging obedient believers. His work involved becoming closely involved in the daily lives of people he came to know very well. He was a leader that rolled up his sleeves and got close enough to correct people when they were wrong, to call out false teachers, and to protect his figurative sheep from various dangers.

I, on the other hand, work to encourage readers to believe that they can be a part of advancing Christ’s kingdom and are capable of more than what they believe themselves to be. I want Christ followers to not only know, but also live in such a way that in the midst of darkening skies, they should abandon reluctance and embrace the use of the spiritual gifts they’ve been empowered with, becoming exactly who it is they were born to be. I want to help people seize on the idea that they were created for more than what their lives currently are, but they have to realize it’s going to take some discomfort on their part to be able to reach their full potential in living for Christ.

I haven’t lived through shipwrecks, beatings, or getting stoned by an angry mob. I write about adventures from my younger years, parenthood, current events, and Bible passages. I recount failures, close calls, and “what were you thinking?!” scenarios. I’ll probably never meet most of the people who read these entries, but I trust that the Lord will help the posts make their way to the people that need to see them. Very few of the events I relay here were things I intended to pursue as a child, but whether I planned them or not, they’re now part of who I am and they’ve helped shape how I see the world. I’m thankful for (most of) them, and I love that I get to share them while turning parts of my life into object lessons that somehow glorify the Lord.

I don’t have to be as famous as Paul; that’s not the type of service God has called me into. His neck was constantly on the line. I don’t deal with that level of stress. I have more food than I need and I can take a hot shower or sleep in a soft bed every day. All I have to do is pay for a website and dedicate some time to writing. God prompted me to do it, and He hasn’t prompted me to stop yet, so I guess He’s still got plans for the posts that are yet to come.

What’s really exciting is that you’re similarly equipped for serving the Lord. I don’t know what the nature of your calling is, but all Christians are empowered with spiritual gifts and other resources that can be used in serving Christ. I also have no idea how God intends to interweave the service of multiple believers, but it’s exciting to think about. If there’s something big that God intends to do years from now, He’s probably already got things in motion. There are going to be things happening in your life, or in my life, that help set the stage for future events. You and I need God to prepare us for those things because if we walked into those future situations right now, we’d be lacking something we’d otherwise have by taking “the long way.”

It’s quite within the realm of possibility that there are things occurring in someone else’s life over the next few weeks, months, or years, that are teeing up a situation where somebody will be in exactly the right place at exactly the right time to provide you with exactly the thing you need the most, precisely when you need it most (and I have no idea what that would look like). That’s not an accident, and it’s a privilege to be able to recognize when you’re a part of that. If you offer your talents, and others offer their talents, when used by God, it creates more opportunities for a grand story.

Anyway, thank you to all those that have subscribed, encouraged me, or otherwise supported me in my efforts to follow the Lord’s calling for my life. I hope you’re supported in following your calling. Hopefully in Heaven we’ll get some insight into how we’re all connected through this grand story. In the meantime, take joy in honoring the Lord in a way that only you can…it might just be the reason you were put here.

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It Was Gone With the Wind

At a family get-together at my wife’s aunt and uncle’s house, my son ran into a problem.

This particular piece of property has a field that’s lined on two sides with acres of hardwood trees. My son brought an aerial drone to use in the field, but even a gentle breeze was too much for it to overcome and it got carried toward the trees. By the time he sent the command to kill power, it was out of range and it maintained a hover as the wind took it away.

He came and found me and relayed what had happened. Thankfully some of the other kids overheard the predicament and a small army of second cousins headed out into the treeline to search. (Walking behind them, it was one of those “my faith in humanity is restored” moments.)

The search dragged on for awhile though, and we didn’t develop any leads. My wife’s uncle had a number of tree stands set up in the area, so I decided to climb up a little higher for a better view.

Nearing the top of the ladder, I stopped and began having a look around. Was that… “I might see something over there!” I pointed off in a direction and someone took a walk over to check it out. I steered them toward whatever it was, and sure enough, they picked up the missing drone! It had automatically killed the power after losing contact with the remote long enough.

My son was very fortunate to have so many people willing to lend a hand. It was hard to find the drone walking around on the ground, even with so many of us searching. Getting a different vantage point made all the difference.

Now remember that you’ve got an advocate working on your behalf, who not only sees from an elevated vantage point, but from every possible vantage point. He knows what your mind is preoccupied with, He knows what you’re searching for, what He’ll let you find, when He’ll show it to you, and the surprise events that are just around the corner.

In the various crises we face with our short-term memories, it’s sometimes tough to remember that God plays the long game in our lives. The attitudes we take in facing today’s events not only are born out of the previous experiences God’s brought us through, but will also shape our future perspective. In God’s multi-dimensional perspective, He’s both having us arrive at a specific point in our lives and preparing us for some future purpose.

From our position on the ground it’s hard (or impossible) to see, but we’ve got someone in our corner with a way better view, guiding us where He wants us to go. We just need to follow those directions.

The Lord will give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, but your Teacher will no longer hide Himself—with your own eyes you will see Him. And whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: “This is the way. Walk in it.” -Isaiah 30:20-21

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We’re Given Reason To Be Thankful

Since many of us are probably doing something a little outside of our weekly routine this Thursday, I thought I’d post a little early.

There’s a character in the Bible that normally only gets mentioned around Christmas, but it’s probably more appropriate that we stop to think of him around Thanksgiving.

Simeon (Luke 2:25-35) was a devout man. God had provided a special promise to him. The Lord revealed to him that he wouldn’t die until he had seen the promised Messiah. Since God had been largely silent for hundreds of years (in terms of speaking through prophets), this was a huge deal.

Luke 2:27 says that the Spirit led Simeon to the temple on the day Mary and Joseph were required by law to present their newborn son as the law required. It doesn’t say anything about how he recognized that Jesus was the Messiah, but verses 28 and 29 say that he took the child in his arms, praised the Lord, and proclaimed that he could now die in peace.

This is a level of thankfulness that’s difficult to describe, yet relatable for Christians today.

We’re bombarded by bad news and starved for good news. We see the collapse of morality everywhere, and even the apparent rise of immorality. We’re constantly being asked how our God could let these things happen. It’s easy for Jesus-followers to get discouraged.

And then we remember the promises about the restoration to come.

It’s not quite on the same scale as the guy that got to hold baby Jesus and understand the significance of who he was holding, but it gives us hope and reason to be thankful.

This year as you reflect on what to be thankful for, remember to keep God’s promises and the hope that comes with them at the top of your list.

Happy Thanksgiving to you all, and may you be able to celebrate with loved ones this year!

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Papers Please. What is the Reason for Your Visit?

When I was a teenager my extended family organized a reunion in Europe. My U.S. relatives connected with my European relatives and plotted out a multi-week celebration and tour for all of us as the younger generation (myself included) met many cousins, second cousins, and great aunts and uncles for the first time. It was a lot of fun, looking back. Lots of beautiful scenery, lots of fun experiences, and many interesting people.

Aside from the flight across the Atlantic, this trip included a good amount of travel once we were there. The host families weren’t clustered in one town, they were sprinkled throughout different areas, so we did lots of smaller trips from region to region. One day as our group was waiting for a train, one of the members of our party showed us how she had made photocopies of passports for her and her husband. In the event that something happened to their actual passports, the photocopies would help in replacing the passports they’d need to get home.

This was a very good idea, and the U.S. State Department actually recommends doing this. We were all impressed with the idea, until she folded the copies up and tucked them back into the bag right next to her actual passports. That’s when everyone started pointing out that the copies should be stored somewhere else, because if they were kept together, whatever unfortunate circumstance befell the actual passports would also happen to the copies.

We’ll come back to that in a minute. The Bible impresses on us that it’s our job as Christians to be the salt and light for the world (meaning that Christ through us is the force that slows the world’s moral decay). We’re ordered to spread the Gospel with the message of what Christ has done for us. It also points out, however, that some situations are so spiritually dangerous that they must be approached with extreme caution.

The New Testament book of Jude is only a single chapter long, and spends a lot of its time talking about apostates, or those that have somehow defected from true, biblical faith. In fact, it’s the only New Testament book that’s dedicated exclusively to confronting those that warp such faith. Apostates intentionally sowed incorrect doctrine among early followers of Christ. Jude called on the church to fight to maintain correct doctrine, and for believers to contend for their faith.

In this struggle there are people of biblical faith, there are apostates that pervert biblical faith, and there are those that are caught in the middle, either trying to figure out what to believe or not yet completely firm in their decision. It’s this third group that Jude discusses in verses 22 and 23.

Verse 22 is fairly straightforward: And on some have compassion, making a distinction. The people caught in the middle need to hear the truth, certainly, and that’s part of the role of the Christian. This verse is more or less telling us not to abandon people that have been influenced by wrongful teaching. We’re to have compassion on them because it’s still possible to sway them to the truth. There’s a dire warning in the next verse though. Verse 23 says but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh.

This is very strange. Aside from “praise the Lord,” some version of “fear not” is the most common command in the Bible. Why, then, are we urged to do something with fear? It adds a high degree of emphasis for the reader.

Did you ever literally pull something from a fire? Speed is important. The teaching of apostates can be so sticky, so subtle, and so dangerous, that if I could paraphrase Jude, he’d be saying “if you can’t save them without getting yourself sucked in, don’t attempt it. Give it a quick try, but if you’re starting to get burned yourself, run the other way.” These people are to be given the Gospel, just like everyone else, but it’s to be delivered with a great fear of being contaminated by apostates’ lies or misleading worldview. Think back to the passport example. If the actual passports and the copies are kept in very close proximity, whatever danger befalls one will happen to the other. The two versions can be carried by the same person for short periods of time if necessary, but it’s a bad idea to keep them together in the same place for the whole trip. Jude punctuates his point by metaphorically suggesting that even the garment of one so dangerous is to be avoided for fear of being affected by false teaching.

Are you a Christ-follower? If so, part of your duty is to be very familiar with scripture so you can be on guard against false teaching, and can confront it when you encounter it. The teachers who intentionally twist God’s word will be judged harshly, but by that point it will likely be too late to help those that fall victim to these teachers. This is why it’s essential that when you hear some biblical teaching you know to be incorrect, you speak up.

Need some examples? You’ll encounter many people that don’t believe any of the following, but be especially watchful and on guard when you hear people only partially agree with these concepts:

-Jesus Christ is God’s only son, both fully God and fully man. We cannot ever be equal to Him. He is the only way to salvation, an eternity with God, and Heaven.

-The Bible is made up of the Old and New Testaments. It’s not missing anything (there’s no additional component that’s necessary in order to “complete” the set of scripture).

-Beware of people that claim to have insider information or who “know what the Bible really means.” Christ’s sacrifice is a gift to all humanity…it’s to be shared freely, not hoarded.

Lord, with 8 billion people on the planet, there’s a lot of teaching out there. Some of it’s true, some of it sounds true, and some of it’s downright wrong. Thank you for sending the Holy Spirit to be our personal lie detectors when it comes to what You’ve revealed. Help us stay rooted in scripture, amplify our understanding, and give us the boldness and confidence to contend for the faith, in order that You may be glorified. I ask in Your name, Amen.

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Lord of (More Than Just) the Rings

About this time of year, probably about five years ago, we had some family pictures taken. My wife had a friend with a photography business, and we set up a time at a picturesque area and met her there for an extended photo shoot.

The fall foliage was exploding with color, and we really did have a very nice backdrop. It was one of the first cold days of the season, but for the sake of the photos we tried to make it look like we weren’t cold. The kids were wrapped in blankets and coats while we set up shots, then they ditched them when it was time to take the pictures.

When I get cold, my fingers shrink a little as they try to avoid losing a lot of heat from my hands. The only way I really notice it is when my wedding ring starts sliding around on my finger more than normal. I have to check my ring more often and sometimes keep my knuckles bent so I don’t lose it.

We took lots of different shots that day, and as in any photo shoot, some of them didn’t work out. One of the later shots we took involved all of us throwing handfuls of fallen leaves up into the air. We tried it a couple of times to get all of our throws synched and a good effect for the leaves spreading out and falling, but it wasn’t working. By that time we were finished with that, we were all a little chilled and the novelty had worn off for at least one of the kiddos, so we weren’t super sad when it was a wrap.

I’m not sure when I realized it, but before we left, I noticed that I no longer had my wedding ring on. I checked my pants pockets and my jacket pockets, but there was nothing there. I told my wife and the photographer, and the only thing we could think of was that it slid off during the leaf-throwing scene. We went back and started looking around for it in the area where we had tossed the leaves.

I tried retracing my steps and simulating the motions I had done earlier, trying to narrow down where the ring may have gone. We still couldn’t find it, and we couldn’t drag the kids around much longer in the cold. From a practical standpoint, the ring wasn’t super valuable. It was even scratched up from doing all kinds of activities while wearing it. Obviously, we still wanted to find it. Sure, we could replace it, but that was an original ring from our wedding day. Eventually, we had to call off the search. Before we left, the photographer, who lived nearby, pledged to contact her neighbor, who had a metal detector.

We brought the kids home and got them fed and warmed up, and my wife received a text from her photographer friend saying she had acquired her neighbor’s metal detector. It was sitting on her front porch and I was free to come and use it to look for the ring. After lunch I headed back, grabbed the detector, and headed back to resume the search.

I had never used a metal detector before, but I followed the directions on it and started sweeping around the area. I still couldn’t find the ring, but I found some other weird metal stuff. At least I knew it was working. I covered the immediate area a few times over, trying different settings to try to pick up some kind of reading, but still nothing. Growing disheartened, I decided to widen the search area just a little bit more before giving up. Wouldn’t you know it, a faint reading showed up in an area farther away than where we’d been looking. Bending down for a closer look, there it was, lying on the ground among the leaves! I texted my wife right away to share the good news with her. God was gracious that day.

It reminds me of a series of parables Jesus tells in Luke chapter 15. The most famous of the three is the prodigal son, but there are two other parables earlier in the chapter. The first is about a man with 100 sheep that leaves 99 of them to go after the one that’s lost. Then the one that my lost ring reminded me of is in verses 8 to 10.

“Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it?  And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!’

Then verse 10 is my favorite part:  Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

All three of these parables describe the joy in Heaven that explodes when a single sinner repents of their ways and turns to God. The last verse of the parable of the 100 sheep says I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.

Let’s not forget what we’re supposed to be focused on while we’re here on Earth. Eternity hangs in the balance, and it’s for good reason that angels rejoice over the conversions of sinners. Not only has that soul been spared an eternity of suffering, but it’s also an eternity of fellowship between God and a believer that’s been gained. While it’s the Holy Spirit that enables it to happen, He frequently invites Christians to be blessed by being a part of that momentous occasion. Be on the lookout for opportunities to help angels rejoice!

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So Help Me, if I Get one More Election Flyer…

Well, it’s election time again. In America, for better or for worse, a major election is never more than two years away. Where I live, I’ve been getting an obscene amount of political flyers in the mail. It seems like political campaigns are singlehandedly keeping the post office afloat.

If we’re totally honest here, there are problems that politicians cause and there are problems that they don’t cause but still get blamed for. For instance, the President usually gets credit for, or blamed for, the economy, regardless of whether or not their policies are behind its current health. Right now the economy is sputtering pretty hard, and an increasing number of economists are predicting some kind of recession in 2023. Unless you work at the Fed, there’s not a whole lot anyone (including politicians) can do about that. That’s just kind of the reality right now, but if you’re running for office, it’s your job to try to get more votes than your opponent. One way candidates are doing that right now is by saying “if my opponent gets elected, they’re going to crash the economy!” I’ve got news for you. The economy’s going to crash regardless of who’s in office. Don’t make your decision based on that argument. Pay more attention to who’s likely to get us back out of a recession without taking on a whole lot of additional debt.

Global economics are evolving. China’s role in the global economy is looking like it’s going to morph into something different. Xi Jinping has just been elected to a third five-year term in China, and that’s a pretty huge deal. They had to change the laws in China to allow this to happen. He’s a staunch Communist, and the changes he’s made in China have been pretty brutal for Chinese citizens. For the past decade or two, China’s been exploding in economic growth, and that’s been good for the country, but Xi has now accumulated enough power to be able to start exerting more control over businesses. His own speeches suggest he wants to close the wealth gap, which sounds great, but what that really means is that he wants to put everybody on the same economic level: poor. Communism can’t thrive if you’ve got a lot of innovators, free-thinkers, and billionaires, so he’s got to lock all of that down and bring it under state control.

On top of that, Xi has pledged to reunify Taiwan with the mainland. This is a little misleading, because “reunification” implies a reuniting, but the Chinese Government has never controlled Taiwan. For all intents and purposes, Taiwan is a separate country from China, but the U.S. position is to recognize the “one China” policy. I think maybe it’s time to change our policy, even though that would draw a tremendous amount of anger from China. Here’s the kicker…because of the strange demographics of China (especially decades of the “one child” policy), the average age of China’s population is about to increase very quickly, and the number of military-aged citizens are going to start dropping fast. That’s the long way of saying that China fully intends to control Taiwan, and if it’s going to do it through force, it has to be very soon.

This election may very well decide who is in office at the time this attempt takes place. I’m not sure how close he is to being ready to pull the trigger, but Xi’s best move would probably be to give the green light during the lame duck period…between the election and when the newly elected officials get sworn in.

Then there’s this Russia/Ukraine thing. The whole thing has been a disaster for Putin. The guy is an evil dude, but despite appearances, he’s not crazy. He’s a rational guy, but his rationale operates very differently than yours or mine might. He’s painted himself into a corner and there’s no way for him to achieve his objectives without doing some pretty unconventional things or taking a major hit to his credibility at home. His army is in shambles, his partial mobilization of everyday Russian citizens isn’t going well, and Russia probably faces a decades-long path to rebuilding itself militarily and economically (if that’s even possible). Running out of options, it’s not beyond the realm of possibility that Putin employs nuclear weapons in Ukraine if his forces keep taking shots on the chin. I don’t mean the big, multi-megaton “crowdpleasers,” I’m talking much smaller battlefield/tactical nukes. That’s still a big deal, don’t get me wrong, but perhaps not as big a deal as the average citizen may perceive it as. Any way you slice it, a mushroom cloud is something we don’t want to see, but we may be getting closer to seeing one on the news.

Those are some of the things that are happening abroad. In addition to our economy, we’re still trying to untangle snarled logistics chains. The Mississippi River is so low that barge traffic has been drastically reduced. Many of you may have heard about the diesel shortage that’s about to start hitting, probably later this month. Diesel powers most 18-wheelers, locomotives, farm equipment, and other major engines (construction vehicles, large delivery vehicles that supply gasoline to gas stations, etc.) that are crucial to the flow of products across the logistics network. The shortage doesn’t necessarily mean that we’re going to run out of diesel fuel, it means we’ve got a smaller margin for error when keeping the fuel flowing. As fuel becomes less plentiful, the shortage doesn’t hit all at once; the shortage starts manifesting itself in pockets of scarcity. Farmers, for example, will have to start making choices about what type of equipment to use if they don’t have enough fuel to run everything. Truckers will have to compete for a smaller supply (so do your Christmas shopping early before prices spike even higher or logistics routes take a further hit). If any other headwinds hit the diesel industry, we’ve got major problems.

Again, the people you’re voting for this election cycle could very well be the ones facing the tough choices to be made in such cases. God knows who will be sworn in, and those people won’t take office without His say so. It’s very easy to criticize our elected leaders, and we forget that they’re people with the same limitations that you or I have, but they also have some brutal decisions to make. In addition to praying for the elections coming up on Tuesday, please pray for wisdom and moral clarity for all of our leaders currently in office. Things aren’t getting any better, and we need people with God-honoring values in power if we want God’s blessing on our nation once again.

Lord, thank you that You’re in control and I’m not. Please bless the pending election and put the right people in office, whatever party they’re from. Our land is very divided right now and the world seems like it’s on fire. Please bring peace and revival to this place. In Your name, Amen.

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For the Record, Don’t Bring a Knife to School

Halloween is coming up, and it takes me back to some old memories.

When I was in…probably 3rd or 4th grade, our whole class was encouraged to dress up for Halloween. I think all the classes were going to be part of a costume parade or something. This particular year I was going to dress up as a pirate. It was cool, I think I had an eye patch, a fake scar or something, and even a clip-on earring that would help complete the look.

I also had an idea for a more controversial item to complement the costume. My aunt knew of my love of the outdoors, and in her travels she found something she thought I’d like. She gave me a novelty knife. The handle was actually made out of a deer hoof, so it was pretty unique. The blade itself was very dull, but the point was very sharp. Maybe it was something a pirate would carry, I dunno, but it looked kinda cool, and I figured I’d bring it to school. (I very conveniently left Mom or Dad out of the decision. I was pretty sure they’d say no, but I think I convinced myself that the reason they’d tell me no was because they didn’t want me to lose the knife.)

On the bus ride to school, everybody was excitedly talking about their costumes or the parties their class would be having. We were all going around, talking about what we’d dress up as, and I started talking about my costume. When I talked about the knife I’d brought with me, a kid that was a year older than me had his eyes go wide. “Hey, you could get in big trouble for that!”

I was a little taken aback. I wouldn’t say I was an angel in elementary school, but I was a pretty good kid. It struck me as ridiculous that I could get in big trouble for carrying a dull novelty knife. My thought was “c’mon…it’s me! I’m not gonna do anything bad with it, it’s just to make the costume look cooler.” At the time I had no concept of zero-tolerance policies or making an example out of somebody. I tried dismissing his input as just plain dumb, but his words stuck with me.

The parade and party were in the afternoon. The whole morning I sat at my desk, wrestling with my own thoughts about whether or not I should include the knife as part of the costume. The entire time, in a class of probably 20+ kids, the knife was sitting in my desk hidden behind some books. I started to worry about what would happen if the teacher found out about it. Was the kid on the bus right? Was it something I could get in trouble for? I ended up getting pretty uncomfortable with the whole situation.

I ended up skipping the knife as part of the pirate look that day. We did our little elementary parade, and the whole time I felt like my costume was incomplete. As far as I knew, nobody else had a clue that anything was missing from my ensemble. At the end of the school day, I brought the knife home with me and never brought it back to school. Mom and Dad are only finding out about it now, the same way you are. J

Just so we’re clear, bringing a knife to school was a bonehead thing to do. I knew better than to consult my parents, but it never entered my mind that they’d have legitimate reasons why they’d say no. For some reason I figured everybody at school, including any teachers that saw it, would say “hey, that’s cool!”

Sometimes all you need is to bounce an idea off someone else. I wasn’t too proud or arrogant to ask…it simply didn’t occur to me that there were other perspectives. I figured my view was sufficient. If you’re facing a decision where you’re a little out of your depth, consider bouncing it off someone else, even if you think you’ve got a pretty good lock on things. I didn’t ever hang out with that kid on the bus, we just happened to live on the same route. Even so, he gave me enough solid advice that he helped change my mind. Maybe someone else can do the same for you.

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You Sure That Thing is Street Legal?

I’m not super handy when it comes to working on cars, but there’s an engine concept I think is very interesting. These days we tend to be more concerned with miles per gallon or some other measure of fuel efficiency, but it seems like not that long ago gas was cheap and horsepower reigned supreme. We might someday have car racing with electric vehicles, but there’s something special about the roar of a gas-powered engine.

In high-performance combustion engines, it may not seem believable, but it’s possible for them to be a little too powerful. Ultra-powerful engines either make the insurance companies too nervous or they make professional races unfair. To make very powerful vehicles street legal, or to level the playing field on a race track, somebody came up with the idea of a restrictor plate.

Some quick background: for an internal combustion engine, one of the things that gives it power is a design that allows a sufficient amount of air into the combustion chamber to enable the optimal explosion of the fuel, which in turn generates power. Generally (at least up to a point), more air equals more power. That’s why you’ll sometimes see muscle cars with crazy contraptions on the hood or weird air intakes built into high-performance cars that have their engines in the back.

A restrictor plate is something that intentionally limits the amount of air that can flow into the combustion chamber. Using less air, the engine can’t produce the same amount of horsepower. A restrictor plate ultimately reduces the amount of power the engine can generate.

Sounds a little ridiculous, doesn’t it? If you’re going to go through all the trouble of designing and building something that powerful, why would you intentionally reduce its potential? Wouldn’t it be better to just design and build something a little less potent in the first place?

Let’s make the connection now. To all the Christ-followers out there, you gained the Holy Spirit at the moment of your conversion. The Holy Spirit is the member of the Godhead that empowers you with the things you need to perform the tasks God assigns to you. God won’t ask you to do things without also equipping you to do them, yet too often Christians install their own versions of “Holy Spirit restrictor plates.” They hold God at arm’s length in some way, or perhaps see where God is leading and intentionally avoid pursuing that goal. God will implement His plan for you whether or not you’re on board with it, but there’s more that can come from a fully devoted heart than can come from a heart that’s only going through the motions.

So I’d ask you…why not take off that Holy Spirit restrictor plate? If God’s determined to use you, He’s going to use you whether you object or not. Trying to interfere with it is just going to make things hurt more. Why not save some pain, unleash all that horsepower, and see something that’s really high-performance?

“As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” – 1 Peter 4:10 NKJV.

(I didn’t originally mean to have the “manifold” pun in a post about muscle cars, but now that it’s there, I’m having a hard time taking it out.)

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This is Going To Be a Little Too Close!

Lookout! Take Evasive Action!

This past weekend was a 3-day weekend for us. The federal holiday meant our whole family had the day off, and we decided to go on a hike.

In the northern Virginia area, sometimes it seems like there are a million different ways to get somewhere. My family had been to this particular hiking area before, but I hadn’t. Between looking at the route ahead of time, then following two different sets of GPS directions and my wife’s memory of the last time she’d been there, we ended up going a route none of us had ever taken. It wasn’t bad, we enjoy taking the back roads when we’re not in a hurry, especially if it involves some country scenery…a nice change of pace from where we spend most of our time.

Well, this particular route took us on some small roads. They were all paved, thankfully, but some of them didn’t have any lines painted on them and were narrower than what we’re used to here in the suburbs. It was also the kind where you often couldn’t see too far ahead due to all the turns and/or hills. No problem. I grew up and learned to drive in an area like that.

As we were driving, we were going uphill in a curve. From out of nowhere, a bright yellow 18-wheeler that seemed even larger than normal came flying downhill from the opposite direction, and was very much in my lane. I swerved until I was practically scraping the hill on the passenger’s side, and by the grace of God, we dodged that bullet and lived to see another day. Just when the excitement from that experience died down, a deer decided to try to beat us across the road, and since it, too, came out of nowhere, our vehicle underwent more evasive maneuvers.

Now really, how relaxed do you think I was for the rest of that drive? It would have been nice to go for a laid back, enjoyable ride in the country, but there is a different set of hazards that come along with that activity. As the rest of the family was pointing out fun things along the drive that we don’t often get to see, it fell to me to ignore those things and focus on the responsibility that was more important at the time. I had to keep everyone in the vehicle safe by constantly scanning the road and the surrounding area as we drove along. Thankfully, we finally made it to where we were trying to go.

This life is full of distractions and other things that seem like they’re trying to get in the way of where you’re trying to go, especially if that destination involves pursuing the activities God’s called you to pursue. In that case you have responsibilities that are more important than the distractions you’ll pass along the way. Yes, it means there are things you’ll have to forego. It will cost you personally, and it will sap you of some of your time and energy.

That’s okay, even if it’s hard, because it will one day be worth it. It doesn’t mean God requires that you live a life of misery. (On the contrary, Christians are to live lives of joy.) It simply means that your calling is too important not to do, and if you’re going to succeed in accomplishing it, it means there are other things in your life that are not going to get done. Do your best to ensure the things that don’t get done are things that have no eternal value.

By way of example, I like watching a TV show to veg out as much as the next person, but there’s a difference between decompressing and binge-watching. If doing God’s work means you haven’t caught up on the latest season of whatever the latest hit show is, that’s gonna have to be okay. It doesn’t need to be TV, it’s anything that takes up more of your time than it ought to, or anything that you wouldn’t be devoting time to if you were fully engaged in the thing God’s assigned you to do.

You do that, and when you make it to the end, your prioritization will pay off…

…we made it where we were trying to go!

(As an aside, I was going to write on a different topic before these events happened. When God put two near-misses in our path, I started wondering why. Near as I can figure, it’s because someone reading this needs to hear about it. If so, God orchestrated events just right so we had some uncomfortable moments and sovereign protection so they could be shared. This post’s for you!)

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How’d They Come up With “Yabba Dabba Doo?”

I’ve always been interested in the idea that a multitude of individuals can perform their own distinct (and widely varying) jobs to the best of their ability, but someone over them (a manager, a coach, a superior officer, etc.) oversees and puts together those collective efforts to make something really big happen.

Some people take a different view. They think of themselves as running in the rat race. They don’t want to feel like they’re a cog in the wheel. If you derive your life’s purpose from an unfulfilling job, yeah, you’re going to feel like “just another brick in the wall,” as the old song goes.

But what if you derive meaning from God’s purpose for your life? If you do that, it’s a whole new ballgame. It’s often difficult to see in the moment, but as you look backward, you can see that things fell into place and coalesced in a way that helped you get to where God wanted you to be. Sometimes those things are the actions that other people are taking and other times it’s the way events seem to unfold. When it’s all said and done, a lot of things came together in a way that enabled your goal, your purpose, to go farther than it otherwise would have. It’s like you were part of a puzzle, and your piece and all the other pieces had to fall into place for the picture to be completed.

I’m going to shift gears on you a little bit here. When I was a kid I had lots of different books that I got from yard sales, thrift stores, hand-me-downs, etc. One of the books I had was a Flintstones book. I dug around online a little just now, and it was called “The Great Balloon Race.” I don’t remember much of the story, but as you turned the pages, in one of the upper corners of the page there was a picture of Fred juggling three balls. Each time you turned the page, something about that picture was slightly different, but it didn’t really become evident what was going on until you treated the whole thing like a flipbook. Starting at the beginning of the book, Fred walked onto the page and faced the reader. He tossed a ball into the air, then another, and then another. If I remember correctly, each of the balls made a few uneventful loops as Fred started to put on a show, but then he fumbled one of them. You could see his facial expression change as he realized his mistake. When he focused his attention on that particular ball, it made it difficult to keep track of those still remaining in the air. A second ball danced past his fingertips and fell toward the floor. You saw his eyes start to shift toward the last remaining ball in the air, but by now his rhythm was thrown way off, and he had to swipe at it to even get close. That action just ended up batting it off into the distance and out of reach. Left with nothing, he then looked at the reader, shrugged, and walked back off the page by the end of the book.

Our Christian lives are like flipbooks, but the metaphor goes a layer deeper. Just like before, each individual page of the flipbook is a puzzle, and you’re one piece among many. When you’re doing the will of God, your actions are fitting together with the actions of other believers. This flipbook was already in progress before you were born; one day you walked onto the scene, and there were other pieces that connected with you to form a single, larger picture. The pieces connecting with you may have been Sunday School teachers, a grandparent or parent, a friend, a pastor, or maybe someone you heard on the radio or TV. That particular picture may have also included a family or job situation, a specific time or place, or a set of circumstances that led to your acceptance of Christ. Those other pieces, who were themselves affected by other Christians earlier in the book, had an effect on you that grew you in your Christian walk.

Whether your Christian walk lasts for decades or for only a few minutes at the end of your life, you at one point walk onto the scene, and you’ll someday exit the scene. Each page that happens in between is its own puzzle that consists of numerous other “cogs in the wheel” that are doing what God has charged them to do. None of the individual cogs has insight into what the whole picture is shaping up to be or what kind of story the flipbook will tell, but they know that there’s a grand artist that’s in charge and is steering the path of where the story’s going. After all, when God called individual followers into their individual callings, He had their subsequent interactions already arranged in His mind. You do your part, other people do their parts, and God brings it all together.

Someday you’ll exit the flipbook altogether and it will continue without you. Your calling is meant to bring glory to the Lord, and many times that involves inspiring or somehow helping another “puzzle piece” to live out their Christian walk. Be watchful for opportunities to be a piece of another puzzle that’s a page in one of Christ’s flipbooks. One day you’ll be able to reconnect with all the other people that were involved in the same pictures you were, and you’ll be able to watch how the flipbook turned out.

Lord God, You are intimately involved not only with my life, but with the lives of everyone else on this planet. You’re in the process of telling a grand story, and right now, in this moment, we’re a part of the story for a limited time. Thank you for giving us opportunities to be part of the story; please help us to have the boldness and strength to accept Your invitations when they come. I ask in Jesus’ name, Amen.

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What if Gravity Worked a Little Differently?

Let’s enter the imaginarium for a few moments here. Suppose that you were around to witness God’s drawing board when He was designing the universe.

To put some scale to the level of God’s creativity here, imagine just for a moment that you were going to write a short story about landing on an inhabited alien planet where no human has ever set foot. What would that planet look like? What kind of life would be there, and what governs the way they live their lives? Don’t be shy or hold back, be as creative as you possibly can.

You’d probably imagine things you’ve already seen or heard from movies, TV shows, or books. Taking something you’re already sort of familiar with, then tweaking it…we can call that one degree of separation. Now think about God creating this planet. He made it out of absolutely nothing, and He did it without anything to borrow inspiration from or to model after. That’s at least two degrees of separation, and it’s something we as humans have a hard time wrapping our minds around.

Back to God’s workshop. Some people might envision sketches of antelopes, clay models of whales, and a scale model of a sparrow in a wind tunnel. While that would all be pretty cool to watch unfold, I’m more fascinated with the way He, once again, from nothing, laid out the rules of physics, chemistry, and biology.

We’re so set on the constancy of what we know as physical laws that the idea sounds absurd, but God could just as easily established different rules and had them work out fine and still be in harmony with all the other naturally occurring laws He set in place. Imagine if instead of what we’re used to, the following things hold true:

Materials with greater densities float above those with lesser densities. Water boils at 50 degrees Fahrenheit at sea level. The speed of light is the same speed as the speed of sound. There are bugs that combine grains of sand to form volcanic rock. Zebras give birth to aardvarks. Visible light is not the only visible portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. Space is hot, not cold. The sky is yellow, not blue. The earth spins not west to east, but south to north, and it takes 33 hours instead of 24 to make a complete rotation.

According to what we know and understand, any single one of these things simply cannot happen. If He wanted to, God could have made all of these “absurd rules” work together simultaneously, and have it make sense. He could have made them the physical and scientific laws we abide by, but He didn’t. The laws we observe and rely on are the ones He gave us, and they provide context for our understanding of the universe.

I’ve studied physics, chemistry, and biology to some degree, and it can be especially frustrating to get the math wrong and not be able to figure out where you went wrong. It’s very helpful, however, in getting some insight into just how creative God is; imagine being so creative that you come up with physical laws that work in harmony with all other physical laws and living things on the planet, and you nail it on the first shot. You even get the nuances and exceptions right! Just one example: there are three basic forms of matter…gas, liquid, and solid. Ordinarily as a molecule moves from solid to liquid to gas, it takes up increasing amounts of volume. On the flip side of that coin, a cloud of gas takes up less room as a liquid, and even less room as a solid. You’re fitting the same amount of mass into smaller amounts of volume, so it becomes more and more dense. Here’s the kicker – water doesn’t behave that way, and continued life on Earth depends on that fact. Water actually expands as it moves from liquid to solid form. (Ever freeze a full container of water? I hope you weren’t too attached to it.) This single concept changes everything, and getting it wrong meant we’d have a really hard time surviving. If water behaved like most other forms of matter, ice would form at the surface and then settle to the bottom, making room for more ice to form at the surface and subsequently settle. Eventually the whole body of water would freeze solid, (probably) killing anything living in it.

Or what about the fact that Earth’s core is a big glob of slowly spinning molten iron? This gigantic dynamo produces a magnetic field that extends beyond our planet and protects us by diverting the crippling charged particles that the sun is constantly emitting. If this magnetic field didn’t exist, the sun’s particles would relentlessly strip Earth of its atmosphere, creating two major problems for us. First, there would be nothing left to breathe. Second, the reduction in atmospheric pressure would cause all liquid water to boil off and escape into space, even at low temperatures. Our planet would become a lifeless dry rock with no significant atmosphere (like Mars), but because God set things up so that the science would work together to maintain a habitable environment, we’re still able to walk around without wearing pressure suits.

It’s mind-blowing! The logic and creativity is without parallel. Yes, God is a God of love, of compassion, of power, of emotion, of so many “touchy-feely” things, but He’s also the God of logic, of order, of completeness, of “yeah, I considered all of those things when I set the universe in motion.” In the military I heard about the importance of weighing the “second- and third-order effects” of an event. God considers the twenty-sixth and twenty-seventh order effects of an event, and then some.

That’s the God we serve. He’s not some aloof buffoon sitting on a cloud somewhere, eating grapes and throwing lightning bolts. He’s alive and well, and He’s actively involved in what happens every day in the life of His creation’s masterpiece: you. The next time that you feel your life is nothing more than an accident or that nobody even knows you’re there, remember that the God of all things had you in mind when He created this world, and when He went to the cross. The creator of the world decided He would rather die than live without you. He sees you, you matter to Him, and He has a plan for your life.

Oh God, the more we learn about science, the more it points to you. Some students of science will go to great lengths to avoid acknowledging the evidence of a designer, but thank you so much for revealing yourself through it! May You be glorified through it!

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A Bold, Bright Future Lies Ahead

Selfies start younger and younger these days

It can be tough to look at generations younger than you and think with confidence “this is who will one day lead the charge for spreading the gospel.” You know what, though? The same thing was probably thought about your generation at some point.

It’s exciting to see God work. From the Bible, we know that the world will get darker and increasingly hostile to Christianity. We also know the Gospel will continue to be spread, and that God wins in the end. Well if today’s not the end, God must intend to empower tomorrow’s Christians to continue doing His work effectively. He knew about radio and TV evangelism programs before the technology was even invented. He saw social media coming before anyone ever thought of it. The communication essentials of the future are already old news to Him, and He’ll pre-position followers to use them for His glory.

Another exciting thing to think about is that you, today, can play a part in future generations shining the light of Christ. The efforts you exert today may take a long time to bear fruit, but many a loud Christian voice once spent time listening to their Sunday school teacher, a Vacation Bible School volunteer, or a mentor that simply took an interest at a crucial time in their lives. I doubt the majority of churches would turn away new volunteers from their kids’ ministry, youth programs, or young adult projects.

This may be an odd way to think about it, but I’m part of an endangered species: I remember what life was like before the internet intruded into it. What’s neat to think about is how, even in spite of how much the world has changed, God still weaves experiences and encounters together in peoples’ lives with the knowledge that it’s heading somewhere bigger in the future. We didn’t formerly have a need for people to make Christian sound bites or short videos, but now we have YouTube and Vimeo. It used to be that a Christian “influencer” meant something totally different, but now they live on TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter. These are all things that people like me could learn, but we’ll never be digital natives like the generations younger than us.

The beautiful thing about that is it opens up limitless opportunities for people that are Christ followers, yet don’t feel at home in a traditional church setting. This creates a new space for innovation, where new ways emerge to spread the same essential message.

This one goes out to all those that never quite fit in or felt comfortable in church, but who still want to pursue Christ. People are hungry for what’s real, but they don’t know where to go to find it. If people don’t want to walk into a church, is there a way for you to bring the church to them? Above all, the most important thing is that Christ is preached. If you can come up with a new way to get that message to the people that haven’t heard it, you may have found the exact thing God created you to do. If you choose to do it, you may well be a blessing to others and at the same time be blessed in return.

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Oh, it’s the End of the World…Again

Growing up, my parents both worked at a Christian conference center. Churches that were mostly from New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania would hold retreats at this place, getting away from the routine and having a chance to study whatever the teacher/speaker/pastor decided to focus on. Getting away from familiar surroundings is often a good way to break away from the ordinary distractions of life and be able to dive deeper into the Bible.

In many cases, it would be the same church groups that came to the conference center at roughly the same time each year. Over time, the group leaders would develop a relationship with some of the people working at the conference center. One of the tricky parts would be when, every now and then, you have a group leader whose theology and teachings start to wander away from what the Bible says. It usually doesn’t happen all at once, more often it’s a bit slower, so it gets difficult for a conference center to say “you know what? That’s not what we’re about. I’m sorry, but we’re not going to approve your request for a reservation this year.”

When I was, oh, probably 13 or 14, a situation like this was brewing. One of these groups had been coming to the place for years, but this year was different. The group leader, a pretty smart guy in many respects, decided that by using “clues” sprinkled throughout the Bible, it was possible to determine a mathematical formula to calculate the date when Jesus would return, and it turns out that date was very near. He had even released a book about it and had a sizable following that eagerly ate up what he was saying.

I’m a little fuzzy on the details…the group had reserved the conference center for, if not the predicted date, very shortly before it, so all those people were pretty pumped as they started showing up. Like, there was a lot of buzz in the air. Between my parents and most of the rest of the adults on staff, though, the thing that the conversation kept coming back to was the Bible verse that says “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.” – Matthew 24:36

As you might imagine, a lot of people wanted to hear more about the impending second coming, and many of them flooded into this little conference center. I don’t know what it was like for the grown-ups, but I remember that for me as a kid, there was this, like, sort of excitement that was easy to get swept up in. The thing that probably comes closest now is if you buy a lottery ticket when there’s a record-breaking Powerball. “Yeah, yeah, I know it won’t happen…buuuuuuut…imagine if it did!” I remember there were some pretty distinctive-looking clouds that day, too, adding to the general goose-bump factor.

There were a lot more people showing up than the place normally held, so it was an “all hands on deck” situation. There were more cars than the place had room for in the regular parking lot, so I got recruited to help direct parking in the grass field. I remember while I was doing this, one of the guys that parked his car and was on his way to the auditorium stopped to speak with me. “So what do you think? Do you think he’s right in his prediction?”

Despite the excitement in the air, being the tactless young man that I was, I spoke my mind. “Nah, I don’t think so.”

“Why not?”

“Because of the Bible verse that says ‘no one knows the day or the hour.’”

The dude had some kind of answer for that. I think he pointed to the presence of what he called “clues” in scripture, but he seemed to feel like this collection of hidden items somehow enabled students of the Bible to gloss over that very straightforward verse.

At any rate, the predicted date came and went, and the second coming has yet to occur. I should’ve bet the dude whatever money I could’ve scraped together that it wouldn’t happen. (If he won, I wouldn’t have had the chance to pay up.)

Today, I certainly do NOT consider myself a Bible scholar. Back then, I knew even less. Yet it was still enough to recognize false teaching.

If you’re the type of person that considers yourself a Christian, but spends little time reading and trying to understand the Bible, you’re setting yourself up to be led astray by false teaching. Spoiler alert: You don’t get wings and become an angel after you die. Read the Bible. If you’ve tried reading a Bible that has nothing but straight scripture, and it’s tough to make any sense out of it, try using a study bible. Study bibles have lots of notations, maps, and diagrams that help explain the context of what’s happening, or information about what the original Hebrew or Greek text said that gets lost in the translation into English. It will help things make more sense to you in a way that can help you apply it to your life without having to guess about what it actually means.

Watch. Be ready. Jesus is coming back someday, but none of us knows when it will happen. In the meantime, as you go about the business of life, ask yourself “is this somewhere I’d be okay being when Christ returns and He asks me what I was doing there?”

Lord, please help us all to be ready for the day You either return or call us home. There are a lot of false things out there. Between the Bible and the Holy Spirit, please help us to know what’s true and what’s false, so we can not only avoid being led astray, but also help keep others from being led astray. I ask in Your name, Amen.

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Some People Burn Rubber; This Family Flung it

When I was in my early teens I had a buddy named Cameron. If Cameron had a super power, it was anything that had to do with rubber bands. That dude had rubber bands stashed all over the house, and he was a crack shot with them.

The house where he lived had a skylight in the kitchen, and every once in awhile a fly would buzz around in there, looking for a way out. It seemed like he could always take those guys out on the first try. He also used rubber bands to make slingshots out of branches he found that were the right size/shape. If we had Instagram back then, we’d have been on it doing rubber band madness.

I’m not sure how it started, but at one point Cameron and I ignited some kind of playful feud with his dad. I was at their house like, all the time, so he was probably looking for a way to encourage me to spend less time there. I wasn’t quite “Steve Urkel” bad, but Cameron’s dad often referred to me as “the infestation.” He wasn’t too shabby with rubber bands, either, and on more than one occasion I had to dive for cover to try to escape the onslaught of flying rubber.

Again, the details are fuzzy, but one evening we anticipated that his dad was on the prowl and looking to light us up somehow. I’m pretty sure the “Home Alone” movies were fresh in our minds, and our heads were filled with ideas whose effectiveness was portrayed maybe a little too generously in the movies.

The way his house was set up, Cameron and his sister had the only rooms on the second floor, and the only other thing up there was a bathroom. He had sort of a cool setup in his room; the ceilings slanted down to the walls, so the room got shorter as you went away from the middle, but on the other side of the walls there was some storage space where the ceiling got uncomfortably short. It was a pain to get in there if you were the size of an adult, but it was great for us as kids. Our plan was to set up a bunch of alarms and traps out in Cameron’s room, and then let them stand guard while we set up a fort in one of the storage spaces so we could defend ourselves.

I don’t remember everything we set up, but I remember I brought some stuff from my house to help us out. I brought a tape player with a cassette tape cued up to a loud spot in a Michael W. Smith song, and I made a trigger out of a motorized Construx creation. I also know I brought a small chain and a bunch of metal jax. Cameron probably set up some kind of auto-rubber band crossbows aimed at the door. We strung a bunch of rubber bands together (I don’t think I can properly explain just how many rubber bands were in this house; it’s like Cameron asked for bags of rubber bands for his birthday and Christmas, and he got them) but we’d take these strings of rubber bands and pull them tight all across the room, fastening them to different things and making a sort of web. From one of them I hung the little chain, and I put the pile of metal jacks right under it, so if something disturbed the rubber band string that held the chain, it would fall onto the jacks and make a distinctive noise. The chain was barely hanging on to the string, so a false alarm wasn’t out of the question.

That wasn’t the big alarm, though. The big one was the tape player I mentioned. It was connected to a tripline that an intruder would set off, and everyone in the house would the loud guitar from the start of “Goin’ Through the Motions” if tripped. I don’t know what else we set up, but I’m sure there were other traps. Once we finished that, we shut off the lights and went to work in the storage space, rearranging boxes, garbage bags full of stuff, and strategically storing rubber band ammunition in various locations. If Cameron’s dad was coming for us, he’d either have to turn on the lights (giving himself away) or risk running through our field of booby traps.

Well, we were focused on the best way to set up a defense, and busied ourselves with strategy, plans, and fall-back areas. We had it all planned out. “The decoy dives over here while the other guy pops up and nails him from over here! When he pivots to focus on that guy, the decoy army crawls through this makeshift tunnel and hits him from the other side of the pillar! He won’t see it coming! ”

While we were making our grand strategy, we both thought we heard something out in Cameron’s room that sounded a lot like a little chain falling onto metal jacks. We both froze, wondering: 1. if we had actually heard something, 2. if it was a false alarm, and 3. now what?

Before we could do anything, Cameron’s dad burst into the storage space, filling the air with a hail of rubber projectiles. Surprised shrieks filled the room as we dove for cover but still got hit multiple times. There were so many rubber bands in the air at the same time, it’s like the guy had four arms with eight fingers and three thumbs on each hand, and they were all working on delivering stinging hits to the two of us. Well, we couldn’t mount any kind of coherent defense, and it was a massacre. Cameron’s dad shellacked us pretty good, and there was no denying who won that particular engagement.

You may have had a similar experience (in the metaphorical sense, at least). You recognize that you’re exposed to temptation from certain sins, and you’ve taken the precautions that you believe will be effective in keeping you safe. As it turns out, though, either your precautions didn’t work or something else went wrong, and you ended up not being as safe as you thought. Maybe you put your trust somewhere you shouldn’t have. Maybe you blocked a specific website but you found a different one you shouldn’t be visiting, or you stopped talking about people behind their backs, but now you disguise the gossip as a prayer request.

These things happen. You have to constantly check your defenses, taking frequent looks at your life to evaluate where you’re vulnerable. Things change rapidly; don’t rely on old measures that no longer reflect the modern vulnerabilities in your life. Know yourself and know what you have a hard time overcoming, and place countermeasures in your life that enable you to stand up to them. (In some cases, that requires a literal fleeing from the situation.)

Rubber bands can sting, but there are things that sting much worse. Set up the protections you know will help you be more effective in standing up to temptation.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. –Ephesians 6:12-13

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This is Just One Story, but Maybe it Will Help You in Your Story

You might be trying to figure out what God’s calling for your life looks like. Unfortunately I can’t tell you what it is, but I’d encourage you to be persistent in asking Him during your prayer time. In the meantime, I can tell you how I arrived at what I believe my calling to be, and maybe that will help you in some way.

I don’t really know how else to say this…my brain’s wired a little differently than most people I meet. I’m an odd duck. When I was in…I think it was first grade…my teacher had us do some kind of activity where we followed her instructions in folding paper. My version ended up looking very different than everyone else’s. Wondering why, my teacher went back and took a hard look at what I did. Upon closer inspection, she found that I had followed her instructions, but not the way she intended. Without trying to be a troublemaker, when she said “fold the piece of paper in half,” most kids folded it from top to bottom, while I folded it side to side.

Fast forward to high school, and the nontraditional route continued. I did athletic things without being an athlete. I never tried out for the baseball, basketball, football, or soccer teams. Instead, I played in the woods. I got certified as a lifeguard at 15 years old. A little older and I was dangling from ropes out of trees or off buildings. In college I went cross-country skiing, kayaking, and kneeboarding; after college I got certified in skydiving and scuba diving. Not only are they activities that aren’t all that common, they’re things that people just don’t normally choose to pursue. (I may have missed the boat on bungee jumping; I was willing to do it when I was younger, but now I’m afraid it may be too physically jarring. I’m willing to give cave diving (exploring underwater caves) a try, though.) It sounds like I’m an adrenaline junkie, but sometimes people need to double check to see if I’m still awake. A strange contradiction.

At the same time, I have a mind that’s oriented around technical things and the way things are organized, yet I can still be creative and think way outside the box. I’m not amazing at any one thing, but I’m pretty good at a lot of different things. I have low empathy, can come across as cold, and tend to gravitate more toward logic than feelings. This is pretty bizarre, because there isn’t a whole lot that’s logical about jumping out of an airplane or off a cliff for entertainment. Another contradiction. If Spock, Bear Grylls, and Elon Musk ran really hard toward each other and smashed together, you get me.

For some reason, about 20 years into my career, I started getting interested in the different classifications of personalities. The first characterization method I took a close look at is called the Enneagram. It classifies people into one of nine personality types, and my type is what’s called Type One…the Reformer. In short, Type Ones are driven to improve things that they perceive will enhance the greater good. It was pretty interesting, and a lot of things made sense. “Wow, this author gets me!”

Then I checked out a more well-known categorization type, Myers-Briggs. The Myers-Briggs construct has 16 distinct types of personalities. No single personality type shows up in huge percentages in the general population, but it turns out that mine is one of the rarer types, with only about 2% of the population falling into this category. The “Architect” type, or INTJs, are highly logical, creative, and analytical. Those three characteristics are not a common combination.

A little stunned that descriptions of INTJs fit me very well, I started poking around a little bit. It’s not often that someone’s accurately described how my personality is geared, so I felt like I had to take this newfound knowledge and use it to help make some kind of a decision. I had a sense that I was supposed to do more to follow God’s lead, but I didn’t know where, what that looked like, or how that would unfold. I wanted to know what other people like me were gifted at doing. Introverted, very focused, and often highly intelligent. What do other people who are INTJs do?

I scrolled through search results. There were lots of famous INTJs whose field I had no interest or entry into. Dwight Eisenhower, Hillary Clinton, Bobby Fischer, Bill Belichick, Nikola Tesla, Sherlock Holmes, Lex Luthor…all of them INTJs.

As I pondered how to break into a life of criminal mastermind-ery or famous consulting detective-ness, I somewhere came across something that just kind of jumped out at me. It turns out that C.S. Lewis, the Christian author, was thought to be an INTJ.

Of course I know who C.S. Lewis is, but I’m not super familiar with his works. I haven’t read anything of his other than the Chronicles of Narnia, and that was forever ago. Rather shamelessly, and at the risk of sounding like a copycat, it didn’t take me long to decide “I have to write fiction books with built-in Christian themes. I’ll shoot for seven of them and they all need to be about the length of the Narnia books.”

I don’t know why I decided that, but the idea just kind of took root. I can whine about how culture is taking bad turns, or I can do something to try to influence it. As I considered it more and more, the idea just seemed like it was something that I was tailor made to do, despite not having taken any creative writing classes. I have nothing published. My biggest writing project aside from that group of books is this blog, and that’s very different from what this challenge will entail. Still, it was honestly a relief, as though God were saying “okay, you’ve been persistent in asking, and now I’m going to give you a goal you can throw your energy into.” For me, there’s peace in finally knowing.

It’s funny how God treats people differently, depending on what they can handle. For many, if you tell them what they’ll have to go through before they get to the other side of something big, they’ll be overwhelmed. One of the hallmarks of an INTJ is a certain level of confidence that allows them to take risks. My initial goal of seven books of 40,000 to 50,000 words has now grown to 10 books of the same length. I have to plan as though I’m composing half a million words’ worth of stories. I’m the guy that used to label every line of a 500-word essay with the running total. I’m not looking at this goal and saying “piece of cake,” but I’m also not shying away from it. My confidence isn’t so much in me…it’s in the One that assigned me the job. I feel like this is the task He’s given me, and I know He’ll give me what I need to make it happen. I’m grateful to have found this challenge.

As far as progress on the project, I’ve bounced around between the different books, focusing on one, then taking a break from that one for awhile to work on a different one. Some I don’t even know much of the plot line, some I’ve made notes for, and others have tens of thousands of words drafted. To date, across all 10 books, I’ve got 80,000+ words in draft. I’ve still got a long way to go, but if I hadn’t started yet, I’d be 80,000+ words behind where I am right now.

Again, I don’t know what your calling is, but I tell you this story in the hopes that it will somehow encourage you. Be persistent in asking God to reveal what He’d have you do. The world is growing darker and darker, and Christ’s light is needed more and more. It’s not your job to have all the answers. All you need to focus on is doing what God wants you to do, not on what comes after that. Obedience is your responsibility, and outcome is God’s responsibility. Do what you’re supposed to do, and He’ll handle the rest.

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Reduced by $10,000, or Paid in Full?

It’s not the best example, and I’m not fond of the idea, but since it’s a current event, I’m using it.

Think about the number 10,000. If you had to count from 1 to 10,000 you could do it, but it would take long enough to be super annoying, so it’s definitely a substantial number.

Yesterday President Biden announced an initiative to forgive holders of federal student loans up to $10,000 worth of their debt if they met certain criteria. These days education can be ridiculously expensive, so it’s very easy to incur that much debt (many times over, in fact).

Still, though, imagine waking up one day to the reality of having that much of your agreed-to obligation wiped out. Then, when you inquire about it, you hear “Don’t worry about it, it’s gone from your ledger.” All you can do is express thanks.

While 10,000 dollars’ worth of debt is certainly nice to not worry about, it’s still a quantity that we can mentally grasp, and most students can eventually repay. What if the total amount of all your different types of debt numbered in the millions, or even in the billions? Having $10,000 forgiven would still be nice, but it would hardly make a dent in the bottom line figure of what you owe.

Now imagine a debt so large that you can’t even comprehend it because it’s so abstract. What if you personally owed debts totaling one hundred trillion dollars? That’s a one followed by 14 zeroes. Nobody on the planet right now could pay back a debt that large. Not even the U.S. Government could do that. You’d have no hope of putting that debt completely to bed in your lifetime. The constant phone calls and mail from debt collectors would be all-consuming; the debt would be the only thing on your mind. You wouldn’t be able to enjoy food, sleeping well is no longer a thing, and you wouldn’t even be able to take pleasure in the little things in life.

But if you had your debt totally wiped out and the balance restored to zero, how thankful do you think you’d be?

It would be the largest weight ever…lifted right off your shoulders. That’s what Christ offers to you, me, and everyone else. There are two ways to get to Heaven: 1. live a perfect and sinless life, and 2. ride the coattails of someone that’s done exactly that. If you slip up even once, route number one is no longer an option. No amount of money can buy back a single mistake. Since nobody reading this can claim eligibility for the first route, you’re left with the second route, and only Jesus Christ has lived a life without sin. God hates sin, and He will not tolerate it in Heaven. When Christ sacrificed Himself on the cross, He essentially gave Himself as an offering that satisfied God’s wrath. That was Him saying “my coattails are right here, waiting for you to grab them.” By claiming Christ as Lord of your life, you gain the status of being covered by what He’s given. It’s Christ saying “don’t worry about it, it’s gone from your ledger.” You’re standing at the pearly gates, trying to get in, and Christ says “yeah, open the gates, they’re with me.”

Placing your trust in Jesus Christ as your savior is the only way for you to go to Heaven. When you trust in Him, your spiritual debt has been wiped clean. It’s gone. Even if you had been living under its crushing weight, it no longer exists the instant you welcome Jesus into your heart.

You want to talk about having a major debt forgiven? There’s no greater example than that one.

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What I’ve Learned so far…

I’ve been blessed to have a good number and variety of experiences in my life. I’ve accomplished difficult feats, I’ve worked with excellent colleagues, and I’ve worked with terrible colleagues. I’ve taken part in audacious things, I’ve failed at some of them, and I’ve learned a lot about dealing with people in general. Here, in no particular order, are 15 life lessons I’ve picked up so far:

Your physical and mental limits are often self-imposed. If you believe you can’t do something, you’ll probably try to prove yourself right. Give it an honest try before deciding it can’t be done.

Humility is a valuable attribute. If you’re the cat’s pajamas at something, that doesn’t mean you 1. can’t get better at it, 2. can’t become the cat’s pajamas at something else, and/or 3. can’t empower somebody else with the knowledge/experience you’ve gained.

You don’t need to formally hold a position of leadership to demonstrate it.

When you meet someone new, you probably have no idea what kinds of things, good or bad, they’ve lived through. Enter the relationship without assumptions, and allow your opinion of them to form based on the interactions you have with them. People are defined by more than what happened to them on their worst or their best day.

Married life – Without having unrealistic standards, be very choosy about who you’re willing to marry. If you take the time to choose well, it will pay off in spades.

You see things differently than I do. I don’t look at that as a reason to cancel you. Please reciprocate.

Life as a kid – When you’re young you see everything in terms of black and white, of right and wrong. When you grow up, almost everything is some varied shade of gray. Try to live your life as high contrast as you can, in the process making it easier for others to do the same.

There’s a time to laugh and a time to be serious, but the former should outweigh the latter.

When you look back at your life, you’ll regret the things you didn’t do more than the things you did.

Adventure sports where there’s risk to life/limb (skydiving, rappelling, whitewater sports) – there are three things most important when risking your life or someone else’s: the quality of your team, the quality of your gear, and the quality of your preparation (including the caliber of your instruction). Skimp on one or more of these at your peril.

Air Force – You’re facing big challenges, you’re pressed for time, and there are more challenges knocking on the door. You can go the fast/easy route, but if you get brutally honest, the best way is probably going to end up being the most painful one. Save effort where you can, but if you wouldn’t be willing to do it all over again a second or third time, don’t cut corners.

Parenting – Little kids, little problems. Big kids, big problems. Whatever stage of parenting you’re in, enjoy the here and now, because it goes by quickly, and they (and their problems) are getting bigger right in front of you.

Aging and losing the ability to do things you formerly could – Know the difference between griping about it and moping about it. Your toolset changes over time; maintain enough mental agility to always leverage your current strengths.

Professional analysis – If you genuinely want to be objective about something, gather lots of information while waiting as long as you can before forming an opinion about it. Once you’ve formed an opinion, it takes a surprising amount of slap-you-in-the-face evidence to sway you from it, even if it’s wrong.

Just because I’m right doesn’t mean you’re wrong (and vice versa).

Any of these stand out to you? Which one strikes a chord?

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The Memorable Events in Your Life May Just be Preparation

Sometime in the spring/summer of 2008, my first-time-pregnant wife came to my place of work to attend a ceremony celebrating the promotion of several people, including me.

Since being pregnant was a new thing for her, there was still a lot she didn’t know about how pregnancy would affect her body. The ceremony was to be held in a conference room that was already in use by someone else, so a crowd of us began gathering outside the door as the start time drew near. There was no place to sit while we were waiting, and my wife started feeling very hot and a little woozy. She told me something felt very wrong, and I was able to be right there to catch her as she fainted.

I was ready to ditch the ceremony and take her to the hospital, not knowing what was wrong. A gentle, but decisive old Master Sergeant made his way to us and helped revive my wife. Finding out she was pregnant, he disappeared somewhere else in the building for a few minutes, then returned with a piece of cake on a paper plate. He knew from experience that a mother-to-be’s body has an important relationship with blood sugar, and that skipping meals has a different set of consequences than when not pregnant.

Skip ahead about 14 years. A couple weeks ago our family took a trip to a beach town I’ve been visiting on and off since I was a kid. Part of the draw for that little town is a bakery that produces some great “I’ll eat better when I’m back home” food. My wife, our three kids, and I were milling around inside, each of us choosing something for that morning. The place had a number of customers waiting their turn, and our turn finally came. While my wife was in the middle of placing our family’s order, a man’s voice called out “can somebody dial 911?!” I looked over to see a man holding an unconscious woman, seated in a chair at a table near the window, preventing her from falling over. Her head was bent at an awkward angle, her hair completely covering her face.

I reached for my phone, only to discover that I didn’t have it on me. (I’m on vacation, at the bakery. If you call me here, I’m not answering it.) Both my wife and one of the bakery staff placed the call. I went over and tried to see how I could help. In talking to him, I learned that she was a couple of months pregnant, and I passed the info along to those on the phone with the dispatchers. Though he was obviously well-intentioned, it became pretty apparent that the guy didn’t have a clue what to do. I told him that we needed to get her lowered to the floor. Protective of his girl, and not really willing to comply until he determined that I wasn’t some sort of con man, he asked “are you a doctor or something?”

Now, I’m no doctor. I haven’t been certified in CPR or first aid in over 20 years. A few thoughts flashed through my head, memories of things I could tell him about, and I almost flipped out on the guy about whether or not he was seriously asking me this question while this woman, for all I knew, was choking to death on a bear claw while he tried to establish my credentials. Instead I answered something like “I know a thing or two about this. We need to make sure her airway is clear, and I can’t do it when she’s like this.”

That seemed enough to satisfy him, and the two of us lowered her to the ground so she was seated with her legs out in front of her. Before we could lay her down all the way, she started coming around. The fella held her steady as she groggily started piecing together what happened. During the course of talking with her, it came out that she had skipped having any food so far that morning. At only two months pregnant with a first-time pregnancy, it was still early enough that you’re still kind of finding out the hard way what you can and can’t do. This all started feeling a lot more familiar to me. The bakery worker that had called 911, who I suspect had been through at least one pregnancy of her own, came over and offered an unopened bottle of orange juice. My wife now off the phone with 911, she, too, made the connection, and began telling about her experience 14 years prior.

We spent some time trying to help her not feel so embarrassed, sitting on the bakery floor with everyone staring at her. Right about then I saw a police vehicle arrive and the officer grab a pair of medical bags out of the trunk. Holding the door open for him and seeing that the professional was now on the scene, I turned my attention back to what we’d been doing. My kiddos, on their own, had moved to a part of the store where they’d be out of everyone’s way, and stood quietly waiting for things to play out. It was one of those “Jesus looked at them and loved them” kind of moments.

When our family left the bakery, those two were still being attended to by the police officer. Later that day though, we saw them walking around the town, so things must’ve turned out alright for them.

You’ve almost certainly heard before that God prepares you for the things He places in your path. Sometimes it’s funny how He does it. I certainly didn’t consider my wife’s fainting as a preparatory action, at least at the time. Who knows? Maybe in another 14 years, those two (by that time) well-experienced parents will be helping out another set of parents-to-be.

It’s also important not to get caught up in a “I’m not qualified” mindset (at least for the important things). Sure, we were qualified to call 911. We weren’t really “qualified” for any sort of medical care, but we were the ones to step forward and be there with someone that was going through something scary. It doesn’t take any special training. Often we focus more on the reasons why we shouldn’t step forward than on the reasons we should. If you’ll allow me to push the metaphor a little, I’d say that if you wait until you consider yourself “ready” to jump in and follow God’s call, you’re probably not ever going to do it. God’s strength is made perfect in our weakness, and He wants us to have willing hearts more than properly trained and educated minds. He’s given you different experiences, giftings, and abilities that are intended to be used. Please…use them.

Lord, thank you that this event didn’t seem to be anything serious. Thank you also that You put someone there to help those two get through it. Thank you still that You invited us to be a few of those “someones.” And finally, thank you for all the opportunities You’ll give everyone reading this to be a part of the story You’ve written for their lives; please give us all the courage and preparation we’ll need for those times. In Your name I ask, Amen.

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I Never Expected To See “the Snap” With My Own Eyes!

(Another entry not meant for my regular readers, but for those left behind after witnessing something extraordinary and terrifying…the sudden, inexplicable disappearance of a sizable percentage of Earth’s population.)

So it actually happened. Millions of people across the world just disappeared without a trace. What happened? What does it mean?

It means the Bible is true.

It means that over the next…probably 7 years or so, humanity will witness a level of destruction not seen since the days of Noah and the ark. I can’t put an exact timeframe on it because I don’t know for sure where the Rapture (the sudden disappearance of Christians) falls in relation to the seven years known as the Great Tribulation.

(One of the many confusing things about this era is going to be the fact that there are still people who thought they were Christians who are still left behind. The inconvenient truth they’ll have to face up to is the fact that even if they attend church regularly and do lots of “religious things,” they have not trusted Jesus Christ as their savior.)

I’ve written about this before, but it’s a pretty heavy duty topic, and I’d love to be able to help provide some direction for the people that are still here. If the Rapture actually happened, I’m not here anymore, so I can only help you through stuff I’ve already written or stuff I can point you to. Here’s the part that sounds crazy, but since you’re probably pretty desperate for answers, I’ll just come out and say it. When I say that you’ve been “left behind,” here’s what I mean. God created the world. Humanity sinned and sort of broke the deal that God had with us. For awhile we got by with presenting sacrifices to Him (the days of the Old Testament), but it wasn’t until Jesus Christ came to become a permanent sacrifice on our behalf that it changed our relationship with God. After He rose from the dead and ascended back to Heaven, He left the Church here to do His work until He comes back to take the rest of His followers away so they don’t have to endure the Great Tribulation, which is where God cleans house and lets loose on whoever’s left for thousands of years’ worth of stubborn disobedience.

Don’t worry, there’s still hope for you! The Great Tribulation will see unprecedented levels of both Christian revival and persecution of Christians. Keep an eye out for the Evangelists. There are going to be street preachers, people that hold meetings in big tents, in warehouses, in schools, in sports arenas, people that spread the news about Jesus. They’ll use whatever are the most popular tools of the day to spread the news. Go to them. As long as what they’re saying agrees with the Bible (and no other religious books), they’re steering you toward the truth. (But be careful, 2 Timothy 4 says that many people will be deceived by false teaching during this time.) In the meantime, track down a Bible and start reading it. Start with the New Testament…read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These are four books that cover the same material, so don’t be confused when Jesus dies four times. Those four books are collectively called “the Gospels.”

To read a little more about what you’re living in (the End Times, the Great Tribulation, the Apocalypse, Armageddon), check out the last book in the Bible; it’s called Revelation. You’ll probably need to read it a few times, and you’ll learn a lot more if you have some kind of study Bible with notes or some kind of Bible commentary. A few other books in the Bible cover the End Times and provide more info…check out the books of Ezekiel, Daniel, Zechariah, and First and Second Thessalonians (again, study Bibles, Bible commentaries, and online resources will be tremendously helpful). Here are a few of the things that are coming, but not necessarily in this order:

  • Mass death. Not only are the four horsemen of the apocalypse real, but one of them is given the power to kill a quarter of humanity (Revelation 6:7-8). Later, four imprisoned fallen angels (demons) are released to kill a third of humanity (Revelation 9:13-15). If we have 8 billion people on the planet right now and this happened, the horseman takes out 2 billion people, and then the fallen angels take out a third of the remaining six, cutting the population in half from 8 to 4 billion.
  • You think the idea of climate change is scary? Earth’s ecology gets absolutely demolished in Revelation chapter 8. The wind even stops in chapter 7.
  • God pours out so much wrath on the planet and its occupants that people abandon large portions of it and move somewhere else (picture Detroit as its population fell, but on a much larger scale). Of all places, Babylon, code for the famous city of Rome, becomes very important; I’m not sure if it actually becomes the global capital or if it sort of becomes symbolic of global debauchery and sin, sort of like how Vegas is for the U.S., and people consolidate there (Revelation chapters 16ish to 18).
  • At least one off-the-scale earthquake takes place (Revelation 16:18).
  • Slavery makes a comeback (Revelation 18:11-13).
  • There will be two missionaries that are invincible for a time, who speak truth to power so effectively that people can’t stand hearing their testimony and try unsuccessfully to kill them. They defend themselves like something you’d see in an X-Men movie, but watch out for the guy that eventually does kill them…he’s super bad news and will seem like he’s awesome, but believe me, he’s not somebody you should follow. Those two witnesses/missionaries also won’t let death keep them down. There will be some worldwide celebration for a few days after they’re killed, but the world will get a shock when the two of them get up again three and a half days after their death (Revelation 11:1-12).

Look, I don’t envy you. I’m writing this in August of 2022, and the past couple years have been pretty nuts from my perspective, but they pale in comparison to what you’re living through. Dig into the Bible, spread the word, and find other believers to encourage and be encouraged by. Dark days are ahead, and you’ll be hunted. If you turn to God, repent, and give your life to Him, He’ll give you what you need to make it to the end.

Don’t give up. It’s going to be worth it.

Want to learn more about specific Biblical references on the End Times? See http://peoplegetready.org/end-times/150-chapters-bible-times/

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It’s A Good Idea To Have Some Backup

In my younger days I thought it’d be cool to get SCUBA certified, so while I was stationed in coastal Virginia with the Air Force, I found a dive shop and got signed up for the course.

I had been on a few “escorted” dives prior to that, and I enjoyed them, so I figured this would be a fun hobby to get into. The course was split up into sections; we had classwork, pool time, and time in a lake.

The academic work made sense to me, and the pool time was a good warm up as far as familiarization with adjusting equipment and figuring out how to operate underwater. The lake was the part I was looking forward to, though.

When the day finally came, we showed up and went over a few things from class. Then we went over the dive plan and a map of the area where we’d be diving. Finally we paired off into teams of “dive buddies” and suited up.

It was much different from the pool. I didn’t wear a wetsuit; I wore a semi-dry suit, which made me very buoyant. It took just about all the extra weight I owned just to maintain neutral buoyancy. The instructors helped me with a few tricks and some extra weight, and got me ready to go. After we got our equipment situated to our liking, we began the dive.

It started off fine. We followed the plan, moving from one underwater landmark to the next without a problem. Over time though, something started feeling wrong. The buckle holding my air tank in place somehow came loose. The tank began sliding out of place, moving down my back.

Because of where the buckle was located and how the tank was seated, I couldn’t get the leverage or the reach to fix things on my own. My dive buddy was in front of me, and I tapped him on the leg to get his attention. He turned to look, and I pointed over my shoulder at my tank, but I guess what I was trying to communicate wasn’t very obvious. He turned back around and kept swimming according to our dive plan. I grabbed him and pointed again to my tank, making more exaggerated gestures. (It was frustrating being so close to someone without being able to talk to them!)

He finally figured out what I was getting at. I turned my back to him, he slid the tank into the right position and locked the buckle in place. After that I was good to go and we were able to resume the dive according to the original plan.

Sometimes, you just need a buddy. My prayer is that something I write on this blog helps encourage you to step out in faith and use the gifts God’s given you to bring glory to Him. My hope is that the fruit of your efforts goes way beyond anything you thought it would be, but make no mistake: if you attempt to give God glory, you’ll run into opposition. You’re going to get discouraged. You’re going to get knocked down. Having a buddy to help you get back on your feet is a great asset to have.

A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. –Ecclesiastes 4:12

As you embark on your efforts to employ your God-given gifts and talents, keep your buddy/buddies close, and be quick to lend a hand when they get knocked down, too.

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It’s Time to Cowboy Up

The apostle Paul, in his closing salutation to the Colossians, made a unique remark to the readers of his letter.

In the second to last verse in the whole book, he told them something to pass along to somebody he knew, somebody named Archippus. I don’t know exactly who he was, some think he was probably the son of Philemon (as in…the book of Philemon, verse 2). In Colossians 4, verse 17, Paul says And say to Archippus, “Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you may fulfill it.”

It’s so simple that you may have read right over it without even thinking about it. Why would this text even be included in the letter?

My guess is that Archippus was like a lot of us. I’m openly speculating here, but I’d guess Archippus was waffling about proceeding with the charge God had given him.

We read the well-known Bible stories and think “well, yeah, if God talked to me from a burning bush, I’d know what He wanted me to do, too!” Gideon got two chances to make sure he really got the message and that God wasn’t just messing with him.

For the rest of us though, God’s calling can be a lot more subtle. Sometimes it takes a lot of prayer, seeking, and waiting. Other times it’s dropped in your lap. Once you know it, though, you’re on the hook. It’s not just a dreamy “someday goal,” it’s something you’ve been charged by God to do, and it’s up to you to take steps toward making it happen.

It’s a sobering thing. Receiving a calling, great or small, means you have the opportunity to rise to the occasion. It’s God saying “okay, now let’s see how you do with this one.” It means you have the chance to step out in faith and act in obedience in a way that will enable you to look back later in life and be proud that you chose to honor the Lord when He gave you the invitation. You might take it, you might not; nobody’s going to make you. I don’t know what level of sadness is possible in Heaven, but I imagine that remembering lost opportunities on Earth to worship the King of Kings is probably one of the saddest things you could dwell on.

So with that perspective, I’d love to encourage anyone like Archippus…do it. Follow through. Take heart, because God you this charge…this ministry…for a reason. You might not learn it this side of Heaven, but it will all become clear someday. Fulfill that calling, and think of it as performing an act of worship.

Need a little motivation and a reminder about who you are? Check out this video. Take note of the thoughts you have while watching it, and don’t be afraid to take action.

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Your Tax Dollars (Not) at Work

Hiding on Grandma’s couch is one of the only things this camo pattern’s good for

Right after Basic Training I got shuttled off to another section of Lackland Air Force Base near San Antonio, TX. It was here I began the long road to become an instructor for Survival, Evasion, Resistance, & Escape, or SERE.

Of course, right after Basic, you’re not much good for anything aside from doing what you’re told. It’s nothing personal…you just don’t know anything yet. You have to hang around for awhile and learn how things are done (sadly, the thing that makes the most sense isn’t commonly done). Our first week or so after arriving at SERE was spent doing what we call “in-processing,” which in our case consisted of some paperwork and sitting around listening to lots of briefings. We didn’t interact with the SERE instructors during that week other than to say “hi, we’re here;” we did our in-processing en masse with administrative troops that did it full time.

One day, probably the week after we finished all our in-processing, I think our instructors had some stuff they had to take care of at the school building, so they sent us back to our dorms to do our details…where we cleaned up and were supposed to make the place shine. One thing that’s important to understand…this was in early 2004; we were in the midst of two wars and the military infrastructure to support them was crying uncle in some places. Rumor had it that the dorms we were staying in had been condemned, but had been pressed back into service for the war effort. We could do our details for weeks, but it was only going to make the place look so nice, you know? Sending students to do details in the dorms was just a way of keeping them out of our instructors’ closely cropped hair for awhile.

Now I was still pretty new to this, but apparently we didn’t get sent back to the dorms to do details very often, and when we did, it was seen as a great opportunity to goof off. The training was pretty intense, so having some free time was a nice thing to have, because we were all wound up pretty tight.

I guess I happened to be standing in the wrong place at the wrong time. One of the more senior students pointed at me and said “You, you’re on Sergeant watch.” He sat me by a window where I could see the main entrance to our building. If I saw anybody that wasn’t a student approaching the entrance, especially any of the SERE instructors, I was supposed to raise the alarm.

I have no idea what everyone else was doing, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t what we were supposed to be doing. If one of our instructors had snuck in the back door and caught us, we would have paid pretty dearly for it. I was still young enough in my Air Force career not to know it, but punishment through physical exercise was something you come to embrace in SERE Indoctrination. Uniform look like garbage? Get down and start doing flutter kicks. Is your hair too long? That’s a set of pushups for each hair that’s touching one of your ears. Suffer an egregious lapse in judgment during the weekend? Heaven help you.

After staring hard out the window for awhile, one of our SERE instructors rounded the corner of the building, heading toward our door. I was still so new that I didn’t even know the guy’s name. “It’s Sergeant…one of the sergeants is walking up the path!”

One of the more senior students rushed to the window to get a better look, and sure enough, he saw Joe walking toward the front door. With a muttered curse, he ran out of the room and down the hallway, letting everyone know they needed to look busy…now. About 10 seconds later, guys were mopping the halls, vacuuming the Day Room, washing windows, dusting stuff that didn’t have a speck of dust on it, and scrubbing stuff you never even thought about scrubbing.

Joe wasn’t a sadistic dude, but if he had caught us goofing off, he would have dropped the hammer on us! It would have been one of those “everybody do pushups until I get tired” moments. Then after hearing us struggle for awhile he would have said “are you getting tired?” When we said yes, he would have said “okay, roll over on your backs and start doing flutter kicks.”

I wouldn’t say we performed our duty in an honorable way that day, but it provides a different bit of context to a famous Bible verse about being watchful. First Peter 5:8 says Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

I don’t think Joe came there to try to catch us doing something we weren’t supposed to be doing. He was probably just coming to the dorms to say “okay, we’re ready for you to come back now,” but if he had seen what we were actually doing, you can bet he would have devoured every last one of us. Whether he was intentionally trying to catch us or if he caught us as targets of opportunity, the result would have been the same: we’d be toast.

The devil is the same way. Constantly on the prowl, he’s looking for believers to devour. I don’t think he bothers too much with nonbelievers…he already owns them, so why would he waste effort on them? He’s looking for enemies to pick off. Sometimes he’s targeting a firmly planted Christian through an ongoing campaign against them, and other times he comes across a Christian that’s teetering on the edge of something they’re not supposed to be doing. If he sees that, he’ll put his campaign on pause and pounce on the target of opportunity. Enticing that believer to sin enables a whole host of tools that can be used against them to cripple their effectiveness as the hands and feet of God (guilt, shame, desensitizing of sin, fear, doubt, follow-on consequences, etc.).

Therefore, as Peter says, be on your guard and on high alert, because your enemy’s looking for an opening where he can nail you. Don’t give him the opportunity.

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Quick Hit: The Power of Perception

I recently came across a thought-provoking quote from John MacArthur:

“Satan continues his efforts to make sin less offensive, heaven less appealing, hell less horrific, and the Gospel less urgent.”

It is impossible to put into words exactly how important it is that people make the switch from Hell to Heaven. This quote reminds us that even though the world continues to reject Christ and that its rejection of Him will become more emphatic, all Christians have received spiritual gifts and that if they haven’t already received a commission about how to use them, they will someday.

While nobody can predict how God will use them, He’ll put those gifts to work to bring revival, to bring comfort, to work salvation, to build up other Christians, and to spread the gospel. God can counter each and every portion of Satan’s advances in that quote, but He does it through people like you. The challenge is that you decide whether you take part in the calling God has presented to you. Try to live your life in a manner that when you come to the end of it, you won’t look back and say “I wish I’d tried harder to fulfill the calling God gave me.”

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A Sneak Peek at the 2024 Election

I know we’ve still got a midterm election to get through this year, but let’s just jump ahead a little bit to the 2024 presidential election.

If you’re a Democratic strategist, you’ve got a dilemma on your hands. From a polling perspective, President Biden is a disaster. Elections aren’t won by Democratic voters or Republican voters; they’re won by independent voters, and those voters have abandoned Biden in droves.

Let’s take a look at the landscape. Less than 25% of those polled earlier this week believe the country is headed in the right direction. The average cost of a gallon of gasoline has nearly doubled since Biden took office, the supply chain problems still aren’t fixed, we’re heading into a recession, the war in Ukraine is having all kinds of ripple effects, the southern border is a hot mess, the Afghanistan withdrawal was completely botched, the prioritization of social issues over actual education in schools means kids are able to do less and less academically, we don’t know if inflation has peaked yet, and a variety of other minor crises are inflicting damage on the president’s credibility. Many in his party think he’s become too radical, and other members of his party think he’s not radical enough. He’s the oldest person to ever hold the office; while there are some people that could do the job at his age, Americans are increasingly realizing that he’s simply not one of those people. Barring a string of miracles in his favor, there are very few scenarios where Joe Biden can win re-election. The last time a Democratic president with inflation numbers like this who were in office during a time with a general sense of national gloom like today’s ran for re-election, he got absolutely stomped by a Republican candidate who offered an optimistic vision for the country.

So, Democratic strategist, what do you do?

Let’s be honest. You can’t begin serious talk of ditching him for another democratic presidential candidate until after the midterms. There are some feelers out there now, and that’s sort of a way of introducing the idea to the public and seeing how the idea is received. Democrats are likely to take a beating in the midterms, and at this point that’s almost a foregone conclusion. Many people are sick and tired of President Biden, but those election results will provide part of the justification for beginning the process of dumping him.

Personally, I think it’s safe to say at this point, just over four months before the election, that the Democrats will lose the House, but I’m not sure by how much. Once that happens open rebellion in the Democratic Party will follow, but I’ll add that the magnitude of the loss will help determine how civil the mutiny is. If the president can be convinced to avoid running again, I honestly think that would be the best thing for the Democrats. If he decides to stick it out, there will be a messy civil war among the Dems, and just trying to fend off a challenge could take so much out of the President that it seriously affects his health. If voters get enough traction to conduct a primary for the Democratic candidate for President, President Biden will lose it and he won’t end up receiving the nomination in ’24. If not, and Biden’s the candidate, he’ll lose in the general election against pretty much anyone.

What about over on the Republican side? I think that’s also lined with pitfalls. The big question mark, of course, is Donald Trump. I’m inclined to think that he’ll announce his intentions soon after the midterm elections. He’s developed a personal following that’s unheard of for Republican politicians, but his support seems to vacillate widely. Some people were so turned off by his style that they voted for Biden in ’20 just so they wouldn’t have to see news coverage of him anymore, but now that they’re living with the fallout of that decision, they may be open to voting for Trump and his policies next time (cheap gas, secure borders, a stable economy, making the lives of Americans better before we make the lives of people in other countries better, etc.). On the other hand, nobody truly knows for sure what kind of “revenge tour” he’d go on if he were sworn in once again. It’s tough to imagine he’d completely ignore the actions of people he perceives as having wronged him.

There are a couple of very capable contenders on the bench. Mike Pence has plenty of experience and has many of the same policy stances as former President Trump, but without the drama. I believe he could beat Biden, but he’s very vanilla and lacks any sort of charisma, which, sad to say, would be enough to allow someone that’s all flash and no substance to beat him in ’28.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is someone to keep an eye on. Lots of Republican politicians (George W. Bush and Mitt Romney, to name a few) felt that if they played nice, the media would respect them and eventually treat them well. That belief is nowhere near reality. Donald Trump figured out “the media’s never going to love me, so why bother playing the game their way?” He did it his way, but he did it so brashly and coarsely that it made some voters ignore the success of his policies and fixate only on the persona. Governor DeSantis is not afraid to push back against the media and some of the loud voices on the left, but he’s able to do it effectively and in a way that’s more palatable to voters. Since he embodies many of the same policy positions that Trump does, this makes him particularly dangerous to Democrats.

The Republican side has a number of additional contenders beyond those early frontrunners (Nikki Haley, Ted Cruz, Mike Pompeo, Tim Scott), though I’d offer that governors tend to make better presidents than senators because they already have experience leading large multi-agency government organizations that have competing interests. Unfortunately these days, you don’t need to have good experience, you just have to be funny or cool on late-night talk shows and you’ll probably win the election.

This raises an obvious question on the Democratic side: if not Biden, who?

The bench is not nearly as deep. The Democratic Party is in sore need of some new blood. Hillary Clinton and Nancy Pelosi come to mind, but their age and baggage are also concerns.

Kamala Harris seems to be a VP of more style than substance. President Biden has put her in charge of such things as addressing the border surge, passing the voting rights act, and most recently, the “Ministry of Gender Truth.” Her efforts may be spun as exceptional, but results seem to be lacking.

Pete Buttigieg is an up-and-comer, but he’s still trying to shake off the bad optics of taking nearly two months of paternity leave while the nation floundered with its supply chain crisis…not a good look for the Secretary of Transportation.

Strangely enough, there are some people from outside the political world that could make a strong showing. With the right campaign manager, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson would have a great shot in the general if he could somehow beat everyone else in the primary. Billionaire Mark Cuban could also make a splash, but Washington political animals tend to shrug off the idea of helping a non-politician lead their party. Retired Admiral William McRaven could be a dark horse.

All this to say…the midterm elections are probably going to be the beginning of the end of President Biden. Whatever your political persuasion…do YOU want to be working one of the most demanding jobs in the world when you’re blowing out a birthday cake that has 80 candles on top? I don’t think I’m alone in saying that it would be beneficial for Democrats if the president didn’t run in 2024. Retirement can be a wonderful thing, but it’s way more enjoyable if you get there on your own terms rather than being forced into it.

Lord, we know that nobody ascends to power without your permission. We’ve got a very divided nation right now, and our land is sorely in need of healing. For both the midterms and the next national election after that, please make it clear to us who will either honor You directly or who will establish conditions that allow many others to honor you. I ask in Your name, Amen.

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I Fail To See…Anything at All…

My wife and I have been married for 16 years now, and it’s been good. Our personalities complement each other, we have lots of laughs, and of course, we’re still learning together, especially when it comes to parenting.

One thing that’s kind of funny about our relationship, though, is a scenario that my wife continually finds herself in, but often doesn’t anticipate. She, like many people, sometimes stands up too fast, stretches, and then gets lightheaded.

There have been numerous times in our marriage when I see it coming, but she doesn’t. In the past I’ve been brushing my teeth, puttering around in the kitchen, coming down the stairs, or doing something else, and I’ll hear her stand up and stretch. At that point I know I’ve got a few beats to get there in time to catch her when her vision tunnels or goes dark. Sometimes the stretch lasts long enough that the muscles steal all the blood from her head and she starts to slump mid-stretch.

She can handle it herself, of course. It’s not like she’s helpless and passes out if it happens when I’m not around. The point is that I see it coming and she doesn’t. Sometimes I know her better than she knows herself.

God’s like that too. He knows you better than you do. I think each of us probably believes we know what’s best for us, and sometimes we maybe even think we know better than God.

“God, why haven’t I won the lottery yet?” “Because if you did, it would destroy your life.”

Or maybe “God, I think you blew it. I should have gotten that job.” “I can see why you think that, but if you did, you’d be focusing your energy somewhere other than where I want you to focus it right now.”

You may have prayed “God, I’m still waiting for that spouse/child to come into my life.” “Yes I know, but I have you doing something more important at the moment.”

There are endless reasons why God doesn’t follow your timetable or path. I don’t know why He does some things in certain ways, but I know He knows us better than we know ourselves. As we go through our lives endlessly wondering why He chose to make us take detours or experience setbacks, it can be painful, but remember that in light of His intimate knowledge of us, there’s probably at least one purpose behind it, even if we don’t know what it is.

Lord, it’s not too bad to trust You with certain areas of my life, but it can be really hard to trust You with EVERY area of my life. I know You know me best; please help me to accept that Your ways are higher than my ways, that it’s intentional when you slow me down as I’m ready to run ahead, and that whatever happens today is part of the preparation for tomorrow. Thank you for blessing me the ways You have. In Your name, Amen.

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Of Course THAT’S When She Walked Through the Door!

Years ago I found myself bringing my toddler son out in our backyard to give him a change of scenery. He was a curious little guy, and sometimes even just bringing him to a different room or out in the backyard kept him busy for a little while.

Our yard at the time was very small, but it had plenty of stuff for my little guy to explore. It was fenced in, had an HVAC condenser unit, a shed, and a little sandbox. There was always something to clean up back there, so I busied myself doing that while my son set about exploring his environment.

I think I noticed a strange look on his face right around the same time my wife came outside to join us. Having “Mom Radar,” she spotted his expression right away and hurried over to him and opened up his mouth. To her disgust, my son had picked up a little Roly-Poly (a pillbug) and put it in his mouth. She fished it out while half laughing and half scolding her husband. If only she were married to someone responsible, he could be trusted to care for the well being of this little boy out in the backyard!

Man, I blew it. Daddy fail. There are other fails, but this is probably one of the more mild ones. I still have the teenage years ahead of me, so I’m probably going to blow it on multiple occasions when the stakes are higher.

This Sunday is Father’s Day. Everyone out there has a father. Maybe you have a fabulous relationship with your dad. You may have had a terrible father. You may not have ever met your dad. Whatever the case may be, I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that if he hasn’t already, your dad is probably going to let you down at least once (I’m certainly no exception). Even if he loves you, he’s human, and humans make lots of mistakes. (It’s not a dig at you, Dad!)

I can also guarantee you, though, that not only does your Heavenly Father love you, but He does NOT make mistakes. He loves you enough to rebuke you, to discipline you, and to steer you in the direction He wants you to go in, even if it’s not the direction you’re trying to go. Whereas I try to let my kids be kids and encourage them in some of their interests without knowing what they’ll someday become, the Lord controls different aspects of your life to get you to arrive exactly where He wants you to be, right when He wants you to be there, with the right experience already under your belt.

Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand. –Proverbs 19:21

“And I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me,” Says the Lord Almighty. -2 Corinthians 6:18

Happy Father’s Day to the dads out there!

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The Physics of Sin

It’s been a long time since I’ve done it, but years ago I got scuba certified. As you might expect, there’s a lot more to it than just grabbing an air tank and jumping into the water. I found learning about some of the physics behind it to be very interesting. I know not everybody is a math person, so I’ll try to keep it pretty general.

Scuba diving is all about pressure. Before we get in the water we’re only dealing with the weight of air on us. If you’re standing on the shore at sea level, the weight of all the air above you equates to a little less than 15 pounds per square inch (psi). That’s not much, considering how many miles up that column of air extends. This level, 14.69 psi, is known as one atmosphere.

The water is a completely different story. Since water weighs so much more than air, a column of only about 34 feet of water exerts the same amount of pressure as one atmosphere. Standing at the ocean’s edge you have one atmosphere pressing down on you. Scuba diving 34 feet deep, you have two atmospheres pressing down on you (one air and one water).

Moving from sea level to 34 feet under the surface causes the pressure that’s exerted on your body to increase by 100%, to nearly 30 psi. It’s definitely noticeable. If you move another 34 feet deeper, you have a total of three atmospheres (almost 45 psi) pressing on your body. The same amount of air pressure in your tank offers differing amounts of breathable air at various depths because there needs to be enough “oomph” in your air tank(s) to overcome the water pressure to make it through the regulator, hoses, and into your lungs. That excess “oomph” is what determines how much air is available for you to breathe. The deeper you go, the less time you can stay there.

Here’s the kicker: as you’re descending deeper, you notice the biggest pressure difference early on, and even though you’re still descending, the rate of increase gets less noticeable the deeper you go. Ever dive deep into a pool or a lake? You probably had to plug your nose and equalize the pressure in your head/ears before you went 10-12 feet deep because it felt like there was a huge increase in pressure. Mathematically, moving from one to two atmospheres is a 100% increase. Moving from two to three atmospheres is an increase of only 50%. Moving from three to four atmospheres is an increase of only 33%. The further you go, going even further feels like less of a big deal.

Sin is like that too. When you first encounter something you know is wrong, it’s easy to identify as being wrong. Once you start accepting it, rationalizing it away, or getting comfortable with it, it becomes more difficult to think of as being “wrong.” You start to accept additional things you formerly would’ve rejected outright. Once you make the jump from “one atmosphere” to two, it becomes easier to move to the third, and from there to the fourth.

What’s the bottom line? If you know it’s wrong, don’t do it. Don’t compromise. The more you compromise on living a God-honoring life, the more you’ll be willing to make subsequent concessions. Stay in that area near the surface, where you’re still sensitive to small changes in pressure and where going only 10 feet down becomes painful.

Our world is changing. Things that were once considered unspeakable are now commonplace and even endorsed. God’s view of sin has not changed, so neither should ours. We’re all sinners, and we all need the salvation Christ offers. Everyone needs to hear about it (God loves each and every person He’s created, so we shouldn’t play favorites), and you may be the only way someone encounters the truth. The truth will be more evident in your life if you’re living the way God wants.

Lord Jesus, thank you for creating this wonderful world and even giving us examples from science! Help us all be sensitive about the things in our lives that we should not allow to be there. Also help us to avoid a “holier than thou” attitude and be willing to genuinely reach the “tax collectors and sinners” of the Bible. Praise You for what You’ve done for us! In Your name, Amen.

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What can Christians Learn From Pee Wee Basketball?

Ever see a youth basketball game? If you’re a competitive parent (or even just a parent that enjoys watching a team play as a well-oiled machine), it can be excruciating to watch.

Two of my kids played in a local league this spring. It was their first year playing, and they only practiced once a week. In a case like this it’s important to temper expectations, because they’re not gonna become professional-caliber players over the course of a single season, especially if they’re only practicing once a week.

The games early in the season were somewhere between comical and horrendous. For kids that haven’t played before, or who don’t have much experience, the first few games are for becoming familiar with the rules and the mechanics of the game. “This is how you start a game,” “put your hands up when defending,” “this is what you do during foul shots,” “this is how you set up your defense.” They all get better over time, of course, but early in the season, things are just ugly.

One girl on the team got so excited when she got the ball, she just started running down the court with it rugby style, forgetting to dribble. I saw one boy so focused on getting to his defensive zone that he didn’t pay any attention to the fact that he was clearing the way to the basket for someone on the opposite team, who was dribbling down the court right behind him. One kid can dribble like a fiend with his right hand; he dribbles circles around the opposition, but it’s because he can’t dribble back the other direction. Then there’s the kid that’s super fast. He gets the ball and sprints down the court on a fast break, but he doesn’t look up. By the time he realizes he should slow down to take a shot, it’s already too late and the ball gets away from him, flying out of bounds and thus into the hands of the other team.

It’s been interesting to observe how the officiating has changed over the course of the season. Early on when things were just dog-ugly, the referees were pretty lenient. There were lots of “teachable moments” that occurred, but you’d have to do something pretty egregious to get the whistle blown. Double dribbles, travels, over-the-back fouls…the refs let them get away with stuff in the beginning because the kids were still learning a lot about how this whole thing worked. As the weeks went on, the officiating got a little tighter because the kids got enough experience to be able to know better. “Oh that’s right, I can’t do that. I’ll have to play cleaner next time.” Over the course of a season, there’s a vast improvement from the first week to the final week. Even a small amount of consistent practice and playing according to instruction helps the players become much more proficient.

Superimpose this metaphor on the Christian life. Early in our walk with God, there are probably times He feels just like a coach of a youth basketball team as one of his players dribbles the ball in the wrong direction and takes a shot at the wrong basket. Even if that player is terrible at what they’re doing, they can improve by leaps and bounds if they’re willing to be shaped and molded and to follow the coach’s instructions. Same thing with Christians. In the long run, a kid with mediocre talent and a willingness to be shaped will be more valuable than a kid with a lot of talent and a stubborn resistance to the coach’s instructions or strategy. With dedication and time the kid will mature and have a greater awareness of what’s happening on the court, and as they develop more skills they’ll have more opportunities to make a positive impact for their team. Same deal for those that follow Jesus.

Wherever you are in this metaphor’s spectrum, don’t rob yourself of the opportunity to be shaped and get better. Our coach is willing to work with you one on one to get you thinking more like Him, to work on your weak spots, and to get you doing drills that will prepare you for the next challenge. Spend time with Him, preferably way more than once a week, and you’ll probably notice yourself developing more awareness of how events are unfolding around you and a greater capacity to help your team out. You’ve got some talent in raw form; let’s see what happens when Coach guides you to where He wants you to be.

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I Am Dangerous…In a Good Way

I’m not gonna lie, I’m pretty excited about the widespread release of Top Gun: Maverick tomorrow.

I was too young to enjoy the original movie when it first came out, but after I saw it, it instantly became one of those movies that was easy to quote back and forth with other fans of classic 80’s movies.

(For the record, I’m still miffed about the studio whitewashing history in order to avoid offending China, but I’m hoping the rest of the movie will make up for it.)

I don’t go to the movie theater as much as I used to, but I’m going to make a solid effort to get there for this one. I thought about trying to see it in IMAX, but was afraid I’d get motion sick or something. As it is, I already bring earplugs to wear when I go to the movies. (I’m an aspiring grumpy old man. I’ll probably wear a cardigan and shake my fist at the screen while shouting “turn that infernal racket down!”)

This is a unique case; the sequel was made more than 35 years after the original. It makes you think back to some of the scenes from the first movie. Set in the Cold War, the whole film is about these cocky hot-shot fighter crews that go to a highly competitive school where they’re trained to be even more aggressive than they already are. There’s a lot of exciting aerial photography, tense rivalries, and high-octane action that plays well on the screen.

Uh oh. Five enemy aircraft inbound.

In the climax of the movie, two American fighter crews get into a fight with five enemy fighters. One of the American planes is the first casualty in the fight, leaving a sole U.S. fighter to contend with five enemy aircraft until help arrives. Fresh out of super-aggressive school, the remaining pilot announces “three MiGs dead ahead, coming down the left side. I’m going after them!”

Is this guy for real? This is insane! He’s outnumbered five to one, and he’s still thinking in terms of being on offense! Dude, you need to tuck tail and run if you want to survive!

And yet…it’s what Christians are called to do.

I’ve got some sobering news for you. If you’re a Christian that wants to let Christ shine through you in a world of darkness…that dark world is guaranteed to push back at you. The attacks will get personal, and they will exact a price from you. Yet He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

If you’re truly living a life that glorifies God and aims to strike deep at the kingdom of darkness, expect that opposition to be even greater. You will appear to be the underdog, but you’re supposed to be the underdog. If your actions are a cakewalk, that doesn’t bring God a whole lot of glory, now does it?

I heard something interesting awhile back. Aside from “praise the Lord,” did you know that the most common command in the entire Bible is some form of “do not fear?”

What’s the significance of that command’s frequency? It’s probably important to reflect on all the promises God made to His people, including promises to be with us, to provide for us, and to empower us to do His will. To me that sounds a lot like He wanted to set us up to be secure enough in His love and provision to be aggressive in living our lives for Him.

You’ll mess up. You’ll wonder if you’re doing the right thing. That comes with the territory. Stay true to the commands God laid out in scripture and He’ll be able to use you for great things even if failure is an old friend of yours.

The next time you have the choice of “bugging out” and running away from the challenge or standing to face something you know will be difficult, remember to focus on your security in Christ, knowing that if He’s prompting you to follow a certain course, He’s also prepared the way for you.

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God Hasn’t Changed One Bit

About a year ago we had a brief reunion to celebrate some milestone birthdays in our family. It was a special time where we got together with loved ones, some of which I hadn’t seen in about 15 years. I also returned to my uncle’s house for the first time in 25 years. It was a wonderful time of celebration and it was so good to catch up with everyone.

In the course of traveling to the get-together, we spent a couple nights at my parents’ house. This is the house where I grew up, and now I’m bringing my kids there for visits.

Although my whole family’s been to my parents’ house plenty of times, on this particular occasion I took the opportunity to take a walk by myself around the neighborhood and see what things looked like.

There were parts of the neighborhood I haven’t seen for probably 15 years or more, but it had been 30 or so since I really knew it well. So many memories came back as I walked around (some of which I’ve written about before). I used to cut through that backyard all the time on my bike until the owner yelled at me for leaving bike tracks in his lawn. I got stuck in the mud when that house was new. I wonder whatever happened to the people that used to live here? I helped build that house right there. Oh wow, those people were awesome, I wonder how they’re doing?! Don’t go trick-or-treating there, that lady hands out little boxes of raisins. Here’s the hill that a friend and I went flying down on a piece of plywood nailed to a skateboard. A bunch of us did backyard wrestling all the time right over there on that grass.

It was crazy to see how much things changed, but at the same time how much they stayed the same. Like going back to visit your elementary school as an adult, the place just kinda seemed smaller than I remembered. Trees that were small when I was young had now reached full size, while others had been removed. That house looks like it’s in shambles, but that one looks great. Between when I lived there as a kid and when I went for a walk around the place, some houses in the neighborhood had been sold and resold an unknown number of times, but other houses still had the same owners. At the homes where my friends had lived (and where I had spent lots of time), I wondered what the insides of the houses looked like now. Was that crack in the drywall still there?

It was a bittersweet trip down memory lane. As a kid I recognized everyone’s car, but now if someone drove past and waved, I probably wouldn’t have a clue who it was. The weird part was that the driver could be someone that was a child the last time they passed me in a car.

Whether it’s houses, cars, or people, none of it lasts forever. Time relentlessly marches past, and the older we get, we become increasingly aware of how quickly it passes. I’m incredibly grateful that even though I’m becoming more and more aware of just how fleeting this life is, God hasn’t changed one bit in the entire time I’ve been walking this planet. Cultural shifts about what is and what isn’t acceptable continue to change, and so does conventional wisdom. Through it all though, the God watching over me today is the same one that set the planets in motion, who brought the Israelites out of slavery, and who blinded Saul on the road to Damascus. Only His covenants have changed, and they’ve only gotten better with time.

Of old you laid the foundation of the earth,
    and the heavens are the work of your hands.
They will perish, but you will remain;
    they will all wear out like a garment.
You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,
    but you are the same, and your years have no end. -Psalm 102:25-27

Praise be to the everlasting One, and all glory to the One who invites us to spend eternity with Him (in bodies that don’t degrade)!

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What can Those in the 2020s Learn From 1980s Sports Figures?

It’s aggravating to me to see the way people intentionally ratchet up tensions, even stoking violence, toward others that don’t share their same view of the world. Sadly, this is the new norm now, and it seems like it’s intensifying. Sometimes it’s tempting to use this site as a platform to unload on the people doing it. Rather than indulging in that right now, though, I thought I’d share a fun four-minute video I recently came across.

In the early 1980s, before Michael Jordan got hugely famous, some of the most dominant names in professional basketball were Irvin “Magic” Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers and Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics.

These guys could not stand each other. Both were exceptional talents, but they had a way of getting under each other’s skin and they developed a professional relationship that extended past rivalry and into hatred.

So in 1985 when the athletic shoe company Converse hired the two to shoot a commercial featuring the superstars playing each other one-on-one, nobody quite knew what to expect (least of all Johnson and Bird).

This video, Magic And Bird: A Rivalry Gives Way To Friendship, shows what can happen when some humanity is injected into a hate-filled situation.

There’s a radio station I listen to sometimes that says “the world is full of good people. If you can’t find one, be one.”

Hang in there. Better times are coming.

God, it’s bad out there. People seem like they’ve absolutely lost their minds. Please help us know when we should stand up and push back, and when we should be willing to take it on the chin. Help our pride not get in the way as we try to reflect You in the course of our daily lives, even if it means the other guy/gal walks away thinking they got the better of us. Their eternal destination is far more important than our bruised ego. In all things, may Your name be praised. Amen.

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Explainer: Supreme Court’s Leak

Greetings all…a quick update on some current events, just in case you haven’t been following recent developments regarding the leak of the Supreme Court’s pending decision on abortion.

I haven’t followed things super closely and I’m not well-versed in all aspects of this, but I’ll toss out some info you’re probably not hearing in the news.

Some quick background. Back in the early 1970s, Texas had a law that banned abortions. In a landmark case, Roe vs. Wade, the then-Supreme Court struck down the law, which effectively legalized abortion at the federal level (making it legally impossible for states to ban the practice in its own legislatures). I’m a little fuzzy on this part, but I believe there was some doubt among the public about the constitutionality of the decision. In other words, since the Constitution doesn’t mention abortion (or anything like it), how can laws about it be ruled unconstitutional?

The result was that this contentious issue, which at that point hadn’t really become the widely discussed issue it is now, was suddenly settled without even really having a national debate. Fast forward almost 50 years to where we are now. The issue has somehow come before the court once again (it’s not totally clear to me how the same issue can come before the court twice), and if this leaked decision is accurate, it looks like Roe vs. Wade will be overturned.

While this is great news for unwanted fetuses in our country that are just trying to make their way in this world, it’s easy to see how this will cause even more division in a country that’s already severely polarized. From a legal standpoint, the Supreme Court looks like it’s restoring the issue to neutral. That is, if there’s no federal stance on the matter, states are free to make their own laws about it. I heard someone describe the court as trying to legislate morality. Actually, it’s quite the opposite; this decision would unlegislate the existing pro-choice morality and enable state legislatures to decide according to the will of the people and representatives of those respective states. I think almost half of the states are set to ban abortion if the leaked decision is accurate.

Just touching very quickly on the leak itself. Decisions like this should not be leaked ahead of time. Whoever did it should be held accountable. With a conservative court, this decision doesn’t come as a shock; I’m inclined to think that whoever leaked it did so with the express intent to fire up the progressive base to the point where society would become so unhinged that the justices’ fear of societal meltdown would make them reconsider their decision. It’s meant to intimidate the court. As far as I know, no Supreme Court Justices read this blog, but if I’m wrong, your honor, I’d just like to remind you that there’s a reason this likeness is associated with the justice system:

If this leak turns out to be accurate, please let me offer one piece of advice. Don’t gloat. Yes, I know the pro-choice crowd would gloat if this decision comes down on their side, but that doesn’t mean pro-lifers should. Access to abortion can still be made law at the federal level if enough Senators and Representatives vote for it and get it to President Biden. It’s not looking likely at this point, but things can certainly change. Elections have consequences. In a cycle where Democrats are poised to take an absolute shellacking in the mid-terms, this is one of the key things they’ll latch onto, so expect to see and hear lots of advertisements about it as we draw nearer to elections in November. (Incidentally, Joe Biden voted to overturn Roe vs. Wade as a senator.)

I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the pregnant women that consider or undergo abortions. Of course pro-lifers don’t want abortions to occur, but that doesn’t mean you write off someone that’s done it. Many of the women or teens that get abortions are emotionally fragile, scared, and are being pressured by others to just “make the problem go away.” If they terminate the pregnancy, of course it’s a sad thing, but abandoning or shunning someone who’s had one isn’t going to help a shattered would-be mom heal from the grief that follows. If you’re a loved one of someone who recently had an abortion, please help them through this time that’s already very difficult without having someone they trust turn their back on them.

To those with unwanted or unplanned pregnancies, here’s a message you probably don’t hear enough: having a child when you’re not ready for it is a terrifying thought, but you can do this. Yes it’s going to be hard, and yes it’s going to be scary, but you know what? You can do it. The time in which we live is the most empowered that women have ever been, and you will be strong enough to make it through the hard times. Society doesn’t associate strong women with pro-life, but that’s a mistake. Even in the face of all the pressure you may be facing to just end it…there’s a child whose life depends on your decision. As a former fetus myself, I’m rootin’ for you, and for the lil’ guy/gal you’re carrying. You can do it, but you have to believe you can do it.

Lord, this country feels like it’s on fire, and society won’t get any more calm if abortions start getting banned. Please help the justices to focus only on the legal considerations of the question before them, and if the leak turns out to be accurate, help our nation as it adjusts to overturning nearly 50 years of norms. Finally, please encourage and strengthen the girls and women that are considering or have had abortions. Help them have hope, help them find support, and bless them in a special way. I ask in Jesus’ name, Amen.

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The Odds Don’t Get Any Better Than That

I used to have a colleague who had an interesting sign hanging up near his desk: “When you are dead, you don’t know that you are dead. It is difficult only for the others. It is the same when you are Stupid.”

It’s a humorous (and irreverent) take on things. Before you start wondering about whether or not other people think you’re stupid, let’s take this in a completely different direction. J

If you’re a gambler, you’re always hoping to hit the jackpot, right? Maybe you don’t go to Vegas, but sure, you pick up a couple of lottery tickets or scratchers at the gas station/supermarket every now and then. Imagine if, every time you played, you won at least enough money to cover the cost of the ticket(s) you bought. Once in awhile you might even score a $25 or $50 payout. Overall it ends up costing you nothing, there’s only upside, and there’s always the hope of scoring a big win.

Let’s combine the two anecdotes now. Somebody please explain to me how, if you believe death is the end of your existence (where you don’t even realize that you’re dead), it makes ANY sense at all to reject Christ. If you’re right and your consciousness just fades into oblivion, not caring about Christ isn’t a big deal, but if you’re wrong, you lose everything.

Tell me, what are you giving up by hearing what He’s all about, or even deciding to follow Him? If you give it some careful thought, the worst thing you can probably come up with is feeling like you’re unable to live the lifestyle you want to live. Think of it this way: if Christ is the real deal, He meets you where you are; to meet Him you don’t have to change anything about the way you live, but if you choose to buy in, you’ll want to make changes in your life. It’s all stuff you want to do.

This is a case where it ends up costing you nothing, and there’s only upside…vast upside. I like those odds. You might be very good at convincing yourself that religion isn’t your thing. Consider this: what if you’re wrong about Christ…and you’re betting eternity on it?

(Yes, I realize people give plenty of other reasons for not giving their lives to Christ besides this example, but if you’re one of those people, whatever other reason you come up with, ask yourself: “will that be good enough consolation during an eternity of suffering?”)

It doesn’t have to be that way. Just sayin’.

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The Dangerous, But Predictable, Erosion of Truth

Last week I talked about the shifting ground underneath our feet and the importance of having solid footing. “That’s all well and good,” you may say, “but what’s that look like in the course of living daily life?” Today I’d like to talk about an application. Today let’s examine the erosion of truth.

We’ve got an “Emperor’s new clothes” situation here. Our culture as a whole is afraid to define what a man is and what a woman is. Today’s topic has gained so much traction that even our most recent Supreme Court Justice during her confirmation hearing wriggled out of answering the question of defining what a woman is. While I certainly understand wanting to avoid being caught in an obvious trap during a confirmation hearing, the fact that anyone at this level of government was able to avoid answering such a simple question by saying “I’m not a biologist” testifies to the sad state of truth in our world today.

This post contains nothing hateful, but I imagine some will imply otherwise because of its “close minded, binary thinking.” America’s experience with COVID gave rise to the phrase “follow the science,” so I don’t see it as unreasonable for that phrase to apply in other areas of life.

Back before science got politicized to the degree it is today, this was an easy topic to address. Politics shouldn’t affect science. Biologically speaking, a human female has two X chromosomes, and a human male has an X and a Y chromosome. There is no fluidity in moving back and forth from one to the other, it’s established and set before birth. If you were born with an X and a Y chromosome, you are, and always will be, a dude. If you don’t like living as a dude, you might try to hide it, but you won’t ever change the fact that you’re a male. Dudes are able to undergo medical procedures and take hormones to make changes to their body, but they can’t change their chromosome makeup. If you’ve decided to undergo such things, medically speaking, you’ll always be a dude with an X and a Y chromosome that’s modified your body. (To be clear, this is a post about truth. It’s a completely separate discussion from your right to live according to your desired lifestyle.) Your appearance may fool me in some cases, but you can’t convince me that you were born a male and are now a female.

“That’s hateful!” Bullfeathers. Facts aren’t hateful, but they’re inconvenient if you embrace a worldview that’s based on things that aren’t true. Follow the science.

One of the clearest examples of this right now is the collegiate swimmer Lia Thomas. Lia Thomas was born with an X and a Y chromosome and got into competitive swimming. He then decided he wanted to compete in women’s swimming. Is it a sexist thing to say that Lia Thomas, born a male and possessing the musculature of a man, has an unfair competitive advantage over swimmers that were born females? I don’t know if “sexist” is the right word for it, but people definitely don’t want this thought expressed. Cranking up the fear to generate hesitation in speaking out against things like this is not an accident. If anyone is controlling your thoughts, they’re effectively controlling you, now aren’t they?

(As a brief aside here, if everyone’s concerned about fairness, the obvious solution is to move from a two-division class of sports (male and female) to an eight-division paradigm. One for males, one for females, one for those born male but now living as something they describe as other than male, one for those born female but now living as something they describe as other than female, and my favorites: the same four classes, but with all manner of performance-enhancing drugs being fair game. [I say that jokingly, but c’mon, out of those eight classes, which would YOU rather watch? Just don’t grow too attached to any of the competitors; I can’t imagine any of them will have a terribly long lifespan…])

“A person’s gender isn’t based only on science. It’s based partly on them knowing, and having a connection with who they really are.” Hmmm. Okay. How do you validate that knowledge? If you suspect you are something other than what your chromosomal makeup dictates, how do you confirm your suspicions? What test can you perform on a newborn that provides empirical results for this type of thing? If you want to use that line of thinking, what do you think about anorexics or bulimics that “know” they need to lose more weight? If they don’t even have the strength to get out of bed because they’re so underweight and undernourished, yet feel very strongly that they weigh too much, you must also believe they’re correct based on their strong feelings, is that true?

Regardless of gender or sex, every single person alive right now needs the love and forgiveness that comes from a relationship with Jesus Christ. I’m not saying the people discussed in this post can’t be geniuses, amazing friends, or really good people…I’m highlighting the degree to which the truth of something so basic has eroded in our society.

This is a single example of blurring the line between truth and lies. What is the ultimate goal of creating this uncertainty? As a religious fellow, I believe it’s ultimately Satan’s goal to taint every aspect of what God stands for and of how a person gets to Heaven. Lots of people believe in God or in Heaven and Hell, but they think that the way you get to Heaven is by being a good person or by living a good life. They have no idea that being a good person has nothing to do with it. According to the Bible, the single most important truth anyone can hear is that acceptance of Jesus Christ, who was both fully God and fully man, as their personal savior is the only way to enter Heaven and spend eternity in fellowship with God. You can never be good enough on your own.

If you’re Satan and you viciously hate everything about God, yet are powerless to harm Him, you will do everything within your power, working over the course of thousands of years, to distract from, water down, or erode that central truth. If the process of doing that requires you to employ a scorched-earth policy that causes confusion by eroding all basic truths, then so much the better.

I’ll say it again. According to the Bible, the single most important truth anyone can hear is that acceptance of Jesus Christ, who was both fully God and fully man, as their personal savior is the only way to enter Heaven and spend eternity in fellowship with God. You can never be good enough on your own. Let that truth ring out loud and clear, be repeated constantly, and define how you live your life.

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Don’t Underestimate the Importance of Solid Footing

After I passed the SERE Indoctrination course in Texas, the Air Force moved my fellow course graduates and I up to Fairchild Air Force Base in eastern Washington state. Fairchild AFB is the site of the Air Force’s main survival school.

In some ways the environment was more relaxed. The screening course was about two weeks long, but the upcoming course was six months long. With such a lengthy course that starts only twice a year, if you missed the start of one class, you could be waiting around for awhile before the next class began.

While waiting we had various tasks and activities to perform. We’d work out together in the mornings five days a week, with every Monday being a PT test that the rest of the Air Force only did once or twice a year. On Monday afternoons we’d do a 7-mile timed ruck march. The other afternoons during the week usually involved some sort of training in a section of the base where we could practice using an ax to fell trees or split wood, perform other firecraft training, or practice building shelters. Another afternoon was usually spent cleaning a particular building, repairing equipment, or prepping and resupplying stuff we’d used previously. Every now and then we’d spend a few overnights out in the forest somewhere, learning to use the skills and tricks we’d picked up.

One of the cool things we regularly got to do was grab our loaded rucks and pile into a bus and we’d get driven to state parks or national forests or some kind of wilderness that was open to public use, and we’d go on 10+ mile hikes to help prepare our bodies for the upcoming training. The only real rules given to us were that we had to carry a decent weight in our packs, we had to bring water, and we had to wear the boots we’d use in training, but aside from the boots we could wear whatever we wanted. It was a relaxed version of intense training and we’d get to apply more things we’d learned along the way.

About this time of year, April or May, we went for one of these hikes up in the mountains somewhere. There was still a lot of snow on the ground, but it was warm enough that the snowpack was melting.

Someone tell that goober that his survival vest doesn’t go with that outfit

We came to one spot where some small evergreens were sticking out of the snow. As we walked through the patch of trees, a few guys started sinking waist-deep into the snow. It was a total surprise to me. I had no clue what was going on…it almost seemed like some kind of snow shark was swimming around underneath us or something, picking us off one by one.

It turns out that during the winter, as the snow fell, the evergreens acted like umbrellas. The snow piled up around the outside of the trees, but near the trunk a snowless void remained. Weeks or months later when some unsuspecting Air Force students came walking along and got too close to the trees, the snow shifted underneath them and started to swallow them up. Though the trees looked small, their full height was hidden from view. In this picture, Carl walked right between two trees growing close together, and after sinking into the snow he had to get a hand up. The surface he had been walking on, despite its appearance, was not as solid as what he had imagined it to be.

Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up. -Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

We live in strange times. Up is down, black is white, right is wrong, and wrong is right. The snow that humanity stands on is shifting around us, leaving us in a state of confusion with unsteady footing. As the world goes off in search of today’s version of a moral compass (and gets ready to change it tomorrow), build your life not on the shifting footing of the world’s ideology, but on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ, which does not change.

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”-Matthew 7:24-27

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That Was Just a Warning Shot, God Doesn’t Miss

How tolerant is God?

We all make mistakes, right? Sometimes they’re accidental and sometimes we do the wrong thing even though we know it’s wrong. So…what’s God’s level of patience with us?

Fortunately, God often gives warnings before He gives punishments. We just need to be sensitive to hearing those warnings and being humble enough to change the thing we’re being warned about.

In the Old Testament we see a lot more examples of God “letting ‘em have it” as a result of bad behavior. In one instance, the book of Numbers, chapter 11, tells of a recently liberated Israel growing restless with God’s miraculous provision. By this point it had been over a year since God first provided manna, and the Israelites were getting pretty sick of it.

I can certainly understand how eating the same thing for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for over a year would get old. When you’re not carrying any spices, there are only so many ways you can alter the taste of something that’s already bland to start with. The first part of Numbers 11:1 says “Now when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused.” The notes in my study bible say that this wasn’t just a passing grumbling; their complaining was outward and loud. I can imagine God saying “Oh, I’m sorry, you’re not pleased with the fact that I spared you from the horrible plagues that beset your captors, then I set you free from bondage, and now I’m bringing you to a fruitful land you’ll call home? I’m feeding you what you need and your clothes and shoes aren’t wearing out, but I’m not moving fast enough for your liking? Did I miss anything, your highness?”

Moses wrote the book of Numbers, and sometimes it’s kind of funny to see how he was in a hurry or just didn’t feel like taking the time to elaborate as he wrote things down. Maybe writing materials were in short supply. Here’s verse 11:1 in its entirety. “Now when the people complained, it displeased the Lord; for the Lord heard it, and His anger was aroused. So the fire of the Lord burned among them, and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp.”

It seems like God doesn’t take the same approach these days. Imagine if He unleashed His wrath every time we did something displeasing to Him? There’d be nobody left!

Let’s consider what He did, though. Yeah, He let some of His anger off the chain, but He didn’t go as far as He could have. Israelites became known for their complaining. The fact that He focused His wrath “on the outskirts of the camp” suggests that He intentionally limited the damage. God doesn’t miss. It’s not clear how the fire started; I don’t know if we’re talking about raining literal fire down from Heaven or if it was “just” divine fire that sprung up in certain portions of the camp, but the outcome was the same…God made an example out of a relatively small number in order to serve as a warning to everyone else. The text doesn’t tell us who bore the brunt of God’s wrath that day, but from what we know about Him, I’ve got to think that they weren’t totally innocent of wrongdoing.

God tends to give warnings before He metes out punishment. In our current era, having people fall over dead doesn’t seem to be quite as common as in Bible times, but He has other ways of warning us to get back on track. A conscience is crucial for doing that. You’re also more likely to heed small warnings if you have a humble spirit. I can’t be sure, but I’m thinking the folks in Numbers 11 probably weren’t all that humble. God turned to straight up death and destruction as a warning. In your case, if you’re doing something you know you shouldn’t be doing, hopefully you’ve got enough humility that reading a post like this is enough to get you to say “you know what? I need to make some changes.”

God will give only so many warnings before He gives you over to the path you’re choosing. Are you doing something you know you shouldn’t be doing? If so, let this post serve as one of those warnings to you. It’s time to face the fact that changes must be made, and that you’re the one to do it.

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my thoughts.
See if there is any wicked way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting.

Psalm 139:23-24

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In the Interest of Interest

Money is probably one of the biggest obstacles for a person’s taking a leap of faith in terms of stepping out of their comfort zones to do something they feel God’s calling them to do. I bring this up now because interest rates are in the process of rising, and they’ll likely rise several more times over the coming year to help start getting a handle on inflation. To help try to make that obstacle a little easier to overcome, I’d like to spend some time today talking about how to pay less for stuff by getting better interest rates, which in turn, means you’re using the resources God’s provided you with wisely and can do more with those resources in your charge.

Ideally if you want to buy something, you’d pay it in full right then and there at the site of the transaction. Cash used to be the dominant way to do this, but it’s not nearly as common anymore. There are times, however, when you don’t have enough cash available (either in your wallet or in your bank account) to make a large purchase. You’ll likely need to borrow money from a bank or credit institution to cover the cost of a house or vehicle, for example. Those institutions, in turn, will charge you money for the service of borrowing their money. (You’ll make payments to them, but the total amount you hand over will be way more than the original amount you borrowed.)

Credit cards are a similar thing, but at the same time they’re a different animal. Debit cards are nice in the sense that they’re sort of the electronic version of cash. You purchase something with a debit card, and it takes the money right out of your account. Just like cash…if you don’t have enough for the purchase, you don’t get to walk away with the thing you’re trying to buy. A credit card, on the other hand, doesn’t require you to have enough money available to pay for whatever you’re buying. In fact, credit card companies would prefer that you not pay off your credit card bill in full, because it gives them the opportunity to charge you large amounts of money for the privilege of using the credit they’ve extended to you. Don’t get lured in by earning reward points. I’d recommend that if you’d like, you can use credit cards to purchase things you were going to buy anyway, but try not to use them for impulse buys. When making a purchase, if you don’t have the money to pay for it right then and there, consider whether or not it’s worth going into debt for.

Okay, so…let’s pretend you’re a lending company…either a credit card company, somewhere that gives out car loans, or a mortgage company. Someone you’ve never met applies to your company for some credit. Each time you lend money to someone, you’re making an investment in them that involves some amount of risk. What do you use in making your decision about whether or not to extend credit to them?

It turns out these organizations use something called a credit score. Every person’s track record of the way they’ve handled credit or debt in the past plays some role in their credit score. If the lending institution sees an applicant who has a very good credit score, they’ll view that applicant as a safer investment than someone with a low credit score. Those with a high score are more likely to be able to secure larger amounts of credit at cheaper rates.

If an applicant has a low (or worse, no) credit score, they’re seen as a risky bet. They may be approved for credit, but it will likely be in smaller amounts, and will almost surely pay higher interest rates. A higher risk means there’s a greater chance that they won’t reliably pay back the full amount of money owed. To offset this risk, institutions will grant the credit at higher interest rates. (Even if the applicant defaults, the money gained from the high interest rate helps recover some of the money they’ve initially laid out.) A bank’s favorite scenario? When a person with a high interest rate pays off the full balance, but does it as slowly as possible. The bank not only recovers its initial outlay, but also gets to pocket all that high interest as profit.

Now let’s look at it from the other side. If you’re applying for credit, you want to get money for the lowest possible interest rate. Your best bet is to build up your credit score before you even apply for credit. Credit scores run from a low of 300 to a highest possible 850. In general, a “good” score is 700 and up. An “excellent” score is anything above 800. Most people have a score that falls somewhere between 600 and 750.

What factors determine a credit score?

As it turns out, demonstrating good credit habits will naturally build your credit score. As you may expect, the biggest chunk comes from your track record of payments. Thirty-five percent of your credit score comes from your payment history. If you pay all your bills in full each month (including housing, installment loans, and credit cards), that’s 35% in your favor. It demonstrates reliability.

The next-largest chunk of your credit score (30%) comes from your credit usage. If you don’t pay off the balance in full each month, how big a balance do you carry over? What percentage of your available credit are you using? Carrying a balance on one or more credit card isn’t the end of the world, but if you want to raise your credit score, you definitely need to use no more than 30% of your credit line per account, and it would be even better to get those balances down to zero each month. Just because you have credit available doesn’t mean you should use it. Showing restraint works in your favor. Additionally, getting an account balance down to zero is a great thing, but if you close the account after doing so, it decreases the total credit available to you. If you’re still carrying hefty balances on other accounts, closing an account will mathematically increase the percentage of remaining credit you’re using, which could drop your score. It’s better to pay off the balance and then simply avoid adding any new debt to that account. If you really want to close the account you should wait until you’ve paid down more of your total debt.

Those two items, making payments on time and showing restraint in your credit usage, account for nearly two thirds of your credit score. If you want to improve your score, start there. The remaining 35% is broken up into smaller categories that will be less impactful in the immediate term, but play a significant role over a longer period of time.

Another 15% of your credit score comes from the length of credit history. How old are your oldest and newest accounts? What’s the average age of all accounts combined? There are a few other considerations in this category, but for the most part, you just have to have time on your side for this one. Keep reliably making those payments.

Ten percent of your credit score comes from your credit mix. There are fixed obligations (rent/mortgage, student loan payments, the cable bill, etc.), variable obligations (credit cards), and some that are sort of in between (the electric or water bill). Showing you can manage more than just one type shows you can handle the responsibility of credit. At only 10%, this isn’t a huge factor, but it still plays a part if you’re in the gray area between “poor” and “fair” or “fair” and “good.”

The final 10% comes from “new credit.” Don’t open lots of new accounts in a short period of time. Lenders will see a lot of new accounts and wonder why the credit you’ve already got isn’t enough. Is it due to mismanagement? Are you in some kind of financial trouble? It just adds a perception of risk to the mix.

A handful of items go into a basic credit score, but by demonstrating that you can handle various lines of credit, you also make yourself more likely to get the best rates. Access to better rates means you free up resources you can use in your pursuit of furthering God’s kingdom, however you’ve been called to do it.

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It’s Not About “Having” Time. It’s About “Making” Time.

As I’m sure you can guess, in some ways I never actually grew up.

One example of this is the fact that I still enjoy reading the Sunday comics. One of the comics I like the best is called “Pickles.” It’s a comic about an elderly couple, Earl and Opal, and the humor that occurs in their lives. For some reason I’ve always liked Earl. The top of his head pokes out from under his white hair, he’s got glasses, and he walks with a slight hunch. I’ve joked before that I’m a grumpy old man in training, but Earl’s an old man without the grump (most of the time).

I read one Pickles comic not long ago. Earl sits up in bed as he faces a new day, then gets up and shuffles to the bathroom. As he looks at himself in the mirror he begins to ponder his life. “Look at yourself Earl, you’re an old codger!” With still-mussed hair, he asks “When and how did this happen?”

He keeps reflecting on his life as he begins brushing his teeth. “One day you’re a young buck with the world at your feet…” In the final panel, “…and the next day you’re an old dude brushing your teeth with Preparation H.”

I’ve always enjoyed hearing from Earl, but in the back of my mind, I’m afraid the distance between where I am and where he is probably isn’t as large as I’d like to think. There are certain seasons of life that seem to drag, but overall the time flies.

Personally, I’ve never been slapped with the jarring wake-up call from a doctor that includes the words “it’s time to get your affairs in order.” If that day ever comes, I’m sure I’ll have regrets over the time I’ve wasted doing various things.

To shift gears for a moment, back when I was first starting this blog, there was a pretty sizable chunk of time where I had no ideas about what I’d call it. As far as I was concerned, the whole point of the blog was to bolster readers’ faith, encourage them to dig deeper in their relationship with Christ, and exhort them, even try to push them, to increase the amount of time and effort they give to the Lord. Heaven will have people that barely made it through the “pearly gates,” and of course we’ll be happy they’re there. There will also be those in Heaven with many jewels in their crown. I’m not focused on greed here, but I think Christians should aspire to receive ornate crowns. (We’ll be giving those crowns to the Lord anyway, so the only “tangible” benefit of having a highly decorated crown is to have more to offer back to God.) I want my writing to help people receive crowns that have more jewels than they otherwise would have. I’m not looking to foster a sense of greed; I want to encourage readers to live their lives in such a way that additional jewels are a natural byproduct of their lifestyle.

The way people will do that is by being willing to risk something in their pursuit of Christ and the life He wants them to live. Maybe it’s risking comfort, or being willing to stand up for Christ’s teachings when everyone else seems to be sitting down. In some way, it involves graduating from the role of a spectator or someone who watches from safety, and taking on the role of someone who “gets out of the boat” the way Peter did.

During this time of searching for a title, I attended a conference where I heard a quote from Teddy Roosevelt that embodied a lot of what had been swirling in my mind:

“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”

The quote instantly found a special place in my heart. Knowing Christ is a fantastic thing, and if you know Him, I’m very glad to hear it. Let’s not let the story end there, though. While most Christians live relatively quiet lives, there are some that are involved in making history; they affect God’s kingdom on a larger scale than they would have ever anticipated. It’s not because they themselves are great…it’s because they said “yes” when God offered them an invitation, and He did something great through them. Success (at least as we imagine it) is never assured, but each invitation has a purpose. As the world keeps getting darker, we’re going to need more history-makers. In order to get more history-makers, we need to help “everyday” Christians say “yes” to God instead of saying “no.”

After hearing the quote, I had a large piece in “dare greatly.” Sadly, the domain “daregreatly.com” was already taken. If you go to that address, you get rerouted to a luxury vehicle website (maybe not what most people think of when imagining someone who “dares greatly”).

That led me to the final piece of the puzzle. In a tip of the cap to the urgency with which the world needs Christianity’s salt and light, I settled on daregreatlynow.com. It helps convey the idea that the world needs Christian influence, it needs it from you, and it needs it now.

If we haven’t already reached the point where we’re looking in the mirror and wondering where the time went, we probably will someday (sooner than we think). In order to be able to meet your own steady gaze when that day comes, I invite you to consider accepting whatever challenge Christ has been laying in your path recently. Your version of victory is not guaranteed, and there’s likely some cost or sacrifice involved. God could have given the assignment to someone else, but He didn’t. He gave it to you.

So I ask, will you be content with bemoaning your age in the mirror, or once you reach that point, would you rather be content with a life well lived? I urge you to live a life where you follow God into the unknown. You can’t see the path, but He can. Dare greatly, and dare greatly now, for the sake of the Lord’s kingdom and those that have yet to join it.

Father I thank you for the precious and fleeting gift of time. Once it’s gone, it’s never coming back. We’ll have all the time we want in Heaven, but there are some things that have an eternal impact here in this life. Help us to embrace Your calling for our lives, to have confidence in Your ability to enable us to do it, and to avoid reaching the end of this life while still holding onto untapped potential. This I ask in Your name, Amen.

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Wait a Minute…How Epic Would it be if…

While training to be an Air Force survival instructor, the first hurdle to pass was a screening course that occurred immediately after Basic Training. Recruits fresh out of Basic spent a few weeks getting their bodies strengthened through rigorous physical training, leading up to the official two-week course.

Week 1 of the screening course involved performing a lot of tasks in preparation for week 2. The second week took place out in the field. Training on base can help familiarize you with a lot of things, but if you want to be a survival instructor, sooner or later you need to get away from civilization. Week 2 of the screening course took place in the scrub country on a military installation north of San Antonio, TX. Here we got our first real dose of land navigation, drinking scummy water, and eating things we normally wouldn’t consider eating.

During most of our time in the field we worked in pairs or in groups. There were lots of tasks and activities to perform, along with new things to learn. Then at the end, we spent our final night going solo. On that night our instructors gave us a list of items we had to accomplish and dropped us off in locations where we were isolated from one another.

The list of items seemed fairly long, but none of them were terribly complicated. I went through the course in March, so my biggest challenge was completing as much of the list as I could before dark. I think the first thing I did after getting dropped off was find a spot to set up my shelter. I set down my ruck, then looked through the list of tasks to see which ones would be best to perform during daylight.

One of the things I needed to do was make a ground-to-air signal out of the materials available. Since I needed to wander around a bit in order to scavenge items to use in building the signal, I wanted to make sure I got that done while it was still light out. I started collecting logs and brush to arrange in the required pattern.

I can’t remember if I was using an axe or a military-issue bolt knife, but I started hacking away at some brush. Almost immediately I heard a sound I’d never heard in person before but knew right away what it was. While thrashing in the scrub, I had disturbed a rattlesnake, and it let me know in no uncertain terms that I needed to back up.

Of course I was startled and jumped back. It didn’t take long, though, for me to have this thought…how epic would it be if I were eating a rattlesnake when the instructors showed up to pick me up in the morning? That would become, like, the stuff of legends back at the survival schoolhouse on base!

I eyed the snake as it started slinking away, trying to decide whether I should try to kill it or not. Here I was, about to pass the course. I was hungry, but wouldn’t have a problem making it until the next day without anything else to eat. I’d never eaten a snake before, so I wasn’t sure how to prepare it. Since it was venomous, there were plenty of ways for things to go wrong. All you did was cut off the head a little below the widest part, right? I think so…but, how much am I willing to gamble on that?

Was it a good idea? By almost any measure, no. Would it be awesome? Absolutely and unequivocally yes!

Should I make the decision with my feelings or with my head?

I watched the snake as it slowly left the area, still flirting with the idea. In the end, the risk didn’t seem worth it. I didn’t want to make some kind of stupid mistake that ended up with me being injected with (or accidentally eating) venom when I was on the cusp of passing the course…a course I had no desire to repeat. When it was all said and done I gave the snake a wide berth and decided to pick a new spot to build my shelter for the night…a spot that wasn’t so near the brush the snake had been hanging out in.

The penalty? This story is less cool than it could have been. (I passed the course, though.)

It’s funny how we make choices in life. I’d compare this experience to other times when we’re trying to decide whether or not to pursue something we know isn’t a good idea…pick whatever sin is especially hard for you to walk away from. Even when you know it’s something that could bite you in the end, there’s that draw that pulls on you. Despite the fact that you know it’s a bad idea, you may still spend some time thinking it over despite the fact that you know you should walk away.

This is something you probably know, but I’m going to say it anyway. The closer you stay to and the longer you flirt with doing something you know you shouldn’t, the more likely you are to do it. When you find yourself in that position, take action to just shut that door. Walk away from the computer if you’re about to start looking at stuff you’re not supposed to look at. Put your phone down and walk away from it if you’re about to text something you shouldn’t. If you get yourself into trouble when you’re alone, go somewhere where you’re around people. If you get yourself in trouble when you’re around people, go somewhere where you’re by yourself.

Sin isn’t always going to be as obvious as a rattlesnake, but God gave you a conscience for a reason. If you consistently ignore it, it’ll eventually leave you alone.

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History in Progress

Let’s talk Ukraine for a little bit.

Things have gotten out of hand there lately. Although there’s been plenty of turmoil in the world lately, it feels like it’s been awhile since there were outright military engagements between nations.

This is only the most recent example of a world whose occupants have fought with each other since Adam and Eve were forced out of the garden. Ever since the two of them, our enemy has been working to pull humans away from fellowship with God.

Awhile back I wrote about why Satan benefits from the deaths of both those that don’t follow Christ and those that do. When unbelievers die, it cements their status as someone who has not received Christ; they have no additional opportunities to accept His gift of salvation, and Satan revels in the twisted joy of having prevented God from spending eternity with someone He loves. Conversely, Satan rejoices at the death of Christians because those that belong to Christ are more likely to play a part in snatching souls from his fold. Christians are equipped with the Holy Spirit and spiritual gifts, tools which can cut deep into our adversary’s kingdom. Can you blame him for celebrating when mighty warriors of the faith pass from this life, even if it means they graduate into God’s presence?

In light of this “death is good” mentality, it would make sense for Satan to do everything in his power to foment war, famine, and disease. Individual deaths are okay in his eyes, but death on the scale of thousands is something for him to aspire to. A shooting war is a good start for him, but it’s made better by the disease and famine that accompany combat conditions in an area under siege.

It’s hard not to wish ill will on Vladimir Putin. If it’s God’s will, Putin could choke to death on a pretzel today and have this whole invasion fall apart quickly. Maybe that’s the plan, but in the meantime, it’s important to remember that Putin would not have risen to be Russia’s president without the Lord allowing it.

Even though us mortals can’t see right now how God’s plan will play out in this situation, we are getting a better picture of what’s been happening. I saw a news report where a captured Russian soldier claimed to have been told by his superiors that Ukraine had been overrun by Nazis. If that claim is true and that’s what the whole invasion force has been told, we’ve got a whole bunch of misled, but well-intentioned, troops getting in firefights with people trying to defend their homeland. It’s easy to see how patriotic Ukrainians would then put together raids to hit Russians manning the stalled miles-long Russian convoy.

The whole time, in the background where we can’t see…there’s our supernatural adversary, snickering and rubbing his hands together gleefully each time there’s a death on either side or among noncombatants.

Hopefully this post serves as a reminder…there’s a lot on the line here…not just in Ukraine, but in the world today. Don’t forget about the urgency with which we should view this fleeting life. Eternity hangs in the balance, and you might be the only way the Gospel can reach some people.

Lord, the lies and injustices in this world make us long for Heaven. Some day You’ll return or call us home, but until that day comes, please help us to have the right focus, to use our spiritual gifts and talents, and to help raise God-fearing generations that will likely live in darker times than we do. Please end the violence in Ukraine and prevent things from getting any worse than they already are. It’s easy to become overwhelmed with the things we see in our world, so we thank You for allowing us to cast our burdens at Your feet. We ask these things in Your name, Amen.

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You’re On Your Way to What You’ll Be Later

During my time in the Air Force I spent some time trying out to be a survival instructor. Known as SERE Specialists (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, & Escape), these professionals focus on preparing high-risk-of-capture personnel in the event they become isolated and cut off from friendly forces in neutral or enemy-held territory.

This was in 2004, so the Air Force was pretty busy at the time with both Afghanistan and Iraq. Lots of people needed SERE training, and there weren’t enough SERE Specialists to go around. To help boost numbers, representatives from the SERE career field spent time recruiting people while they were still in Basic Training. This got a lot of people interested, but before we could really get started with SERE Specialist training, we had to pass a screening course, known as SERE Indoc (indoctrination).

There are some odd situations that occurred along the way as a result of how things unfolded. In Basic Training, they really regulated what (and how much) you ate. You’ve got a bunch of civilians from across the country and its territories that in most cases had a little extra pudge when they first showed up to Basic, and you give them healthy food, but you give them less of it than they’d like. Everybody loses weight, and some people lose a lot of it. (When I graduated Basic Training, I think my Mom was a little traumatized when she saw how skinny Uncle Sam made me.) Then, when you’re the skinniest you’ve been in awhile, they fit you for your dress uniforms.

After Basic, I went to SERE Indoc, which was very demanding physically. It usually involved five days a week of rigorous PT…lots of running, pushups, pull-ups, and rucking with heavy packs. I don’t remember how much, exactly, but between being able to eat normally again and putting on a lot of extra muscle over a couple of months, I probably gained over 30 pounds from my low point at Basic. The buttons on my dress shirt were definitely stressed, and there was no longer a crease in my dress pants above the knee because they were more like spandex or leggings at that point.

Mom & Dad came to see my graduation from Basic. They barely recognized me!
Some $5 footlongs & a few thousand pushups later

I can honestly say that I’m no longer as muscular or as heavy as I was back then, so that adds still more volatility to the weight yo-yo. It’s been awhile since I tried on my old dress uniform; maybe I should dig it out of mothballs to see how it fits.

I went into each of those phases with one set of characteristics, and due to the conditions I went through, it led to a new set of characteristics. It’s the same for the Christian. Not only are you imperfect when you’re born, you’re still imperfect when you’re born again. From the moment of salvation until the moment you slip from this life, God’s working on your heart and on your mind, shaping you into a tool He can wield to accomplish things in or through you that you’re not yet prepared to do.

He’s refining unwanted things out of your character or preparing you for a coming challenge. Some seasons of life will leave you gaunt and weak. Others will make you stronger. It’s all leading somewhere, though. Rarely does the path you’d chart out for your life align completely with the path God’s chosen for your life. Looking back, it becomes easier to see how a phase of life or a certain string of events prepared you for something that came afterwards. Right now you’re on your way to what you’ll be later. Seek God’s will for your life and see Him do something wonderful. Keep seeking God’s will for your life and watch how He entrusts you with more responsibility and higher callings.

Not sure what God’s will for your life is? Start by increasing the amount of time you spend in prayer. Confess the things you’ve done wrong, then tell Him all the things you’re thankful for. Do this on a recurring basis and see where it takes you.

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Is the Clock Being Run Out on You?

In the world of sports, if you’re winning near the end of the game, one of your biggest goals is to keep the clock running. You work within the rules of the game to avoid doing things that will stop the time from ticking away.

The goal is to make it harder and harder for the opponent to do anything significant in the diminishing amount of time that’s left. In football you want to tackle runners before they get out of bounds. In basketball you want to chew up as much of the play clock as you can before taking a shot. In hockey you want to control the puck and make the other team come to you. It’s all meant to use up as much of the clock as you can in order to give the opponent less time to mount a comeback, ultimately increasing your chances of victory.

So now let’s put a spiritual application to this.

Consider Satan’s situation for a moment. First John 5:19 says “We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.” Since each member of the human race is born a sinner, we are all initially part of Satan’s domain and are destined to spend eternity separated from God. The only way he can lose those souls is if they accept Christ and cross over to His domain. In that sense, Satan doesn’t need to play to win, he just needs to play to not lose.

Time is the one thing that everyone has the same amount of. Whether talking about the unsaved or believers that aren’t striving to go deeper with God, I’ve got to imagine that one of Satan’s biggest strategies is to run out the clock. Let’s look at unbelievers first. From Satan’s perspective, as long as they’re preoccupied with something that has no eternal impact, they’re in a good place. “Learning about 18th Century French literature (or physics, or social activism, or anything else that consumes your passion and drive)? That’s great…you get after it with everything you’ve got!” As long as that person’s busy with something that takes a lot of their brain power, there’s not a whole lot left over to take a look up at the stars in the night sky and wonder about their creator.

It’s the same thing for those that have accepted Christ but are preoccupied with the here and now. If you have a talent that Christ has called you to use, but instead you’re spending your time streaming the latest season of whatever show you happen to be enjoying, in all actuality, that’s keeping you on the bench. I’m learning that life moves pretty quickly, and it seems like it moves a little faster with each passing year. I have no idea how much sand I still have left in the hourglass, and you don’t know how much you’ve got left in yours, either. The things we thought we’d have plenty of time to do don’t actually get done unless we live with intentionality. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy shutting off my mind through a variety of ways, but there’s a difference between a little bit of relaxing and a seriously large amount of cumulative hours.

So I have to ask…what’s your biggest time-suck? Facebook/Instagram? Netflix? Some sort of mindless games? YouTube? Wordle, anyone?

Some of the cheerier armchair philosophers will say that this life is really nothing more than sitting around and waiting to die. For those that aren’t following God’s lead and using their spiritual gifts…maybe those philosophers are right.

I urge you…live your life with eternity in mind. We only get one go-round to make a lasting difference, and we’re supposed to be taking this opportunity to glorify God and be part of building His kingdom. Don’t let the adversary run out the clock on you when there’s still so much left to do.

Lord, there are so many distractions out there today. It’s easy to become overwhelmed by sensory overload. Help me know the difference between healthy forms of unwinding and plain old wasting time. When giving to You, finances are usually the first thing to come to mind, but show me where and how You want me to honor You with my time, as well. Amen

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Road Trips are Less Fun When You’re the Only One Awake

While we’ve still got some Winter Olympics going on, here’s another tale from when my friend Jeremy and I went to check out the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

On the way out west we had plenty of time to get there, so we drove during the day and stopped at night to sleep at rest stops. On the way back east we were in a hurry to get the rental car turned back in and get back to school. To save time, our plan was to drive through the night.

On our last day in Utah we watched a cross-country skiing event and then left to start the trip east directly from there. Jeremy took the first shift driving, and drove most of the day. Still keyed up from our experiences so far, it dawned on me a little too late that I should be trying to catch some sleep while he was driving. I do okay when I have to get up early, but I don’t do real well when I have to stay up late. I think I tried catching a nap, but when there’s pressure to fall asleep, it makes it harder to do, so I don’t think I got any sleep to speak of.

When the time came for Jeremy to tag out, I got behind the wheel and started driving. I don’t remember if it was dark when I started, but if it wasn’t, it wasn’t long before night fell. Jeremy racked out in the back seat for awhile. Between the darkness, drone of the road noise, lack of conversation, and the cumulative excitement of the day (and past week plus), I was ready for some sleep and it got hard to stay awake and alert.

I’m not saying anyone should do this, but we had learned through experimentation that the max speed you could set the cruise control to was 82.5 mph. That speed sounds really fast, but it wasn’t egregious when the speed limit was 75. We regularly set it that fast, but slowed down when we saw cops off in the distance. It was great because out there, where there were big stretches of wide open road, cops with radar guns had nowhere to hide; you could often see for miles.

You can’t see them at night, though.

You know that point in sleepiness where your eyes are half-lidded and moving your eyeballs around seems like it takes too much effort? That’s where I was, when, at 82.5 mph, I blew past two cop cars parked on the median somewhere in Nebraska.

Well, the red and blue lights came on and started coming my way. That makes for an uncomfortable way to rouse someone from their slumber. “Hey dude, wake up. Um…we’re getting pulled over.”

If I had been half asleep 30 seconds ago, I was wide awake now.

I pulled over on the shoulder and waited while the officer ran our plates. Eventually he came alongside the passenger’s window, taking a peek inside with his flashlight. He probably didn’t know what to think as he saw a dude in a sleeping bag in the back seat, boxes of supplies and cold-weather gear scattered throughout the front and back seats, and skis and ski poles stuffed along the side of the car. We handed both of our licenses over and sat there waiting as he ran our names through his computer.

I don’t totally remember the sequence of events, but I ended up going to sit in the front passenger’s seat of his cruiser with him (no, not while wearing handcuffs). I told him a little about us, that we had driven across the country to go watch some of the Olympics, and now we were on our way back. It’s important to understand that the animosity toward cops that’s so prevalent today wasn’t the case back then. This was a mere five months after the events of 9/11, when police officers and other first responders were hailed as heroes. There was a much greater attitude of “we’re all in this together” among Americans. He asked me about some of the events (and big-name athletes) we’d seen and what else we had done while we were out there. I think we probably broke up a boring night shift for him.

He had clocked me driving at a speed that gave him leeway to decide whether to give me a ticket or to let me off with a warning. I think he kind of liked the idea of the adventure we were on, so he let me off with a warning, but he did recognize that I was a legitimate danger to myself and others on the road because of how tired I was. He stressed the importance of being alert and urged me to get somewhere safe and get some sleep…soon…then let us go. We stopped at the next exit, gassed up, and switched drivers. We made it back to school the following evening.

Nobody likes to see those flashing lights come on in their rear-view mirror. I’m not sure how long it took me to realize it, but getting stopped on this occasion quite possibly saved not only my life, but the life of the passenger in the back seat, and maybe others on the road that night. If I hadn’t been stopped, I probably would’ve fallen asleep at the wheel. I guess you could say that God threw a little hiccup in my plans, which ended up saving me from myself.

There are things that will happen in this life that you’ll gripe and grumble about as they’re happening, only for you to realize later that those were things to be grateful for. Live through enough of those events, and it helps you realize that you’re probably better off not grumbling about things that seem bad in the short term, because you don’t yet know how they tie into the bigger picture. God often makes you take the scenic route while you have the express lane in mind, and vice versa. We don’t see until after the fact that it was something we wouldn’t have chosen, but had unforeseen benefits.

The next time you get hit with something that seems like something to groan about, try holding off on the complaints for awhile. It might just be God’s way of saving you from yourself.

To all those officers out there, thank you for being willing to step into tense and uncertain situations on the public’s behalf every time you go to work. Additional thanks to those of you that have cut a little slack to people that just needed to be scared a little bit by the flashing lights of a police car.

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Winter Olympics, From Salt Lake City to Beijing

Though I’m not really paying much attention to the 2022 Winter Olympics, it does bring up some fun memories. For those of you that are long-time readers of the blog, you may remember that when I was in college my roommate Jeremy and I drove from Western New York State out to Utah to attend some of the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. It’s crazy to think that our Utah trip was 20 years ago. Today’s entry doesn’t really have a “moral” to it…just some memories.

I don’t want to rehash a whole lot right here (you can read some of the previous Olympic entries here), but when you’re trying to pull together a trip like this on a budget, you’re going to have to forego some amenities. During our whole trip (nine days), we didn’t shave or sleep indoors at all. We either slept in sleeping bags in the car at rest stops or in a tent in the mountains. Ours was a very outdoorsy college, so we were able to rent a large amount of camping gear from the recreation department. Our diet wasn’t the healthiest, either. I remember a lot of Cheez-Its and an apple every now and then.

Anyway, we got out there early enough to have a day without any plans before attending our first event. I forget if it was a state park or a national forest somewhere, but we parked in the parking lot and used cross-country skis to head in and scout a spot to set up camp.

The snow was pretty deep, and if you tried walking through it without snowshoes or skis, you’d sink up to your knees or so. When we first arrived, it was snowing pretty hard and it was starting to get dark, so we had to find a spot and set up camp pretty fast. We skied off the main trail and uphill into a wooded area where we weren’t likely to get mowed over by snowmobiles. We made a few sharp turns to get through the trees…something that can be tricky in tight quarters if you’re wearing skis that are taller than you are. We found a spot that would work, then skied back out to the car to grab our backpacks and gear. We hurried back in, set up camp, then warmed up some food and turned in for the night. (I think up until that point I had only camped in someone’s backyard overnight a single time. Between worrying about getting buried by a snow squall, being afraid of freezing to death, and hearing coyotes howling all night, it was a pretty intimidating experience for me.)

We spent two nights there, and on the second morning we broke camp to head to our first Olympic event. As we packed up everything and made sure we didn’t leave anything behind, we prepared to ski back out to the car. We attached our skis and buckled on our packs. Jeremy went first, heading back downhill toward the main trail. I brought up the rear.

On the way down, I approached one of those sharp turns a little too quickly. I had plenty of experience using cross-country skis, but I wasn’t accustomed to wearing a pack that was heavy enough to throw off my center of gravity. I took the turn like I normally would have, but between the deep powder and unusual weight distribution, my legs made the turn, by my upper body kept going. I biffed right there in the snow.

Remember what I said about walking in snow that deep without snowshoes or skis? Now imagine you’re lying face down in that kind of snow while wearing a backpack that’s pushing down on you. Every time you try to push yourself up with your arms, your arms sink back into the snow. I don’t even remember what I did to get back upright again; I must’ve packed the snow or grabbed some small trees or something, but I’m sure I looked like some kind of sedated walrus or something as I tried getting my feet back under me while wearing a puffy jacket and a backpack.

Anyway, the memories are mostly good ones. The bad ones just add a little variety. I’m thankful to have been able to go when I did, because if I were going to do it all again, there were some things I was willing to tolerate back then that I’m no longer willing to put up with now.

I hear that Salt Lake City is in the running to host the 2030 Winter Olympics. I don’t really see myself going, but if I did, I can’t say I’d be willing to drive there from an East Coast state, sleep in a tent (or in a car, for that matter) for more than a week in freezing temperatures 28 years after the first time I did it. Also, while Cheez-Its may still be on the menu, I think they’d be a much smaller portion of my overall diet than they were back then. I’m not totally shutting the door on the possibility of going, but I think I’m a tentative “no” for 2030.

Lord God, this life is full of memories, good and bad. Thanks for both kinds, and please help us to keep our focus on You as we age, and not get wrapped up about the things we can no longer do. Please grant safety and health to those participating in the games, as well as to those in attendance, and many, many thanks for a warm, comfortable bed and indoor plumbing! Amen

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You’re Not Needed, But You ARE Invited

Here’s a question with a twist. Were you ever on a team or in a group of people that was trying to accomplish a certain task, and you felt like you had the task well in hand? I’m guessing yes.

We’ve all been there, but here’s the twist. In that same situation, did someone else then unnecessarily join your team? I’m talking, like, “we don’t even need you, but we’re happy to have you along.” It could be someone that’s genuinely a delight to work with, or maybe someone that tells the best stories or has a tremendous sense of humor. Whatever it is about them…yeah, you’re happy they’re working with you, but in all honesty, you’d accomplish your task just fine without them.

That’s God, dealing with us. Granting someone else salvation is completely His doing. Each of us is powerless to grant it to someone, even if we desperately want them to come to a saving faith in Christ.

And yet…He’s overjoyed to include us as part of His process of moving in this world. If He wanted to, He could work out His plan for a specific individual’s salvation in a way that cuts all other people out of the process. That’s not how He works though. He loves including His followers as instruments of His plan. We’re unnecessary components, but it’s His pleasure to have us along for the ride.

If you’re a Christian, you’ve been given spiritual gifts that are meant to be used for the benefit of Christ’s kingdom. It’s up to you whether or not you use them, but He wants you to jump in. If you choose not to employ them it’s not going to foil His plans, but I imagine He’ll be disappointed that you chose not to use what He gave you. It’s like keeping a Lamborghini parked in the garage because you don’t want to get it scratched or dirty; it’s ensuring something highly specialized does not get used for its intended purpose.

So today, if you’re presented with the opportunity to accept God’s extended hand to go along with Him on an adventure, you can accept the invitation and be caught up into something that may make an eternal difference for someone, or you can choose to skip it and make the highlight reel of your life that you’ll see in Heaven a little bit shorter.

The choice is up to you.

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The Safest Time to Kayak Over Waterfalls is When the Water’s Big

I feel like I’ve had a lot of “20-years later” stories either lately or coming up. (Kayelling, 9/11, attending the 2002 Winter Olympics). Well, Senior year of college was a busy time for me, I guess. Today’s post talks about an event that happened 20 years ago this week.

There’s a creek near where I went to college that had a pair of roughly 6-foot waterfalls that were spaced about 50-100 yards apart. During most of the year, this is a very scenic spot with a water depth of only a few inches, but during the spring rains and snow melt, the creek swells, the current becomes much swifter, and for kayakers, the water gets too big to resist.

Gearing up for a double waterfall!

A 6-foot waterfall doesn’t sound like much. I’m a little over 6 feet tall, so it’s no big deal when I look eye-to-eye with another person the same height as me. It’s a different story when you’re sitting on the floor, looking up at someone that tall. That’s sort of what it’s like when sitting in a kayak and looking at a 6-foot-tall waterfall. I’d been over a four- or five-foot waterfall before and it went very well, but it wasn’t in water this big and it wasn’t in a “must-succeed” situation where a second set of falls lay waiting beyond.

There were three of us going that day. We all slid our boats into the water and allowed ourselves to get a good amount of space between us. Our most experienced paddler went first and demonstrated the line we should follow. As the least experienced kayaker, I went second, and the third guy brought up the rear. I followed the guide’s line, and I hit the first set of falls perfectly. I paddled right over the edge and had a great landing, and it was exhilarating!

On approach to the first waterfall
Quit while you’re ahead

I’m not exactly sure what happened next, but I think I hit some kind of undercurrent I wasn’t expecting, and I flipped over. I can tell you from experience that it’s a very unsettling feeling to be headed toward a waterfall while floating upside down in a capsized kayak.

Even though the creek was swollen to several times its usual size, the water was still only about 18 inches to two feet deep. As I was upside down, my helmet bounced along the bottom of the creek bed. I moved the paddle into position to right myself, but I had to modify the technique because the water was so shallow. I think I was trying to decide whether I should try the technique I’d practiced countless times in the pool, or let go of my paddle and use my hands to try pushing off the bottom to get flipped back up, hoping to catch the paddle again afterward. I didn’t want to risk going over the second set of falls without a paddle, and this wasn’t really the best time to try flipping back over using a method I’d never tried before, so I went the traditional route, but the water was too shallow to make it work the way I’d practiced. I don’t remember how many times if I tried it, but between not knowing how far away the upcoming falls were and confronting a compelling need to breathe, I decided to bail out.

Without question, it was really nice to be able to take a deep breath again, but I still had to contend with some challenges. After dragging my head along the bottom and fighting against the creek bed to try to position my paddle, I figured I wouldn’t have any problem just standing up wherever I was. I faced upstream and got on my knees. My wetsuit stopped above my knees, and I later realized that being pushed along while kneeling on a stone creek bed tears up your shins pretty badly. I got up on one knee, but my sandals couldn’t get any traction. I think I tried on the other knee too, but neither try worked. With my back to the looming falls, I did the only other thing I could think of: I swam as if my life depended on it in a foot and a half of water.

Thankfully, I did NOT take a trip over that second set of falls. I made it to the bank safely and jogged downstream to catch up with the first guy, who recovered my boat and paddle for me.

Ever have something just go in a TOTALLY different direction from what you expected? Don’t let it get you down. Living a life for Christ is going to have moments where you simply feel overwhelmed or inadequate. Then on top of that, experiencing failures only makes it feel worse. I’m certainly thankful there weren’t too many people there to witness this embarrassing situation. My two fellow paddlers were extremely gracious, and they reminded me that outings with the biggest mishaps make for the best stories.

If things had gone according to plan, it would have been an amazing 90 seconds to experience, but it wouldn’t be a very exciting story to pass along. Don’t be afraid to attempt big things in the name of building Christ’s kingdom, but when things don’t work out the way you expect (because God doesn’t follow YOUR plan), learn from the experience and use it to either make the next time different or to benefit someone that reminds you of your unfortunate or inexperienced younger self. You’re not the first one to make mistakes, but maybe you can pass along the wisdom you’ve learned through hard-won experience so others don’t have to make the same mistakes you’ve made.

Lord Jesus, when I look back at all the crazy situations I’ve willingly placed myself in, and how unscathed I came out of them when I should have met with much more serious consequences, it’s clear to me that there’s something after those experiences You wanted me around for, and it reminds me not to waste this life. Help me learn from the past, be bold in following after You, and share the things I’ve learned with others. Also, I don’t know how many guardian angels you’ve assigned to me, but please…thank them and bless them in a special way for me!

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The Time Will Soon be Past

Every year in early November, our church does a harvest/fall festival. Kids are encouraged to wear their Halloween costumes and there are a lot of games and opportunities for kids that are elementary age and younger to win candy. It’s a community outreach that brings a lot of families onto the church grounds, and it’s usually a lot of fun for the kiddos.

One of the recurring attractions is a giant inflatable obstacle course. It’s set up so that two people can go head-to-head through tunnels, barriers, walls, and some other weird stuff. All three of my kids have done this, and I think I accompanied each of them on their first time through.

The girls each thought it was okay, and they still go on it most years, but my son is the one that wants to take on his old man each year. He’ll wait in line for a long time to make sure he gets a shot. When he was little, I’d hang back as we were going through the course and make sure he got past a certain set of obstacles before clearing it myself. As the years went by, I’d have to hang back a little less each time. Now I’m not hanging back at all. Once we start, it’s an all-out dash to the end. I’m vaulting over stuff, bouncing off the walls, and leaping up as high as I can on walls to keep up with him.

The final challenge on the course is always climbing up a steep hill and then sliding down the other side. The last time we raced on the obstacle course, we arrived at the last challenge at the same time and started scrambling up the wall. We got to the top at the same time, but when he hesitated to swing his feet around in front of him for the slide down, I plunged right on through, going down the slide head first. I hit the finish line having given my best.

I’m pretty sure this was my last year taking the crown. As he gets bigger and faster, I’m getting slower and less flexible. If I win next time (a big “if”), it will likely be because I’m able to have a cleaner run than he does. It’s a fun tradition, but I know my time as obstacle course champion will soon be over.

The Bible compares the Christian life to running a race. First Corinthians 9:24-25 says Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

For all of us, the race we’re running will one day end. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that you’re no longer in the race simply because you’re no longer able to physically do the things you used to be able to. If you’re still breathing, God’s not done with you and there’s more work for you to do. I encourage, and even plead with you, finish your race strong! When you get to the top of that final obstacle, don’t stop to admire the view or get your legs in front of you; dive headlong with abandon over the peak of the challenge God commissioned you to face.

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The Hierarchy of Christian Focus

Today’s post marks sort of an interesting milestone. Since I started the site, I’ve had three posts written by guest authors. Since this is the blog’s 203rd post, that makes this the 200th entry I’ve written. Woohoo!

Okay, something a little different today. I’ve been trying to develop this one for awhile, but I don’t know that it’s baked all the way through just yet. I can’t be the first person to think of this concept; there’s probably something similar in a seminary textbook or some theological dissertation somewhere, but this is the version I came up with and am sharing with you.

You’ve probably heard of Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs.” In short, you need to have your basic needs met before you can tackle more advanced challenges. If you’re not sure where your next meal is coming from or where you’re going to sleep tonight, you’re probably not throwing yourself into difficult engineering scenarios or sculpting great pieces of art. Another way of looking at it is to see that the people doing big things in life probably aren’t worried about the things that are near the bottom of the hierarchy.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

This is a famous principle that’s been around for quite some time now. I’m not sure what got me thinking about it, but I started thinking…there’s got to be a version of this that applies to Christ followers.

Now, before I get into this, I want to acknowledge that the Holy Spirit does as He sees fit, and is perfectly able to do anything He’d like through anyone that’s anywhere on this scale, so I don’t want to make it seem like someone is a failure if they don’t get past the first level. The thief hanging on the cross next to Christ didn’t get real far on this hierarchy, yet his example has been referenced countless times since then to God’s glory and for the benefit of other believers. For some, though, my hope is that this helps spur them on in their Christian walk, possibly encouraging someone seeing this post to move up a level or more. 

Each new level in this hierarchy is something amazing and miraculous to the person that’s just arrived there. Getting to a particular level is not a sign of a certain level of intelligence or some  other measure of worldly success; it’s more often an indication of a person’s level of maturity in Christ. There may not be clear delineations between levels, and there may be some rising and falling that occurs along the way. Some believers may reverse some of the levels in this pyramid or even skip a level every now and then, and some levels may even intertwine. This is just a general version of life after acceptance of Christ.

Let’s get started.

Often, when a person commits their life to Christ, crossing over from Satan’s kingdom to that of eternal life in Christ, it’s marked with a sense of awe, of wonder, at God’s mercy and grace. “He did that for me!” It’s incredibly humbling to realize the extent of Christ’s sacrifice, and those that are young in the faith are often overwhelmed by the fact that God left the comfort of Heaven to be a part of Humanity, fully knowing what would happen and how many would reject Him. The first level of the “Hierarchy of Christian Focus” is “Marveling at Christ’s Mercy and Grace.”

Hierarchy of Christian Focus, Level 1

What comes next? Those new to the faith, whether they fall on shallow soil or good soil, want to know more about God, praise Him for His goodness, and draw nearer to Him. It’s so important to get new Christians plugged into a community of fellow believers where they can grow in the faith. Too often they fizzle out because they don’t find anywhere to get plugged in and receive mentoring or guidance from those that are more mature in the faith. The second level of the hierarchy is an Excitement to connect with God.

Hierarchy of Christian Focus, Level 2

Those two are very close together and are often interwoven. After that it gets a little tricky. Do you think the Devil is going to stand idly by while someone that defected from his rule assists his enemy? (Spoiler alert: no.) He’s going to try lots of different things to get your faith to die on the vine. If he can’t stop you from defecting, he’ll do what he can to limit the amount of damage you can do to him and his domain. I wrote a series on some of the tactics he uses awhile back. (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4) Though it can happen anywhere in the pyramid, in the third level, Christians have their first major encounters with doubt and pushback. They start learning to overcome those obstacles, and it’s something they’ll likely encounter for the rest of their lives. When we start getting down on ourselves, it’s easier to worry that maybe we’re on our own. I’m fond of the line from one of Lauren Daigle’s songs: “Remind me once again just whose I am because I need to know.”

Hierarchy of Christian Focus, Level 3

Precursors and hints at the fourth level of a Christian’s focus may have been happening even before they accepted Christ, but in the fourth level, Christians stop fighting the calling that God’s been whispering (or even shouting) in their ear. This is where believers move beyond a faith that had, up until now, been able to “fly under the radar.” Some people have an easier time following their calling than others, but it generally involves being willing to say “yes” to a feeling that prompts them to enter waters they perceive are a little too deep. There’s a stark realization that “I can’t do this on my own, but I also can’t not do it.” Think Gideon, David, Peter, and Paul. “What I’m doing right now makes no sense, but I know it’s what I’m supposed to do.” It’s the thing you were placed on Earth to do; it’s your purpose in life. You can ignore it if you’d like, but you’re intentionally avoiding the fulfillment of your potential if you do.

Hierarchy of Christian Focus, Level 4

I’ve heard it said that God is working on you until you take your last breath. That means He’s always stretching and growing you. In the fourth level you step out in faith to pursue the path you believe Christ has for your life, but in the fifth level you look back at the amazing things He’s accomplished through you, only to find another seemingly impossible challenge that will grow you in a different way (or maybe place a new, insurmountable spin on something you were already working on). Successfully start a business that you didn’t see coming? Congratulations, now it’s time for you to adopt a child refugee or sell the business and go to seminary. At this level, it’s important to keep leaning on God even though you start growing comfortable with the idea of doing things that “can’t be done.”

Hierarchy of Christian Focus, Level 5

By the time you reach the sixth level, you’ve seen and done a lot of things in your Christian walk. You’ve learned a lot, both about how to do things and how not to do things. In the sixth level, you realize that the most important legacy you can leave is to help pave the way for those believers that will come behind you. You want to train and/or empower them to do things that will advance the Gospel and the Kingdom of Christ. I recently heard a speaker say that as he’s laying on his deathbed sometime in the future, it’s his desire to see the backs of fellow believers advancing past him to go further and do things that he never could. Ladies and gentlemen, the things we do with our lives are important, but there are few things more important than helping other believers reach their potential. This is true for Christian parents, Christian mentors in all areas of life, and Christian peers. Iron sharpens iron.

Hierarchy of Christian Focus, Level 6

All along the way, there are upward and downward pressures that help or hinder movement up the pyramid. Time spent reading the Bible, praying, and relying on Christ all help grow the trust you have in Him and help you move up the levels, but at the same time the Devil is trying all manner of tactics to bring you back down. If he can’t stop you from switching teams, he’ll do everything he can to render you ineffective at the upper levels and keep your faith to yourself.

Hierarchy of Christian Focus

There may be more levels, but I simply may not know what they are.

Like I said earlier, God can use anyone at any level to bring glory to Himself and for the benefit of other believers, but I believe we should all strive to get to a higher level.

And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. Deuteronomy 6:5

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When We’re Groggy but Settled

One of the things that are most fun about family get-togethers is seeing little kids. If you only see certain friends or family infrequently, you sometimes don’t realize how long it’s been until you see how big those kiddos got since the last time you saw them.

A little over a year ago we got together with some family that had a newborn. This year she was, well, a year older. The younger you are, the bigger difference a year makes.

There were a sizable number of people at this particular get-together. As the house started filling up with arriving family members, a mom with young kids disappeared into one of the back rooms. When she returned, she was carrying a toddler that had just woken up from a nap. This poor kiddo, who had been napping in a nice dark room, was brought out into a bright, loud room that had a bunch of people who weren’t here the last time around. She was still groggy, was still squinting, and had flushed cheeks. She looked confused, but she was with Mommy, so she didn’t seem upset or worried.

The following day was Sunday, and in church someone brought up the fact that once we trust Christ and are saved, we don’t just instantly disappear and show up in Heaven. He said something like “we’re left behind on Earth for awhile.” He went on to say that the reason for that is because we have work to do here on Earth; God calls each of us to live lives that honor Him and somehow contribute to His kingdom.

I’m not really sure what made me think of that little toddler, but for some reason she came to mind. Here we are, Christians…in the world but not of it. Our Heavenly Father has us in His arms, but we have no clue where He’s taking us while we’re here. We’re often disoriented, confused, and looking around at our surroundings without any understanding at all of what’s going on or what’s about to take place.

As we grow in our relationship with Christ, however, our trust in Him deepens. A newborn wails at the slightest hunger, but as they grow and learn to trust those caring for them, they learn that it’s not necessary to make such a fuss. It’s the same with us learning to trust our Savior. He’s going to do things we don’t understand, and will deny us things we desperately want, but as long as we can get past our self-centeredness, we can learn to trust Him. That trust deepens over time if we continue walking with Him. We’re going to be placed in situations where we’re uncomfortable or disoriented, but ultimately we know that we’ll be okay because we know Who’s holding us.

Honorable mention; saw this and had to include it

Here at the beginning of a new year, I hope you’ll take steps to walk closer with God, deepen your trust in Him (even when things are painful or uncertain), and be willing to let Him use you for His purposes.

Lord, as a new year begins, please help me to be open to whatever you have in store for me. We’ve had a couple rough years in a row now, and I don’t know what lies ahead, but help me to be confident in the hope that comes with living for You. Give me the strength and the resolve to follow wherever You lead me this year. In Your Holy name, Amen.

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Let Someone Else Worry About That

Last week our family had the opportunity to travel for Christmas. On the way home from seeing relatives we drove through western and central Pennsylvania. Due to some poor planning on my part, our drive coincided with the first significant wintry storm of the season in that area.

Things weren’t real bad at first; it was mostly rain. After awhile though, the rain started sounding different. It wasn’t water hitting the windshield, it was wet ice, and it started accumulating on the road.

I guess the snow plows were enjoying the holiday

Before long it got bad enough that the tires periodically lost their grip on the pavement and the traction control light frequently flashed on the dashboard while the tires suddenly spun faster and the speedometer spiked. I slowed down, but we started passing lots of accidents where people had spun out or slipped off the road. When it was all said and done, my wife counted at least eight incidents. The local emergency responders got numerous calls, and on two occasions, we stopped for just-happened accidents and stayed with those involved until someone showed up. (In one, I slowed down because I saw a car up ahead on the left side of the road that had spun around and was facing traffic while a woman and her teenage daughter ran across the highway to get to safety; in the other a man and his dog slid off the road in a car, spun around, and ended up in a creek bed in a few inches of water.) It was a harrowing trip for sure, and by the time we got home, I was worn out from focusing so hard for so long.

This guy and his dog were fine, but they were probably stuck there for hours.

That night I wanted to use the day’s events as a teachable moment with my kids. They’ve seen car accidents on the side of the road as we’ve driven past them before, but I think this was the first time they really experienced a drive in rough conditions and saw the fear in peoples’ eyes after their day took an unexpected turn. I don’t think my kids have ever seen me so thankful to have completed a trip safely.

The next day my oldest daughter let me know that she had done some thinking. She was more appreciative of a safe trip, for sure, but she also let me know she realized that she trusted my driving so much that it never even occurred to her that things might not go according to plan. She’s been driving with me her whole life without any major issues, so she didn’t even consider the fact that we, ourselves, could get in an accident.

This was a little sobering for me. (Should I ever let her know I’m not a perfect driver, or should I let her figure that out on her own?) I don’t know if the kids were worried at all about the drive, or if they were, how much. At least one of them, though, didn’t sweat it, because “Dad’s on it.” She had no idea I was white-knuckle driving while she was able to be largely care-free, perfectly at peace knowing that the situation had my full attention.

Now, just so you know, I’m under no illusion that I’m immune from accidents even if I’m paying full attention and my vehicle is perfectly maintained at all times. (They’re called “accidents” for a reason.) It made me think, though, of how wonderful it is that we have Bible verses that encourage us to come to our Savior and give Him our worries.

This is a rough time of year for many folks, for any number of reasons. I want to encourage you to be completely open and honest with God about your worries. Are you anxious? Tell Him why. Do you have doubts about your faith? Let Him know. I don’t know how He’ll work in your life, but I know that solid relationships include openness and honesty.

I hope you had a great Christmas, that you’re excited that Christ came in the flesh to save you, and that you have a blessed New Year! See you in January!

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Our Peace in the Chaos

Merry Christmas to you all! Today’s post comes courtesy of a guest author, my wonderful wife! I wish you all a wonderful time of celebration commemorating the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ!

“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. ​Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.” Isaiah 9:6-7

God accomplishes what we cannot. Peace. How our world needs this. We see chaos, disorder, fear, disagreements, and anger. This is what the plans of man get us. On our own and in our own flesh we are selfish creatures seeking our own way. Only Christ in us can help us set aside our agendas and ask “what would Jesus have me do…in my world, in my day, in this situation, in this very moment, what should my response be?”

As believers and followers of Christ we are called to be His hands and feet to the world around us. But if we don’t fall on our knees, see our need for our Savior, and ask Him to open our eyes to the WHY that He came, until we understand our hopelessness apart from Him, we will skim over the need and just keep bustling around this season. We try to do it in our strength and get wrapped up in to-do lists, cookies, presents, trees, decorations, plans, and schedules. Then, instead of feeling peace and joy as we serve those we love, we feel stress in the midst of our striving and controlling what we think Christmas needs to look like and be like. We lose sight of why we even celebrate it.

But see, that’s what it is, isn’t it?​ Our striving is this need for control, for as the world around us spins by, we long for order in our chaos. We need to see that in our need for peace, we tend to grasp at control, and instead of releasing and looking to God we put it on ourselves to find the peace and we try to control the outcome. We try to make it all okay. We try to give our kids and loved ones security and peace as much as we can through our striving, and the things we do and plan. Now the wish for that in and of itself is not wrong; it is normal. We all long for security and peace. We know deep down we were created for more than this and Heaven beckons to show us the need for our Savior. We see this world as fallen, broken, and not as it should be; we long for peace, but the more we seek to control things ourselves and grasp at peace in our own strength, the further we get from the one who actually does control it all, and who offers us true peace in Him.

Christ alone is our security, our hope, and our peace in the midst of all our chaos. He who came as a baby into our world knows just how much we long for peace and how much we need Him. So let’s take a minute to be still, to reset, and to seek Him alone for that peace.

Acknowledging our need for Him is the first step to that peace. We need to see our sin, brokenness, and hopelessness apart from Him and turn to Him for salvation. He came to save and to bring us back into relationship with the Father. We now have access to the throne room of God through prayer because of Christ! He is where the peace is.

So this Christmas season, may we look to Christ for our peace. May we remember He loved us so much that He gave up Heaven to come for us. He came and poured into the world His love and forgiveness and only in Him can we now go and pour out into those around us. Our desire to give peace and order isn’t wrong, but it becomes wrong when we take it on ourselves to bring it apart from Christ. For He is the true reason and gift of Christmas and through Him alone can we have that peace that passes all understanding, (Phil 4:7) and spread that joy, peace, and hope to others.

Merry Christmas all, from our family to yours. May you feel His peace over you no matter what your circumstances may be.

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“Kayaking” + “Rappelling” = “Kayelling?”

(I apologize in advance to my email subscribers; there are a lot of pictures in this post. If it takes up too much room in your inbox, you can also check it out at https://daregreatlynow.com/2021/12/16/kayaking-rappelling-kayelling/)

Today is the 20th anniversary of a very unique event that happened in my life. For those of you that are longtime readers of DareGreatlyNow, you know that I’ve had some strange experiences. When I call one of them “very unique,” you know it’s got the potential to be a doozy.

During my senior year of college, I was the Vice President of the whitewater kayaking and rafting club, which we called “Paddle Sports.” The club itself was having a great year, and the President (a buddy of mine, Bryan) and I agreed that we wanted to do something to further drive up the club’s membership for the following year.

Every Spring our college had a talent show, and Bryan and I determined to make a video that showed some of the fun things that could be done in the club. We used some footage of fun stuff we did in the pool and some trips in local rivers, and we wanted to combine it with shots of Bryan and I (and maybe a few others) doing weird stunts using some of the club’s gear. As an example, one of the things we wanted to do was to get footage of the two of us bombing down the college’s small ski slope in one of the club’s smaller whitewater rafts.

Well I forget why, but we never got around to that one. We did, however, come up with another idea. Both Bryan and I had some background in rappelling, and between the two of us we had a fair amount of equipment. We came up with the grand idea of recording me rappelling down a cliff in a kayak.

This was a pretty intriguing idea to us, and we actually put quite a bit of thought into it. In November we scouted a location with a very tall cliff and set up the rope, but then when heading down in a normal rappel just to check things out, I discovered that the cliff was too tall, and the rope didn’t reach all the way to the bottom. That’s a dealbreaker. It was a tough break, too, because there’s not a whole lot of afternoon daylight at that time of year and Bryan and I were very busy as the semester went on.

November scouting trip; kayak in the background. Need a ladder or a longer rope.

Fortunately we were able to get our schedules to line up again at the end of the semester, on December 16th (it’s funny how far some students will go to avoid studying for finals). We found another spot on the same wall that was a little shorter, but if we didn’t pull it off this time, it probably wasn’t going to happen. There was likely to be too much snow on the ground to make it work in January.

It’s funny how much “ridiculousness” you’ll put up with for the sake of doing something challenging. We had to hike a kayak, two ropes, harnesses, and gear up a huge hill and through the woods to get to the top of the cliff. We needed to use a very steep wall in order to reduce the chance of getting the boat hung up on something on the way down. Thankfully most of this wall was very steep, with the exception of a sloped portion at the top.

Second attempt. Bryan’s turn carrying the boat.

We got topside and found a spot where we could set up solid anchors. After confirming that the ropes reached all the way to the bottom, we each did a test descent to get a feel for things, then decided to go for it.

Bryan and I both knew a good bit about knots and anchors at the time, but rigging a kayak for descent was something new for us both. Circumstances necessitated that we set up two systems, one for me and one for the boat. I couldn’t just ride down in a kayak without being harnessed in; I might fall out, for one, and kayaks aren’t designed to be suspended from the bow and stern while holding someone in the middle. Also, kayaks are heavy; if I were harnessed in and the boat wasn’t, I’d have to have Superman’s lower abdominal strength to hold the kayak level during the descent. Besides, this way if something absolutely nuts happened, I could get out of the boat and still maintain independent control of both my body and the kayak. (I just wouldn’t have any shoes on during that event because I couldn’t fit in the kayak while wearing them.)

  • Testing the balance and rigging
  • Bryan setting anchors

Well, I slid over the edge of the cliff in the kayak, but I ran into trouble almost right away. As I slid sideways down the cliff, the bow got caught in a shrub growing on the side of the cliff. It wouldn’t have been a problem, except for a funky dip in the terrain where the tip of the stern got wedged. Due to this freak terrain feature, I was stuck in a boat, I dunno, probably at least 60 feet up, without even being able to reach the wall with my arm.

  • Starting the descent
  • Seriously?! I’m stuck!

It seemed like no amount of shaking or rolling would break the boat loose. I was stuck for almost 25 minutes doing one long sit-up while trying to figure out what to do. The double-rope system ended up coming in handy; Bryan held the trailing end of my line taut from below while I got out of the boat and stood against the cliff (with no shoes) while shaking the kayak loose. He literally held my life in his hands as I let go of control of my rope to focus on breaking the boat free. (Thanks Bryan…much love!)

  • This isn’t a small cliff
  • Shaking, rattling, and rolling

After that things went much smoother, though it still took almost 10 minutes to descend the rest of the way. It’s slow going in a kayak that was meant to conquer whitewater rather than cliff walls. All told, it took about 35 minutes to get from top to bottom when it could have been done in less than 60 seconds without a kayak.

  • Broken loose at last! Thanks Bryan!
  • That’s more like it
Finally made it to the bottom

Well anyway, we showed the video to the student body during the Spring semester. A few new faces started showing up at our pool sessions, but I think most of the rest of the students were permanently put off by the demented maniac in a boat.

Fast forward 20 years, and I’m still waiting for that Mountain Dew or Red Bull sponsorship to materialize. Know what though? That experience is part of the recipe that makes me who I am today. Who rappels in a kayak? Unless you know some hardcore paddlers, you’ve probably never met anyone that’s done it. For me though, it’s helped shape the way I think. While many people scoff at crazy ideas, I’m one of those that say “well hang on, just because it’s crazy doesn’t mean it’s impossible.”

Unusual? Yes. Unconventional? Absolutely. Here’s the beauty of it, though. When God made you, He broke the mold. You can search the world over, but there is simply nobody like you. The places you’ve been, the people you’ve known, the experiences you’ve had…for better or for worse…all combine to make you who you are. Quit trying to fit into the image of what you believe other people think you should be, and just…be you. God saw you coming millennia ago, and He knows exactly where you’re going.

You may not have combined multiple adventure sports, but maybe you’ve done things that make you feel like it’s hard to fit in or like you don’t have a group of people you can relate to. Just know this: if you’re yourself…no matter how weird or zany that may be…God won’t have to “figure out” what to do with you or how to use you to grow His kingdom. There’s been a role waiting for you all along.

So if you’re a Christian, go ahead. Be you. It’s who you were meant to be all along, and God’s got plans for how He’s going to use you.

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All the Fun You Need, in a Convenient Engine on Your Back

Late November and early December in Northern Virginia are characterized by people cleaning up the fallen leaves littering their yard.

I went for a walk last week. Walking through one neighborhood, I went down a dead-end road with three cul-de-sacs branching off of it. As soon as I turned the corner onto this road, I could see a guy walking around outside with one of those backpack leaf blowers. Although we have lots of lawn care companies in this neck of the woods, this guy wasn’t working for one of those companies. He appeared to be a homeowner that had his own backpack leaf blower.

Now, if you’ve got one of those, that’s cool. This guy, though, seemed to be lovin’ this thing! I’m guessing he got some kind of Black Friday bargain or something. The leaves in his yard weren’t enough of a challenge for him, I guess, because when I first saw him, he was out in the middle of the street blowing leaves toward the pile he had started. In fact, he couldn’t even hear the car sneaking up behind him, just waiting for him to turn around and get out of the way. Once he finally did, he waved the car through, like “Oh yeah, c’mon through, busy guy here, big stuff happening!”

It was also a breezy day. Leaves that he blew into a pile were soon replaced with new ones. I walked through all three cul-de-sacs, and when I passed him on my way out, he was still out in the street, blowing what was probably about seven leaves around. If one of his neighbors had come out and asked him to just kinda clear off their front walk a little bit, he probably would have grimaced while taking a deep breath, made a show of being willing to do it this one time, and then proceeded to clear off not only the front walk, but also the driveway and front yard, and since there was no clear boundary between that front yard and the front yard of the next house over, he’d just go ahead and do that front yard too.

When was the last time you were that excited about something? How about in your Christian walk? For those of you that are Christ followers, remember back when you first became a believer? Maybe there was some other spiritual high when you felt like you were on fire for God. Has that excitement faded, or are you still just as enthused now as you were then?

A lot of times people make the unfortunate mistake of judging something’s importance by the emotions it evokes. It’s unfortunate because for things like your faith, there are going to be numerous ups and downs. Sometimes there are going to be a lot more downs than ups. Through it all, you can’t rely on your feelings to tell you the value of Christ in your life. There will be hard times! Spend time in the Bible to learn, to grow in Christ. Spend time in prayer, deepening and strengthening your relationship with Him. When you hit low points, a stronger faith will help you persevere.

I don’t know the leaf blower guy at all, but I’m guessing that in a year or two, when the excitement and newness has worn off, he’s not going to be out blowing leaves around quite as much as he is these days (although I could see him trying to use the leaf blower instead of a snow shovel this winter). If your relationship with Christ has grown stale, maybe it’s time to try to jumpstart it again. What initially attracted you to faith in Christ, and what made you excited about it? What would it take to revive that excitement?

It’s been almost 20 months since the world first went into lockdown mode. Although we’ve had several iterations of “the new normal,” fellowship with other believers is something that, for many, has not fully returned to what it once was. If you’re someone who’s felt like their faith has stagnated or faltered, I’d challenge you to do something that increases the amount of time you spend with Godly peers. Maybe you need your own Barnabas. I realize there may be some who are still unable to return to pre-COVID practices, but can you find ways to raise your level of interaction? For others, maybe you haven’t physically returned to church. Think it’s time yet? If you’re back in person but think you’d benefit from additional fellowship, how about joining a small group or a Bible study? If there aren’t any you’d want to join, how about starting one?

The “shiny newness” of stuff can wear off quicker than you might want. Think of your relationship with God as a fire. If you don’t feed it, it’s not going to stay lit. If you feed it only small stuff, it might flare up brightly, but it will burn out quickly. If you give it stuff that’s too big or too dense, it’s just too much for the flame to catch. You need to find the right mixture of materials. What are you using your “active” mind for (what are you reading, what podcasts or radio shows are you listening to)? On the flip side, what are you doing with your “passive” mind (what are you soaking up when you’re watching a screen)? I’m not saying you need to be watching sermons and listening to hymns in all your free time, but I do think you should be doing something to actively grow in your relationship with Christ. It will help keep you excited about being a follower of Christ, and that excitement and enthusiasm can win souls for God’s kingdom.

I don’t often drop hints about my upcoming posts, but tune in this coming Thursday to see what happens when you combine two adventure sports. (Spoiler alert: you’ll see that sometimes it’s better to just focus on doing one at a time.)

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“Abba” Ain’t Just a Swedish Pop Group

Last year as part of the effort to escape the oppression of COVID, our family went to the beach for an overnight. We had a lot of fun, got some sunburn, stayed in a hotel for the first time as a family, and ate some treats that we don’t normally have.

This was the first time in a few years that we had been to the beach. My son, 9 at the time, was now big enough to try using a boogie board in the surf. Since he was only 6 years old the previous time we’d been at the beach, he was a big kid now. In fact, he had even stopped calling me “Daddy” by this point. He was all kinds of excited that he had the chance to try out something cool.

Remember what it was like being a kid? When I was young I used to be the one that was rearing to go, but now I’m the slow parent. We stepped off the boardwalk and onto the sand, and he was ready to hit the water. My wife and I, on the other hand, still had to find a spot to set up blankets and umbrellas, then apply sunblock, then blow up whatever inflatable thing we had brought, have a drink of water, etc. Since my son was chomping at the bit to get started before I was ready to join him, I sort of explained what he needed to do in order to get going on the boogie board, and then he took off to give it a try.

He didn’t quite realize that you can’t really boogie board in the water that’s super close to the shoreline, where all the waves kept crashing. Being the enthusiastic guy that he is, he had fun giving it a try, but he wasn’t really able to get going for any significant distance.

After his old man finally got in the water, I gave it a try from some deeper water. I took a few test runs to make sure I was giving him accurate information. I found the technique that was working for me, then tried passing it along to him. In order for him to really get going, he had to come deeper, past the point where the waves were breaking.

He was fine with the idea of coming deeper, but it was tough for someone less than half my weight to do while holding a very buoyant board. As I stood in water that was probably waist deep for me, it was hard to watch him try to fight through the surf to get out deeper. His first attempt was a victim of poor timing; he ventured into the water at just the right time where the wave hit him while he was off balance. It knocked him down and pushed him back to shore. He got back up and gave it another try, but he tried again too soon. I would have said something to him, but I figured he’d see the next wave coming and hold off until it passed. Nope. The same thing happened and he had to pick himself up again. From where I stood, I could see he was having second thoughts about this. Holding the board made it so much more difficult to get out past the crashing waves when he ordinarily could’ve just dived through them or gone under them.

On the third try, with mounting failures fresh in his memory and fear building in his mind, I watched him enter the water much more tentatively. A wave approached him and it hit his board hard, reminding him of just how powerful the waves could be. I called to him, encouraging him from where I stood, but I could tell he wasn’t going to hang in there a whole lot longer. Moving slowly when he should’ve moved quickly, more waves bullied him. Struggling to keep a straight face, his eyes grew wide and he called out to me in fear, “Daddy, I don’t like this!”

It was a heart-wrenching moment. I moved quickly to him and helped get him steady. While still standing in the zone where the waves crashed, I told him I could help him get past the crazy part, but he was no longer willing to give it a try, he just wanted to get out of there as fast as possible. It pained me to see him give up, and I tried several more times to convince him to give it another go, but he had made up his mind to stick to the shallows.

The part of that experience that sticks out the most to me was when my little guy’s enthusiasm melted away and he went back to calling me “Daddy.” He gave up on something that I know he would’ve enjoyed if he’d just done things a little differently. I could’ve forced him to do it, but I wanted him to want to do it, and it didn’t seem right to make him try something he no longer wanted to do (especially since it could have resulted in him fearing the ocean for years to come).

In the Bible, God goes by many names. One of them is “Abba.” The word “Abba” is something that Hebrew-speaking children call their fathers…it’s like saying “Daddy.”

The word Abba isn’t used often in the New Testament. It’s only used by two people: Jesus and Paul. Joachim Jeremias, a German theologian, remarked on Jesus’ use of the word. He writes “[Jesus] spoke to God as a child to its father: confidently and securely, and yet at the same time reverently and obediently.”

It makes sense that the Son of God talks to His Father that way. The part that’s crazy and amazing is this verse that Paul writes in Romans 8:15 and following. Paul’s writing about how we’re changed once we receive the Holy Spirit, and he says The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

This means that we (Christians) are adopted into the family of God. Not only that, but we’re loved and accepted to such a high degree that we’re given the privilege of calling God the Father “Daddy!”

The next time you’re overwhelmed or just having a hard time in general, remember that not only can you call on your Heavenly Father…you can call on your Heavenly Daddy. If you tell Him “I don’t like this,” know that He sees you, He’s got you, and He can get you where you need to be.

God, thank you so much for understanding us so well and for giving us so many illustrations by which we can get a better sense of Your love for us. You’ve assured us we’ll have hard times in this life. When we do, remind us to call on You, seek comfort in You, and remember that You’ll give us what we need for each day. Amen.

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They All Went Back for the One That was Left

I recently read an amazing account of a military situation that took place 10 years ago in Afghanistan.

I’m not totally clear on why this happened (I suspect it was ground fire from enemy forces), but a U.S. Army helicopter with two pilots crashed in the mountains, killing one of the two. The other pilot survived and started moving away from the crash site as enemy troops closed in.

Two Air Force rescue helicopters came and dropped off some highly trained combat medics called Pararescuemen (PJs) to try to help out. One helo dropped three PJs near the live pilot, who had by this time moved several hundred feet from the crash site. The other helo dropped two PJs near the crash site to see if they could still save the other pilot, and if nothing else, to bring him home.

Pararescuemen (PJs) training

Enemy fire started getting intense. As the rescue helicopters circled around to come back in and pick everyone up again, they took too much fire to get close. One of the crew on one of the choppers got hit bad enough that they had to return to base so that crew member could get medical attention. The two PJs at the crash site took cover from incoming enemy fire, but the hail of gunfire was so intense that it started setting off munitions in the wreckage itself, so they had to move out and find cover somewhere else.

By this point the call for assistance went out to other aircraft in the general area. Both fixed-wing and helicopters answered the call, with multiple aircraft using their weapons to try to push back the attackers to give the U.S. troops time and space to evacuate. On top of that, two groups of 16 soldiers landed in the area to provide assistance, engaging in tenacious firefights with the enemy that resulted in the death of at least one U.S. Army soldier.

Rescue helicopters, accompanied by attack helos and A-10s (aircraft that are great for attacking ground targets at low level) kept trying to fly in to get close enough to pick up the guys on the ground, but the enemy fire was so intense that they still had to back off. In order to take some of the heat off those rescue aircraft, one of the A-10 pilots intentionally flew his aircraft dangerously close to the enemy so they’d shoot at him instead of the rescue helos.

An Air Force A-10

Over time the group was able to evacuate all five PJs, the pilot that survived, and the body of the fallen pilot. For those that were involved, I’m sure it was an experience that will stay with them for the rest of their lives. They could make a movie out of that day’s events.

Now pause for just a moment and imagine you’re that one pilot that survived the crash. Think about everything that occurred that day to enable you to survive. You’re on the ground and have three special operations forces fighters right there in danger with you, simultaneously patching your wounds and returning fire. You’ve got over 30 troops dropped on the ground on your behalf, and every time you look up in the sky there’s some kind of aircraft screaming toward you, firing over your head at the people closing in on you and trying to kill you. It’s truly an inspiring story of human bravery and determination.

As inspiring as the story is, though, if you think that this situation can hold a candle to how much your Heavenly Father loves you and would fight for you, you’re missing out on how much He cares for you.

THIS is what you should be thankful for this Thanksgiving: you’re cherished, you’re pursued, and you’re defended by the Creator of the universe and the Savior of humanity. Follow your calling, honor Him with your life, and He’ll support you in ways you can’t even predict. Trials will come and things will at times look bleak. Despite that, you will never be alone. Walk confidently in the knowledge of whose you are, and you’ll walk every day in thankfulness.

Lord Jesus, thank you SO much for how You love us relentlessly! Thank you for this example of selfless love and of how it highlights the sacrifice You’ve already given for us. I ask that You’d help us all live in light of the miracle of your salvation, and to help us share that miracle with those that don’t yet know about it. Please help this Thanksgiving to be full of joy, uplifting fellowship (and in some cases, reunions), and safe travels. These things I ask in your name, Amen.

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Trusting That the Pieces Will Start Falling Into Place

When it comes to serving God, we all have different niches. Though not all niches benefit from a “go big or go home” attitude, I like the idea that if you’re not thinking so big that it scares you, you’re not giving God enough room to make something incredible happen.

Of course it’s easier to talk about these kinds of things than it is to do them. I’ve got a “bigger-than-me” undertaking going on, and I feel like giving periodic updates here will help keep me accountable and making forward progress. I also believe that being transparent with what’s going on, including some of the challenges I face, may help others that are struggling with getting the pursuit of their calling off the ground.

Back in February I shared that I felt called to write a series of seven fiction books that were each 40,000 to 50,000 words. That’s not a small task. That’s a bare minimum of 280,000 words. I’ve got some experience writing this blog, but I’ve never published a book before! I’ve never come close to writing something that big! I’m able to articulate concepts and principles, which worked well in academic papers, but that’s a totally different animal from creative writing. My academic pursuits are more in the sciences, rather than communications. By most accounts, I’m out of my depth…but since I feel like God’s called me to this goal, being out of my depth isn’t an excuse to skip it. One of the ways God is glorified most is in the success of His inadequate, imperfect, and unqualified followers.

Each person’s combination of spiritual gifts, resources, and interests is as unique as their fingerprints. I know that not everybody is called to be an author, but I believe each Christian is called to use their gifts, whatever they may be, for God’s glory. You may not identify with everything I’m about to cover here, but I’ll try to highlight a few things that may be helpful to those grappling with pursuit of a calling in their own lives that seems too big to take on.

The toughest part was definitely getting started. I think that holds true for most large endeavors. If you focus on how much you still have left to do, it gets overwhelming. The important part is to just get going. Before I started writing text, I sat down and drew out a rough plan for how the overall series would go. There were (and still are) lots of details that I don’t yet have figured out. The plan evolved a bit as I started mapping it out; the blueprint I’m using now is not the same as my first version. Overall, the most important thing was to just get going.

I noticed that for me, I’m still pretty wobbly on how some of the background or plot points are going to weave together. There are some sections of the stories where I know exactly what I want to have happen, though. Those are the ones I go with first, and if I use those as pillars for the construction of the rest of the story, it helps other pieces fall into place. If you can’t see the whole picture, focus on developing the stuff that you know will be part of the process.

I’m looking at coming up with seven individual stories that are all woven together into a larger one. Not only is that a lot of creative effort, it’s a lot of stuff to keep track of mentally. Sometimes it seems like there’s a hurricane happening inside my head. Inspiration for one or more of the stories hits at the strangest times. If I don’t write it down right away, there’s no guarantee it’s going to come back again. When you have the (mental clarity, vision, burst of creativity, focus, etc.) but can’t capitalize on it right then and there, capture what you need to capture in order to capitalize on it later.

I sketched out the blueprint for the series and then naturally started writing Book 1. A flurry of ideas kept flying around, though. I’d write down notes for something to include in a given book or to weave somewhere into the series. I started Book 2 before long because I either got in a rut or got bored with working on Book 1. During the whole time, though, the one I was most jazzed about was Book 5. Ideas kept coming and coming, and right now I have over 20 pages of ideas and notes for that one story. I stalled for as long as I could, but eventually I started writing Book 5. It’s out of sequence, yes, but if the goal is to get seven books done, does it matter which one gets done first? Making progress is making progress. Some may see it as putting the cart before the horse, but if you can see a method to the madness, don’t shut the door on doing things out of order.

The 40-50,000 word target was just that…a target. After giving this a shot, some individual books might be shorter and others may be way longer. What if Book 6 has a Volume I and Volume II? I don’t know…but there are some things I don’t need to have figured out right now. Don’t make “perfect” the enemy of “good.” Keep on doing your thing; deal with today’s problems today and deal with tomorrow’s problems tomorrow.

So where do I stand today with this project? Right now I’m more than 22,000 words into Book 1, 8-10,000 words into Book 2, and over 13,000 words into Book 5. I’m nowhere near being done, but you know what? That’s more than 40,000 words, and that’s more than 10% of the way into the low end of the goal. Something that once looked like a mammoth task now looks much more do-able.

Maybe the most significant thing I’m learning in this process is the peace, focus, and contentment that come from living in your calling. If this is truly what God put me on this earth to do, then I’m built for this. It’s kind of tough to describe; it’s not as though I lived in turmoil before this, but my mind feels more settled knowing what it’s supposed to be throwing its effort into. In my case, getting started on this thing was more of a relief, an outlet for that pent-up sense of unsettledness. It’s as if I’m a screwdriver that’s been used as a hammer or a wrench for as long as I can remember, and have recently been introduced to the way I’m supposed to be used.

Finally, I’m very blessed to have a strong faith in God. I believe with all my heart that God can do anything, but that doesn’t mean He’ll do the things I think He’ll do them or the way I think He should do them. This whole thing may be a spectacular failure that serves a purpose I can’t yet see. On the other hand, I may be thinking entirely too small. I happen to think that Book 5 would make a decent movie with a solid TV spinoff for a season or two, and a great video game. A Christian multimedia company wasn’t really in my plans when this train first pulled out of the station, but I’m not the one driving the train. I have to cling loosely to ideas and recognize that they’re Gods in the first place, not mine…I’m just trying to honor Him with my obedience. There are still plenty of things standing in the way. Finding the time and/or energy to keep writing, tracking down a publisher that will give me a chance, struggling with making the details line up in a way that makes sense…they’re all very real challenges that I’ll need to fight. I’m not alone, though. Like I said earlier…if I was truly called to this purpose, I’m custom built to overcome the challenges, especially if God is paving the way for me.

How about you? Are you still a square peg in a round hole that’s trying to figure out how to find their place? I’ll leave you with a link to an inspirational video I heard today. If you don’t have time to watch the whole thing, just watch the first few minutes, especially if you’re trying to figure out what your calling might be.

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Pastors: A Force Multiplier

I recently had the privilege of seeing a young pastor’s ordination.

For those that aren’t familiar with the term, it has to do with the roles that Christians play within the Body of Christ. While every Christ-follower possesses spiritual gifts and talents, there are some that are charged with a special kind of ministry.

Things like mowing an elderly widow’s lawn, feeding the poor, and other acts of service are obviously good things to do, but they’re things that don’t generally require a whole lot of involvement from the church leadership to accomplish. If you look a level or two higher, you’re looking at the people that are trying to enable others to perform the service God called them to perform. Everyone filled with the Holy Spirit can contribute to the Kingdom of God, but each congregation needs guidance from its church leadership. A calling to be a pastor or teacher in church comes with more accountability than most other callings.

Here are a few verses from the book of Ephesians. Take note of the roles it mentions and the purpose behind those roles:

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. – Ephesians 4:11-13

The people filling those roles are there for the purpose of equipping other Believers to go and do what they’ve been called to do. Because of the importance of those roles, they demand a higher standard of the people that want to fulfill them. James 3:1, for example, says Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly. They’re dealing with a heavy responsibility, and it’s not one to be taken lightly.

An ordination, then, is a special time in a preacher’s career when others in the church leadership are essentially endorsing the person being ordained…saying “after getting to know this person’s character and views on Christian doctrine, we are willing to support their desire to enter into this role that bears an awesome responsibility.” I’ve got to imagine that it’s an incredibly humbling but also exciting time.

I fully recognize that these roles require an added level (or two) of scrutiny, and I think it’s important to ensure that candidates are fully aware of the gravity of what they’re undertaking. It reminded me, however, that those people who are ordained are not the ones charged with rolling up their sleeves and getting dirty; that’s our job. Believe me, church leaders have all kinds of stress and challenges with which they must contend, so they’re not getting off the hook easy by any means. It’s the rest of us that are to be Christ’s hands and feet. Our collective reach and social circles go much further than what the pastor’s does, so when church leaders help equip us, they are multiplying our collective reach further.

It struck me, though, that there may be some out there that feel they would benefit from some form of commissioning. Please understand that I carry no authority other than the fact that I’m a fellow Christian who believes in your ability to follow God’s calling (and would spur you on in doing so), but I am DEFINITELY willing to pray for you as you follow faithfully on the path with which God’s charged you. Let’s pray:

Dear Lord, You are holy and worthy to be praised! I thank you for the person reading these words right now. This reader is capable of being used greatly by You, to do things through You that they never thought possible or ever dared to hope for. Even those that are reading this and haven’t really thought about it lately, I pray that You’d awaken a fire and passion within them for something specific that You’d have them do for the glory of Your kingdom. You’ve charged us all with specific things You want us to do in this life with our gifts and resources; I ask that You’d grant patience to those that don’t yet know what those things are and encourage them until the time comes for You to reveal it to them. For those that are blessed enough to know Your purpose for their life, please help them to be relentless, even in the face of obstacles, discouragement, or no apparent progress. You will place the right people and things in our lives that will be there at just the right time; help us all to have the faith and boldness to jump when You need us to, even when we can’t see what’s on the other side. If this reader is a Christian, please give them the confidence to realize whose they are, to help them walk by faith and not by sight, and to know that the gates of Hell will not prevail against the Church. You haven’t given us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love, and of a sound mind. Help this reader to live their lives assured of this principle, to realize that our time on Earth is short, and to live in light of eternity. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Also, a special “thank you” to all our veterans out there. Happy Veteran’s Day!

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Now THAT’S a Scary Congregation

Our church does some fun stuff. This past weekend it organized a Father/Son paintball outing at a paintball facility in the area. I took my son and we spent the day shooting at other guys.

I’m still recovering, and probably will be for a few more days. From the way my body feels, I guess I must’ve spent a lot of time in a crouch or something. Aside from getting hit, my quads scream at me every time I walk downhill or down stairs.

This was my son’s first time paintballing, and he had a good time. We’ve been laser tagging before, but this is simulated combat at another level.

We attend a church in northern Virginia. You know who lives and attends church in northern Virginia? Military dads. You know what military dads teach their kids for fun? Small-unit tactics. I have .68-caliber welts you wouldn’t believe, from both the 40+ crowd and the teenage demographic. One was so deep in my leg that it took a couple of days to start showing. Some of them are places you’d expect, like the chest and the top of the head, but others are in places you wouldn’t really expect, like in the back and ribs (not because I was running away, but because some of the Special Operations members of our congregation out-flanked me and I didn’t even know what was happening until it was too late to avoid the bruises).

For those of you that may not be familiar with paintball, not every paintball that hits you breaks open. If a paintball hits you but doesn’t break, you’re still in the game. There’s something of an honor system in that regard, so it’s easy to get hot under the collar if you think you hit someone but they’re not leaving the field. If they’re not walking off, you usually have to take their word that the paintball hadn’t broken open (and in that case you can keep shooting at them to try to get one to break on them).

No way around it…somebody got me this round

We probably played about a dozen matches that day. The very first one we played, I stuck near my son in the back until he could get a feel for what was happening. As members of our team began getting eliminated, I moved closer to the heavier shooting. Eventually I got shot right in the keister (just a flesh wound!). I put my hand up and covered my barrel, indicating I’d been eliminated, and walked off the field. Only after getting back to the safe zone did I discover that the paintball had not actually burst…I had walked off the field without actually needing to. I eliminated myself! In doing so, I left work undone and I left the team with one fewer member to help out.

There are lots of things in a Christian walk that will sideline people, either temporarily or permanently. Without question, there are things in life that will knock you off your feet and kick you when you’re down. Tragedy, pain, and loss are guarantees. The sad part is when Christians think they should still be sidelined when in reality the power of the Holy Spirit living in them means they’re very capable of doing much more than what they think they’re capable of. Their heads hang low instead of being held high. They live as victims when they should be living victoriously.

As a child of God, you bring something special to this world and to the family of God. If you know what that special something is, but you’re not following through on it, you’re essentially eliminating yourself from the fight. Please, hang in there! You’ve already got everything you need to start doing the work you were put here to do, and if the only reason you haven’t begun is because you haven’t yet chosen to do so, maybe it’s time to get off the sidelines.

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Schools That get a Failing Grade

Boy, I’d really like to get away from politics and get back to telling stories about doing SERE stuff in the Air Force or jumping out of airplanes or something, but the world just seems to insist on going crazy.

It looks like it’s happening again. Another Virginia county’s school system is passing policy changes that will result in boys being authorized to use the girl’s restroom (and vice versa). Before you tune out on me though, hang in there just a bit longer.

You know, at some point you have to ask…since this fails the common sense test, what’s really going on here?

A little background first. Prince William County Schools Superintendent Dr. LaTanya McDade is citing safety as a reason to create an environment that physically endangers students. (Here’s my last post, which shows how well that idea works.) At a school board meeting earlier this month, she said “All Prince William County students have a fundamental right to access educational programs and facilities that are safe and supportive of their physical, emotional, social and academic needs…” She also said “It is our mission to ensure every school community is inclusive, appreciates diversity, students have a sense of belonging and are affirmed in their identity.”

Affirmation is that important, huh? Affirmation is supposed to be used when somebody does a good job at something. To the parents out there…if your kid comes home and tells you about some kind of destructive behavior they’re getting into, YOU are the one with more life experience and YOU are the one that can help guide them. You don’t need to let them figure everything out by themselves. I’m all for letting kids make their own mistakes at the smaller level so they learn about consequences and critical thinking, but I’d say that no-questions-asked affirmation isn’t always the way to go, you know? “Hey, Mom/Dad, look, Johnny from school gave me a cherry bomb and said I should light it and throw it into traffic!” “Oh, wow, that’s wonderful news! Here’s a lighter!”

Now, the school system has some legal basis for doing this. A lawsuit settled in the Virginia Supreme Court established that public schools cannot use gender identity to deny a transgender student the right to access the school’s programs and facilities consistent with the student’s gender identity. Whether you agree or disagree, the court is saying “hey, you need to provide every student an opportunity to use school programs regardless of what gender they claim to be.” The decision effectively made this the law in Virginia. That being the case, I’d expect more Virginia school systems to start heading this direction.

The “Common Sense Fail” comes in recognizing the status of a non-binary student but still forcing them into using a binary system. If you have an X and a Y chromosome but identify as something other than a male, you shouldn’t get to compete in girls’ sports. That same person gets to use the girl’s restroom because it makes them feel affirmed, yet there’s apparently no concern for the other girls who feel uncomfortable or afraid to be alone in the bathroom with that person.

To inject some common sense back into the debate, if you’re going to recognize an unlimited number of genders, that’s fine, but you’re going to need to provide separate bathroom facilities for each of them. You’re also going to need to have separate sports leagues for each of them. Prohibitively expensive? Yep. Wildly impractical to have a league that has only three athletes in the whole county? You betcha. Fairer and safer for the girls and boys in school? I think so.

It’s not about fairness though, is it? Nobody’s actually interested in solving this problem, they’re interested in exacerbating it. Our kids can’t even perform basic math proficiently. Meanwhile, China’s out there firing hypersonic missiles. Don’t worry, though…at least the U.S. has its first transgender four-star admiral. That leads me to the deeper question…what’s this really about? What’s the real reason this is happening? Like I said two posts ago, there’s opportunity in chaos, but who’s poised to take advantage? Those that are dividing are looking to seize something they don’t yet have, while those that are trying to unite are trying to make more opportunity available for everyone.

Another point to ponder. The Virginia Supreme Court has effectively legislated from the bench. The Court has decided what the law should mean. If you live in Virginia, the only way to alter this reality now is to elect politicians that will write laws that modify the current situation. If you’re legally registered to vote in Virginia, you have the opportunity to do exactly that in less than two weeks. Only two states are holding gubernatorial elections this November, and Virginia is one of them (New Jersey is the other). You have the chance to help choose who will make the laws over the next four years.

Lord Jesus, thank you so much that we can rest knowing You’ve got your hand on the wheel. I pray for protection for all those that will be affected by this policy change, for good people and common sense to prevail, and for God-fearing people to be elected, not just at the state and local level, but at high levels as well. Amen

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Saying This Could Only Happen in a Third-World Country Insults Third-World Countries

On a local Christian radio station here in Northern Virginia, a couple of the afternoon hosts play a game called “Bible or Not.” They have three short phrases that sound kind of wise or religious, and a listener calls in and tries to determine whether they’re from the Bible or from somewhere else.

Let’s play a similar game. I’ll tell you a true story, and you guess whether it’s from Soviet Russia, Communist China, or present-day America. The story itself is true; you’re just trying to guess where it took place.

Ready? Here we go.

A school in the country was adopting a controversial policy that upset many parents. Many of the parents feared the policy would allow students to be physically harmed, and protested the change. The people in charge wanted the policy anyway, though, and it was enacted despite the parents’ concerns.

The parents ended up being right. One student took advantage of the policy and committed a crime against another student. Not just a little crime, a particularly heinous, “put you away for a long time” crime.

The crime was largely kept quiet. The next time the school board had a public meeting, the victim’s father showed up, hoping to shine a light on how the policy change had enabled the crime. Someone at the meeting asked if there had been any problems related to the policy change. The school board leaders said “not to my knowledge.” Enraged, the father relayed what happened to his child. Another attendee at the meeting informed the father that she did not believe the child’s claims, going so far as to insult the child’s mental capacity.

At that point the argument heated up, and law enforcement tried to escort the man out of the meeting where he could calm down. Wanting to stay and shed more light on the crime, things quickly escalated from a heated argument to several officers restraining the father and putting him in handcuffs.

He was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, and found guilty of both charges. The court sentenced him to 10 days in jail, all of which was suspended, contingent on one year of good behavior. The top prosecutor involved in the case then pursued a fine and anger management training for the man. This seems excessive for a man that simply wanted to share how a controversial policy brought physical and emotional harm to his child.

This man’s name is Scott Smith. He lives in Loudon County, Virginia, where the public school system allows students to use whatever restroom they’d like. He alleges that his daughter was sexually assaulted in the girls’ bathroom by a boy wearing a skirt. The nature of the allegations is extremely graphic and violent. The school system apparently tried to cover up an incident where a girl was beaten and raped in a public school. At the very least, school administrators claimed no knowledge of it, suggesting incompetence of the highest degree. I don’t really blame the cops for arresting him (they never know the back story, they only see what’s happening in front of them), but it’s unsettling that a pro-leniency prosecutor chose this incident to make an example out of, apparently trying to silence someone to help preserve a controversial agenda.

The daughter’s assailant was moved to a different school, and has allegedly assaulted a second victim.

And now, Scott Smith is near the top of someone’s list of domestic terrorists. Citing the case of Scott Smith, among others, the National School Boards Association has requested help from the U.S. Department of Justice to prosecute parents that get rowdy at school board meetings while protesting controversial items.

Your right to free speech doesn’t disappear overnight. It’s taken away little bits at a time. Elections matter. If there isn’t a good candidate in your local race, maybe you should throw your hat in the ring.

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The Art of Strategic Subversion

Christian influence used to dominate American culture. When you take a look at where our country is now, you can’t help but wonder: “how did this happen?”

It’s actually very interesting, in a terribly sad and depressing kind of way. This is a tactic that’s been used regularly throughout history. I’ll explain it a little and then show a couple of examples that one country has used recently. This is something that’s been done by insurgent groups, multiple nations throughout the world, and even the US.

When you have an existing political or social order where one force or social norm dominates the landscape, and a minor force or social norm desires to gain an increase in power relative to the dominant one, one of the strategies available to the underdog is a process called Strategic Subversion.

Strategic Subversion is a four-step process that can upend societies, and I believe that in America it has both already been done, and is still ongoing. I don’t know if this is the intent, or merely a side effect, but I believe its current use in America is leading Americans away from Christianity and Judeo-Christian values. (To be clear, I believe Americans have the right to practice any religion they choose so long as it doesn’t harm or infringe on the rights of others, but it’s something else entirely when someone intentionally pursues the widespread undermining of a religious system.)

There are different names for the four steps, but Strategic Subversion follows this basic sequence: Preparation, Destabilization, Flashpoint, Restabilization.

In the Preparation phase, the aspiring entity builds a network of players that prepares to seize opportunity and consolidate power when the time is right. Think of it as prepositioning allies to pick up the most important pieces when the existing system weakens and breaks. During the summer of 2020’s crazy civil unrest, flyers started showing up in my neighborhood. They said something like “think what the police are doing is unfair? Text ‘prosecute’ to xxxxx.” Why would anyone want a bunch of people texting them? It’s not a scam and they don’t make money from those texts, but what they’re doing is building an army. They’re gathering a list of phone numbers of sympathetic individuals that they can feed cherry-picked information to, aiming to inflame the emotions of people and inciting them to some sort of mass action at a later date.

Synchronize Watches!

During Destabilization, the aspiring entity sows the seeds that will allow for the Flashpoint to occur. It might include pushing the boundaries of what’s acceptable for the sake of seeing where the dominant power draws a line. In a revolution, the lesser power might attack government institutions (physical attacks, cyber attacks, or any other means of overwhelming the institution’s ability to conduct normal operations) in an attempt to demonstrate the current power’s inability to effectively provide services (electricity, water, food, safety, security, or any other basic need) to the populace. A benign example would be a college prank where a large portion of the student body checks out the maximum allowable number of books from the school library over time, and then everybody returns them all during the same half hour on a prearranged date. The library’s staff would not be able to provide normal services because they’d simply be overwhelmed by all the incoming books. Now imagine the same concept, but on a much more serious level, like engaging in a large number of crimes in a short amount of time. The police simply cannot get to all of them in a timely manner.

The Flashpoint is the most crucial of the four steps. It’s an unmistakable crisis that essentially causes mass confusion among the general populace and sets the plan in motion. During the confusion, the prepositioned players execute their pre-assigned tasks, which could be something as simple as intentionally making a bad situation worse, or could be as bad as assassinating a key figure. This is the phase that moves quickly…the people in the know seem to miraculously seize power before the general public has even figured out what’s going on.

Restabilization is the consolidation of the new order. It’s the cementing of power that makes it difficult or impossible for the deposed power to mount a counterattack and reclaim what it lost. Assassinations, imprisonments, sweeping new laws, reports of sudden swings in public opinion (which may or may not be true)…these are the things that make it very difficult for remaining pockets of the old order to bounce back. If all goes according to plan, the aspiring power has now become the ruling power and most of the serious challenges to its authority are eliminated or minimized through various means.

One of the artificial islands in the South China Sea

China can provide two recent examples. Ten to 15 years ago, the South China Sea (SCS) was highly disputed territory…many nations in the area had claims to its waters simply by virtue of their close proximity. Plenty of nations are closer to the SCS than China, but China wanted to expand its territory for various reasons (natural resources, additional buffer space, control of one of the busiest shipping regions in the world, etc.). As fishing vessels from different nations continued getting into disputes with each other in the area, China started sending armed vessels to the area to protect its fishing vessels. Soon after, it began putting armed troops in ankle-deep water on shoals in the SCS to stake claims to maritime features. Fast forward to today, and it’s manufactured islands in the area that now include military airstrips, from which China intends to consolidate Chinese control over huge swaths of the SCS, something to which China would otherwise have no authoritative claim. International maritime courts have declared China has no right to territorial claims near these manufactured islands, but the nation largely ignored the ruling. Officially, this territory is not internationally recognized as Chinese territorial waters, but if everybody stays out of the area, that’s essentially the new reality. That’s why the United States still conducts “Freedom of Navigation” cruises through the SCS; we send US naval vessels through territory China claims as its own, but which the international community does not recognize. China of course raises a stink each time we do it, but Chinese leaders know they have no legal claim to the area. If nobody sails through the area, China’s vision becomes the new order.

A more current example involves Taiwan. If you’re not up to speed on this one, the quick and dirty version is that when Communists rose up against the government and took over China in the late 1940s, the deposed government fled to an island roughly 100 miles off the coast…Taiwan. Ever since then, mainland China has been under Communist rule while a Democratic version of the pre-Communist Chinese Government has remained in place on Taiwan. As China gained power, many in the international community navigated this sticky situation by acknowledging only one of the governments, the Communist People’s Republic of China on the mainland, as the rightful China. The Democratic government still communicates with the U.S., but if we set up an American embassy on Taiwan, China would view this action as tantamount to an act of war. The fact that China, with all its might, has for the past 70+ years been unable to reclaim Taiwan and abolish the Democratic upstart just off its coast, has been a national embarrassment to the government. China intends to reclaim Taiwan by force, if necessary, and we could all be surprised by how soon this occurs. During the Trump administration, China played things a little cooler with Taiwan and would only send a few planes every now and then into Taiwanese airspace. Now, though, during the administration of a president China perceives as weak, bogged down with foreign and domestic crises, and unable to demonstrate military force or resolve, China regularly violates Taiwanese airspace with larger and larger incursions. This past Monday, 56 Chinese aircraft entered Taiwan’s airspace without permission. China is clearly challenging the norm in preparation for the Flashpoint, when it seizes Taiwan by force, arrests or kills Taiwan’s key leaders, destroys or takes over the island’s defenses, and sets up a naval perimeter the U.S. Navy would be hard-pressed to breach. At that point it will be difficult, if not impossible, to fight and recover Taiwan (and still have pre-flashpoint Taiwanese leaders reclaim power). I don’t believe the plan was to do it this early, but China may choose to seize the initiative before Australia builds up the submarine assets we’ve heard so much about in the news recently (the deal the French weren’t happy about), at a time when the U.S. administration will be reluctant to commit the U.S. Navy to the crisis, and when America is embroiled in domestic challenges to the point where its citizens don’t care about what’s happening on the other side of the world.

I use China as an example, but it’s certainly not the only nation employing the tactic. Remember how this post started out: how did such a pro-Christian nation get to where we are now? Slowly and persistently. This happens inside our own borders, by those who wish to tear down the existing power structure. The next time you find yourself standing palms up with shrugged shoulders, mouth agape, asking “what is happening?”, you may find yourself in the tail end of a destabilization phase. Chaos is the goal, because in chaos lies the opportunity to make big changes. Take a look around and ask yourself “who’s doing the dividing, and who’s doing the uniting?” The people doing the dividing are likely players (at least pawns) in the aspiring power’s plan.

Here’s one of the main takeaways from this post. This strategy is most effective when the people in the dominant role (the position being undermined) are not being proactive. I’d guess most Americans just want to go to work, get paid, raise their families, and try to improve their situation. That’s wonderful, but it probably means that if they’re focused on that, they’re not out to change society. Other people are, though. Don’t be passive. When you see evil or those with ill intent, confront it and/or call it out.

I don’t believe we’re anywhere near the horror of the Holocaust, but I bring it up to make a point. The situation for the Jews in 1940s Germany started getting bad way before concentration camps. By the time they were forced to walk around with yellow stars pinned on their clothes, it was too late. Don’t be afraid to learn from history, to push back (while you’re still able to), and to start moving this country back toward becoming a God-fearing one.

God, it’s getting bad down here. It feels like the country has turned its back on You. I know there are other Christians out there, but I sure don’t hear them as much as I hear everyone else. Help us collectively turn back to you as a nation and help us point others to You in the process. Amen

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What Level of Talent are We Talking (Part 2)

In 2018 I felt called to do something very uncharacteristic. I felt like God was leading me to start blogging.

After wrestling with the idea for a little bit, I got a blog set up. At first I didn’t know what it was supposed to look like (I’m still figuring it out). It started out recounting adventures from my younger days with an added biblical tie-in, but has since evolved to include other things as well. This blog has been up and running for almost exactly three years now. This is post number 188.

DareGreatlyNow doesn’t have a huge following. It doesn’t even have a large following. Some entries have been read or shared hundreds of times, others less than 10. Sometimes I’m excited about a post I’m writing, other times writing is a chore.

It’s not easy. I usually spend a couple of hours a week writing new entries. After some days at work, I’d sure like to be doing something else. It’s a tricky thing…I initially felt God calling me to start this blog. I’ve had some personal experience writing regular updates on extraordinary or exciting events in the past whose list of recipients quickly ballooned to hundreds. Well I figured “it’ll be just like that!” Well, truth be told, it’s been nothing like that. The subscriber list has slowly grown over time, but even though I’ve received some feedback here and there, I’ll likely never know the degree to which God’s used these posts to work in someone’s life.

Despite all the negatives that go along with it, I can’t stop just yet. I definitely felt called to start it, but I haven’t yet felt called to quit doing it. Giving up might be easy, but quitting a calling wouldn’t reflect well upon me as someone that considers himself a dedicated Christ-follower, nor would it bring honor to my Savior, the one that put this task on my heart.

This past week I read some footnotes about one of Jesus’ famous parables that helped remind me of what I should do. In Matthew 25:14-30 Jesus tells the parable of the master entrusting three of his servants with large sums of his money before he departs on a trip. I’ve written before about this Bible story, but sometimes reading the same thing at different times in your life can help things hit home in different ways.

Most of us know the parable. The master charged the three servants with different amounts of money, according to their ability. The first two guys, entrusted with about 375 pounds of gold and 150 pounds of gold respectively, worked hard and doubled the amount of gold they oversaw. The third guy, in charge of roughly 75 pounds of gold, went out and hid it in the dirt, rather than put in the effort to turn it into something that benefited his master. When the master returns and links up with the three to get an update, He’s pleased with the first two guys, but he’s miffed at the third guy, who didn’t even put the gold in the bank where it could collect interest.

What I’d like to focus on here is the first two guys. Can you imagine being so diligent that you double the value of something just by being persistent? Earlier this week the price of gold was $1,750 per ounce. That price, times 16 ounces in a pound, times 375 or 150 pounds means that the first guy was entrusted with $10.5 million and the master put the second guy in charge of $4.2 million, and both of those guys earned a 100% return!

Here’s the part I want to focus on, though. The master was obviously pleased with their performance. For the guy that turned $10.5 million into $21 million, the master said “That’s great! I’ll put you in charge of more, but for now, come celebrate with me!” (“Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.”) Know what he said to the second guy? The guy that “only” turned $4.2 million into $8.4 million? He said the exact same thing.

Do you know what that means? It means that God’s looking for faithfulness in His servants as they perform the tasks with which He’s charged them. He’s looking for them to demonstrate consistent effort even when it’s not convenient, not just something that starts out with good intentions and then fizzles out after awhile. Faithfulness is one of the fruits of the Spirit that we’re all to demonstrate as our walk with Christ deepens.

Know what else it means? It means those same servants should perform those tasks with the full expectation that God will use their efforts to do something great for His kingdom. Not only that, but those servants should serve in the effort fully expecting they’ll one day be put in charge of something bigger. Being faithful in our callings prepares us for future callings.

So…do I believe the Church will collapse or the sky will fall if I stop writing entries for this blog? No, but if I stop prematurely, I believe that someone down the road (maybe me) will somehow get short-changed. The third servant in the parable was put in charge of about 2.1 million dollars. Think he got a second look the next time the master was going out of town?

Assuming I’m currently entrusted with this lowest-value task (the one-talent version, rather than the two- or five-talent version), instead of hiding it under a rock or burying it in the dirt, I’m going to put some effort into remaining faithful to the task, fully expecting to one day be entrusted with something bigger.

God charged me with a task. I don’t know what He wants to do with it, but here’s what I know: outcome is God’s responsibility, and obedience is my responsibility. That takes a lot of the pressure off me! I can’t possibly know what God’s got planned for this blog or why in the world He prompted me to start it, but that’s okay, because that information isn’t necessary in order for me to follow through on the assignment He’s given me.

Is there something you’ve felt called to do, but have given up on it? Please consider having another look. It could be your first step in God moving you along to something bigger.

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How Does He Bounce Back?

It’s been a rough few weeks for President Biden. Let’s take stock of the current political situation.

A stalled domestic agenda. The botched Afghanistan withdrawal. The first time ever that France recalled its ambassador to the US. Rising inflation. The crisis on the southern border (both the normal border crossers and now the Haitians huddling under the bridge in Texas). Trying to manage the optics of mandating vaccines for Americans while releasing unvaccinated illegal immigrants into the US. Even the press is starting to politely turn against him.

Many politicians view election results as the American public delivering mandates. That is, if there’s a large party swing after an election, it’s normally interpreted as the public saying “we want to go in the other direction,” and giving the new majority party license to do so. There’s a problem though. It’s one thing if your political party trounces the other; that outcome suggests the American public is willing to go along with your proposed agenda. However, in this case, this majority is one of the slimmest majorities in recent memory. In fact, the House majority is the narrowest it’s been in about 75 years. In the Senate, party lines are as close as they can possibly be; if a single Democratic senator disagrees, becomes incapacitated, or otherwise doesn’t show for a vote, Dems won’t have enough for even a simple majority, and that simple majority requires using the Vice President to break a tie. Despite this incredibly narrow margin, Democrats have approved and are pursuing highly controversial agenda items that would normally only be undertaken when holding significant majorities. (In the 2010 midterms, for example, after Democrats signed the controversial “Obamacare” into effect, President Obama admitted to the House taking a “shellacking” when they lost about 60 seats to Republicans.)

President Biden’s poll numbers are taking a beating. My sense is that it has to do with his identity crisis. Historically (prior to serving in his role as Vice President), Joe was pretty moderate. Why is it that he’s now gone full radical left? I’d guess it’s because, while he may have his personal political views, the people around him know how to persuade him to do what they want. Joe Biden is a likable guy, but he’s obviously not the one calling the shots. It seems he’s not permitted to engage in unscripted events, and he’s repeatedly made remarks about how he’s “not supposed to” interact with the audience or take questions. This is, like, puppet government stuff (think “Weekend at Bernie’s,” but set in the White House).

If I’m a democratic strategist, I’m looking at this situation and thinking that it’s probably best to wring everything possible out of President Biden (in terms of agenda), but then do my best to make sure someone else, maybe with a more moderate record, is the Democratic nominee running in 2024 (maybe Virginia Senator Mark Warner, if he can raise his profile between now and then).

The problem for Democrats…if Joe Biden leaves office for any reason during this term, Vice President Kamala Harris gets promoted to the big chair, and she’s not yet ready to carry the torch in a Presidential election. She might be ready by the time the election nears, but there’s still much work to be done. It took her a full three months to even visit the border after her boss put her in charge of the border crisis. That’s a fail, even if the border visit didn’t actually accomplish anything. She recently embarked on an official tour through Asia, which should give her some more experience with foreign policy. Time will tell if she’ll be groomed for the role of President.

Let’s say you’re a strategist working for the democratic “kingmakers.” You have President Joe Biden, a man with plummeting poll numbers, but you can pretty much get him to do whatever you want him to do. That benefit isn’t worth anything if he’s voted out of office, however. You’re almost definitely going to have a Republican-controlled House of Representatives after the midterm elections, and possibly a Republican-controlled Senate. What’s your call here? Do you go all in, trying to implement a Democratic wishlist that will get you voted out in the short term, but perhaps return you to office in the long term, or do you focus on trying to retain the White House even if it means tossing Biden (and possibly Harris) overboard in favor of a new ticket? Who do you have on the bench that can be used on the national stage?

Historically speaking, the President’s party loses House seats in midterm elections. (It’s just how it goes; it’s more of an anomaly when this does not happen, like when Republicans gained seats during the 2002 midterm elections…in the wake of 9/11 and the start of the conflict in Afghanistan.) My original prediction would have been that even though it’s predictable, President Biden will get saddled with the blame for losing the House and maybe the Senate, then in the midst of that blame game, the powers that be will demand a Democratic primary for the 2024 election, which he will not win. Judging by the way the press is openly questioning the White House, though, that plan may take too long.

I’m not saying that this part will happen, but it’s something to keep an eye on. There are four Republican House members that are planning to introduce articles of impeachment against President Biden in respect to the Afghanistan debacle and the catastrophe that’s happening on our southern border. They can introduce whatever they want, but it doesn’t mean it’s going to go anywhere. If we start seeing these articles get traction from Democrats, it won’t mean they believe there’s dereliction of duty going on; it will mean that they’ve wrung what they could from Biden and now it’s time to get rid of him in the hopes of having a better shot during the next election. It’s not the way the system should work, but it may be the way it gets used. Again, time will tell, but I don’t think Joe Biden will serve a full four years.

I don’t really like doing political posts here, but I feel it’s important to keep up with what your government is up to. The way I see it, this is more “political analysis” than posting political material.

A lot can happen between now and the next presidential election, and I expect that it will. I don’t believe that President Biden will run for re-election, but at this point I don’t know how that set of circumstances will unfold.

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Letting Go

Today’s post comes to us courtesy of a guest author, my wife! Enjoy!

On a vacation with my family I tried rock climbing for the first time. They had it set up with an automatic belay system… meaning there wasn’t an actual person spotting you if you fell, there was just the system.

I am not a fan of heights, but I also love adventures, so I geared up and was ready to give it a go. All harnessed in, I started to climb. They had someone there ready to point me to foot and hand holds if need be. They also told me to only climb part of the way up the first time and practice letting the belay system catch me so I could get used to it.

As I reached my halfway point, it was time to let go. This is where it got dicey for me. You see, I wanted to hang on to the wall, and feel the rope catch my weight BEFORE I let go. I wanted security, but no matter how much I tried to hold on to the wall and “sit” in my harness there was no feeling of security, only slack in the belay system. I was going to have to completely let go in order for it to engage and catch me. Some of you already see the tie-in here, ironic huh? I needed to let go in order to be caught. I had to trust the system would do what it was built to do. I couldn’t do it any other way. No matter how much I wanted to do it while still holding on, I couldn’t.  So, gritting my teeth I pushed off and let go (and fell splat, ha, just kidding), the rope caught as it should have and lowered me to the ground. I was able to keep going, climbing higher the next time. I even learned to kinda like it, and tried again the next day with Tim!

Isn’t this so us in our growing in our faith and trust in our Savior? God is continually, patiently working to build our faith. He knows each of us so well. We have little falls and nudges where we get to “try out” letting go before the really big ones come. During these times God shows He is faithful again and again. Our faith grows and so do the differing callings He places on our lives. There are bigger steps and leaps of faith, pushing us out of our comfort zone many times, and relying on our God’s strength in the midst of our weakness. God is always there to catch us and will never leave us or forsake us. He promises this!  (Hebrews 13:5) He is also completely honest with and tells us that we will have trouble and face trials (John 16:33), that we will be tested and tried and stretched. He is refining us, and I don’t know about you, but I think we tend to get lazy when all is well; it’s the trials, or even the scary callings or nudges from God that pulls us back to His arms. We always need Him…we’re just more aware of it in our flesh during the times of desperation, or in the face of our inadequacies.

So where are you? Are you on a mountain ready to conquer the world? Flying free? Don’t forget to lean into God and thank Him for the gifts He has given you. Remember to do all for the glory of God and point to Him and praise Him. Your gifts and talents come from your Maker. Don’t stop looking to Him. Build those disciplines and know your Bible so when life hits you hard you can keep your feet planted on your firm foundation, which is always Christ alone.

Or, maybe you are in a different phase: clinging to the wall, afraid to let go and trust, afraid to step out into the new and unknown? Maybe you’ve already let go…you’ve taken the leap and feel like you’re free falling and not getting caught at all? You are feeling battered and bruised, let down and confused at what has happened?  Some things that helped me during these times is looking back and remembering, just as God told the Israelites, to set up stones so they could remember and tell their children of His miracles and faithfulness (Joshua 4:4-7). We also should “set up stones.” We do this by recounting His awesome works, looking back at our life and taking account of His blessings and His gifts, writing down His past faithfulness to remind us in the present, looking for scriptures that encourage our heart and remind us of who our God is and all He did for us! Take your eyes off your circumstances and put them back on your great God. I heard someone recently say “He didn’t save us to then leave and abandon us to our trials all alone,” so even when it seems you are alone or don’t understand why you are going through what you are, cling to the fact that Your God died for you to save you, and He sent us His spirit to live in you, so once you are His you are never alone. Rest in the fact that our God doesn’t change, in an ever-changing culture of what is right and wrong our God is faithful and true, He beckons us to leap and trust and promises an eternity in Heaven with Him.

So yes, we will get bruised and battered in this life. We aren’t in Heaven yet, but as we climb may we keep our eyes fixed on our Savior and remember He is really the only trustworthy one that will never let us down. This fallen world will hurt and disappoint, give false promises, and lead us astray from what truly matters, but our God is always there. His death at the cross and His resurrection secured our place in Heaven if we only believe in Him as Savior. So come what may on this earth, when we are His, we are attached to the most amazing secure belay system imaginable, and our God will always catch us. He already has. Remember this life on earth is temporary, don’t get too attached or swept up in things that don’t really matter, the stuff we won’t take with us. Only the people around us matter. We have an eternity ahead of us! So be brave and live for a God that came down to save you. Love others well. Shine for Him and remember He is worth letting go for. Whatever it is God is telling you to do I dare you…go do it! It will be the best choice and ride of your life, because His plans are way better than ours. Always!

God bless you and thank you for taking the time to read.

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What Makes God Worthy of Praise?

Why do you praise God?

This past summer I heard a speaker challenge his audience to, during prayer time, be specific in the reason we’re giving God praise. He explained through the analogy of a parent that we don’t necessarily crave accolades from our kids, but when they express thankful to us, it’s nice to know specifically what they’re happy about. This led to the speaker’s challenge…take the time to praise God for one of His specific attributes at a time.

I’ve tried this, on and off, for a couple of months. It turns out God’s got quite a few praiseworthy attributes. He’s merciful, compassionate, full of justice, truthful, Holy, etc. It’s, you know, all those things you heard since Sunday school. I haven’t approached this exercise with any specific plan; each time I do it, I just pick one that I’m thankful for at that time. As I’ve done this, it seems that one of the attributes I keep coming back to is steadfastness. God doesn’t change. He’s the same today as He was back in the first descriptions of God in Genesis.

I’ve seen a lot of change. I’m at a place in my life now where I wouldn’t exactly call myself old, but let’s just say I’ve missed the boat if I wanted to make a career change to become a professional athlete. I’m old enough that I’ve used pay phones and I’ve lived in a world without the internet. In terms of inventions and technology, the world has changed quite a bit just in my lifetime.

It’s amazing how much public perception can change, too. This coming Saturday marks the 20th anniversary of one of our nation’s darkest days. In the weeks after September 11th, 2001, you simply could not find hometown heroes that were placed on a higher pedestal than firefighters and police officers. These were the people who, at great personal risk, rushed toward danger and confusion as everyone else staggered or ran away from it. Children were inspired to grow up and put on the uniform, having no idea that once they did, the public, including some newscasters and national-level politicians, would be calling for them to be defunded because of their overt racism, inappropriate tactics, and arrogance that the laws they enforce are intended to improve the lives of only a portion of the citizenry they claim to protect.

From the highest heights to the lowest lows in less than 20 years.

On the flip side, God exists apart from all that. He resides outside of time. Ever see those little rolls of paper that they use in cash registers or the old-style calculators? Picture the entire timeline of biblical history, starting from Genesis and extending past us and into the future to Revelation, as being recorded on a giant version of one of those unfurled rolls. Everything in all of history is written down on that sheet, from before Adam’s first breath, to when you learned to tie your shoes, to what you’ll have the next time you eat something.

Now picture that sheet being rolled up, placed in a bottle, and put up on a shelf somewhere in God’s kitchen. To Him, any single point anywhere on that entire timeline exists simultaneously as every other point on it. When we look toward God and say that He doesn’t change, it’s not because He’s staying the same for a really long time…it’s because from His point of view all of human history occurs in less time than it would take for Him to snap His fingers. How much do your attitudes, perspectives, values, and core beliefs change in the amount of time it takes you to blink? (The mind-blowing part is that He is intimately involved in each person’s life at every point on that roll of paper at the same time as the roll is just sitting there in the bottle.)

All the stress, the heights and depths of the emotions we face throughout our lifetimes, makes it easy for us to assume God waffles or flip flops on things the way we would.

Not on your life.

To Him, nothing has changed. We’re all depraved and He offered us a way out. Some take it and some don’t. Though rocked by scandal and watering down of beliefs to conform more with the world, the Church is the plan to spread the Gospel and provide hope to the world. This has continued for generations, and only He knows when He’ll initiate the final phase of human history.

Through it all, nothing about God changes. For that, I’m thankful and give God praise.

What attribute of God will you praise Him for today?

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Is Anyone Asking These Questions?

Antibacterial soap…is it good or bad?

On the one hand, it kills 99.9% of bacteria. On the other hand, it means that only the strongest…the bacterial equivalent of gold medalists…are left alive to reproduce.

It’s easy to see how this can be a double-edged sword. If you’re about to put in your contact lenses, sure, wash your hands with antibacterial soap. If you just came in from mowing the lawn or working on the car, regular soap will be just fine.

We’ve got sort of a similar case brewing with COVID. We currently have a couple of different shots geared to fight the virus. I don’t know that “vaccine” is the best term to use; a vaccine normally prevents you from contracting the disease it was made to combat. (Think Polio, Smallpox, etc.) Today’s shots are just supposed to make sure that if you catch Coronavirus, the symptoms aren’t as bad as they otherwise would be. It’s true that as the shots became widespread, the number of COVID hospitalizations declined, but they don’t do anything to prevent you from contracting the virus. Reduced hospitalizations aren’t proof that the virus stopped spreading, it could just mean that there were fewer severe cases (which is still a positive!).

These shots have limited efficacy. That is, the shots’ symptom-reduction effectiveness wears off over time. We’re still learning about exactly how long it’s effective, but for this discussion let’s say it lasts somewhere between 6 and 10 months. There’s a growing movement to get a booster shot available to the public. Once that’s available, I don’t know for sure, but I would think it would only provide relief for a similar timeframe, meaning that another booster shot is required every 6 to 10 months beyond that point.

So where are we right now? Well, here in the US, we have a growing percentage of adults that have been fully vaccinated. I imagine that means we have a shrinking percentage of adults that have either never received “the jab” or only got a partial dose. I’m a firm believer that we’ll always have some certain percentage of the population that opts not to get stuck. Realistically, I think 100% participation is very far out of reach, especially if you have to convince people to get on board with a solution that apparently only provides a limited-time reduction of symptoms.

Let’s get real here. The virus is going to continue mutating and evolving. It’s a living thing that will try to survive. We have these shots that are temporarily effective, but we will likely someday have a variant of Coronavirus that can overcome our current shots. If a shot is to be effective at stopping the spread of COVID, there are a couple of things we’ll need that we don’t yet have.

The first is a more effective shot. Protection that lasts for only 6-10 months is simply not sustainable. Some people will be very diligent for the rest of their lives in making sure they get a booster every time they hit their window. Others may get one or two, but will stop going after that. My guess is that most people will fall somewhere in the middle. If big numbers of people start skipping the boosters, the overall effort will be rendered less effective.

Second, there needs to be a massive campaign that synchronizes global dosing. Giving everyone the same shot at the same time means global “Coronahealth” is predictable and we could make more definite plans. The problem with that is that it’s a logistical nightmare of epic proportions. Let’s say that every 8 months or so, international organizations administer effective dosages for 7.5-8 billion people. That might someday be possible in countries with well-developed transportation infrastructure, but it would be a herculean lift in more remote areas of the globe where travel is much more difficult or is only possible at certain times of the year. It would certainly be an impressive feat, but even if we do it for a round or two, we’re eventually going to start asking “is this really worth all the effort?”

How about we skip ahead to that point right now? Is today’s madness really worth all the effort? Yes, COVID-19 can be deadly, but in most cases, it’s not. It’s unpleasant and inconvenient, certainly, with many people losing their sense of taste or smell for months, but it’s not as deadly as originally feared.

I’m certainly not an avid consumer of news programs, so I may not be completely accurate about this next part. It seems, though, that all you ever hear about is numbers of new infections. “There were X number of positive COVID tests last week, bringing the cumulative total to doom and gloom.” Well…sure, but then they never follow up after that; they make it seem like that’s the end of the story…all those people are the walking dead and it’s just a matter of time before the virus claims them. My question is: why don’t we hear more data on people that have overcome the virus? How long does their protection typically last? Do average people gain more protection from a low-efficacy shot or from their bodies actually overcoming the virus? To be honest, I don’t know the answer, but it seems like nobody’s asking the question. At a time where “breakthrough cases” are spiking, shouldn’t we be asking some basic questions? Considering all the regular news reports that show thousands of new cases…wouldn’t it be a fantastic development if we learned that only 60% of them had long-lasting immunity after that?

So let’s ask the question: “how do pandemics end?” In order for a disease to die out, it has to run out of new hosts to infect. That can happen in a couple of different ways. 1. Isolate people so that the virus cannot spread from host to host. In the process, every infected person that does not spread the virus becomes a dead end for it. This is why it’s so important to quarantine at the beginning of an outbreak, when it’s still possible to contain it, but it has obvious negative mental health effects that most of us have experienced at some point over the last 18 months. 2. Enough people possess immunity (either natural or synthetic) from the disease that the virus has a hard time finding new, vulnerable hosts to infect. Our current shots don’t provide immunity, so we should be looking down the line to the next generation of medical solutions to provide actual protection from COVID, rather than merely preventing potent symptoms.

I’m inclined to think that a population who received the existing shots is actually prolonging the pandemic. If we could develop a shot that were a true vaccine…something that permanently blocked the virus from infecting the person who received it…that would hasten the end of the pandemic. Biology is funny, though; by introducing a hybrid injection that makes symptoms much more bearable without actually preventing the infection, all we’ve done is give the virus a challenge…something interesting to tackle and overcome. Think Jeff Goldblum from Jurassic Park. “Life finds a way.” I suspect that this course of action will only extend the outbreak by creating a larger number of COVID variants than we otherwise would have had.

In short, you know best what your situation is. If you want to get the shot, I say go for it. If, for whatever reason, you don’t want to, I don’t think anybody should be able to force you to get it, but you really do need to be respectful and responsible with your social behavior in all aspects of life. At all times, assume you’re carrying the virus and that not everyone around you has as hearty an immune system as you do.

Today’s shots are not going to end COVID. This pandemic is still going to be around until it runs out of new people to infect, and infection rates (including breakthrough cases) will probably rise as the cold months approach. Don’t be surprised if the numbers get worse before they get better, but don’t shut the door on the possibility that the rising number of infections may be what eventually causes the drop in new infections.

Keep your head up. It may take some time, but we’ll get through this!

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It’s Hard To Put Into Words

To all the veterans and families of veterans that spent time in Afghanistan…

I’m sorry, and thank you.

There’s nothing I can say that will make things right. I can’t erase the things you’ve been struggling with while watching the events of the past few weeks. I just want you to know that there are still those of us that haven’t forgotten you, and are still thankful for your willingness to spend time overseas on our behalf.

I’m sure there are some today that don’t even understand why we were there. There’s a whole generation of Americans that have been born since the events of 9/11/2001. It’s so far in the past now that some of the Americans born since that terrible day have raised their right hand and spent time in Afghanistan within the past year or two.

I can’t help but think, though, about what Afghanistan was like before we put boots on the ground, and what it might morph into over the coming weeks and months. During that nearly 20-year window when American troops provided reliable security, there was a different group…a generation of Afghans (especially Afghan women and girls)…that experienced a level of freedom and seeing value in themselves that they’d never encountered before.

That’s thanks, in part, to you.

Thank you for your courage, thank you for your sacrifice, and thank you for, at least for a time, making a difference in that faraway place.

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You Matter

No matter what you’ve been through, or who you think others think you are, we need you.

Some people don’t know what it’s like to feel included.

It’s difficult for them to have a sense of belonging, seemingly anywhere they go.

I think just about everyone has experienced that at least once or twice in their lives, but for some people it goes far beyond that, to the point where they can’t recall ever really fitting in with the people around them. For those people, encountering a new social setting holds little promise of genuine relationships; it will probably result in another mask or more surface-level conversations that are meant to prevent letting anyone get past the walls they’ve constructed.

If you’re one of those people, you need to hear something that you probably don’t hear often enough: you matter. On top of that, although people may let you down, you are loved, you are valued, and you are cherished by the creator of everything that exists, Jesus Christ.

It’s my hope that you’re able to find real connection and belonging through Christ. I believe that He has a plan for everyone’s life, and that He uses the things that have happened in each person’s life to prepare them for the future roles they’ll play in the bigger picture of Christ’s kingdom. Contributing toward that kingdom may come in the form of reaching others and bringing them into the kingdom, or it could be as a way of helping current believers strengthen their faith so they’re willing to do things they previously couldn’t. In this way, we play a part, but it all serves to glorify Christ.

Even if you don’t see value in yourself, let me assure you that it’s there. Ephesians 2:10 says For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

“God’s masterpiece.” That means that of all the things He created, you are the pinnacle. There is inherent worth in you, even if you or someone else has tried to convince you otherwise. With Christ, you can feel at home, and you can finally feel as though you belong.

You might not struggle with feeling worthless, but you may very well know someone who does. I want to help embolden you to be an encouragement to them. For any number of reasons, these folks have been cast off, underestimated, undervalued, and generally ignored by others. It doesn’t take long to put up walls if you’re living or working in an environment like that. You may not have an earth-shattering conversation with them in a single sit-down, but you can breathe life into them one conversation at a time.

Now consider that any single one of these “underloved” people can have a life-changing impact on someone else. They know things you don’t, they know different people than you, and they’ve lived through things you haven’t. Each one of those variables equals something the Holy Spirit can use to create a new connection in someone else’s life.

You don’t need to be a therapist to talk to someone and make them feel welcome. Just be authentic. Odds are that if you’re a regular reader of this blog, you have faith in Jesus Christ. You can mention that belief as a part of your authenticity, but don’t force it on them. The golden rule we all learned as kids says to treat others the way you want to be treated. The platinum rule says to treat others the way they want to be treated. If you end up being someone who treats them in a way that makes them feel safe and welcome, believe me, they’ll take notice of your faith.

There’s a place for everyone that wants to follow Christ, but there are as many different stories about how that happens as there are Christ-followers. Maybe you can be part of someone’s story about how they became a Christian, and it can all start by paying attention to someone who feels they don’t deserve a second glance.

Lord, I overlook people every day. Sometimes it’s because I’m in a hurry, but sometimes it’s more intentional. Please help me remember that each and every person on (or above) this planet right now is someone You consider valuable, and to treat them that way. I go through life focused on what I’m doing, but help me to see where you want me to look around and focus on someone else. In Your name, Amen.

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Face it, You Just Ain’t Got it Anymore

I used to have some pretty good hearing. Then a few decades rolled by.

My wife and I are normally pretty strict about the amount of “screen time” our kids get. Just seeing how mesmerized my son gets by anything electronic, we recognize we need to actively manage just how much time the kids are staring at something without blinking.

And yet…I enjoy a round of video games every now and then to blow off some steam, too. Right now I still have an original, old-school Nintendo with some of the best games (Contra and Dr. Mario get the most play time here). As you can imagine, the console and games are pretty old at this point, so they don’t really work all that well. If you had a Nintendo as a kid, you remember pulling the game out, blowing in the bottom, sticking it back in, and seeing if that worked any better. Sometimes the controller acted a little goofy and you’d yell to your buddy “I didn’t do it! It did it on its own!”

Well my wife surprised me with an updated version of the old console. It’s a mini version of the old Nintendo, and it has the same style of controllers hooked up to it (with some modern touches, of course). Now instead of having to switch game cartridges, there are over 600 games built directly into the console (including Contra and Dr. Mario).

This was a cool present, for sure. I normally wake up pretty early for work, so on Saturday mornings I usually wake up before everyone else, and sometimes I head down into the basement to play some games before anyone else wakes up. I even have an old TV to hook it up to because it looks weird when you connect it to a modern TV. So yes, I have a big ol’ cathode ray tube-looking monster that’s about two feet deep, sitting in a corner of my basement.

Because I know I’m going to have an audience if the kiddos find out what I’m doing (and I don’t want them to waste their screen time watching me play mindless nonsense), I turn off the lights and turn the volume down real quiet. My hope is that after they leave their bedroom and come down to the main floor, they’ll think they’re the first ones up and actually read a book or something.

So one time a few weeks ago when I was playing games in the basement and I heard someone walking around upstairs, I froze when the basement door opened. I mean, I didn’t make a sound. Whoever it was opened the door and stood silently at the top for a bit, just listening as I sat there motionless. Imagine my surprise when my son started bounding down the stairs into the basement and started talking to me before he could even see me.

“How did you even know I was down here?”

It turns out he was able to hear something that I’ve lost the ability to hear. As you age, even if you don’t have any damage to your hearing, your ability to hear certain frequencies decays at a predictable rate. My son could hear the high-frequency noise that the old TV makes when it’s turned on. I marveled at this for a bit, proud of his stellar hearing, but then it slipped my mind and I forgot about it. (You can even take some internet hearing tests that guess your age by your ability to hear. Unfortunately it says I have the hearing of someone that’s 5-7 years older than me. Guess there will be hearing aids in my future.)

Fast forward a couple of weeks. I was playing video games again one day after work while the kids played with neighbors outside. After they got too hot to continue, they all came inside. The door at the top of the basement stairs opened, and one of the neighbor kids almost right away said something like “it sounds like someone’s playing an old arcade game down here.” It turns out his family has one of the big throwback ACTUAL arcade games (like Pacman) at his house, and the high-frequency noise it makes sounds similar to my stone-age TV.

It’s official. I simply don’t have the tools I used to have.

As time goes by, you’re going to lose some of the capabilities you once possessed. What’s important is that you need to use the ones you still have (or the ones you’ve gained over time) in a way that would please God.

Picture yourself in “the good old days.” What did you have back then that you don’t have now? You’re probably thinking of physical assets. Strength, health, good looks, the ability to eat or drink whatever you want without putting on weight.

What’s also missing from back then? Think about all the mistakes that younger version of you still needed to go through. Those mistakes led to hard-won experience that gives you more wisdom in the choices you make today. How about income? Who’s making more, that younger you or the current you? With more resources comes a greater ability to fund God’s work. I’m sure family looks different, too. Back then there may have been more older generations still around in your family. Now maybe you’re on the older side of that spectrum, but those that are younger bring a special happiness to your heart.

The point of all this, of course, is that time marches on and even though the focus tends to be more on what you’ve lost, there are also some things you’ve gained.

The way you honor the Lord may not look like it once did, but that doesn’t mean you should stop using your current gifts, resources, and time to please Him just because you can’t do it the same anymore.

So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. –1 Corinthians 10:31

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When Your Mind is Used Against You

I’ve got a theory that might help explain some of the chaos in our country right now.

People are wired differently. That’s not really something that’s in dispute. It used to be that people could have different opinions and it was acceptable to agree to disagree.

I’m not going to take credit for this theory that I’ll describe; there are some books out there on the subject, but I think it’s important to pass the word along right now. I’m going to use a couple of terms that, on the surface, might sound derogatory. That’s not my intent; I think you’ll see what I mean if you give me a chance to explain it. It has nothing to do with IQ or level of intelligence.

Have you ever heard something that infuriated you? Your vision went red, your fists clenched, and you were ready to scream or take a shot at someone. This immediate, visceral reaction is what’s called “fast thinking.” It’s the knee-jerk reflex that almost seems to bypass your brain. It’s an amygdala hijack that overwhelms your thought processes. The emotions and feelings you encounter during the situation affect your decision making, and you react instinctively. On a much smaller scale it could be something as simple as making an impulse buy. Many times store displays and floor plans make it easier for the vendor to take advantage of a shopper’s inclination to be influenced to make unplanned purchases. It capitalizes on your brain’s wiring to stoke the urge to buy something you had no intention of purchasing.

Maybe the next day, after you’re at home, you take a look at whatever you bought, and thought “why in the world did I pick that up?” It’s why it’s a good idea to “sleep on” a big decision before going through with it. The emotions that clouded your vision earlier have significantly faded, and you make your decisions based more in rationality or logic. It’s the Mr. Spock version of approaching a decision point. The emotions were there and may have dominated the early thoughts, but you’ve had time to work through them. You can clearly remember how you felt when you were first presented with the choice, but you look at the situation differently if you focus on facts rather than the way things made you feel. Because the process takes longer to work through, this is called “slow thinking.”

Think “the tortoise and the hare.” The hare (your emotional thinking) is what takes off like a shot right out of the gate. Only when it’s run its course and laid down for a nap can the tortoise (rational thinking) catch up. The hare doesn’t know where it’s going, it relies on speed more than judgment. The tortoise had time to plot the route and formulate a plan as it was going, even though the hare was running circles around it, being a big distraction in the process.

Now, in light of that, let me ask you this. Think about how you keep up with current events. Are the stories presented in ways that appeal to the fast thinking or to the slow thinking portions of your mind’s processing center?

The way I see it, TV news coverage is designed to inflame your emotions. You’re shown images that anger you, sadden you, and because news coverage persists around the clock and the networks have to fill air time, they add commentary that may or may not be based in fact. The news dwells on a shocking topic until the emotional pull begins to fade or something more shocking breaks. It becomes an endless cycle of running from one head-shaking story to the next, all the while failing to report on the lead story from a few days ago, where new developments have revealed that the initial reporting was incomplete or erroneous. That information, or corrections/retractions, rarely see the light of day, because by then you’ve already been shuffled on to the next thing and you’re led to think of the story as “old news.”

Since feel-good news doesn’t provide that same shock value, many times it’s simply not covered. It’s not often you come away from TV news coverage with a warm fuzzy about what you’ve seen. You’re more likely to walk away from the TV feeling high levels of anxiety or emotionally wrung out.

So how do you keep up with current events without dealing with this phenomenon? Consider instead looking at a news source’s website. If you like a certain network, that’s fine, stick with that network’s website. I’d recommend not using just one source, though. Journalists are no longer known for being thorough or presenting all sides of an event. I’m not talking about streaming the feed from that website, I’m saying read the stories instead of watching them. Reading them, rather than being pelted with images and commentary at the speed of someone else’s choosing, allows you to go at your own pace, and lets you digest the facts (if presented) at your own speed.

Today’s visual news coverage is intended to evoke an emotional response from you and divide you from your fellow Americans. News coverage is supposed to present facts and some context, but today’s coverage is light on fact, heavy on repetition, and includes more opinion and speculation than information.

It’s important to keep tabs on world events, certainly, but if you’d like my unsolicited advice, don’t spend more than about half an hour a day getting caught up with what’s going on in the world. You’ve got to get back to doing whatever it is that God put you here to do, and it’s best to do that without getting worked up into a tizzy by someone that’s trying to do exactly that.

Lord, I’m human, and fully susceptible to the pitfalls of how my mind is wired. Help me to recognize the ways my brain’s wiring is used against me and not fall for it, staying focused on finding and fulfilling Your purpose for me here in this life. Amen

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Don’t Make Plans To Fail

For a few summers I was a lifeguard at a Christian conference center. One time there was a youth retreat going on when I was on duty at the pool that had a pair of diving boards. One of the youth leaders, Allen, was having fun racing the teenage guys in the pool.

It’s important to understand that Allen was middle-aged and wasn’t quite at his “fighting weight” anymore. Just about all of the young bucks at the pool that day could have smoked him in a 100-yard dash or pushup contest. You wouldn’t look at him and think that he was all that quick in the water. What they didn’t know was that Allen had spent a ton of time in the pool as a young man, and as a longtime member of the swim team, had practiced countless entries into the water, converting his momentum into underwater speed. Before he got into youth work, he was my lifeguarding boss (and we even got into a very sticky situation on the water).

From my lifeguard chair I had the best seat in the house. Allen took on all comers; he and any challenger would both start on a diving board, and on a signal they’d both take off running, dive in, and race to the far side of the pool.

It just wasn’t fair. It was so lop-sided that it stopped being fun for the challengers. Allen started giving them all kinds of advantages. He gave them the higher diving board while he took the lower one. He gave them a head start. He’d only be allowed to have one full stroke to make the far side.

It was close a few times, but nobody seemed able to beat him. A trend started to emerge though. Suddenly, as though it were contagious, many of the young guys would develop “leg cramps” during the race, which was obviously the reason they couldn’t keep up. It got to the point where, even standing in line, challengers would accurately predict that they’d cramp up during their race.

These guys were setting the table for their own failures. Failure is easier to tolerate when there’s an excuse for it, even if the excuse is flimsy or fake. I won’t lie, these guys were outmatched, but setting the table for your own failure, or purposely arranging an excuse for yourself, is giving yourself license to not try your hardest.

How many Christians out there today intentionally do not try their hardest to live the life that Christ has called them to? There’s no denying that a life completely dedicated to Christ is one that’s laced with struggle, exhaustion, agony, hours spent pleading with God…and unparalleled rewards. Yet so many of us set the table for our own failures. Imagine if we could talk with everyone that’s slipped from this life into Heaven, the honest answers we’d get if we started asking questions. “I didn’t give God my all during that life because…”

I believe the day is coming when some of Christianity’s practices or views will be outlawed or “canceled” here in the United States, the very country that was founded for the purpose of practicing freedom of religion. Since we’re not there yet, consider taking advantage of the religious freedoms we currently have. God has a purpose for your life, and He’s calling you to follow hard after Him. No excuses.

Lord God, we know in our heads that this life isn’t the permanent one, but the loud sounds, the bright lights, and the sparkly things here in this life seem like they’re able to distract us more than they should. Please help us have the right priorities, no more excuses, and a willingness to make sacrifices now for the sake of an eternity of satisfaction at having glorified Your name. Amen

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Go Ahead, Break the Mold

Our world is changing, and it’s changing very quickly.

Let’s look, for example, at the business model that Christians use to reach unsaved people. It used to be that we (Christians) would invite people to come to church, or maybe a Christmas program, so that the people we invite could hear the message that someone else delivers. Or maybe we’d support missionaries in bringing Jesus to the natives of some far-off land. There’s nothing wrong with those things, but “inviting people” or “supporting missionaries” aren’t spiritual gifts. They’re important functions, but it’s also important to remember those that speak from a pulpit or travel to foreign lands are not the only ones with holy ministries.

Maybe this general attitude of “buck passing” is what’s led to the condition of the church now.

Every church is made up of imperfect people, so a church is never perfect, but these days it seems like things have gone off the rails. Many individual Christians have lost sight of the fact that Christ is the most important thing in their lives. It’s now common to have Christians (even members of the same church) torch each other over, of all things, politics or whether or not to get the COVID vaccine. I’m talking, like, vicious attacks, burning bridges kind of stuff. It’s as though these folks honestly believe that expressing their opinion is more important than the commission we’ve all been given to point others to Christ.

Jesus didn’t shy away from the controversial issues of the day, but He also rolled up His sleeves. He met people’s needs as a way of getting them to pay attention to what He had to say. People these days who think their spiritual gift is to gaslight other Christians on social media have lost sight of their priorities.

The thing that’s supposed to set us apart has now become a rarity. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. –John 13:35

In a time like this, we need people that are willing to live their lives for Christ in ways that are not commonplace. The ways that you can show love for or meet the needs of your neighbor are limited only by your imagination. People out there are struggling not only with the basics of food, water, and shelter, but are struggling with anxiety, infertility, holding a job, PTSD, insecurity, a special needs child, depression, bullying, or any number of other problems. Some of you reading this may have experience in one or more of those areas, and could be specially equipped to come alongside others currently facing that struggle. You may be considering taking a bold step to help meet someone’s needs, in the process opening the door to share Christ, but you’re hesitant because it seems too risky.

It’s not really my place to give it, but sometimes people feel like they need to hear it from someone…so, if that includes you, let me try to help out: you have my permission…go ahead and break the mold. You’re uniquely suited to do incredible things if you’ll allow God to use you. Reach people for Christ in a way that is nontraditional, is unusual, or hasn’t been done before. You were made for this! There are just two criteria you need to abide by: Love Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, and you are free to do anything short of sin to point other people to Him.

I don’t know who you are or what your plan is, but if you’re meeting those two criteria…I’m rooting for you.

In signing off, here’s a song by Jen Ledger that speaks to this topic. She herself broke the mold, and may inspire others to do the same.

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Quick Hit: What Does the World Think of the Church?

Christ commanded us to go out and share the Gospel with people. That’s one of the jobs of the people that make up the Church.

Lots of folks, wanting to get more people into church on Sunday mornings, naturally ask the question “how can we get the world to like us more?” Sadly, there’s only one answer: be more like the world.

Sorry, that’s not why the Church is here. We’re here to point the way to everlasting life and fellowship with our creator. If the world likes the Church, we probably need to take a closer look at what’s actually happening. Conforming to the world waters down the message and pulls us off that mission. When we spend time worrying about what the world thinks of the Church, we’re likely not focusing on getting out there and being the Church.

Christ wasn’t afraid to offend people. He came to bring truth, which is what we’re to do, too. We point the way and let others make up their own mind. Many will ignore us, or even laugh at us. That’s their right, but it’s not an excuse for us to stop spreading the message.

Be the Church.

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Your Money Can’t Work for you if Someone Already has Dibs on it

I’m not sure why I didn’t realize this earlier, but it recently occurred to me that lots of people get themselves into trouble when it comes to money and I might be able to help them by offering a few tips.

I’m speaking specifically about debt in this case. Maybe you’ve learned about debt the hard way, or maybe nobody’s ever told you the basics before, but my goal for this post is to help some people get on the right track to worrying less about their financial situation so they can focus more on the purpose God’s given them. After all, with high levels of debt, it’s easier to lose focus on striving toward becoming the person God wants you to be. If you’re weighed down by worry about your debt load, I’d like to help you get started on a path that allows you to reach more of your God-given potential.

Money itself isn’t a bad thing, but a love of it is dangerous. Money is a valuable tool in this life. Having the knowledge to wield that tool effectively means you have the capacity to accomplish more by using it wisely, preferably to the glory of God. Because debt might be holding you back from doing the stuff God wants you to do, here’s some practical insight.

We’ll start with the basics. Let’s say you owe a lot of money to credit card companies. I can give you the first couple of steps you need to take, but it’s important for you to realize that even if you dig yourself out of debt, you’ll probably end up right back in the same hole if you don’t curb your tendency to buy stuff you can’t afford. That’s something you’re going to need to address right away. Make the switch to only paying cash if you need to. (Having to physically hand over something tangible has a way of making people question whether or not the purchase is actually necessary or if it’s more of a luxury.) Alternatively, enact a rule that you won’t ever buy something the first day you think about it. Forcing yourself to “sleep on” such decisions will help you cut out a lot of impulse buys.

Ok, after you get a handle on spending habits, the hard work begins. Here come three steps to follow. Each step should be completed (or nearly completed) before moving on to the next step.

(Before I get started, a note to the parents of kids under 18. Starting this month the Federal Government is giving advance payments each month for the rest of the year that will total half of the year’s child tax credit. If you normally have to pay taxes when you file, don’t spend this money, because getting an advance on your tax credit is going to result in a larger tax bill when you actually file. If you normally get a refund though, this is a great place to start for step 1.)

Step 1: Using money you can scrounge from your budget, money you can swing from a side gig, or even irregular windfalls like stimulus money, yard sale proceeds, or gifts, save up $500-2500 for your emergency fund. You determine the amount by looking at where you are on the scale of expenses. If someone else pays your rent and you take either public transportation or a ride-sharing service to get where you need to go, it’s okay to shoot for the lower end. If you have a mortgage and a vehicle or two, shoot for the upper end. This money is not to be spent unless…you guessed it…there’s an emergency. Cars break down, kids destroy stuff, water heaters reach the end of their life and quit working. The idea is to avoid going further into debt for unexpected expenses, and life is full of unexpected expenses. This money should be available quickly (not locked up in a certificate of deposit, for example), and should be considered your new “zero balance.”  That means if you’re keeping $500 as your minimum, $500 in your account actually means you have zero. A balance of $510 means you have $10 to play with. The emergency fund is not to be used for regular bills…your regular bills should be covered by your budget. This is not for celebrations, splurges, or any sort of “I want” situation. The emergency fund is kept for unexpected but necessary expenses. If you use money from your emergency fund when you’re in a later step, halt progress on that later step until you replenish your emergency fund.

Step 2: Start tackling the debt. This is the one that takes time and persistence. After you’ve established your emergency fund, continue using the same type of income you were saving to build the emergency fund and instead apply it toward paying more than the minimum payment on your credit card bills. Credit card statements are now required to have a section that tells you how long it will take you to pay off your balance if you only make the minimum payment. By taking several months to pay off a purchase, you’re not getting away with anything…you’re actually inflicting a good amount of financial harm on yourself. With high interest rates in the teens, even a minor balance will take a ridiculously long time (and a ridiculously large amount of money) to pay off a small balance. So if you want to get out of debt, you’re going to have to make more than the minimum payment on your accounts. The best way to use a credit card is to pay off the balance in full every month. (And no, don’t just buy stuff to get the points or rewards for your credit card’s rewards program!)

Lots of people that are heavily in debt carry balances on multiple accounts, and they play a version of a shell game to shuffle the debts around from one account to another while carrying a debt load on yet another account. If you really want to get out of debt, you need to make your money work more efficiently for you. Let’s say you’ve got five accounts that you’re reliably making minimum payments on. It’s good that you’re meeting your obligations, but let’s start retiring some of those debts. Now that you’ve built your emergency fund, it’s time to keep the momentum going. The additional funds you were using to establish your emergency fund should now be added to the minimum payment of one of your accounts. Even if it’s only an extra $20 per paycheck, add it to the minimum payment you’re making on one of the accounts.

Your success will likely depend on the type of person you are. If your attitude is “I want to get out of debt without paying one cent more than I have to,” then your plan should be to start throwing all the extra money you can possibly muster at the account that’s charging the highest interest rate, regardless of how large the different balances are. Once you pay that off, you’ve grown the potency of your arsenal; you’ll now be able to use the money you used to build your emergency fund plus the amount you used to make the minimum payments on the account you just paid off. If your monthly minimum payment was $30, your new capability will be that $30 per month plus the amount you used to build your emergency fund. One of your debts is paid off and you’re gaining momentum.

This strategy is the one that makes the most rational sense, but in reality it can be disheartening for some people because it might feel like it takes forever to make any progress. If you know you’re going to need some small victories to encourage you along the way, you may need a different approach. If that’s you, take a look at your complete list of debts and start making extra payments on the account with the smallest balance. Add whatever additional principal you can to the minimum payment, and keep chipping away at it until that balance is down to zero. After that, do the same thing as in the other example: add your newfound cash flow to the minimum payment on a different debt. The bigger the debt that you pay off, the more cash flow you’ll be able to create and apply to paying off other debts.

The idea is to concentrate your extra cash on one account at a time. By all means, continue making your minimum payments on all your accounts, but any leftover capacity you’ve got should be directed at only one account. (If you’ve got an extra $20 a month for paying down debt, it’s better to throw that whole extra $20 at one account rather than throwing an extra $4 at five different accounts. Persistence is important, hang in there. It may take some time, but being debt-free is within your grasp!

Step 3: Built your savings large enough to contain at least three months (but up to six months’ worth) of living expenses. Even without global pandemics, this is a common goal for a lot of folks. Mortgage or rent payments are likely going to be the largest expense, but don’t forget car payments (if applicable), grocery bills, utility bills, any subscriptions that you don’t plan to cut in the event of financial hardship, insurance expenses, gasoline/commuter costs, and anything like alimony or child support payments. Layoffs, natural disasters, market downturns, and any number of other triggers can set off a financial catastrophe for earners, and having a cushion large enough to last you a few months will give you more options as you await resolution (find a new job, wait for the insurance check to arrive, sell your house, or whatever that resolution looks like).

By the time you’ve completed all three of these steps, you’re in a much better situation than you were before you started. Persistence and focus are your key assets in this fight.

You don’t have to be religious to put this advice to good use. Know someone that could benefit from it? Please pass this along to them. Too many Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. Whatever your life story or wherever you come from, our society is better off if people and families can effectively manage their cash flow and keep their financial house in order. Spread the word!

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An Ordinary Fella With an Extraordinary Legacy

The college I went to was more than four hours’ drive from where I lived. When I first showed up, I wasn’t familiar at all with the region surrounding the campus, which was out in the boondocks. I was fortunate enough to have a car during my freshman year, so once during some free time, and before I even figured out who any of my friends were going to be, I headed out for a drive.

The college was, truly, out in the middle of nowhere. Cornfields and forests surrounded the place. My natural inclination was to become familiar with the town that would have the nearest movie theater, Walmart, and a couple of cheapish restaurants to choose from. I figured out how to get there and headed in that direction.

While I was driving around the place, my car stopped working. I don’t remember what the problem was, but I think the clutch fell apart, so I couldn’t shift gears. This wasn’t a problem I could limp back to campus with; I couldn’t drive the thing at all anymore.

Now, this was way back in the dark ages when I didn’t have a cell phone or a GPS. I ended up calling home from a pay phone somewhere (remember those?) and getting some advice. Fortunately my folks had set me up with a Triple A membership before I headed out to school, so I was able to get linked up with a tow truck that came and found me and drove my car and I back to school.

That solved the immediate problem, but I didn’t know what to do next as far as fixing the car. College wasn’t cheap, and neither were mechanics. I hated dealing with garages and auto shops because I knew so little about car maintenance that they could be ripping me off and I’d have no idea. My parents got in touch with the parents of someone who had just recently graduated from the same school, and asked if their son had ever dealt with car issues at school. They recommended I get in touch with a man named Bob that worked in the college’s maintenance department.

I looked him up, and it turns out that his wife Martha worked in an administrative position in the science building, and she had signed for many packages I delivered during one of the work/study jobs I wrote about previously. I told him about my problem, and he was open to taking a look. He was a super nice guy and helped put me at ease. I told him the make, model, and location of my car, gave him the key, and he went to survey the damage.

Bob somehow got my car into the workshop and fixed it for me with no fuss. When I met up with him to settle the bill, I was mentally preparing myself not to flinch when I heard the number. It was very low, though. It turns out that this sweet, white-haired, soft-spoken man, probably in his early 60s, only charged me for the cost of the parts, and he fixed my car without charging me anything for the effort he put into it. I was incredibly grateful, because money definitely was not plentiful, but I had to do something for him. He wouldn’t take additional money, so I went to the store and bought a bag of candy for him. When I gave it to him and told him to have a great day, he gave me a big smile and said “can’t help that now.”

I don’t think I ever interacted with Bob again during the rest of my time at school, but just recently I received an alumni magazine in the mail. It’s interesting to look in the sections that give alumni news by graduation year. I like looking to see things like who got married, who had kids, who had some kind of notable career development. There’s also the dreaded “in memoriam” page that lists fellow alumni that have passed away. As I perused the pages, I was startled to find that both Bob and his wife Martha passed away this past fall, just over a month apart from each other.

Bob was a special guy. I have no idea how many students he helped during the course of working at the college. The poet Maya Angelou had a quote that said something like “at the end of the day people won’t remember what you said or did, they’ll remember how you made them feel.” I believe that through Bob, God made me feel as though He were saying “look, don’t worry, I’ve got you.”

I’ve written before about sweet, ordinary people that God has used in my life during a time of great need. The sad news I received from this magazine reminds me to pass along some encouragement to you. You might not feel like you have anything special to offer to God’s service…you may not be well known, and you may only have limited means…but if you’re faithful in your pursuit of Christ and in the employment of the gifts He’s entrusted to you, rest assured that He will use you for good in the lives of others.

Lord, I thank you for Bob and Martha, the lives they lived, and the legacy they left. Thank you personally for the way Bob blessed me, and please use this example from his life as a way of blessing, encouraging, and even spurring others on as they live for You. Please give the two of them a hug for me, and let them know that they’re still affecting people down here for the better. Amen.

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You Just Don’t Know the Third Option

Sometimes you think you have all the eventualities gamed out. Then something comes along and blows you away.

It’s hard to read the Bible and not get annoyed with how quickly the Israelites forgot about God’s provision for them. Israel is the nation God holds dear. After repeated bouts of stubbornness against Him, God finally had enough of the Israelites and had the people carried off as captives to foreign lands. At some future date, though, He’ll bring them back and use them to carry His message of salvation throughout the globe in the End Times.

It’s a lofty mission, and a tremendous honor for a nation that has repeatedly demonstrated their unworthiness. In that day the future Israelites will fulfill the mission God assigned to them long ago. Nobody knows what events will transpire in order to enable that remarkable eventuality to take place. Yet thousands of years ago this same group of people was perfectly willing to settle for a much lowlier lot in life, and we’d do well to learn from their story.

In Exodus chapter 14 we read about when Moses had led the Israelites out of Egypt, and they were camped against the Red Sea when they learned Pharaoh and his army were pursuing them.

As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” – Ex 14:10-12

You and I know, thousands of years later, how the story turned out, and we scoff at their unbelief. For just a moment, imagine being in that camp and shaking with fear at what you saw. “It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” I see why they thought that, but they could only imagine two scenarios…remain as slaves but having their needs met, and dying as a free people in the desert. They discounted the possibility of a third option. In this case God came through big time for His people, by using a way nobody saw coming.

What can we learn from this? How can we be encouraged by this story when we’re trying to muster the courage or the resolve to take the next step (or maybe the first step) on an endeavor to which we feel God has called us? When you find yourself thinking “Do I march out on this thing, probably into failure or ridicule, or do I stay in my comfort zone, where at least it’s not so bad?” remember that God doesn’t get boxed into situations where there are only two choices. The third option just might be Him saying “If you do this, I’m going to reward your faithfulness in a way you can’t even imagine.”

God has a life of adventure and reward waiting for you if you seek His will and follow His leading. I do, however, feel compelled to give a warning along with this post. If you choose to reject the calling God has for you…that is, if you’d rather live the life that takes no leaps of faith but at least you won’t have to do anything crazy, a life of Christian lukewarmth, do you know what will happen? In most cases, God will let you do exactly that.

God, I know You have two stories for my life…the one I’ll actually live, and the one I would live if I accept each of the invitations You’re going to offer me during this lifetime. It can be scary and uncertain, but help me to make the two as similar as possible. Amen

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Quick Hit #2

This past weekend I watched a movie where two men were being held captive by terrorists and forced to build something their captors wanted.

One of them, bemoaning his situation and ailing from a medical condition, complained to his fellow captive “They could kill you, they’re gonna kill me either way, and even if they don’t, I’ll probably be dead in a week.”

His companion, looking at the situation through a different lens, replied “well then this is a very important week for you, isn’t it?”

None of us knows exactly how much time we have left; it could be minutes, decades, or anywhere in between. The time we have here on earth is the only time that “counts” for making an eternal difference. Once we close our eyes for the last time and take our last breath here in this life, we’ll no longer be able to help save souls or build God’s Kingdom. The attitude we should have as Christians is “well then, the rest of this lifetime is very important, isn’t it?”

Are we making the most of the opportunities we have?

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Quick Hit #1

While there’s a time and a place for wordy posts, sometimes less is more. There’s even a Bible verse about that. Ecclesiastes 6:11 says The more the words, the less the meaning, and how does that profit anyone?

With that in mind, I introduce to you a style of post I’m calling “The Quick Hit.” Here’s the first one:

Did you know that the more time you spend in prayer and in meditating on the Bible, the more you become like Christ?

The more you become like Christ, the more your desires align to His will.

The more your desires align to His will, the more likely your life’s efforts and plans will be fruitful.

This helps explain the meaning behind Proverbs 16:3: Commit your works to the LORD, and your thoughts will be established.

What else needs to be said?

Lord, help me be patient but persistent in becoming more like You. Break my heart for what breaks Yours, and help me rejoice in what makes You rejoice. Help me go where You send me.

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Back to Basics: God Can Use You

Since my last post my family and I got to travel to see some relatives we haven’t seen in a long time, and even met someone that joined the family since I last saw them. It was a trip that involved a lot of driving and covered hundreds of miles, but it was wonderful to celebrate some milestone birthdays with loved ones.

We piled into the minivan in Northern Virginia, and over the course of several days drove up to Connecticut and back. The kids have never been that far north before, and it was a great reunion full of laughs and new memories. We celebrated the birthdays of my twin aunt and uncle, along with my mom.

During the trip we attended my uncle’s long-time church. It’s always interesting to go somewhere new and hear a pastor you’re not accustomed to hearing. His message was titled “God Can Use You.”

Regular readers of this blog know that one of my main goals behind my posts is encouraging you to embrace the calling God has for your life, and use the talents and resources He’s made accessible to you so that you can bring glory to Him. Hearing this pastor’s message reminded me that some people struggle with believing that “God Can Use You.” If you wrestle with that notion, I want to spur you on today: He can do amazing things with your life through your obedience to Him.

Over the course of this trip, we spent a lot of time sitting in traffic. On multiple occasions accidents caused two lanes of traffic to merge down to one, other times spring construction led to delays and backups, and sometimes the rain made us all slow down. My passengers were very patient and hung in there like champs. During one of our times stuck in a crawl, I looked over to my left and saw a bright orange Lamborghini creeping along in the traffic going the opposite direction.

Can you imagine? What a waste that was! Here’s a machine that’s built for speed, for curvy roads, for all-around high performance. Yet here it was, far from fulfilling its potential. It’s a perfect illustration of what life is like when you’re a Christian that doesn’t buy into the idea that God can use you to do something big. It’s untapped capability.

Maybe it’s something you’ve felt before, but fought. Maybe you know what God would have you do, but you fear the unknown. Don’t give in to the idea that you’re not (insert your favorite adjective) enough for God to use your life to make the world or His kingdom better. If, one day, you stand before the Almighty, and He asks you the question “what have you done with the tools I entrusted to you?,” do you want the traffic-bound Lamborghini to be the mental image that sums up your life?

Lord, Your version of success and the world’s version of success are two very different things. Grant me the insight to know what You’d have me do, the resources to do it, and the boldness to leave my comfort zone in order to take the next step. Amen

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She Loves You HOW Much?!

Today is my fifteenth wedding anniversary.

My wife is a special lady. Let me tell you a little bit about what she got herself into when she got married.

At the time, I worked 12-hour shifts in the Air Force, most of the time working overnight. My wife left her home in Ohio, surrounded by friends and family, and traveled to a place in Virginia where the only person she knew was her new husband, and he was often gone overnight or sleeping during the day.

When I lived in the dorms prior to getting married, I didn’t have internet in my room. I had cable TV, but that didn’t translate into always having worthwhile entertainment. I’ve mentioned previously that as a kid I enjoyed watching professional wrestling (WWF/WWE), and when I lived solo in the dorms, I found myself getting back into it, especially when I was wide awake and there was nothing else on at 3 in the morning on my days off.

So when my wife got married, she was marrying a guy who had been watching this stuff for awhile. She dutifully watched this junk along with me, having never seen it before, learning the different characters and storylines as we went.

Photo courtesy of World Wrestling Entertainment

Then we found out the show was coming to our town. We had a big convention center nearby, and a bunch of these characters were going to be performing right there in our town, 15 minutes away. Of course, we had to try to go! The only problem was that we didn’t have a whole lot of spare cash for something like that.

On the evening of the performance we showed up at the ticket office, not quite sure what we’d be dealing with. If they were sold out, well, that would be that. If stuff was too expensive, we’d forget it. We had to at least try, though! (You can probably guess which one of us was driving this train.)

As we looked around for the right place to purchase tickets, there was a guy standing nearby that noticed us. He came walking over to us, and he had on a shirt with the logo of the television network that carried the show. He asked if we’d be interested in a couple of free tickets to see the show that night. It turns out they weren’t the best seats, but his network didn’t want the TV cameras to see any empty seats. We (well, at least I) were/was happy to accept!

We went and found our seats, which were next to two very large guys that didn’t smell great and seemed to enjoy head-banging to the entrance music for certain wrestlers. I don’t remember much of what took place that night, other than a bunch of pumped up dudes talking trash and beating each other up. You know what though? It was fun to do once. I wasn’t intentionally testing her, but my wife demonstrated through her actions that she loved me enough to join me in doing the weird stuff I cared about.

We haven’t been back to see any more WWE events, but we HAVE had three kids, so there’s been plenty more experience with self-centered personalities and manufactured drama.

Babe, it’s just…easy…being married to you. I love you, I’m thankful for you, and I’m very glad God blessed me with someone that loves me even when I’m, well, me. Having a good marriage enables us both to lean forward into some of the other stuff God has for us, and I couldn’t do it without you. Thanks for everything over these past 15 years!

By the way, I’m looking online at tickets to Wrestlemania 38 this coming April…it’s kind of steep, but I think the kids will be at a great age to go see a show!

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34 Bible Verses About White Privilege

There’s been a lot of talk about “White Privilege” lately. It’s a controversial topic that seems to be gaining traction, even at major corporations. For those that are unfamiliar with the term, the basic premise is that on average, white folks have advantages in life (either subtle or obvious) that non-white folks do not have. Many definitions say that it’s a product of years of white-imposed racism.

To me, it sounds suspiciously like we’re being led to a place where it will become acceptable to start concluding “the only fair way to proceed from here is to implement Communist policies, where everyone is treated the same.” If you start hearing that, push back hard. There is NO political system that’s been responsible for more human suffering than Communism. If that’s the route things are going, the effect would be to reduce (not end) racism by making everyone miserable, but would come at the cost of intensified class warfare, denunciation or banishment of all political beliefs other than a standardized core of them, and a government takeover of most, if not all, private property.

Still, it’s an interesting thought prompt. If I had been born to the exact same parents, lived in the exact same house, and my parents had the exact same employment situation, but all of us were Asian or Hispanic instead of white, how would things be different?

The answer, of course, is impossible to know. Things would be different I’m sure, but I have no idea how or to what extent. At the end of the day, God made me the way I am, and I’m not about to start arguing with Him about it, so in my view it’s unrealistic for anyone to expect me to be sorry about it. Since He doesn’t make mistakes, the only thing about me I’m ashamed of is my sinful nature, and the cross took care of that for me.

The Bible actually speaks quite a bit about how to obtain privilege, but it uses another term. I’m sure you’ve heard it used many times before. We often hear athletes, the well-to-do, various experts, and people that live joyful lives say that they’ve been blessed. Those various blessings are privileges that not everyone possesses.

There are a ton of Bible verses about people being blessed. In this context, it usually means that God, in some way, rewards an obedient follower by bringing something positive to their life that wasn’t there before. With the exception of Solomon, we don’t normally get to pick what our blessings looks like (he chose wisdom). Sometimes it means wealth, but more often it’s something less tangible. It’s a blessing to have enough to eat every day. It’s a blessing to have a clear conscience and sleep well at night, or to have a peaceful home. Contentment is a huge blessing. Some people take their good health for granted, but it’s definitely something you miss if it’s taken away. Effective medical treatment, a steady job, a happy heart, a pregnancy after a struggle with infertility, running water, air conditioning…they’re all various types of blessings!

According to the Bible, there are numerous routes to receive blessings in your life. It’s no secret; it’s out there for anyone to read. I’ll give you a bunch right here. These actions usually come with consistent Christian living, and manifest themselves naturally when actively living that lifestyle. We’ll probably someday hear “Christian Privilege” used in a negative context meant to help marginalize Christian values, so I’ll refer positively to it instead as “Christ-Follower Privilege.” It’s available to everyone, regardless of skin color, and without reservation I encourage everyone reading this to pursue it. If you choose not to, well, okay, that’s your choice, but I think you’re giving up some great opportunities.

The name of this post was misleading; it should be “34 Bible Verses To Help Any Ethnicity Gain Privilege.” Notice that none of these verses mention anything about race, meaning they’re applicable to anyone. Without further ado, here they are:

Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart. Psalm 119:2

But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit. Jeremiah 17:7-8

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans. Proverbs 16:3

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:19

Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. Psalm 34:8

Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers, and blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord. Proverbs 16:20

How abundant are the good things that you have stored up for those who fear you, that you bestow in the sight of all, on those who take refuge in you. Psalm 31:19

Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. 1 Peter 3:9

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Matthew 5:6

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” Malachi 3:10

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9

His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ Matthew 25:21

The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, without painful toil for it. Proverbs 10:22

And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. 2 Corinthians 9:8

Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers. Psalm 1:1

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Matthew 5:8

Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Joshua 1:8

You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. 2 Corinthians 9:11

I will make them and the places surrounding my hill a blessing. I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing. Ezekiel 34:26

The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace. Psalm 29:11

Observe what the Lord your God requires: Walk in obedience to him, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and regulations, as written in the Law of Moses. Do this so that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go. 1 Kings 2:3

Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” John 20:29

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Matthew 5:4

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance. Psalm 33:12

“If you do not listen, and if you do not resolve to honor my name,” says the Lord Almighty, “I will send a curse on you, and I will curse your blessings. Yes, I have already cursed them, because you have not resolved to honor me.” Malachi 2:2

Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. Exodus 20:12

But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. James 1:25

Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. Luke 6:22

“Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life.” Mark 10:29-30

Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Psalm 32:1

Blessed is the one whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty. Job 5:17

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Matthew 5:11

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Empty’s Never Felt So Full

This weekend is Mother’s Day. Gents and kids, if you haven’t made plans yet, the clock’s ticking.

Moms are special. Not only did I have a mom as I was growing up, but I’m also married to a mom of three kids.

Don’t get me wrong, dads are special too, but c’mon, when a kid needs comfort, Dad’s not the one they go looking for (at least in my experience). I’ve had at least one of my kids, crying, walk up to me when they’re hurt and ask where Mommy is. One night while Mommy was away overnight, my oldest came into our room after having a bad dream. Upon remembering that Mommy wasn’t there, she stopped to think about whether it was even worth waking me up. If Daddy’s the one that says “walk it off” or “rub some dirt on it,” Mommy’s the one that gets down on her knees, wipes away the tears, and knows how to make it all better.

Many times when we think of the character of God, we think of things that we normally associate with males. What we sometimes forget though, is that Adam and Eve were both patterned after God.

When God created mankind, he made them in the likeness of God. He created them male and female and blessed them. And he named them ‘Mankind’ when they were created. –Genesis 5:1-2

This may come as a shock, but males and females are different from one another. Even so, the traits God possesses are manifested in the two genders He made as described in Genesis.

Now obviously you can’t divide these traits into strictly “male” or “female” characteristics. The noblest attributes any of us display are merely a reflection, a result of God’s creating us in His image. That includes fairness, unselfishness, patience, righteous anger, compassion, tenderness, a comforter, and a sense of justice, among others.

To the moms in my life, I’ve seen you display many, if not all of these traits. I’m thankful God made you either with the attributes already built in or with the ability to learn them. Thank you for being godly examples.

I’m including a song that describes the kind of love a mom often displays (especially new moms), but it’s not a song you’d normally associate with Mother’s Day. “Poured out, used up, still givin’, stretching me out to the end of my limits…this is what love feels like.”

For all the moms out there, thank you for your constant love and support, thank you for being there, and thank you for believing in us.

Happy Mother’s Day to you all!

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When Actions are Dictated by What You Have on Hand

You may have an idea for how you’d like to execute a plan, but sometimes your resources dictate your strategy.

Let me give you an example of what I mean.

In college a buddy of mine, Rich, and I both had paintball guns, ammo, and masks. The nearest paintball place was…I don’t know…forever away, and I’m sure it wasn’t cheap. Our school was situated in a pretty rural setting, and this was a generation ago, so stuff we could get away with back then probably wouldn’t fly today. The two of us figured “hey, there are acres of forest nearby, how about we do some one-on-one out in the woods?”

We were both game, so we went out to the woods one day with our paintball gear. We agreed on the boundaries, set up a time limit, and discussed some other rules. I had my Walmart special…a cheapo pump-action paintball gun that came with a 10-round tube and a mini CO2 cylinder that fit inside the handle. I don’t know where Rich got his, but I know it was a semi-automatic paintball gun with a hopper that held about 200 rounds and a CO2 canister that was just about as big as the hopper.

He could probably spray about a dozen paintballs in the time it took me to fire off two. The ratio was even worse if I wanted to shoot with accuracy. If I got into a firefight with Rich, he’d obliterate me. I’d be pink or yellow for a week. The only way I could win was if I somehow got the drop on him, but I needed a strategy.

Since the tools at my disposal didn’t give me a lot of offensive horsepower, I decided I’d find a good ambush spot and try to make my first shot be the only shot I’d need. Once we split up and headed into the woods, I took off running along one of the trails, looking for a spot that suited my needs. I forget the exact measure that we agreed on, but we were able to go up to five or 10 steps off the trail on either side. I found a spot that gave me a decent field of fire and was far enough off the trail that he shouldn’t spot me right away.

I pushed a bunch of leaves into a pile and then sort of crawled under them, spreading them out over me as best I could. The idea was to stay hidden so he’d get close enough for me to take my shot. Once I got my camouflage set up, I chambered a round, turned off the safety, and waited.

It’s funny how nerve-wracking waiting can be. Trying to lay silently under a pile of leaves doesn’t really work for a significant length of time, and any noise you make seems like it gets amplified. You don’t have the same quality of vision wearing a clunky mask, and it starts to get fogged up as you get hot.

Eventually Rich came into view, patrolling the trail. He was locked, loaded and on high alert, ready to grease anything that moved. As he approached, it looked like he was going to get close to me without noticing my position. I tracked him with the gun, lining up my shot as my finger tightened on the trigger. I went for it. I took the shot, hoping to end the game with one trigger pull.

I missed.

The shot gave away my position and Rich unleashed paint fury as he ran out of the kill zone. It all happened so fast I didn’t even try to load another round as Rich’s suppressing fire rained down paintballs all through the area I was hiding in. Then, he was gone. I blew my only chance. It turns out that aside from about 10 seconds, this wasn’t a very exciting paintball match. Time soon ran out and we were both still alive; it was a draw.

The thing is, though, I don’t see how I could’ve obtained a better outcome. My circumstances dictated that no matter how aggressive I wanted to be, I had to choose a path that considered the resources at my disposal and gave me greater odds of success.

The same may hold true for you in your Christian walk. After Christ gets hold of you, He usually has some things He wants you to accomplish in your life. It may be as simple as forgiving someone you feel has wronged you. For Saul (later Paul), the plan after his salvation was to be a missionary and church planter. For us, reading the Bible almost 2,000 years later, we say “well, yeah, it’s Paul…being a missionary and planting churches is what he did.” Sure, but there was a time when that plan wasn’t so clear. Paul didn’t know right away that he was going to make four missionary trips, get shipwrecked three or four times, get bitten by a poisonous snake, receive 39 lashes on five different occasions, endure an earthquake in prison, and be stoned and left for dead. By the time he died, he had survived all of those things, but before he even encountered the first one of them, he had to start somewhere.

Maybe you’ll one day be a giant of the faith. Maybe you already are. Here’s the thing though: God sometimes limits your resources, or removes opportunities from your life so He can steer you toward something you wouldn’t have otherwise chosen. We usually think of it as something bad, but it’s more like a divine course correction.

All that to say…if you’ve been looking for a way to serve God but aren’t quite sure how to get started, consider this question instead: taking into account the time, skills, and other resources at your disposal, what CAN you do? The fewer the options, the clearer the choice.

Lord, I know in my head You have a plan for my life and You want me to use the tools I have to bring You glory. Help me to see the direction I should go, what I should do, and how You want me to get started. Please also help me to realize and accept that even if I don’t get it exactly right, I’m not going to ruin Your plans. Amen

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A Whole Bunch of People Straight up Vanished – What Just Happened?!

This week’s post isn’t geared so much toward my regular readers as it is the people that have just witnessed an astonishing event, and who are absolutely freaking out right now. If a sizable portion of the human race has just flat out disappeared without a trace, and you’re still here, this post is meant for you.

Right off the bat, I can offer you hope, but it’s going to come with a hard dose of reality. I’m breaking this into two sections: what happened, and what you need to do now. You’re going to think what I’m saying is crazy, but crazy just became your new norm, friend, and the things I touch on can help you start to understand this new reality.

So what happened? I can’t put a number on it, but a ton of people around the whole world just up and disappeared, right in the middle of everyday life. Cars driving down the road suddenly had no drivers, and airplanes lost their pilots, which caused additional chaos, I’m sure. Despite what’s being reported, it wasn’t aliens and it wasn’t some weird new disease. I’m going to go out on a limb here and say the people that disappeared are Christians. That is, they believed and trusted in Jesus Christ. Sure, there are still some church-goers and religious people that didn’t disappear. Ask them why others are gone but they’re still here. If they can’t seem to articulate their thoughts, ask them about their relationship with Jesus Christ. Not their head knowledge, as in their knowledge of or about God, or the money they give or the things they do for the church; ask them about their relational/experiential knowledge…the relationship they have with God. Odds are that they didn’t have a meaningful one.

Here’s the quick and dirty: after Jesus left, the Church (capital “C”) started. Throughout the Bible’s New Testament, the Church is described as the thing preserving the world (the “salt and light”). The Church is what perpetuates society’s collective morality. Yeah, things progressively get less and less like the way God wanted humanity to act. Churches give in, get “woke,” and endorse things that God himself would not endorse. Morality becomes less black and white and becomes increasingly gray. There are some churches and some folks that stand up and try to point the way back to Biblical morality, but over time those voices get drowned out, silenced, or labeled “hateful.”

Eventually (this is the part you’ve witnessed), God says “That’s enough; the evil is too much. I don’t want it to corrupt my people any further, so I’m pulling them out of there.” I don’t know when He’s going to do it, but I know that none of the people who disappeared are perfect; they just chose to love Jesus and trust Him as their savior and are now with Him in Heaven.

So where does that leave you? Well, you’re heading for some very rough waters. As it turns out, the Church was the speed bump that slowed down the moral degeneration of the human race. Now that it’s gone, there’s nothing holding back society’s decay. It’s like defunding the police and trusting that everyone will just get along and live happily together without problems. Things are about to get more insane and deadly than you imagined could ever happen.

If it hasn’t already happened, there’s a guy about to come on the scene that’s the most articulate politician/leader you’ve ever seen. He’s going to seem like he’s got all the answers and people will thrust him to global leadership. It’s a meteoric rise. The Bible calls this man the Antichrist. Circumstances will be such that you are encouraged (and maybe in some cases forced) to worship him. He’s empowered by satanic forces and will be able to do amazing supernatural things, and will perform counterfeit versions of the actual miracles Jesus performed.

Very quickly, here are some other things that will happen: Crazy, unexplainable signs in the sky…sun, moon, sky, and stars will all act strangely (Revelation chapter 6, verses 12-14, along with Rev 8:12). Imagine peace in the Middle East. This guy will orchestrate a 7-year treaty with Israel that brings peace to the region. Halfway through, though, he’s going to break it for his own benefit, desecrating Jewish holy sites in the process (Daniel 9:27, although there’s a lot more reading to do in order to grasp this meaning). Also, you’ll be unable to buy or sell or otherwise conduct normal business without receiving a mark on your hand or forehead. I don’t know if it’s going to look like a bar code, a QR code, or something else, but odds are it will somehow have the number “666” associated with it. (Rev. 13:16-18) Additionally, even aside from the disappearances, there’s going to be widespread death on a massive scale (Rev 6:7-8). Interestingly, there are going to be two guys that show up in Jerusalem that, for three and a half years speak out against the way folks are living and the way the world is conducting itself, pointing the way to Jesus Christ. People are going to hate hearing the truths these two guys are spreading, and will even try to kill them in order to silence them. During this time, these two will be invincible, but at the end the Antichrist himself will kill them both and their bodies will be left in the street as people celebrate their death by giving gifts to one another. Three and a half days later, however, both men will come back to life in full view of everyone. God then calls them to Heaven, and the two men will leave after that. (Rev. 11:3-12)

Look there’s a whole lot that happens, and I just don’t have the space to go into it all. Here’s what you need to do:

  • Accept Christ as your Lord and Savior. You’re not perfect, but you don’t have to be. I realize that “accepting Christ as your Savior” sounds kind of wonky for someone who’s not accustomed to “churchy” language, so I’ll say it differently. Talk to God; pray this prayer: “Dear God, I need you. I’m humbly calling out to you. I’m tired of doing things my way; help me to start doing things your way. I invite you into my life to be my Lord and Savior; fill the emptiness in me with your Holy Spirit and make me whole. Lord help me to trust you, help me to love you, help me to live for you. Help me to understand your grace, your mercy, and your peace. Help me have the strength for what lies ahead. Thank you Lord, Amen.”
  • If it hasn’t already, it’s probably about to become illegal to possess a Bible. You’re going to need one, though, along with a place to stash it. The Bible is a very complex book, with lots of stuff that you’re probably not going to care about (so many lineages!), and you’ll need help understanding it. There are lots of different translations of the Bible, but the most important thing for you is to get one that you can follow and that is an actual translation (not paraphrased). If it says that Jesus Christ is both fully God and fully man, you’re probably on the right track. If you’ve never read the Bible before, start out in the New Testament. If you’re new to this, start with Matthew. (The books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are in the same group of books, and they cover a lot of the same material. Don’t read all four and wonder why they killed Jesus four times!) Some of the books of the Bible that will pertain the most to you (Revelation, Daniel, Ezekiel) are also some of the most difficult to understand, so it’s best to get either a study bible (with notes) or separate commentaries that can help provide explanations of what the text is saying. At this point you’re living in a time that’s past civility, so I’ll say this and you take it however you’d like: the homes and bookshelves of the people who disappeared are your best shot at obtaining the biblical resources that can help you the most, and those folks sure don’t need those resources anymore.
  • The Bible is your single best source for learning what you need to learn, but it can be very hard to understand. For a lot of people, sermons from pastors/priests or additional Bible study materials will help increase understanding of biblical scripture’s application. If you can obtain those resources, do it.
  • Find others like you. God empowers His followers with special talents called “spiritual gifts.” They could be things like teaching, faith, leadership, administration, or the gift of helps (this isn’t an exhaustive list). If you accept Christ, you’ll gain something that you can use to help other Christ-followers, and others will likewise be able to help you. The Bible says that wherever two or more are gathered in His name, He’s there (Matthew 18:20). Take comfort in that, help each other learn about Christ, and help each other survive. You would not believe what God can do when He wants to get something done, and you may very well see it up close.

There are very hard times ahead. You will personally understand desperation in a way I can only vaguely imagine in April of 2021. My hope is that this post will float around online long enough to reach the people that need it, starting to orient you in a time of unprecedented chaos.

I’m not out to con you. I can guarantee that I have nothing to gain by passing this information along. In fact, if I’m right about all this, I’m already gone. You, on the other hand, have everything to gain!

For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. – 2 Corinthians 4:17-18

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The Greatness of What Almost Never Was

Any Star Trek fans here? Even if you’re not one of them, stick around for this one.

When I was a kid I watched the William Shatner Star Trek movies like, a bazillion times. I think part of the reason I liked them so much at the time was because they were some of the first “grown up” movies I was allowed to see. To this day, I don’t think I’ve seen an entire episode of the 1960s Star Trek TV show, but I can probably still rattle off some lines from Star Trek II-VI (not “The Motion Picture” though…it moved too slow to watch more than once).

For those of you who aren’t familiar, William Shatner played the pompous, arrogant, yet dashing and heroic James T. Kirk, Captain of the starship Enterprise. His exploits are legendary, and depend as much on his daring impulsiveness as they do good fortune. Surrounded by a terrific supporting cast (Mr. Spock, Dr. McCoy, Scottie, Sulu, Checkov, Uhura, and all the rest), the crew embarked upon epic adventures where they saved Earth, and probably the universe, multiple times.

So when you take such a storied franchise and announce that you’re going to reboot it, you have to tread a very fine line between honoring the original and telling a new story with different actors playing familiar characters. The first movie in the rebooted franchise came out in 2009, but until viewers got to see it and start generating a positive or negative buzz, nobody really knew if it was going to be a kick-start for interest in the Star Trek universe or if it was going to be a gigantic slap in the face that resulted in a flop.

The folks that did the new movie did a great job writing the plot so that the new actors were free to play the characters their own way, rather than how their predecessors played them. Without going full nerd on you, someone from the original Star Trek era got thrown back in time and changed just enough history to impact some of the characters in the new movie. In the reboot we meet the colorful cast before they become the confident and experienced legends we know them to be, but the part that keeps it interesting is the fact that we’re never quite sure if the characters we’re watching will be able to rise to meet the challenges we know their predecessors could have conquered.

It’s this doubt that keeps the story engaging, as you wonder whether the heroes will have what it takes to be heroes for the first time.

Hang in there, I’m getting to my point.

Through all of this, there are a handful of characters that spent time in both versions of the Star Trek universe. The movie’s main villain is familiar with the famous, battle-tested Admiral Kirk, and sees in the younger version someone bearing little or no resemblance of the legend. In one of the movie’s great lines, which is the origin of the idea behind this post, this villain speaks to the young Kirk about not measuring up to the well-known hero. “James T. Kirk was a great man, but that was another life.”

Using this sci-fi movie as an analogy, let me switch gears on you. In my mind there are fewer things more haunting than the idea that I don’t measure up to what God wants me to be in this life.

When you think of any hero of the faith, whether recorded in the Bible or not, there was a time in their life before they were that person. Their path was still uncertain; the choices they had yet to make could still take their life in a radically different direction. What if Moses continued refusing God’s calling? What if Billy Graham took over the family farm instead of pursuing evangelism?

In my own life, I am on my way to becoming the person God knows I will one day be…and the same is true for you. The person writing this entry is not as seasoned or (hopefully) as wise as the older version that is yet to come; there are still choices ahead in my life that can either bring me closer to or turn me away from fulfilling the earthly potential the Holy Spirit sees in me. Of course, nobody will be perfect this side of Heaven no matter how hard we try, but with God in charge, our level of trust and obedience to Him has the ability to accomplish undreamed-of things for His kingdom. At the end of my life on Earth, my desire is to leave no unfulfilled potential in my Christian walk, to have no arrows left in my quiver. I don’t want to get to Heaven, see a huge building, and when I ask God what’s in it, He says “that’s the glory you could’ve brought me, but you did not pursue the opportunities I presented to you.”

Are you living in light of the future God has for you, or are you just drifting through this life?

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” -Mark 12:28-31

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When You Depend on Your Equipment To Save Your Life, Use it the Right Way

It’s obviously very important to be safety-conscious when skydiving, because it’s an endeavor where you purposely insert yourself into a scenario where certain death will occur unless something extracts you from that eventuality. Some activities have equipment that’s designed for high performance and dependability during emergency usage, but in skydiving you actually go into it intending to use life-saving equipment to pull you out of an emergency situation on every single jump. A bad day in skydiving is not even in the same league as a bad day in tennis.

The absolute minimum safety inspection a jumper should perform after putting on their equipment is known as a “six-point check.” A six-point check includes: (1 and 2) making sure each leg loop on the harness is buckled completely, (3) ensuring the chest buckle running between the shoulder straps is fully secured, (4) making sure you can easily access the mechanism that deploys your main chute, and double-checking to see that the handles for (5) cutting away your malfunctioning main chute and (6) deploying your reserve chute haven’t become tangled, twisted, or obstructed and are easily accessible. This can be done before getting into the plane, and it should be done again right before jumping out.

On one plane ride up several of us were stuffed into a tiny plane, just waiting until we reached our jump altitude. On these flights you’re often crammed into some awkward position and there isn’t much to do while you wait. The engine is loud, and you have to yell to be heard, so conversations don’t normally last long. That means when someone starts talking, it’s usually worth listening to. The most experienced jumper on this load spoke up, and he was talking to me. He had trained himself to sweep his eyes over the equipment of his fellow jumpers. He said to me “would you please fasten your chest strap.” Sure enough, I looked down, and it was not secured properly. I had somehow missed it before getting in the plane. That’s when a feeling that was a cross between embarrassment and horror came over me. A skydiving harness, in addition to leg loops, has a strap that goes across your chest and connects the two shoulder straps. It’s there so that as you deploy your chute and you decelerate quickly, the harness doesn’t get ripped off your body. The leg loops are still there, but if they’re the only thing connecting you to the rig, you’d flip upside down and probably slide out of them. A parachute won’t do you any good unless you’re connected to it somehow.

The chest strap prevents the shoulder straps from separating too far apart

In many skydiving circles, the popular currency is expressed in terms of cases of beer. When you first get your skydiving license, you owe the drop zone a case of beer. If you surpass some milestone or perform some new formation during a big jump, you might celebrate by supplying a case of beer. If you mess up, you usually owe someone a case of beer. Seeing the look on my face, he said “I just saved your life. You owe me a case of beer.”

Christians deal with vital safety equipment of a different sort. Think about the armor of God. This is equipment that’s meant to protect your saved soul! Many of our helmets are dinged because they’ve taken repeated blows from the enemy’s weapons. Our shields have varying degrees of pockmarks and burn marks from where flaming arrows struck, only to burn themselves out. Due to an infinite number of variables, some Christians are more battle-weary  or have taken more hits than others. Some are still fresh and are swinging that sword like tomorrow’s not coming, but others are barely standing, reeling and about to start dropping vital equipment that will leave them more exposed to danger.

If there are Christians around you, there are people nearby that are using this equipment to varying degrees on a daily basis. Some will have more experience as a Christian than you, and sometimes you’ll be the “senior Christian” in the group. If you see someone who’s not using the equipment correctly, or it doesn’t “fit” properly, don’t be afraid to help them out. There are pitfalls and traps everywhere for Christians, we often need help from one another to walk through this life intact.

The guy that helped me out on the plane was experienced enough to be on the lookout for problematic equipment not only on himself, but on others. We should try to do the same. I don’t know if he actually saved my life that day, but I’m sure glad he spoke up when he did. Who’s out there, waiting for you to notice a problem and say something about it?

Lord Jesus, You know exactly what I’m going to encounter today, and You’ve charted my path through it long before I was even born. Please help me recognize opportunities You place in front of me to tighten up my own spiritual armor, along with that of others. Help me speak up not out of arrogance, but of a genuine desire to mitigate fellow believers’ vulnerabilities, and be humble enough to listen when others do the same for me. Amen

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You’d Have Fallen for This April Fools’ Prank, too

Today is the first of April, which means it’s April Fools’ Day.

For the international readers, this is a minor holiday that we celebrate in America by playing jokes on one another and generally creating some well-intentioned mischief. It’s often characterized by false statements that are made for the sake of evoking a reaction, which is generally acceptable as long as the trickster doesn’t wait long to come clean about the truth. It’s the one day a year where it’s acceptable to be deceptive.

This wasn’t really an April Fools’ thing, but I used to know a guy in the Air Force that employed deception to his advantage.

James had a job where he worked in a large building, and it was common for him to be performing duties throughout the building. If people wanted to find him, they’d start at his office, but it wasn’t a surprise to see that he wasn’t at his desk.

In the Air Force, with a few exceptions, any time you go outside, you need to wear your “cover” (your hat). If people stopped at James’ desk and saw his cover and keys on his desk, they assumed he was somewhere in the building and would normally just try again later. What they didn’t know was that James bought an extra cover and kept a set of good-for-nothing keys in his office. If he wanted to disappear for awhile, he’d leave the spare hat and keys on his desk for people to find, then walk out the back door while putting on his real cover, hop in his car, and drive off to do who-knows-what.

Not really an April Fools’ prank, I know. Think back to the biggest prank or good-natured deception that’s ever been pulled on you. When you found out it was all a joke, what was your reaction?

Almost 2,000 years ago, almost this exact time of year, Jesus Christ pulled off the most epic April Fools’ prank of all time. While He dropped some hints about what He was going to do, He didn’t let anybody in on it ahead of time. Christ died, dropped in on Satan and his minions to announce His victory over them, then re-animated the body that had just been crucified for a crime it didn’t commit.

Imagine if the first disciples to reach the tomb stuck their heads inside, only to hear the angel sitting inside say “April Fools! He is not here; He is alive!”

In flawlessly executing this surprise, Christ not only dropped everyone’s jaws, but in the process provided the only way for anyone to escape eternal torment from that point forward. He won’t force you to take it, but wishes you would. This is a free gift, offered to you. The only thing you need to do is accept it.

This weekend, please remember how this unexpected turn of events forever changed history. In light of that, how can we do anything short of share the wonderful news of this divine escape route with people that are bound for destruction?

Have a wonderful Easter, count your blessings, and thank God that you’ve been invited, rather than forced, to be a part of His story!

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Playing For An Audience of One

Part of our college graduation requirement was to deliver a “Senior Seminar” in our chosen field of study. This was essentially an in-depth presentation on a faculty-approved topic related to our studies. Each department’s students sacrificed a few Saturday mornings during our final semester and took turns presenting our topic to the department faculty and an audience of our peers.

Although it’s not always the case, science presentations can be boring. All of us biology majors had to sit through some dry (but meticulously researched and well-sourced) student lectures. Most of the bio presentations were either in the pre-med concentration or the ecological field of study.

You may remember from a previous post that I had fallen behind in my major early on in my academic pursuits. As part of an attempt to catch up, I did a summer project where I went out into a wooded area near my house and repeatedly set out 25 small live traps to perform a wildlife survey. I set out little red flags to mark the spots to place the traps, and six or eight times I baited them with various seeds and left them out overnight. It was fairly involved and I thought I’d be able to write up a report to obtain a few college credits for this study. Well, that didn’t work out, but since I had already done it, I figured I’d do my senior seminar on it.

Overall it went well. After hearing so many abstract presentations that were difficult to grasp meaningfully, the biology professors seemed to enjoy hearing about an experiment that one of the students actually conducted in the field. In fact this presentation was the only one that drew questions from all of the faculty members. One of my non-biology housemates showed up to support me, too, which meant a lot. I ended up getting a very good grade, and I probably allowed it to inflate my ego a little more than I should have.

Weeks later one of the biology professors approached me and said “we have a campus-wide visit day coming up for prospective students. As part of the programming, each department has a current student give a presentation for visiting students interested in those respective majors. Would you be interested in delivering your senior seminar on behalf of the biology department that day?”

It was an honor, for sure. It would be good resume fodder, and it looked like I could get a bit more mileage out of that summer project, so I agreed. I gathered my notes, looked at the feedback I got from my seminar and made adjustments, and rehearsed as the event drew near.

The day eventually came, and I waited in the lecture hall prepared to do my presentation for the numerous prospective biology students that would surely come to tour the campus that day. I had no idea how many visiting students would show, but I was ready. I had even started getting cocky by this point. “They asked me to do my presentation, probably because it stood out so much. I don’t even have to do a great job; it’s not like this is a class of my peers…these will only be high school kids.”

Well, that guy still had some growing up to do, and his lesson was about to begin.

The clock kept ticking and it was nearly time to start, but nobody showed up. Finally, one student and one of their parents came into the lecture hall. There was nobody else.

Whichever professor represented the biology department that day spoke a little about the department, introduced me, then let me take it away. It felt weird, playing to an “audience of one” (and their mom or dad) who sat in the back row of a theater-style lecture hall. It felt like sort of a waste, but I went through the entire presentation again.

This time at the end, when I asked for questions, there were absolutely none. The visiting student just wanted to get out of there and stop hearing about the mice I’d caught.

It was a lot different from the first time around. I have no idea if that student chose to attend my alma mater, or if maybe they decided right then and there to look for a different school and/or major because they were afraid they’d have to go out in the woods and try to catch mice or something.

Well, the experience helped bring me back to earth. It helped me better understand the concept of playing for an audience of one. As Christians, we need to be careful about whose approval we seek. It’s also important to examine our motivations. Are we working for Christ’s glory, or our own? Yes we all have talents, but are we using them in ways that would make God happy? I don’t know who I’m talking to right now, but someone reading this needs to think about how they’d feel if they’re busy using their talents or resources when Jesus taps them on the shoulder and says “I can see what’s in your heart, you know.”

We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our heart. 1 Thessalonians 2:4b

Lord Jesus, there are things you’ve done in my life that make me uniquely prepared to serve you in certain capacities. Although some of my experience comes from things I’ve worked hard to earn, help me to recognize that You ultimately control what direction my life takes. Please show me the places in my own mind and attitude where I need to make adjustments in order to ensure I’m working to glorify You and not me. Amen

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Sometimes Simple Things Lead to Excellence

Remember the first few months after getting your driver’s license? For some it meant convenience, for others it meant freedom. Once the DMV punched your ticket there were probably a lot of unnecessary trips that you didn’t mind taking. Whatever the case, it probably took a little bit of experience before really understanding why you shouldn’t let the fuel tank get too low.

People can give you all the advice they want to, but sometimes lessons don’t sink in until you experience them for yourself. I’d heard “don’t let the gas tank fall below half in the winter,” but I didn’t take it to heart until one winter morning I couldn’t get the car to start because of the condensation that had frozen in the fuel system. Okay, lesson learned, but that’s in the winter. When temperatures are safely above freezing, it was okay to flirt with the lower hashmarks on the gauge, wasn’t it?

Well when I was low on gas I’d start driving more conservatively until I could get to a gas station. Maybe not drive so aggressively, drop the speed a little bit, use lower RPMs, accelerate slower, and if it was really bad, coast down the hills. I don’t recall ever having a problem with low fuel…until I used someone else’s car.

I forget what the situation was, but I was driving someone else’s vehicle, and it was low on gas. It was in the same area where I normally drove though, so I was confident I could get where I needed to go.

On the drive, I came up to a long hill that I must’ve driven a hundred times before, but as I drove uphill, the engine started stuttering. “What’s this?! I know it’s low on gas, but this hill is something it should be able to handle!”

As it turns out, the two vehicles were built differently. This car apparently had a fuel line that connected to the front of the gas tank. On paper, that makes perfect sense…if you’re mass producing something, you want to use the least amount of materials and make the design as simple as possible. In reality though, when that particular model climbs uphill on an almost-empty tank, all the gas moves to the back of the tank and the fuel line starts sucking air. The laughable silver lining to that dark cloud is that if you somehow manage to sputter to the top and start going downhill, the engine gets the gas it needs…when gravity is already there to help you coast down.

My car, on the other hand, had a fuel line that connected to the back of the tank. You see, someone had enough engineering sense to say “boy, you know, if the gas is really low, the driver can get up the hill and then coast down the other side, even if the engine dies.”
It’s impossible to measure just how much heartache, hitchhiking, and walking that simple feature has spared people worldwide. You probably never even thought about it (hopefully because you don’t let the tank get that low). That’s okay, you didn’t have to think about it, because someone else did.

What about you? What area of work, your personal interests, or other aspect of life do you look at and say “boy, you know, if we just made this basic modification, it could net a major advantage”? You and the folks on your team could be poised to make a small change that has an outsized impact, one that people in the future don’t even think about because it’s so brilliant they take it for granted. 

The world rarely moves forward in leaps and bounds; don’t be afraid to be a part of making incremental improvements that add up to big gains over time. Someone will be glad you spoke up.

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Fighting the Battle of the Bulge

As I get older, the bathroom scale seems to become less and less forgiving.

I used to be able to polish off a ton of food and suffer no repercussions. Junk food didn’t pose much of an issue, eating late at night wasn’t a problem, and eating like I was on vacation was a beautiful thing.

Those days are long gone.

“Weight creep” is a real thing. Not a lot all at once, just a little bit at a time…and the numbers only seem to go up, they hardly ever go down.

Now, feel free to do what you want to do, but I’ve decided that I’d like to avoid putting on excess weight. Not only did Paul say in 1 Corinthians that our bodies are temples for the Holy Spirit, but staying at a healthy weight helps reduce the chances of developing a litany of other medical problems. (And my wife exercises regularly, so come on, I can’t let myself go!)

As I age and my metabolism slows down though, it takes a larger amount of conscious thought to prevent the love handles from getting bigger. I can use a few tricks, like drinking a glass or two of water before a meal, skipping snacks after dinner, and using smaller plates, but the main weapon in that fight involves regularly confronting the uncomfortable truth: I get on the scale almost every day.

Yes, Monday mornings are usually bad. The day after a vacation or trip to see family is often worse. I need to know the truth, though. It’s uncomfortable, and it’s sometimes ugly. Without having that metric, I only have a vague sense of where I am, and I just don’t know how diligent I need to be in getting back to that target weight.

Think of the Bible as your scale. It’s probably not going to help you with your weight, but consulting it regularly is going to be the way you know if you’re heading in the right direction. It’s going to help you know if your habits are healthy or if you need to make some changes in your life. Sometimes we, as Christians, begin to accept things we should not accept. In the same way that the scale can be used to combat weight creep, use the Bible to fight against “compromise creep.”

You’re not going to stay the same person your whole life, and your judgment, tolerance of the things of this world, and ability to recognize pitfalls and half-truths is going to fluctuate over time, just like your weight. Reading the Bible consistently will help you keep your focus where it needs to be, and without it you’ll only have a vague sense of where you are. If it’s not already a part of your daily routine, I challenge you to move toward that goal.

Lord, thank you for giving us the Bible and for the ability to study it at our own pace. Please lead each one of us to the passages You’d have us read and help us be consistent in reading it. Amen.

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It’s All Part of the Process

Last week I talked about reconciling the apparent scientific evidence we have of an earth that appears to be billions of years old with the 6,000-10,000-year estimate we derive from the Bible’s account.

This week, let’s talk a little about the process of creation itself.

For now, let’s assume the biblical account of creation is accurate. That is, God made the entire universe, including the earth and everything in it, in seven days. (As an aside, note that even though the work was completed in six days, God considered resting and recharging so important that He set the example of including it as part of the timeline. That’s not my main point, but it’s important, too!)

Why would God take seven whole days? If He’s infinitely powerful, why didn’t He just make it all instantly? He had the option of waving His arms across the emptiness and bringing everything into existence, yet He deliberately chose to break up the stages of Earth’s creation into distinct phases. Why?

I believe He did it as a way of illustrating to us, His followers, that His way of doing things usually occurs through using processes. Everything God does is a process. God could snap His fingers and affect major change instantaneously, but doing so foregoes the opportunity to make the journey.

In addition to a seven-day-long creation, here are some other examples of God taking longer than we might expect:

  • Leading the Israelites along the scenic route through the wilderness to get to the promised land (even before He announced they’d wander until the older generation perished)
  • Prophesying about the coming Messiah for hundreds of years before He showed up
  • Saying that He’s coming back for us “soon.” Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds. Revelation 22:12

What are we to learn from this?

Well it seems to me that God’s telling us: “don’t be in a hurry to get to the next thing; live in the moment, because that’s where I’ve placed you. You may have noble intentions of things you want to do in the future, but don’t forget about living for me in the present. I’m giving you opportunities to be faithful in small things over time, and if you do well, I’ll give you opportunities to be faithful in bigger things.”

Living life at God’s pace instead of our own builds and hones our character. Remember that He knows exactly what choices we’ll make and what kind of person we’ll be in the future. Part of the sometimes glacial movement of God’s work in our lives is for our benefit, not God’s. As you accomplish tasks God sets before you, it grows your faith and deepens your trust in Him. As that trust grows, you become more willing to take bigger leaps of faith on His behalf…leaps that you would not have been willing to take if God had simply snapped His fingers and brought you to the level He wanted you to be after the long, hard journey. Skipping the journey means missing part of the experience that makes you…you.

If you’re going through an especially difficult time right now, just remember: God knows where He wants you to end up, but the route you would’ve chosen wasn’t going to get you there in the manner He wanted. It’s easy to think of surprises and unforeseen pivots as “detours.” The reality is that this was always the charted course, but sometime in the past we tried going in a different direction than God chose.  

There aren’t too many people that would plan their lives according to the way God does. That feared diagnosis, that pink slip, that broken relationship. Though it’s painful, please remember that all the difficult struggles in your life are part of the process God is using to shape you who He wants you to become.

Lord, sometimes there are no words to describe the feelings we have when life doesn’t go the way we expected. Please help us to have patience, to live in the here and now, and to see how to align our wills more closely with yours. Amen.

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We Now Rejoin the Previously Scheduled Program, Already in Progress

And now for something different.

A lot of Christians struggle to reconcile what the Bible says with the available scientific evidence. Case in point: according to your beliefs, how old is the earth?

Science says that the earth is more than four and a half billion years old. That doesn’t square with a strict reading of the Bible, though. The Bible says that not only the earth, but the entire universe…everything that is…was created in seven literal 24-hour days, probably between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago.

This presents a problem for many Christ-followers. I’ve heard some water down what the Bible says in order to make it fit the science. “I don’t think it was one literal week, I think it was figuratively referring to the process that actually took billions of years.” Or maybe “I believe God intentionally inspired the author of Genesis to use vague language, so that it’s not clear.”

Consider another alternative. The scientific evidence we observe is accurate and makes sense, and God created the whole universe in seven literal days less than 10,000 years ago.

How could this be? I offer this theory: instead of creating the earth as if it were brand new, God created it as though it were already in-progress.

What does that mean? It means when the earth was only a month old, it already had the appearance of being much older. Instead of creating a molten Earth with flat terrain, taking millions of years for plate tectonics to build mountains and for glaciers to carve valleys, there were already crumbling mountains and an amazing Grand Canyon by the time Adam and Eve showed up.

Half-lives of Carbon and other elements used for dating old materials would present a compelling case for an earth that’s much older than 10,000 years. The part that’s not going to jump out at us is the part where those elements were created in a partially decayed state. Science can present us with verifiable facts, but in order for us to get the full story there are still considerations apart from science.

“Mmmmm, yeah, I’m still not buying it,” says the science-leaning Christian. Okay. How about this spin on the “chicken or egg” problem? Adam took his first breath as a full-grown man. He was never “born” in the traditional sense. Since he never had a need for an umbilical cord, do you think Adam had a belly button?

If Adam did lots of crunches and took selfies

It’s an odd question, perhaps. Of course, we have no way of knowing from our reading of Genesis, but since Adam was made in God’s image, would he be functionally different from what we are today? I can’t say it with certainty, but I say no. The main recorded physiological difference between Adam and modern man is that he may have been born with more ribs than we were. (Genesis 2:21-23 gives a little more information on this subject.)

From what we know about the way Adam was brought to life, if he had a belly button, it was more for decorative use than functional. Obviously he didn’t need it, but if it was there, it was likely because everyone else after that point would have one, and since he was the first man he should look like everyone else. Is this an odd discussion? Absolutely! It meshes with the theory listed above though: God created everything as though we picked up in the middle of a movie. If that’s true, is it such a stretch to claim that yes, science would suggest the earth is over four and a half billion years old, but that there’s also a perfectly good reason to think it’s much younger?

Not only is God good, He’s the God of logic. Why would the Creator of science leave a trail of evidence that leads His followers away from what He claims in the Bible?

Food for thought!

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When Your Tank is Empty but There are Still Miles To Go

During my Junior year in college, our men’s dorm held its own version of the Olympics.

The games consisted of a variety of events. There were some conventional events, some less-conventional events, and some downright nutty events (I was thankful to be one of the referees, rather than one of the participants, in the event where you had to reach into a bag and eat whatever you pulled out). The games were memorable and went late into the night.

For some events the scoring system was straightforward. There were four floors represented, so in an event where all four floors participated simultaneously (a relay race, for example), the first-place finisher got 400 points, the second-place finisher got 300, then 200 for third place, and the last-place finisher got 100 points.

For bracket-style events, the scoring system was a little more controversial. We had two very good chess players in the dorm, and chess was one of the events. Events like this were split into two matches for round one, and then the winners from both matches would meet in the finals, and both losers from round one would also go head-to-head. The winners’ bracket would place first and second overall, and thus be awarded either 400 or 300 points. When these two talented competitors faced off in the first round, one of them had to lose. That guy was then forced into the loser’s bracket, where he could earn no higher than third place overall.

Well somehow I found myself representing my floor in the arm wrestling event. I was no slouch, but in this event I was definitely outgunned. It would be an understatement to say that I was not favored to win the event.

Due to the scoring system, the strategy I settled on was to use up everything I had in the tank to try to win the first match. That way if I could pull off a win, I’d avoid the loser’s bracket and be guaranteed a minimum of 300 points for our team even if I lost round two in an embarrassing fashion.

For the first match I got paired up with a guy named Tyrone. Tyrone was a buddy of mine, and we regularly lifted weights together a few times a week. We each had our strengths when it came to different exercises in the weight room, but trust me when I tell you that he had the advantage when it came to the explosive power and brute force required for arm wrestling.

I developed a new strategy…just try to last longer than 10 seconds!

We both sat down and established our grips, and the judge started the match. For about a second and a half, our hands went nowhere, a perfect balance of strength. Then Tyrone’s muscle simply overpowered mine. My fist steadily descended toward the table. A few seconds into it, this one was already just about over. My knuckles were so close to the table, but he couldn’t seem to close the deal. He didn’t quite have the leverage to bring his power to bear on my barely alive wrist.

I think at that point Tyrone changed strategies. It seemed like he took his foot off the gas and just waited for me to get tired. Since his advantage lay with his power though, he should have gone for the kill.

Surprised that I was still in it and that I wasn’t yet headed for the lower bracket, I resolved to give it everything I had. The problem was that the force I could generate using “everything I had” became less and less as time went on.

The seconds ticked by. A match that should have been over in 5 or 10 seconds was still going at 30 seconds. Then it passed 60 seconds. Those watching started out enjoying the match with shouts and yelling. Some of those spectators got bored and walked away, only mildly curious about the outcome.

Anybody watching could see that I was in pain, wincing and just barely hanging on. The whole time, Tyrone sat there, cool as a cucumber, just waiting for my strength to give out. He tried a few more times to go for the kill, but it didn’t work. Nobody was more surprised than me when he just gave up and stopped trying. He let me push his hand to the table surface. I can’t say I beat him, but I advanced to the winner’s bracket!

Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been talking about finding and pursuing the thing that God put you here on Earth to do. It’s your “I have to;” it’s your God-given purpose. For those of you trying to ignore it or push it to the back of your mind, consider this: everyone that’s ever existed either already has, or someday will, experience two “rounds:” this one on Earth that we’re living right now, and the one that comes after this one. You may not think of it in these terms, but this current round is the one that determines where we experience the second round.

If you’re a Christian, please don’t misunderstand me, it’s fantastic that you’ve accepted Christ as your Savior…but for almost everyone other than those who experience deathbed conversions, your Christian walk is probably meant to go deeper. The Holy Spirit has a way of prompting you to move in directions you don’t want to go, of pushing you to do things you don’t want to do. And you know the crazy part? Many times it’s for the sake of making an eternal impact on someone else, but it’s not something you could have (or would have) planned on your own.

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him. –James 1:12

So even if you’re wincing in pain while barely holding on, surprised that you’re even still hanging in there, let me encourage you to give everything you’ve got despite the pain so that this round has a bigger impact for those on your team (and those that will join your team in the future)! The opposition may look like they’re fresh and powerful, but you never know what’s going on behind the scenes. Do not give up! Save nothing for round two; put everything you’ve got into round one, and let round two figure itself out.

For those seeking closure, even if I were fresh and didn’t have an exhausted arm, I wouldn’t have been able to beat Dave, the guy I met in round two. I think that round ended with my hand on the table less than 3 seconds after the match started.

Tyrone, if you’re reading this…I still can’t claim victory, because I didn’t actually beat you; you just let me win. I have no doubt you should’ve won! You were an animal in the weight room. As a testament to how strongly I believe this, I’ll admit that I’m kind of afraid you’re going to read this and come find me and demand a rematch!

PS – The answer’s no, unless you’re really weak now.

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You Don’t Win by Accident

Years ago I was in a leadership class in the Air Force, and during one exercise the teacher named several controversial topics, one at a time. Each time she named a topic, the 12-15 of us in the class were supposed to go to one side of the room or the other, depending on our personal views on the topic.

For many of the issues, the class was close to evenly split. Sometimes maybe it’d be 75% on one side vs. 25% on the other. I don’t remember the topic, but there was one time where I found myself the sole representative of one particular viewpoint.

I don’t actually know what everyone on the other side of the room thought about me taking that position on the matter, but I know what it felt like. I was one person bearing the judgmental gaze of everyone else in the room. It was lonely and uncomfortable.

Guess what? If you openly follow Jesus, this is something you should become accustomed to. Become comfortable being uncomfortable. Christ Himself let people know that following Him would come at a cost, and that hasn’t changed over time. The world always has…and always will…disavow the teachings of Christ. Are you willing to associate yourself with Him and His teachings?

There’s a strange new development in American culture. I think the concept has been around for ages, but the interconnectedness of today’s world probably amplifies it. In today’s culture, the concept of “agreeing to disagree” is gone. It’s not enough to simply disagree with people; you have to show everyone else that you disagree with them and look down on that “invalid” opinion (as though an opinion could possibly be invalid). It’s a bizarre form of insecurity that ultimately has the effect of silencing or watering down dissenters.

Many Christians are swayed by this for some reason, as though getting along with the culture is more important than the message we carry. We’re now at the point where Christians are the counter-culture people in our society…but even many Christian pastors and priests avoid sensitive topics or only focus on subjects that the culture approves of.

Well, in times when preachers water down their message and pride themselves on showing others how “woke” they are, remember this: YOU (the Church) are God’s plan to help redeem the world. Your actions, your words, your lifestyle are what will make a difference in someone else’s eternity. If your pastor or the Christian voices you’ve long been listening to now seem like they’re “evolving” the message of Christ, it’s probably time to look for a new pastor or spiritual mentor. Stick with Christ and the Bible; in a world where morality varies with the day of the week, Christ and the Bible don’t change.

Christians will naturally ask “how can we get the world to like us better?” I understand the question and the reason for asking it, but the only honest answer is to become more like the world. Sorry everyone, but it’s not the Church’s job to make the world like us more; it’s our job to help save the lost that live in it. That’s going to come from speaking the truth in love and demonstrating the love of Christ to others. We’ll have plenty of time to skip through fields of daisies and butterflies in Heaven; while we’re here though, we should be getting sand kicked in our face by the people that don’t want to hear what we’re saying.

Did you watch the video I added at the end of last week’s post? What’s “that thing” that you believe God is calling you to do? In a world that’s desperate for lasting truth, it might just be that whatever’s coming to your mind is going to make a bigger impact on the lost in this world than some of the “politically correct” pastors that are out there.

Make no mistake: living for God is hard, but it’s good. We’ll have to discipline ourselves to dig deep in order to give God our best, and it’s going to mean consistently choosing things that we wouldn’t ordinarily choose, but it’s worthwhile.

First Corinthians 9:24-27 describes the Christian life as a competitive race. We’re not in this race just to get the tee shirt, just so we can say we finished, or even just to break into the top 10…we’re supposed to run to win. That’s not something that happens by accident, it takes focus, training, and determination. The more of those things you have, the more you allow God to use you for the expansion of His kingdom.

For more on living with purpose, check out this talk from a pastor whose message is about living a life where you “run to win.”

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Overcoming Yourself and Fulfilling Your Purpose

People are fantastic at talking themselves out of things.

Did you ever just kind of “know” that you were supposed to take a certain action that had no other origin other than the Holy Spirit moving you to do it? Maybe it was to give some cash to someone you didn’t know. Maybe it was to connect and have a conversation with someone you hadn’t spoken with in a long time. It could’ve just been to speak up at a certain time.

But you didn’t do it.

Ever have a moment like that? Afterwards, you can brush it away, saying “It’s fine, that wouldn’t have made any sense.” On the other hand, maybe you actually resolved to do it. “You know what? No, that doesn’t make sense, but I just feel like I’m supposed to.” Then you never really got around to following through.

I’m curious; for every time God prompts a person to do something that they then follow through on, I’m a little scared to know how many prompts go ignored or are rationalized away.

When God does big things, He invites people to come along with Him; the people that go along and get to be a part of those events usually aren’t the people that say “no.” Sure, there are some “Jonahs” thrown into the mix, but by and large, God wants willing participants. You’ve heard the clichés. “If you want to walk on water, you’ve got to get out of the boat.” You know in your mind that God has an infinite number of ways to unlock your potential, but you struggle with giving up control and actually allowing Him to do it.

I get it. Really, I do.

Don’t let the story end there, though. Just because you struggle with something doesn’t mean it’s not worth the struggle. A step of faith, plus another step of faith, followed by additional steps of faith leads to walking by faith.

There’s a term in physics called “inertia.” You’ve probably heard it expressed as one of the famous laws of motion: a body at rest tends to stay at rest, and a body in motion tends to stay in motion, unless acted upon by an outside force. Whatever your life’s trajectory, when God sets something new in your path, He’s presenting you with a task that’s going to require a change in inertia. Being aware of your shortcomings and taking actions intended to combat your weaknesses can help build the momentum you need to overcome your existing inertia.

An example would probably help. When I feel God’s leading to pursue a course of action, my natural tendency is to stew on it for a bit and let the idea grow on me. “Let me sleep on it” is a common mantra in my life. That can be very helpful if I’m thinking about refinancing a mortgage, but it can be a bad thing if it’s following a calling from God. With time the idea fades or the window passes. There are times I’m reluctant to pursue something, but I know I really need to do it anyway. In my case, as a way of holding myself accountable, I tell someone about the idea. I’ve found that if the idea spreads to someone else, it has a tougher time dying. The person or people that know about it can ask me how it’s going. They can hold my feet to the fire, even if they’re just curious about whether or not I was even serious about it. God can use me to do things for His glory, but I have to be willing to make an effort…to take steps to fight through the distractions, to withstand all the other things that compete for my time, attention, and energy. In that fight, I can be my own worst enemy, so I have to take additional measures to move toward that goal.

Let me drill down a bit further, hoping it helps you in your own Christian walk.

I absolutely love it when God uses people that are “unqualified” to accomplish big tasks. David killed Goliath. Moses, at age 80, with a speech impediment, became the voice of God’s people. Jesus gathered 12 “nobodies” and changed the world. These are well-known Bible stories, but these things still happen today. God calls people to do big things that don’t make sense on paper, and He brings them success in order to showcase that it could only have happened through His intervention.

A little about me for those that don’t know me well. I’m very left-brained. My mind naturally gravitates toward math, science, logic, analysis, organization…all the things that are boring or cold for right-brained people, who favor imagination, intuition, the arts, and creativity. Now…I have some of those right-brained qualities, but my natural thought processes lean more toward a left-brained style.

So imagine my surprise when discovering that I feel led to write a fiction book. This is honestly a project that I feel God has laid before me.

That makes no sense, right? If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time you might say “well, he already does a lot of writing, so that’s not really a stretch.” It’s true, I do a lot of writing for DareGreatlyNow.com, but almost none of it is fiction. I have no training in creative writing (or in whatever style blogging is considered, either). These entries are usually only two pages or so, and they’re not difficult to write about because most of them are either my experiences or they come right out of the Bible. I’m talking about a book that’s like, 40,000-50,000 words. The word that keeps coming back to me is unqualified.

Still, if you work at it for a long time, you could probably make that goal happen once, even if it’s difficult. Seemingly to make it apparent that God’s involved and that His strength is made perfect in my weakness, I feel led to write not one fiction book, but a series. Not just a trilogy. This is a seven-part series of books that are about 40,000-50,000 words each. That’s like starting with a blank piece of paper and ending up with The Chronicles of Narnia. Not just The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe…I’m talking even the ones you don’t remember or never heard of. (How many of you are now trying to see if you can name all the books in the series, I wonder?)

Alright, so let’s say I get past the nagging “unqualified” lens. The next word I deal with is “daunting.”

That’s absolutely an overwhelming task. I don’t have the time or the drive to do that! Here’s the thing though: if your vision of a God-initiated project in your life isn’t scaring you at least a little bit, you may not be envisioning something big enough. When God commissions you to do something, He also empowers and equips you to do it. Additional requirements that will need to be in place in order for your endeavor to succeed will be set in motion at the appropriate time. He’s not going to leave you flapping in the wind. As you start taking steps to make it happen (I have a colleague who might say “as you start taking bites of that elephant”), He sustains you and gives you what you need to move ever closer to the goal. By the time it’s over, it becomes evident that it could only have happened with His help.

Well there you have it, I’ve shared with you something that I feel led to pursue. Now I’m on the hook for it. I don’t really have a whole lot of experience with estimating how long this should take, but I’m guessing I’m signing up for something that will likely take the better part of a decade, unless I can somehow quit my job to work on it full time, but, you know, still have money for food, shelter, and all those other things my family’s grown accustomed to.

That’s me; that’s what I’m working with. I said in last week’s post that I’d have more on what God is asking of you. Odds are that you’ve been spending a lot more time at home over the past 10 months or so. That much time can drive a person crazy, but it can also provide opportunities for quieting yourself to hear what God would tell you.

I’m going to show you a less-than-3-minute video that I’ve shown you before, but a lot has changed in the world since the last time I did. It’s an advertisement for a product, but that’s not why I’m showing it to you. I don’t have any financial interest in the video or what it’s advertising. In fact, I haven’t even looked too far into what the video’s selling. I just think it’s a phenomenal video because it articulates a feeling I’ve experienced, so it hits home a little more than normal. I’m hoping that it helps provide some clarity for you, and maybe help you make sense of a restlessness that’s been pulling at the fringes of your mind.

After watching this video, if you have a picture in your mind (anywhere between super fuzzy or remarkably concrete) of what it’s talking about, I encourage you to do what I did in this post: know yourself enough to take some actions that will help you overcome the inertia that would otherwise keep you from following through. If you need to tell someone, tell them. If you need someone to tell but can’t get past how crazy you think it sounds, email me: tim@daregreatlynow.com. If God lays something on your heart, please pursue it. Think of it as the next “step of faith” in your journey toward “walking by faith.”

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Spies Like Us

Have you ever stopped to think that living for Christ can, in some ways, be compared to life as a spy?

No, not 007, with pen grenades and cars that shoot missiles from the headlights. James Bond movies can be fun to watch, but they’re not the most accurate depictions of what life as a real spy is like.

I’m sure there’s a lot of spying that happens today, but to me a lot of the interesting stuff happened during the Cold War. It just seemed like it was more interesting before you could hack everything through the internet. In some cases, there might be someone with access to very valuable information that feeds juicy tidbits back to their handler. You’d also have dramatic stories of Soviet pilots defecting with the latest fighter plane design.

In just about every case, you’ve got a human being that’s committing some level of treason against their country, and at least part of their mind is dwelling on the consequences they’ll face if they get caught. Some people are simply more given to worry, but excessive worry and the lifestyle of a spy are not compatible things. I can’t say that I’ve walked in their shoes or experienced the stress that they experience, but for many spies (or “assets”), there comes a point at which their life of ulcers and poor sleep gets to be too much, and they ask to be extracted or set free from the lifestyle they’re living.

That can be us as Christians. We’re simply passing through this world. “This rental’s not our home.” Working for God in the pursuit of bringing Him glory, we long for Heaven but we don’t know when we’ll get there.

Spies don’t work alone; the information or function they provide serves someone. That someone can be called many things: a spymaster, a handler, an asset manager (you might pause the next time you meet someone that describes themselves as an “asset manager”). That person’s role is to direct the spy what to do or what to report on.

When someone conducting espionage gets frayed nerves and tells their handler they’ve had enough and want to be “brought in from the cold,” the handler needs to weigh a few things. Can that asset be convinced to stay in place a little longer? How much longer will that asset be useful? Is it worth the risk of leaving them in place and being caught? Are they still motivated by the same factor that drove them to engage in espionage in the first place? The handler may need to pull out all the stops to convince the spy to stay in place and keep doing what they’re doing, and that may entail using stick, carrot, or both. After all, even if the handler is genuinely fond of their asset, the information will stop flowing if the asset leaves their post.

Ultimately, that spy lives their life in a way that reprioritizes someone else’s desires over their own. I think this is what Paul meant in Romans 12 when he wrote of our lives being a “living sacrifice.”

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:1-2

Unlike an Old Testament sacrifice, where an animal’s life is taken in our place, we’re to present our lives and bodies as a “living sacrifice.” It’s a higher, more productive calling than a calling with a quick ending. It’s a life of service that spans years and in many cases multiple decades; compared with an ending on an altar, this kind of sacrifice can be much more taxing and take much more effort.

At one point or another, just about everybody has wished for the trials and difficult times in their lives to be over. Sometimes people even go so far as to pray for God to take them home before it gets any worse. While that would certainly take away the stress and shortcomings of what we have to endure in this imperfect world, it would severely restrict the amount of usefulness God can wring out of us in this life. In that regard, He’ll sometimes say “No, I need you where you are right now. Sit tight, keep doing what you’re doing, and I promise I’ll make it up to you later.” Like an actual spymaster, He may do this through reassurance, or He may do it by applying more leverage on you.

So here we are. We’re not home yet, but while we’re waiting for God to take us there (in His time, not ours), we’re to place God’s will above our own.

This next part is hard to hear; I wish I could look you in the eye and reach out and put my hand on your shoulder when I say this. The world will always hate Christ, and by extension it will always hate those that follow Him. If you’re a passionate and obedient Christ-follower, you will have your life of peace, prosperity, and fulfillment, but it’s probably not going to be here on Earth. So saddle up, grit your teeth, and dig in, being willing to endure difficulties and discomfort, because the part you’re waiting for won’t be until you’re finished here. It’s going to be worth it, though, so hang tough and let your Handler be the one to tell you what your role is and when it’s time to come in from the cold.

Next week’s post will have more on what it is that God wants you, specifically, to do in this life. Spoiler alert: I don’t know what your specific calling is, but I’ll talk about how to help you figure it out. If this is something that’s been on your mind, please spend the next week in prayer to help prepare you for it.

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Awestruck

I enjoy parts of the Bible that give sneak peeks into the realm we can’t see. Specifically, there are parts in the Old Testament books of Ezekiel and Daniel, along with the New Testament book of Revelation, where the authors convey experiences where they visit places that our current bodies were not designed to withstand. These passages more or less illustrate that our bodies cannot physically handle being in the presence of divine glory.

Often the authors of these passages will say something like “I fell on my face” or “I fainted.” Daniel says in Daniel 10:8 that “no strength remained in me; for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength.” (See also Ezekiel 1:28 and 3:23, Daniel 8:17, and Revelation 1:17)

Can you imagine being so awestruck that your strength just gets sapped from your body?

I can remember a time like that. We took a family vacation to the beach when we only had two very young kids.

We’d gone to the same beach about two years earlier, when we only had our daughter, but our son arrived a couple of months later. Even though she had been less than two years old for her first beach trip, pictures helped her remember the trip and helped get her excited to go back.

My son, on the other hand, had never been there before. Now roughly 23 months old, he saw that his big sister was excited, and that Mommy and Daddy talked about the upcoming trip with smiles. When the day finally came, we took an hours-long car ride on a rainy morning and arrived at our home for the week, just a few blocks from the ocean.

We were all excited to go see the beach right away, especially after being cooped up in a car for so long. We started the walk toward the shore with a bounce in our step.

Off to the beach for a first look!

As we crested the dune and caught our first glimpse of the ocean though, my little guy grew quiet and slowed down. He became almost lethargic. His boundless energy disappeared.

I picked him up, and he cuddled in close. He clung to me in the face of something that, to him, obliterated his concept of just how big the world was. He’d never before experienced the breeze coming off the ocean or the roar of the waves that crashed on top of themselves as they beat against the shore; it was unsettling for him and it sapped his strength.

Those verses listed above give us a sneak peek at just how small we really are, how all the things that stress us out on a daily basis are completely irrelevant compared to the bigger reality.

Stunned

I look at that picture now, years later, and think about how sweet it was to have my little guy awed into a stupor, silently clinging to his daddy and afraid to let go. What a picture of how our Heavenly Father is there for us and is completely at ease dealing with things that would blow our minds. To me it’s a beautiful image of our acknowledgement that we’re inadequate, and our complete dependence on His strength to sustain us. He holds us and comforts us, safe in His arms, even in the face of elements that are seemingly full of rage and beyond our capacity to process it all.

As we start a new chapter in American history, look out for one another, support each other, and spread the news of Christ’s love for us. Whether hopeful or fearful for the future, this is our calling.

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Big Change is Afoot in Our Nation

I’m not sure of the best way to articulate this, but there’s something big happening in the way our government functions. I don’t mean to sound overly dramatic, and hopefully I’m wrong, but I’m not convinced it’s a good thing, and I don’t yet know what it will mean for those that openly follow Christ in our country.

A little in the way of background: for a long time in our nation, the person occupying the title of President of the United States has come from the political class. That is, they’ve served as a governor or senator before moving into the White House. The Washington insiders have their connections to one another, and have a “I’ll scratch your back if you make it worth my while” mentality. Neither side really places their constituents above the needs of the party, but when the party’s needs align with something their constituents are after, television cameras and reporters are invited to come in and cover it. Elected officials and career hobnobbers working in DC aren’t primarily there for “the good of the people,” they’re there for the perks.

Then in walks a president who’s not from the political class. He’s accustomed to the way things operate in the private sector: if you’re not doing it better than the next person, you’re losing. It’s one thing to think about applying that mentality to the government, but it’s another thing entirely to actually start moving in that direction. Have you ever been at a job when you get a new boss? He or she wants to take a tour…get the lay of the land…see what they’re working with. Well, the outgoing president more or less took that tour, and said “what’s behind this door?” The tour guide said something like “no, no, no, you don’t want to see what’s back there, Mr. President. Besides, we have a luncheon to get to.” But the President walked over and opened the door anyway. When he saw 300 copy machines in a room, and only seven pieces of paper, he said “what in the world is this?” It turns out that the brother-in-law of the college roommate of someone’s representative’s lobbyist owns a copy machine business, and somebody owed them a favor. The next day the news coverage wasn’t on the tremendous government waste, but on the fact that the president went against the wishes of a long-time, highly decorated tour guide who is from a different racial background than he is.

This story is made up, of course, but sort of shows where we’ve been for the past few years. This guy upends the apple cart. He says things that make sense to the average Jane/Joe, but it threatens the good thing that people in DC have going. That brings us to the past few days.

It’s becoming more and more evident that we don’t really have two political parties in DC; we mainly have one class of politicians that enjoy the power and perks that come with DC life. When this guy began threatening their gravy train, they sat up and took notice.

Now he’s the only president to be impeached twice. The first time was for a phone call where he was supposedly abusing his power by trying to take out a political opponent. The second time was for inciting a riot. Call me suspicious on this one, but the event where the president spoke was filmed; why aren’t his “beyond the shadow of a doubt” riot-inducing remarks being played non-stop on major news programs? Isn’t impeachment the top news story of the day? Also, why is it that rioters in Seattle can set fire to police stations (with cops inside), and rioters in Portland, Oregon can destroy, raze, and loot for months straight, but when the other side storms the Capitol for a few hours (which they should not have done, by the way), this is portrayed as the deadliest threat our nation has ever known?

All that is prologue. Here’s where the trouble comes.

Our nation’s leaders are not known for their calm, deliberate, and rational thinking. They whip up support for the things on their agenda, and the loudest voices (not the majority of constituents) more often than not get their way. Right now, what are the loudest voices calling for?

They want the president’s head on a platter, and they want anyone that supported him dismissed as a lunatic, danger to society, and stripped of their voice. There are many ways they’ll try to do this, and they’ll probably be successful at some of them (anyone here have a Parler account?). One of the first things they’re doing is a lightning-fast impeachment of the president. Keep in mind that Congress took eight months or so to agree on sending out $600 checks during the worst pandemic anyone can remember. Now they decided that, with less than two weeks left in his term, the president needed to be impeached again and removed from office. Why not just let him finish out his term, which now has less than a week to go? It seems to me that they’re doing it so he cannot run again for the office in the future. It would be one thing if it was his own party pushing nearly unanimously for impeachment, but it’s something else when the opposite party leads the charge. Using your power to take out your political enemy is, after all, what the president was impeached for (the first time around).

Here’s my concern. During times where emotions are running high, people follow leaders that have zeal. Well, someone is probably going to come up with the zealous idea that “since the president is a horrible person and a danger to society, the people that like him must therefore be horrible and a danger to our society, too. Many of the people that are his supporters also support religious values. Ergo, people that support religious values are dangerous.”

Of course it sounds far-fetched, especially since the freedom of religion is such a highly valued part of our country’s history. You can’t just stomp out churches! So what will happen is that churches will have to say the right things or avoid saying the wrong things in order to be granted certain privileges (like being tax-exempt organizations). If a sermon contains things that the state disapproves of, that becomes a problem for that particular church.

Change is coming. I ask today that you pray for Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, Mike Pence, Congress, the Senate, the Supreme Court, and the individual state governments. Pray that God would be near them all, and that He’d help the new administration govern in a way that honors Him, that they legislate in good faith, and that this nation is calmed while respecting the constitutional rights of all citizens.

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Don’t Dance Around the Issue

So uh, this probably isn’t news to many of the people that know me, but I guess I’m a little strange. While most people try to avoid socially awkward situations, I often enjoy them. We’ve got a little neighbor kid who’s learned this the hard way.

He’s a nice enough kid, and my kids enjoy playing with him, but he’s got an aversion to asking if my kids want to play. He really wants to play with them, he just doesn’t want to ask them to play. One time I was outside doing yardwork when this guy (I’ll call him Billy), showed up. He didn’t notice that I was there, and I wanted to see what he’d do, so I just kind of made sure I didn’t make any loud noises. Billy hung around in front of my house for awhile, quietly at first, but when nobody noticed him, he started making noises or singing or something, so maybe someone inside would open the door, see him, and ask him if he wanted to play.

It’s also funny when he knocks on the door. I’ll open the door and see him standing there. He won’t say anything, so I’m usually the first to speak.

“Hi Billy.”

“Hi.”

That awkward silent pause. Sometimes I’ll make it more awkward and just go in a circle:

“Hi.”

“Hi.”

I’m giving him plenty of opportunities here, but I don’t want to just bypass what he came to ask.

“How are ya?”

“Good.”

Another pause, only this time I go a really long time without saying anything. He stands there fidgeting, not quite sure whether to start laughing or be really uncomfortable. Hoping to get him where he’s trying to go, I’ll try to make it a little easier for him:

“So what’s up?”

“Um…I was wondering if your kids could come outside and play.”

Finally! It’s okay to lead with that; I don’t expect a whole lot of chit chat and pleasantries from a little boy. (Some of you might conclude that he acts this way because of past interactions with me. I see where you might think that, but no, he was like this the first time I answered his knock.)

I had fun looking through “awkward dad” pictures, but finally settled on this one. Don’t worry, Billy doesn’t look this sad.

My son is the same way sometimes. He’ll drop tons of hints about something he wants to do, but he doesn’t like asking. If he doesn’t ask anything, I don’t answer him.

Why are we like that? I don’t know, it’s just human nature, I guess. Maybe we’re too proud to ask for stuff; we want people to sense our needs or desires and simply fulfill them. If they voluntarily gave us what we wanted well, we didn’t need to ask for it, did we?

These make for some pretty goofy interactions. Now imagine what it’s like for God to watch us drop all kinds of hints for Him without actually making a request. It’s not a whole lot different from watching these two little guys try to get what they want. We might say things with more eloquence or be more subtle in what we’re trying to do, but I can imagine God standing at the door like I do, with a little smirk on His face, watching us fidget without wanting to actually ask. “So…what’s up?” He knows exactly what you’re getting at! He just wants you to say it!

Life is still a little crazy these days, and it’s thrown a lot of people for a loop. As you’re spending time in prayer, don’t dance around the issues that are on your heart and mind. Speak plainly with God. Are you anxious? Tell Him. At the end of your rope? Let Him know. Make your requests known. I’m not gonna lie, He’s not a vending machine or a genie, so sometimes the answer’s going to be “no.” Using a strategy of not asking isn’t going to get you anywhere, though.

Regardless of your political affiliation, please pray that God grants wisdom and insight to your local, state, and national leaders.

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A New Year is a Great Time To Get Started

Let’s pause for a moment to think about what the term “the body of Christ” means. The people of the church across the world constitute “the body of Christ,” but what does that mean?

Think of the average human body. It has two arms, two legs, a brain, a mouth, etc. Each part of the body plays a role. Some of those roles are more visible (a pastor, for example). Others are less prominent, but are still important to glorifying God. Volunteering to clean bathrooms in the name of Christ truly takes a servant’s heart, but isn’t a function that gains a lot of attention. Think of this as a middle toe in the body of Christ.

If you’re a Jesus-follower, you’re a part of the body of Christ, and the Holy Spirit has blessed you with talents that you’re to use for the purpose of glorifying God. For some people, their calling is obvious. If teaching from the Bible comes very naturally to you, it’s probably not terribly difficult to see the direction you should go (the particulars may be a mystery, but the broad strokes aren’t). For others it may not be so clear cut. If you absolutely excel at being a business leader or entrepreneur, it may be confusing to try and see how to glorify God using your God-given talents. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to start a God-focused business. It might mean exactly that, but it could also mean that you should use your talents to run a successful business using God-honoring business practices in order to fill a need that’s not being addressed. Maybe it means that God commissioned you to make a boatload of money that can then be used for His glory. My point is that whatever you are naturally good at should be one of the ways you make an effort to glorify God.

Many of us are glad to see 2020 pass into the history books, but what impact will you make on the year 2021? What is it that you’re here to give, to achieve, for the glory of Christ? Maybe you don’t have something specific in mind, but then again maybe you do. Don’t let the fact that you lack a vision of the final product hold you back from starting the endeavor. About two and a half years ago I started getting a vague picture in my mind. I knew I had a lot of unique experiences, and I knew that I had a knack for writing. I could put them together somehow, but I wasn’t sure what that would look like…a book of some kind? How do I consistently write about my experiences in a way that doesn’t come across as, well, being “me-centric,” but instead honors Christ?

The truth is, this effort is still evolving. Even now I don’t know what the end version will look like. What comes naturally to me is writing about things I’ve observed or done and putting a Godly spin on it. Over and over it comes back to the same thing: I want to encourage people to reach their full potential in Christ, but I need to be flexible about how God actually does that through my efforts. The important thing is that, even if it’s not perfect, I’m pursuing the thing I feel called to do. This is my 150th post, and I still have tons of ideas about future posts. This blog is not wildly successful in terms of a vast readership, but I believe it honors God, and I think many times God wants to see actual obedience before He opens doors to new possibilities or additional responsibilities for His followers. He wants to see you move from “I would” to “I’m doing.” Lots of Christians say “sure, I would do that if I felt God wanted me to,” but I imagine a much smaller percentage say “I think I’m called to do this, and it’s time for me to step out.”

I love it when people make that leap into the unknown, and I want to encourage you to make the jump. Just a word to help buck you up…some of the people that start this process are successful right away. For the vast majority, this is not the case. There will be some struggle, some personal cost, and some frustration when seeing someone else’s quick success. I understand why you may feel that way, but don’t lose sight of the goal and start thinking that lack of quick success translates into a valid excuse for quitting.

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest, if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9

God put you where you are, He gave you talents and resources, and He wants you to follow through when He tells you which direction to go. Sometimes it will be close to home, other times it will require leaving the comfort and familiarity of your surroundings.

To close today’s post, I’d like to provide a quote from the movie “The Ghost and the Darkness.” In a scene where the main character, John, is conflicted about leaving his pregnant wife to embark on an exciting trip to a far-flung place in order to build an important bridge for his job, his wife helps put him at ease about leaving at a terrible time for their family life. In light of today’s post, it’s a quote that applies to us all, and I hope you’ll apply it in your life.

“You build bridges, John. You have to go where the rivers are.”

This world will crumble and it will get darker, and that provides the Body of Christ with more opportunities to shine brighter. May we all be ready and willing to go where we’re called in order to do God’s work in 2021 and beyond!

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A Very Merry Christmas to One and All!

Just a quick post this week, and an early one so you’re not getting extra emails on Christmas Eve!

Jesus let us know that we’d have trouble in this world. It’s a given.

His entry into the world, however, marked a milestone that would change our relationship with the Creator, and ultimately overshadow the trouble we have in this life.

I’m very thankful for that!

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. – Luke 2:14

Merry Christmas to you all!

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Are We Living in Revelation?

Do you believe that what the Bible says is true?

You might breeze past that question without even giving yourself a firm answer one way or the other. I’m not asking if you believe that parts of it are true; I’m asking if you believe the whole thing is true.

There are lots of different (some may say boring) parts of the Bible. There are some parts, though, that are mind-blowing when you examine them closely. The story of Creation, for example. When Moses wrote Genesis, though, there were a lot of details he glossed over or simply didn’t include. The advantage we have in our time is that we can look back through history and fill in some of the gaps using corroborating sources and our knowledge of science.

We don’t have that same advantage when we look at the other extreme of history’s timeline. The Bible has a lot to say about the times leading up to the end of this world (the “End Times”), but they’re written in such a way that it’s difficult to pinpoint times, places, and the specifics of how particular events might unfold. It’s not clear if there’s one major event that sets things off, or if there’s a straw that breaks the camel’s back, but we know that God eventually says “You know what? Enough is enough.”

There are several books in the Bible that discuss the End Times, but the most prominent is Revelation. It’s a crazy book. It’s full of vivid symbolism, along with sometimes vague information about how God will pull His faithful out of the world, satisfy His extensive wrath against sin, and contend with those that have opposed or rejected Him. There’s some scary stuff in there, and it can make you nauseous to see what’s in store for those that never accept Christ.

One of the interesting things to ponder is how the United States may play a role in the events described in Revelation. Right now I’d say that the United States is one of the most powerful nations on the planet. Twenty years ago our nation stood head and shoulders above everyone else. We’re still at or near the top, but much of our advantage in any given area (technology, military might, etc.) has eroded and China either has, or may soon, overtake us. Here’s the kicker: of the nations described in the Bible’s End Times writings, most of them appear to be Middle Eastern, European, and some nation that’s east of Israel. Translation: by the time we actually arrive in the End Times, the US will fall into the “all others” category.

Here’s where future prophecy meets current reality. How could a nation as powerful as the United States, the only country to put humans on the moon for over 50 years (using computers less powerful than your phone) descend so far into mediocrity as to not even be a footnote in the Bible’s “end of the world” account? Well, I guess the short answer is that a nation can’t expect to be blessed by God if it turns its back on Him.

The U.S. will have to fall very far from its high-water mark. How might that happen? I’ll give an example of A way; I’m not saying it will happen this way, but it can help illustrate things in a way that hits home. Keep in mind that tumultuous times will become a regular occurrence, and that the current craziness we’re living in may one day seem like “the good old days.”

The biggest way to kill America’s superpower status will be to cripple the country as an economic powerhouse. I’m not talking about shutting things down for Coronavirus…that blindsided everybody, so most nations are in the same boat there. I’m talking about tanking our economy in relation to the rest of the world.

Well, what’s the best way to bleed our economy to a point where we’re no longer a world leader? I’m not going to put a label on it, but I’ll describe it to you. Ever since World War II, we’ve tried to develop a global community of sorts; our economy was so powerful that we’d throw money at other nations just to keep them friendly with us. We shouldered the bulk of the costs for the UN and for NATO, and countless smaller international agreements. Over time, other nations began decreasing the levels of funding they committed to those same international efforts, but with a wink and a nod, they understood “that’s okay, the U.S. will pick up the tab.” For some reason, we did, and other nations liked that.

Then came Donald Trump. “Hey, you’re not living up to your commitments, and we’re left holding the check. Ain’t gonna happen anymore.” He embraced the idea that the American President should be an advocate for the citizens of the U.S. before he or she advocates for anyone else.

But he’s abrasive, not easily controlled, and doesn’t care about upsetting the status quo in Washington DC, which unleashed an untold amount of hate. There has been such a backlash against Donald Trump that his political opponents have never had more momentum for swinging back in the other direction as hard as possible. It doesn’t even matter what the policies are; if Trump supported it, the loudest critics want it to go, even if it made good sense. One of Trump’s hallmark policies is “America first,” doing things that will grow the American economy and generate opportunities for the people that live within our borders. It’s not anti-everyone else, it’s just taking care of our own house before looking around and seeing what we can do to help out the neighbors. He takes the view that the American President should do everything in their power to make the lives of Americans better. Those committed to swinging the pendulum back the other direction are willing to place the interests of the global community above American interests.

That brings us to next month, when it looks like Joe Biden (a likable career politician who’s in failing health and has demonstrated signs of mental decline) will be sworn in as President. Mr. Biden is generally moderate, but will be under a great deal of pressure to lean harder to the political left in order to satisfy the extreme wing of his party and undo President Trump’s executive orders and other actions.

Let’s assume for a moment that Mr. Biden (due to a resignation, due to being forced out via the 25th Amendment, or due to impeachment connected to his son’s business dealings), does not serve out his entire first term. In that case the Presidency falls to his Vice President, Kamala Harris (a freshman Senator who, in 2019 was ranked further left than any other sitting Senator based on the bills she supported). Ms. Harris ran in the Democratic primary for her own shot at the presidency, but her views were so extreme that she was not considered “electable.” Support never materialized and she dropped out before the first primary vote was even cast.

Well, even that might not be so bad, except for the fact that the same party already controls the House of Representatives and is within striking distance of taking over the Senate, pending the outcome of the Senatorial elections in Georgia early next month. We’ve had instances in the past where the same party has controlled the White House, the Senate, and the House of Representatives, but we’ve never had the same party control all three during a time when that party avoids condemning those tearing down monuments for the sake of trying to rewrite history, or when that party supports cries of “defund the police.” On top of all that, it seems like Communism…the world’s biggest political source of mediocrity and human suffering, and its gentler cousin Socialism…are gaining popularity in America. Never has the country been so close to endorsing anarchy, legislating hatred for our nation’s ideals, and intentionally taking a knee on America’s economic interests as it is right now.

You may think some of these sound nuts, but let me remind you that crazy things have occurred in the past, and maybe some of them could have been avoided if more people voiced their concerns. If America is to hasten its descent into has-been status, this would be one of the biggest opportunities in its history to hit the gas.

Thinking about our country in terms of a very weak nation (or several smaller nations) may be a difficult thing to do. I’m about to list some things that will probably happen on our way to that point. Keeping in mind the end result of America’s eventual placement in the “all others” category and general alignment with accepted global principles described in the Bible’s End Times writings, here are several other items to be on the lookout for:

  • Statehood for Puerto Rico and Washington, DC. This would create four new Senate seats that would make it nearly impossible for Democrats to lose the Senate, consolidating one-party rule, a very dangerous proposition. Political power in America should be won based on ideas, not based on an inability to lose.
  • Increasing the number of justices on the Supreme Court in order to negate the court’s current Conservative makeup (“packing” the court)
  • Declaring non-illnesses or non-medical items as “public health threats.” Declaring things like “gun violence” or “racism” as public health threats essentially creates a back door to impose restrictions on people without actually passing laws or having debate. By making such declarations, officials are empowered to make decrees or take actions they otherwise couldn’t, with no oversight.
  • The active undermining of Christianity and Judaism. These religions are exclusive in nature and hold as central pillars absolutes that the world rejects. The easiest way to begin stomping out the institutions that hold to these belief systems is to revoke the tax-exempt status of any church/synagogue that unapologetically preaches the ideas laid out in their respective holy books, choking the funding of those entities and reducing the power of their voice over time.
  • While I would agree that every life is important, it’s also important to understand that movements sometimes masquerade as something else. Seemingly endless throngs of people unhesitatingly threw their support behind the “Black Lives Matter” movement earlier this year, but I wonder how many of those people understand that the BLM activist group has Marxist roots. Now a woman named Cori Bush, a former BLM activist, won a House seat in Missouri. We’re about to have someone in Congress that shares common views with Marxists, and it’s because she was elected to that position.
  • In Communist nations, the State is all-powerful and takes the place of religion. This would require a massive change if it were to happen in America. There would have to be a sick twist where “the separation of church and state” is circumvented and the State actively takes on the responsibility of providing for the emotional and spiritual needs of citizens that religion normally provides. It calls for worship of the state. A leap of this magnitude would not happen quickly, so watch for movement in this direction over time. As a starting point, look for more government in your life, not less.
  • I say this half jokingly, but look for this blog post to be censored or removed. Bookmark it and check back every now and then. Set a calendar reminder for a year from now.
  • In the End Times, the city of Babylon will be rebuilt and will serve as the world capital. Babylon is in present-day Iraq, so keep an eye out for resources starting to gather in that region.

Please don’t misunderstand; I’m writing of a possible bridge scenario between where we are and where we’ll end up. I can’t tell you what will happen tomorrow, let alone what will happen in our government over the next few years. I don’t believe that voting for the Biden/Harris ticket or other Democratic candidates makes anyone a bad person. I believe the Bible is true in its entirety, and since I believe that, I’m looking at where the Bible says we’re going, and seeing how we might get there from here. Globalism would cause a reduction of America’s place in relation to the world’s other nations, and the leadership team that’s shaping up to take office next month is more “pro-globe” than “pro-America.” I don’t believe we’re living in the era described in Revelation just yet, but the scary part is that I’m able to see how the distance between now and then may be closed.

Some may be incensed that I would write these things. I completely respect your right to disagree with me, but I expect that you’d do the same for me without thought of intimidating or silencing me. If you do not respect my right to disagree with you, it’s only evidence to you that the overall attitude I’ve written about is already bearing fruit in your mind.

Speaking in practical terms, no superpower lasts forever. America is no different. I don’t know if it will have a quick fall, if it will take another few hundred years, or if it will zigzag back and forth between rising and falling power. What I know is that God has a plan, and if you are a Christian, regardless of whatever nationality you claim as your citizenship, He has purpose in mind when He thinks of you. He does not hope that you blindly stumble into your purpose. He prompts you. He places something on your heart. You hear something in a song or in a conversation with someone that ignites something within you, something that makes no sense at all intellectually, but it’s something that you can’t shake.

I encourage you to go down that road, because it’s the purpose God has for your life. We’re closer now than ever before to the days described in Revelation, and you live in this time, rather than at any other point in history, for a reason. It’s time to lean in.

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You Want To See Pandemonium?

Things are about to get a little crazy with the court battle over the election, and I just want to try to explain ahead of time what’s going on. This isn’t the type of post you’d normally find from me, but this information doesn’t seem to be getting a whole lot of news coverage, so I wanted to write something up to help give you a better idea of how you can be praying for the nation.

As we all know, Donald Trump has instigated numerous lawsuits to protest the election results. He hasn’t been very successful in the lawsuits alleging fraud, which constitute the bulk of the lawsuits that have been filed. Ultimately it’s easy to point out a lot of things that don’t quite make sense with the numbers, but it’s very hard to conclusively prove those abnormalities should result in a different election result.

Let me help illustrate what I mean. Any time there’s a national election, people go digging into the data to see what they should capitalize on for the next election. In this past election, Trump gained voters from just about every demographic compared to 2016. Nationwide, Joe Biden performed worse with minority voters than Hillary Clinton did in 2016 in every area except in the counties that contain Milwaukee Wisconsin, Detroit Michigan, Atlanta Georgia, and Philadelphia Pennsylvania. Okay, well that’s odd, even suspicious, but unless there’s some corresponding proof of illicit activity, it’s probably not going to be something that changes anything. Then you add in the fact that Joe Biden, a candidate that did almost no campaigning, got more votes than Barack Obama did in either of his presidential elections, even at the height of Obama-mania. Again, that’s something that raises eyebrows, but without more proof, it’s near impossible to overturn any results.

Well, now there’s something new afoot, and it’s something that has nothing to do with fraud. First we need some context. The U.S. Constitution lays out how the Electoral College system works. Interestingly, it doesn’t mandate elections as we know them. The Constitution says that each state will be allotted a certain amount of electoral votes based on its population, but the only real guidance it gives is to have the individual state legislatures write laws to determine how their respective states will award their electoral votes. (Think of a state legislature as that particular state’s version of Congress.)

Okay, well that sounds like a footnote we’ve probably forgotten from our high school Civics class. I think at this point all the states award their electoral votes based on the voting that takes place in their state, which keeps things simple enough. It’s one Federal election made up of 50+ smaller individual elections, and whoever gets to 270 electoral votes wins.

Now here’s where it gets interesting. Keep in mind that the U.S. Constitution grants the power to write election laws to the individual state legislatures. There are four states (Georgia, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan) which had late adjustments to their election law…but the laws were not changed by their states’ legislatures. They were changed by one of the executives (Governors, Secretaries of State, etc.) or by the state Supreme Courts. In other words, the election laws were changed illegally, and the elections in those states were carried out using the illegal instructions (the changes were mostly things that made it easier to cast votes without having to prove you’re eligible to vote, something that no party should endorse).

Now the state of Texas (later joined by over 15 additional states) brought a suit to the U.S. Supreme Court. That suit more or less points at those states and says “we want a ruling on what just happened, because if this is allowed to take place in any of our nation’s states, every election from here on out could have its rules changed by anyone and be a murky free-for-all.”

I’m not exactly sure of the legal terms here, but the Supreme Court is curious enough about this that it told the four states to respond with some additional information, and to do it by 3 pm today, December 10. The court is not obligated to take the case, but the information those four states provide will probably determine whether or not the court decides to hear it.

Where could this end up? That’s anybody’s guess. What you’ll likely hear on TV is that this is a waste of time, a publicity stunt, and is doomed to be a colossal failure. It’s always disconcerting to me when people describe complaints of unconstitutionality as a waste of time.

So here’s the deal. The Supreme Court, if it takes the case, will be willing to rule on the Constitutionality of the case, but it doesn’t want to be perceived as choosing sides in an election. What they will probably do instead is say “yeah, that’s definitely not how things should have gone.” Then the question will come up: “So…what happens to those four states’ electoral votes?” And the answer will come back: “Let the four states’ legislatures decide.”

Then it’s absolute panic time for like, everybody. There will be behind-the-scenes arm twisting for whoever controls those legislative bodies. There will be threats, bribes, and blackmail for many of the state representatives in those legislatures. Pray for them, because they’ll feel like the weight of the world is coming down on their shoulders. I have no idea what they’ll decide to do. If it was a close election in that state (most of them were), they might say “let’s split our electoral votes 50/50 and give half to each candidate.” Some might say “we’re giving all our votes to this guy” (meaning either Biden or Trump). If one candidate got 60% of the votes, maybe they’ll give him 60% of their electoral votes. They may totally pass the buck and say “You know what? We’re going to cobble together a do-over election.” I simply don’t know what will happen. Those are 62 electoral votes that will be dangling in an unprecedented situation, and everyone (lawyers, academics, talk show pundits, news anchors, Uncle Billy) is going to try to exert some kind of moral authority about what should happen when in reality, it’s completely up to the people in charge of those state legislatures, and nobody else.

During that whole time, the Trump team is going to try making a better case about the fraud they have evidence of. They’ll figure that they’ll be more successful at getting favorable decisions from the state legislatures if they make a compelling case in the court of public opinion. Since they don’t trust the major networks to provide coverage of their evidence, I’d look for a full-court press using any means possible to tilt public opinion in their favor.

If the Supreme Court takes this case, that scenario is where we’re likely headed. Is this crazy or what?!

Well, with that explanation, I ask that you spend continued time in prayer for our nation, because this could easily turn violent (not that I view the threat of violence as a reason to shy away, but by definition, when there’s violence, people get hurt or killed).

Stay safe, wash your hands, watch out for one another, and get on your knees!

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Do You Know How To Spot the Fake?

When I was a kid there were a group of us in the neighborhood that were fans of WWF wrestling (now WWE wrestling).

It was great, man. Every Saturday morning we’d watch as a cast of colorful characters, with clear good guys and bad guys, all had a chance to beat each other up. There was “the Macho Man” Randy Savage, Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior, Jake “The Snake” Roberts, Bret “The Hitman” Hart, and tons of other wrestlers.

We’d watch as the good guys took on the bad guys, and made the bad guys pay for whatever line they happened to cross that week. With jaws on the floor, we felt the shock and betrayal as a good guy went bad, or cheer when a bad guy turned good. We’d even try doing the moves on each other in somebody’s backyard while adding goofy commentary in the style of what we heard on TV. Thankfully the wrestlers back then weren’t as high-flying as today, otherwise we probably all would’ve gotten hurt a lot more.

As I got older, more people around me started talking about how fake it was. “Fake?” I thought. Hmmm. I didn’t buy it right away, but I started seeing things a bit differently as I watched. While there was still plenty of potential for all the characters to get hurt (and they often did), I started noticing how they acted in ways that didn’t seem like consistent behavior. “How come that guy can usually get hit with a chair and it doesn’t stop him, but he picks right now to take forever getting up after getting kicked in the stomach?” Or maybe “it sure is convenient how that referee got knocked out, then woke up right after the bad guy cheated.”

While I prefer the term “scripted,” the bottom line is that yeah, this isn’t totally real. Wrestlers are performers and athletes, certainly, but it’s somehow not quite the same when everyone in the ring knows what will happen before the match even starts. In that sense, it’s fake. In order for me to accept that, though, I had to compare what I was seeing and hearing to what I already knew.

Did you know that even now people are active targets of spiritual deception…by supernatural enemies? It’s true. Normally we think of flesh and blood enemies, but consider this scenario. If a fallen angel took the form of a “righteous” person, and tried to impart some special “wisdom” to an average Jane/Joe and gave some sort of accompanying supernatural sign, I might not be able to blame Jane/Joe for putting some stock in what they just witnessed. Here’s the kicker though: we’ve been warned that this will happen.

In 2 Corinthians chapter 11, Paul discusses not only false apostles, but fallen angels posing as messengers from God:

            13 For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.

This is a real thing, and many people have been led away from the simple truth of the gospel because of it.

Study your Bible, both Old Testament and New. Think on it, and don’t ever let it be far from your thoughts. The more you know about it, the easier it will be for you to spot a counterfeit when it crosses your path. When someone “masquerades as a servant of righteousness,” question what you’re seeing and hearing. It may take a bit to accept that you may have been duped, but the important thing is not to delay once you’ve discovered the deception. Sound the alarm for students of that school of thought. You’re not responsible for what those people think, but maybe you can help them understand they have a choice to make; don’t be afraid to point out the inconsistencies with scriptures to them. Hopefully they’ll thank you for it later.

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Early Thanksgiving Greetings!

I’m doing an early post this week so I’m not posting on Thanksgiving morning.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Ordinarily I’m pretty boogery about decorating for Christmas before Thanksgiving, but this year is different. The year 2020 needs some good news, so we’ve already got some decorations up, even before Turkey Day. (This includes a “Thanksgiving Tree” that’s dressed with colorful Thanksgiving-themed decorations.)

For a lot of folks, the 2020 version of Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years probably looks a little abnormal. There are probably a lot of curtailed or scaled back celebrations.

Thanksgiving for one…

Even so, don’t let that stop you from being thankful to our Lord, Jesus Christ, who gave the ultimate sacrifice on our behalf. This has been an unquestionably difficult year, not just here in the United States, but around the world. Praise the Lord for the blessings you’ve been given and for the things that have been entrusted to you.

On my end, I’m thankful that you’re reading this. I have a lot of crazy stories, along with what I believe to be some good Christian insight, but I’m not the most extroverted guy, so I’m thankful I’ve found a venue by which to share some thoughts that hopefully encourage you to move toward living a life that’s full of the power of the Holy Spirit…the life God intended for you to live. You might be a regular reader of DareGreatlyNow posts, or this could be the first and only post you’ll ever read from this site. Whatever the case, I’m grateful you’ve chosen to dedicate a few minutes to reading this, and I thank you for it.

Our world is hurting, and it needs hope. Christ is that hope, but you’re the one carrying the message. You are uniquely equipped to glorify God, and I urge you to use your interests, talents, and resources to do it in a way that is uniquely you, and at the same time wholly God-honoring.

This Thanksgiving, may the Lord be praised, and may you celebrate God’s blessings in your life!

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When the Simple Gets Complicated, Make it Simple Once More

This past summer I wrote a few posts about a little girl named Molly, who was born with a condition that caused some of her organs to form on the outside of her body. This brave little 7-year-old put up a big fight that left us holding our breath, but ultimately God took her home on the 5th of July.

After a long delay, this past weekend was Molly’s memorial service.

There were beautiful (and sometimes funny) pictures scrolling on the screen as we waited for the service to begin, and we saw evidence of a big life crammed into seven years. It was hard, for sure. Parents shouldn’t have to say goodbye to their children this way.

I didn’t envy the pastor that spoke at the service. What do you say at a service for someone that was taken at such an early age? He started speaking about the story in the Bible where the disciples didn’t want the local kids bugging Jesus, but Christ more or less told them to get out of the kids’ way, because “the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.”

What does that mean?

Think about young kids when they’re excited to greet someone…a favorite aunt or uncle, for example. They don’t prepare themselves; they just come. They don’t say “I’ll be there when I finish doing this,” they just come. Do we have things in our lives that we mis-prioritize, when in reality, we should just drop them and come to Christ? “The Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” Let’s learn from the kids: don’t lose that eagerness and clarity of mind.

Back in March, I wrote a post about what a life verse is. In it I shared that mine was Joshua 1:9: Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

Imagine my surprise when I turned over one of the inserts in the memorial service’s program to find this verse written in Molly’s handwriting. Molly had many surgeries during her life, and I hope this verse brought her comfort during times of anxiety. Seeing the verse in her writing was just one more way that this little girl made an impact, even after her soul left this world behind.

In closing…don’t let things get cloudy…just come. God doesn’t care about your appearance; He already knows you’re a mess. Don’t wait until you have “enough” money, because it will never be enough. Don’t wait until you get your life in order, because you don’t know how much time you have left. Be like those kids. Drop what you’re doing, and just come. The Kingdom of God belongs to people like this.

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It’s All About Who Controls the Script

A belated “thank you” to all our veterans and their families! Many thanks for your various sacrifices, large and small, throughout your service to our nation!

I’m going to try using a present-day example to illustrate an important principle. I understand it may be a bit controversial, but hang with me, I’m doing it to illustrate a larger point.

If I were to ask you the current status of the 2020 Presidential election, what would you say?

Most people would probably say that Joe Biden won and currently enjoys the status of “President-Elect.”

In reality, however, the election isn’t over yet. As of Wednesday, 11/11, there are three states representing 47 electoral votes where Biden’s lead is less than a percentage point (two of those races are within half a percentage point). There are another 15 electoral votes in a state where Trump is currently leading. Various news organizations have called the races and declared Joe Biden the winner, and if you go strictly by the number of votes received/counted, that may very well be the case. (It remains to be seen how many of those votes will be ordered by various legal authorities to be considered invalid.)

What you hear very little of, however, is the fact that news organizations are not the authority for declaring the winner of an election. Even though Mr. Biden has signs saying “Office of the President-Elect,” signs don’t make election results official. If you listen to most news organizations, you’d think that the election was decided more than a week ago and that Donald Trump is just a sore loser throwing a temper tantrum by refusing to concede, filing lawsuits and spreading claims of widespread cheating without producing evidence. “Officially” declaring the winner of the presidential election is consistently a months-long process, but we usually know pretty soon after election day because one of the two candidates concedes to their opponent within a day or two.

Why such a stark contrast in this case between what’s official and what we hear? Why would anyone spend so much time presenting anything other than the truth, which is that right now Joe Biden looks like he’s got a strong advantage, but we need to take a closer look at some things?

It happens this way because controlling the narrative can alter the course of future reality.

If you’re fed up with politics, stick with me for just a little longer, I’m going somewhere with this. Let’s take a “what-if” approach. What if Trump’s right, and there was a lot of tom-foolery in the election at his expense, adding states to Biden’s column that should’ve been his? If it can be proven, then he should rightfully be sworn in at the next inauguration. If not, then Trump voters will be disappointed, but will have a little more faith in the process by having people look into it. That doesn’t explain the purpose of the narrative though…

Now let’s say you want to see Trump thrown out of office. You can’t wait for the day he leaves the White House, and the sooner the better. That’s a perfectly fine opinion, and you got to have your say in the election. What’s inappropriate, however, is leading citizens/public opinion down a road that sets the stage for civil unrest. When things are this tight, if organizations are declaring one of the candidates the winner without getting a concession from the loser, what do you think will happen if “winner” status is ultimately granted to the other candidate?

It’s not a stretch to say that some of the issues raised in this election will end up in the Supreme Court. If the court decides something in Trump’s favor, the existing narrative will not allow the decision to be seen as an objective and fair decision, but rather as the courts taking away something that’s rightfully Joe Biden’s. That happens even if it’s completely fair. If even one of the states currently called for Biden flips to Trump, there will be more riots and more cities will burn. Can you imagine if a few states end up getting flipped? We’re looking at a civil war! I tend to think of this eventuality as at least partially the result of irresponsible journalism, but those reporting it this way probably think of it more like a nuclear deterrent: you want people to believe the consequences will be so bad that nobody would dare attempt it. In my mind, that’s not the role of the press.

If you’re still with me, this brings me to my main point: if you are a Christian, you need to fully expect and anticipate that the narrative will one day be flipped firmly against you. Forces have certainly dabbled in this effort here and there, and they’ve taken a lot of neutral ground, but it hasn’t gotten truly bad yet for Christians in America. If you haven’t heard it from anyone else yet, I’ll be the one to break the news to you: it’s going to get tough to openly be a Christ-follower in the United States of America, and I fully expect it to happen in my lifetime.

Many times Christians are described as intolerant hypocrites that condemn anyone who doesn’t fall in line with their beliefs. There are probably cases of that. What Christians are charged to do, I believe, is spread the Gospel to people (yes, even people that don’t look or think like us), and let God do the rest. That doesn’t always mean knocking on doors and handing out Bibles. If you don’t follow Christ, it means much more to you personally (and you’re much more willing to listen) when someone comes alongside you to help during a time of trouble than when someone leaves a pamphlet in your front door.

Unbelievers ought to be encouraged to hear that Christians are coming around. Jesus said in John 13:34-35 that people will know we’re His disciples by the way we show love for one another. We see plenty of other instances of Jesus meeting peoples’ practical needs and, well, just showing love for them in general. Regardless of who’s sworn in this January, Christ provides a model for the kind of love we are to demonstrate. It’s the roll-up-your-sleeves, get-up-to-your-elbows in filth, help-till-it-hurts (and then some) kind of love.

My friends, these days, opportunities to come alongside hurting people are everywhere. And you know what? They don’t all vote the way you vote, but those people still need help. Please help flip the narrative; when people hear “the Christians are coming,” they shouldn’t say “oh, great!” We want them to say “that’s great!” I’ll guarantee that those people shown genuine love are much more receptive to the good news of what Christ’s done for them than the folks that have political discussions with Christians only to have the Christians throw insults at them.

Keep in mind these words from the New Testament:

In everything, show yourself to be an example by doing good works. In your teaching show integrity, dignity, and wholesome speech that is above reproach, so that anyone who opposes us will be ashamed to have nothing bad to say about us. –Titus 2:7-8

God is ultimately in control of the narrative, but it’s up to us to live it out. Don’t be surprised when things get rough! Keep praying for our nation, for other Christians, and for the people that are against us; this is the only life we get to convince others of God’s love for them.

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Is It the End or the Beginning of the Fight?

Hey everybody, quick post this morning.

With respect to the election, I ask that you all pray for our nation. Although Joe Biden appears to be on the cusp of reaching 270 electoral votes and winning the election, the Trump campaign has filed legal challenges to the elections in some of the states.

I’ll admit that I’m not very knowledgeable about the particulars of the legal challenges, but it brings up a scenario that could be very dangerous for our country. Let’s assume for a moment (this is just a “what if” scenario, I’m not saying that this will happen) that the Trump campaign’s legal challenges find fault in the way at least a few races were counted. Under this assumption, the wrongs would presumably be set right and the Trump campaign would rightfully benefit, and could conceivably result in Donald Trump raising his right hand on the next inauguration day.

The part that’s scary would be cause for concern regardless of who you voted for. If the Trump campaign’s legal challenges help uncover some sort of cheating or wrongdoing that ultimately lead to Trump reaching 270 votes, it’s easy to see that the legal system, headed by a Supreme Court that just recently had a controversial appointment, could be seen as a kangaroo court, even if it did everything properly. To the ill-informed observer, this would have the appearance of a crooked or corrupt system that can only be fought with violence. From there it’s easy to see how rioting would quickly spread across the country in a way we haven’t seen before, even though everything was done according to our Constitution and legal proceedings.

And so, even though the race appears to be near its completion, there is still the potential for a very tumultuous time ahead.

I ask again, please pray for our nation in the days and weeks ahead, because we’re going to need it.

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Is This Where the Tale of Two Americas Splits in Two?

Little bit of a different post today. It’s kind of hard to believe, but this is my last post before the election. Strangely, it’s possible that by this time next week, we still won’t know the final results.

It’s been a long time since Americans were this divided. Things are ugly out there.

At first I wasn’t sure how to approach this week’s post. I toyed with the whole “how would Jesus vote?” idea, but then I thought about it a bit more. The funny thing is, if Jesus were eligible to vote in the American election and I asked Him how He planned to vote, I figure He’d probably say something like “I think it’s adorable that you think I need to vote in order to get the outcome I want.”

Instead I thought I might take a different direction. There are two major competing visions for America right now, represented by the two main Presidential candidates. As a veteran of the armed forces it pains me to say it, but regardless of the election outcome, I think we might need to start looking at the possibility of (peacefully) splitting our nation into two separate entities.

In our case, I think it’s fairly easy to see that it’s getting more and more difficult for people of opposing political persuasions to live in harmony under the same Federal government. Case in point: whoever you’re voting for in the presidential election, can you imagine living under a government where the opposite party controls the White House and both houses of Congress? Unless something seriously changes course fast, we’re not going to keep living in peace. Some places have already boiled over (Portland Oregon, and more recently, Philadelphia Pennsylvania).

If the cause of all the riots boils down to political differences, why don’t we make an amicable split and let the two new nations, one liberal and one conservative, follow their core principles to whatever extreme their constituents desire?

I don’t have the details about how it would work, but here are a couple of thought prompts:

  1. I’m not sure of the boundaries, however, both new entities would be allowed access to both Pacific and Atlantic coasts; traditionally blue regions will be part of the new liberal nation, while traditionally red regions will be part of the new conservative nation.
  2. Neither entity would have Washington DC as their capital
  3. Once the announcement is made, people have a set period of time (say, five years) to declare their new citizenship and move to that country’s territory. With all the apps available today, I’m sure we could come up with a “house-trading” app, where you can have your home inspected by a certified official/appraiser, and you’re welcome to offer to trade your home for a similarly valued one in your desired country or region.
  4. Both new nations start out with the same Constitutional framework as we currently have, but the Liberal nation can modify it to their more modern views while the Conservative nation adheres to what they believe was the original intent of the founders. Hot-button issues like climate change and gun rights can be legislated according to the constituents’ preferences, and both nations can decide how many Supreme Court Justices should make up the court.
  5. Citizens are subject to the Federal, State, and Local tax laws of their new nation.
  6. Current Supreme Court Justices appointed by Democratic presidents will serve as Supreme Court Justices for the liberal nation, and Justices appointed by Republican presidents will remain a Supreme Court Justice for the conservative nation. Politicians will have to run for election for their new office.
  7. Ordinary citizens traveling between the two countries will initially have relaxed restrictions (a passport may not be necessary initially), but over time normal international protocols will phase in.
  8. The military will initially stay unified to serve both countries as part of the North American Joint Force, but will be split over time (though will likely be very cooperative in R&D and airspace defense missions, so long as the civilian leadership of both nations remains amicable).

Kind of a different take on things. I just know that it’s getting more and more difficult for neighbors from two different political perspectives to be friendly toward one another. Rather than spiral toward violence or other types of crime on a large scale, would it be worth citing “Irreconcilable Differences” and making an amicable break before it’s too late? Just thinking way outside the box.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. It’s been almost 250 years; is our current America able to be saved?

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Fortune Favors the Prepared

People in the Air Force regularly have to pass a physical fitness test. As long as you remember that Uncle Sam is paying you to stay in shape and even gives you time on duty to work out, it’s generally not difficult to stay in decent shape as long as you have some discipline and routine in place. When I was on active duty, a few times a week I usually did pushups and sit ups at my dorm or house in the morning before I left for work, and a few times a week I’d leave work early to do some running, swimming, or other type of cardio at the gym. Not a lot at once, just consistently.

I remember one occasion where a handful of us were getting ready to take a PT test. We paired off to help each other count repetitions and monitor proper form. The guy I paired with was older and more senior in rank than I, and we talked about the number of pushups we expected to perform. Things have changed since I last took an Air Force PT test, but the way it used to work is that there were several components (push-ups, crunches, run, body fat measurement), and you get a different amount of points for each component depending on how well you perform. Once you’ve performed all the components, you add up the points, and the total needs to be at least a certain number in order to pass. Each component also has a minimum passing score, and a maximum number of repetitions (once you hit the max number, you don’t get any additional points for doing extra crunches, for example).

He gave me his anticipated number, which wasn’t very high. I told him that I expected to max out my number of pushups and crunches. Almost dismissively, he said “yeah, well, you’ve got that muscular build.”

I was a little taken aback and didn’t quite know what to say or how to react. Did he think I accidentally had the capability to max out my pushups and crunches, or maybe that the capability was just handed to me? The responsibility to pass a PT test belongs to each individual in the Air Force. It’s not like the military branch’s leadership kept it a secret that we’d have to take these tests periodically, or that as a professional warrior susceptible to being deployed to warzones it might be a good idea to have a reasonably good baseline fitness level.

I never figured out whether he was serious or not. It certainly left an impression though.

If you know you have a test coming up…in any aspect of life…and you want to do well on it, it would behoove you to prepare for it. There’s an old saying: “Fortune favors the prepared.” It means that people who prepare for challenges tend to be more successful in overcoming them than the people that don’t prepare. Jesus said in John chapter 16 that “in this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Although Jesus was talking to His disciples right before the events of His arrest, trial, and execution, I believe the same message applies for Christ-followers today. If that’s not an indication of an upcoming test, maybe 2 Timothy 3:12 will spell it out a little clearer. “In fact, everyone who wants to live a Godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

No bones about it. If you follow Jesus, and other people know you follow Jesus, you’re going to have to take some flak. Bet on it.

So there you have it: you have a test coming up. It may be today, it may be decades from now, but you know it’s coming. To pass the test you may not have to “beat” the one doing the persecuting; passing the test might simply mean bearing up under the pressure or not giving in to what all the voices around you are saying.

Are you spending time in God’s word more than just whenever you go to church? Do you pray more than just basic prayers, and more than just at meal times? Do you read books or articles that help explain the things that are in the Bible? If you listen to podcasts about the stock market, retirement, politics, etc., those things are important, but are you also finding the time to listen or learn about something that has a longer-lasting effect?

Christ Jesus loves you (and those confronting you), will empower you, and will be with you until He returns or calls you home. In the meantime, just like in the Air Force, it’s the responsibility of everyone who wants to pass the test to prepare for it. Not a lot at once, just consistently.

Your test is coming, and fortune favors the prepared.

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A New Spin on an Old Story

I’m pretty sure COVID is never mentioned in the Bible, but the book contains lessons we can apply to our current circumstances. I’m actually kind of surprised this hasn’t occurred to me before.

After centuries of God telling His people, the Israelites, that they need to straighten up (and centuries of them not doing it), He finally dropped the hammer on them. He warned them time and again, but they’d ignore or even kill the prophets. Once He had enough of it, He allowed the Persian Empire (Babylon) to raid Jerusalem and carry away most of the people as captives back to Babylon.

Many of the people refused to accept what was going on. They’d been brought up to believe that as Jews, God favored them. While true, that’s only part of the story. God selected the Jews to be His people, but warned them many times to follow His ways and pursue Him. By failing to do that corporately, over and over again, God finally had enough and allowed Babylon to serve as his instrument of judgment.

Still some chose not to believe what was happening. These people started giving ear to false prophets that popped up. One of them claimed (Jeremiah chapter 28, paraphrased) “Everybody, take heart! God will deliver us from this and we’ll be back home in Jerusalem inside of two years!” This message, though false, appealed to the people, so they believed it and threw their support behind prophets that proclaimed this message.

God, however, intended for these exiles to stay in Babylon for 70 years, and He didn’t hide His intent. Now, if you’re one of these people, living in a foreign land against your will, you’re going to live your life differently if you believe you’re only going to be there two years than if you believed you were probably going to spend the rest of your life there. Of course God wasn’t going to let this be the end of the Jews, but He works on His own timeline, not the one that people decide He should.

To help set the record straight, God had Jeremiah write them a letter. Paraphrasing from Jeremiah chapter 29, the prophet writes “look, everybody, you’re gonna be here for awhile. Build houses for yourself. Plant gardens and eat the stuff that grows in them. Get married to each other and have kids, and give those kids away in marriage. For now, this is your normal. No, it won’t always be like this, but that’s what it is for now.”

That’s our modern-day tie-in. The basic question here is “how many people have put off or canceled major life events because of the current circumstances?” Countless weddings have been postponed, untold numbers of students missed the opportunity to have a traditional in-person graduation ceremony, and it’s simply impossible to know how many other major trips or events have dropped or otherwise been put on hold.

The deeper question, and the one that has a more permanent impact, is “what God-honoring things have been put off or canceled because people decided that the world no longer met their definition of what the world should look like?” There are obvious things, like the cancellation of church services or outreach programs, but there have been varying degrees of success regarding the thing that have taken their place. For example, most churches this past summer probably either completely canceled or had a greatly scaled-back version of Vacation Bible School (VBS). Children are especially open to hearing about what Christ has done for them, and it’s important that Christians reach them. The challenge is addressing the same needs through different means, and the missed opportunities come when there’s no attempt to fill the gap.

That’s just an example. There are elementary-age needs, middle-school-aged needs, high-school-aged needs, needs for singles, for engaged or newlyweds, for men, for women, for families, for widows/widowers, for seniors, for professionals, for stay-at-home parents, and countless sub-groups of any of these demographics. The world needs you…whether it’s your creativity, your technological savvy, a spacious or special property you own, or a brand new idea that can be used to reach people in the name of Christ…this is your opportunity to step out in faith and make an eternal difference.

In this season of COVID, remember not to live like you’re still in Jerusalem. For the moment, we’re in Babylon, and we have to live out our Christianity and witness to non-believers within the parameters of our Babylonian environment. Build houses, plant gardens, and pursue long-term relationships. We may be here for awhile or we may not, but either way, we don’t have the option of letting the ministry opportunities stop. You might be the only thing that an important new undertaking is waiting for.

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Stop To Think About Why You Just Did That

I’ve got a twofer for you this time.

Way back when the world was normal and people went to work and shook hands and stuff, my wife would watch her friends’ kids when they were in a jam or just needed to run a quick errand.

I’m a very blessed guy, and my kids are still young enough to come give me a hug when I walk in the door from work. One day as I arrived home, I didn’t know it, by my wife was watching a friend’s little girl, Emmy. Emmy was younger than my kiddos, and she kind of followed their lead in whatever they were playing.

I walked in the door and my kids, who were a bit more wired than normal from running and playing with someone else, came running to hug me and gave a few shouts of “Daddyyyyyyyy!” It was a sweet moment for any dad, but I couldn’t help but smile as I watched Emmy try to figure out what to do. She was excited right along with the rest of the kids, but she wasn’t about to run up and hug some grown-up dude that wasn’t in her life other than right now at this very moment. She came running over to where we all were, and with a big smile, started jumping up and down. She was happy, but she didn’t know why.

Then, on another note, this past summer our family took a vacation to see some other family up in northwestern Ohio. This area was very near Lake Erie, and our family up there enjoys taking the ferry out to Kelley’s Island for a day of biking and walking around on the island. At the end of our island visit we all headed back onto the ferry for the ride back across to “the mainland.”

Now, I don’t know why this happens, but it’s one of those inexplicable “guy things.” I was standing at the back of the ferry with my son and one of my nephews, watching the island fade further into the distance. As I looked down at the wake the ferry made as it plowed through the lake, I gave in to the overwhelming urge to spit into the water. I think it was to get a sense of how fast we were going. Inside two seconds, and without a word, both my son and my nephew had also spit over the rail.

These are two fun little stories that help illustrate one very simple idea: no matter who you are, whether you’re a nine-year old playing with a little kid or a sunburned uncle on a family vacation, you have influence on other people. At the same time, other people have influence on you. Be mindful of the way you’re using the influence you possess; when it comes to meaningful interactions, are you using it to build people up or to tear them down? Assume there is no middle or neutral ground…can people see glimpses of Christ in you?

It’s also important to be mindful of those you allow to influence you. The authors you read, the speakers and songs you hear, and the entertainment you watch are all defining the norms you may adopt as your own. This is why it’s so important for Christians to spend time regularly reading the Bible. If you’re a Christian that doesn’t spend time reading the letter God wrote to you, it makes it much harder to “be in the world but not of it.” Instead the principles of Christian living get elbowed out of the way and shoved toward the back of your mind, while the stronger influences take root and play a more central role in guiding your thoughts and actions.

Our lives look much different than they did a year ago. There’s much more time for binge-watching things or ripping through a lot more books than normal. I urge you to guard your mind. (If you’re already making excuses about why it’s okay to spend so much time with one of the things you’ve been watching/reading, that may be an indicator that you and your conscience need to get on more honest terms.)

Well hey, we’re getting closer to the weekend. I hope you’re hanging in there and that you have (or that you had) a great day today. Use your influence to point others to Christ and what He’s done for them. They may not know.

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If You Just Need a Smile

You know, considering everything that’s going on in our nation right now, I just kind of feel like it would be a good idea to try to help you smile.

I’ve got three kids, and they’ve each got their own distinct personality. When they were little and they did something cute or funny, we’d write it down in what we now refer to as “the quote book.” It’s full of little stories or fun quotes that came from the kids or the sleep-deprived things that we did as parents of young kiddos. Now that it’s at least a few years after some of the quotes, our kids enjoy when I pull out the book and relay some stories we’ve written down.

Lately I’ve been taking a look through the book, and thought I’d share a few entries with you. Just for context, I’ve got a daughter, then a son, then another daughter.

My older daughter used to pick the most inopportune times to tell us about her day. When you have multiple young kids in the house, life is a blur. There’s not a whole lot of conscious thought that extends out past the next meal or bedtime. The minutes leading up to dinner were a mad rush of “go potty,” “okay, who still needs to wash their hands?” all while getting hot food on the table and scooping out some of the hot food early so it can cool off enough for the kids. Right as we sat down and things got quiet enough to pray, our daughter would pick that moment to start telling all of us about some event from earlier that day that was memorable in her mind. We’d all sit around the table, holding hands, about to pray but unable to begin. We could’ve shushed her, but…that just didn’t seem right. Then, just as she finished recounting her tale, but before we could jump in and start praying, her spellbound little brother would ask a question about her epic yarn. (“Nooooo!!!”) This happened at bedtime on a regular basis, too.

She could also open “childproof” caps before she could put together a complete sentence. We kept them away from her for awhile, and she lost the knack for it, but it still kept us on our toes.

She could also open “childproof” caps before she could put together a complete sentence. We kept them away from her for awhile, and she lost the knack for it, but it still kept us on our toes.

My little guy was the craziest blend of sweet and sour. He had heart-melting moments when you just couldn’t believe how compassionate or kind he was, and he’d have moments that make you want to pull out your hair. When he was little enough that he still slept in a crib, there was a time when my wife and I were laying him down and he saw his favorite little stuffed dog laying in the crib waiting for him, and my little guy let out a giggle. It made me appreciate how wonderful it must be to laugh simply because you’re happy.

On the flip side of his personality, there were other times he’d just utter blatant, unprompted lies. If he said “I don’t have anything in my mouth,” it’s a solid bet he just got into some snacks that he knew he wasn’t supposed to touch. He also knew that naptimes were for napping, but he loved to get up and look out the window. As he got big enough to come downstairs on his own after a nap, he’d reassure us by seeing us and saying right away “I wasn’t looking out my window.” The stool near the disheveled curtains suggested otherwise.

It’s also fun to look through the book and find little exchanges like when he and I were watching the winter Olympics on TV together when he was probably about 3. During a ski-jumping event, I told him “That guy’s from Norway.” He looked at the screen, interested, and said “Oh, is that his home planet?”

There are some slapstick memories, too. Parenting is a full-contact sport. All of our kids enjoyed when my wife and I read books to them. My younger daughter, when she was a toddler, had no concept of causing pain in other people. If I was laying on the floor and said to her “do you want me to read a book?”…man, I’d better watch out. She’d take off and find a book to read, which was great, but on her return trip, I needed to keep my gloves up. She’d come bouncing back at me in a full-speed toddler waddle, holding the book out in front of her. In the beginning, I figured she’d slow down as she got close. Nope. She came running with her arms stretched out in front of her, and she didn’t stop until she slammed me in the head with the book. (It didn’t take me long to learn to pay attention when she came running with a book, though I think it took me longer than it should have.)

This is the same little one who, when I held her in church during the live music, would watch intently everything going on up on stage. One time everything was quiet as the worship leader prayed, but my little girl kept her eyes open and was mesmerized by all the light reflecting off the shiny instruments. During the prayer, when her face was about six inches away from mine, she let slip a little burp that smelled like Cheerios.

Also, as our third child, she’s the only one I’ve used a dust-buster on.

And finally, to cap it off, here’s a story with all three. There was a phase (at least, I hope it’s a phase) where my older daughter liked to over-dramatize things, so she’d pretend to cry at certain things. The problem was that anytime my younger daughter saw someone cry, she thought it was her cue to start apologizing, even if it wasn’t her fault or she didn’t know what was happening. She’d keep doing it until someone acknowledged her, too, and would get louder as she went. Making it more fun was the fact that she couldn’t pronounce an “r” sound very well at that age. There was one instance where I sat in the living room and my wife and all three kids were in the kitchen. My wife and older daughter started acting silly, and began pretending to cry about something. Right around then my son, who needed to hear the same thing three times before it started sinking in, got hyper and did something he shouldn’t have, which distracted my wife. Imagine the sound of fake crying from one daughter, my wife talking firmly to my little guy, and an ever-more-persistent little voice saying “sowwy. Sowwy! SOWWY!”

You know, despite what you see on TV, there’s still some good stuff going on out there. Despite what you may see and hear, there are some good people in the world. Keep your chin up and keep smiling, because like I’ve said before, your joy and positive attitude in Christ is one of the things that will make people take notice, especially in times like this.

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Time To Get Back on the Horse

September is a gorgeous month for skydiving. The summer heat has lost its oppressive force, but you can still be comfortable either in shorts and a tee shirt or with a jumpsuit on top of that. It’s noticeably cooler up top when you get out of the plane, but it’s not cold enough to need gloves or extra layers yet.

Now, for those of you that don’t know me, I’m ordinarily a pretty laid back guy. If you see me lose my temper, something like, huge has probably happened. For some reason though, skydiving was a parallel universe for me. I was driven. I wanted badly to be good at freefall skills so I’d be able to turn formations deftly and be able to zip around the sky with other jumpers. When I tried learning certain maneuvers though, I’d try too hard, and I’d be more likely to lose my cool when something didn’t go the way I planned.

Goofing off with a buddy while waiting for our ride to altitude. It’s important to keep the mood light!

Early on I would jump out of the plane and my body tensed up. I’d go rigid not because I was nervous about plummeting toward the ground, but because I was overthinking the instructions and was too focused on trying to get it right. In freefall though, to get your body to do what you want it to do, you need to have your muscles very relaxed. Tensing your muscles causes all different kinds of problems for you. This wasn’t like kayaking, weightlifting, or skiing, where adrenaline or extra power can be a big help; this was an entirely new type of physical challenge…you had to stay chill when the wind is so loud you can’t even hear what someone six inches away from your face is screaming at you.

On one jump, I don’t even remember what happened…I just remember that even though I landed safely I was furious at myself for not getting the freefall objectives right. I mean like, livid. Before my canopy had even completely settled onto the grass, I ripped off my helmet and threw it on the ground, then started kicking it around for good measure. Oh, man, was I ticked! I was ready to get in my car and leave.

There was one instructor at the drop zone, Darlene, who really understood people and what makes them tick. She saw my little tantrum and talked with me about what happened on the jump. After our impromptu debrief she said something surprising. She told me that I needed to get one more jump in that day before I left.

It was surprising because on busy days you had to get in line to get a ride up to altitude; if people wanted to leave early, that was only good news for everyone else. I didn’t want any part of it, I was just feeling sour and wanted to take my ball and go home. She took a look at the schedule of remaining flights and found a way to get me another jump before I left that day. I jumped again, and it went much better than my helmet-kicker.

Darlene knew that if I left on the heels of a bad jump, it was quite possible that I might never come back. She understood that in order for me to flip the script in my own mind, I needed to walk out of there with success more fresh in my memory than failure. It didn’t need to be a stellar jump. It didn’t even need to be a great jump. It just had to be enough, in my mind, to crowd out the memory of a horrible jump.

It may not be skydiving, but you might be in the same boat today. You could be about to turn your back on the thing you thought you were meant to do.

Maybe you already walked away from it. You started walking and you didn’t even turn around to look back, because you want to convince yourself that this isn’t for you.

Well, even if you stepped away, what if you gave it another try? Do you have more to lose than you have to gain? It might just be worth another shot.

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Hope is a Powerful Agent

Since I’ve been spending a lot more time in my house over the past six months, it’s been interesting to go digging through closets or boxes and see what’s in there. A few days ago I listened to some old CDs.

One of the albums I popped into the CD player is Steven Curtis Chapman’s Heaven in the Real World. We’re talking 1994…hard to believe I’ve had it for 25 years or so!

As the music started, the beat and lyrics all came rushing back. I can’t even tell you how long it’s been since I listened to those songs. The crazy part, though, was when I started listening to the words.

Before the first song started, a voice track came on, talking about all the craziness happening in the world at the time. Violence erupting somewhere, drug seizures, natural disasters. It led into the first song, talking about a child looking through eyes of fear and uncertainty. I thought “Huh, not much has changed.”

The next song came on, and it was a similar story:

People say this world’s a jungle and sometimes I must admit
I’d be scared to death if I did not know who was king of it
But the truth is God created this whole world with His own hand
So everything is under His command

I enjoyed humming along with an old familiar song, and looked forward to the next track on the album. It got even crazier:

Once upon a time not so long ago in a land not so far away
Right and wrong were not quite so hard to know
And black and white were not so gray
Times have changed and now it seems
Conscience has gone the way of the dinosaur
But I believe it’s still alive and well today
In the hearts of those who will stand up and say (chorus)

Then the second verse went on to describe the conditions of the day:

There’s a banner waving saying tolerance will set you free, it’s the latest thing
While the consequences it leaves behind are like a ball and chain
But there’s a voice in everyone called conscience
That’s been around since God created man
And as we learn to listen to its whispering
We’ll find the greater freedom when we stand up and sing

Right is right and wrong is wrong just like it has been along
We cannot sit by and see conscience become history
So come on, get up and dance
Dance this dance with me

I’ll tell you what…this world is, and always has been, in a state of decline. This is nothing new. It’s sad to see, but to the Christians reading this, it’s important to understand that standing around wringing your hands is not going to make things any better. The hope that you have in Christ is one of the best ways of getting people to notice that there’s something different about you. Think of hope as the confident expectation of what God has promised. When you hope in Christ, you are trusting in God’s faithfulness.

It’s important for you to broadcast your hope. To do that though, you need to make sure your soul is getting fed. Reading the Bible on a frequent basis is one of the best ways to sustain your hope. The Bible reminds us of God’s faithfulness and the promises He’s made to His people. I’ll tell you a startling statistic I heard recently: during the time of Covid, one-third fewer Christians are reading their Bibles.

Talk about throwing a cinderblock to a drowning man.

The Church (not the building, but the people) is still God’s plan for spreading the Gospel and restoring the lost relationship between God and people. There are probably more people out there that are not going to Heaven than the number that are. In a time when things are, once again, crazy, those people need to see your hope. Please, let them see it.

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When the English Language Fails

As it turns out, when we read the Bible in English, we’re missing out on a lot of the little details you might otherwise catch if you were reading it in its original language (mostly either Hebrew or Greek). I recently learned something interesting about how the resurrected Jesus interacted with the disgraced Peter, who had denied Christ three times.

We’re probably all familiar with the passage in John 21:15-17. It’s the one where Jesus asks “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?”

He said to Him “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”

He said to him, “Feed My lambs.”

He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?”

He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love you.”

He said to him, “Tend My sheep.”

He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?”

And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.”

Jesus said to him “Feed My sheep.” – John 21:15-17

Just reading over it you might think “well that’s a little weird,” or “it’s because Peter denied Jesus three times.” Well, that might have something to do with it, but I thought it was interesting when I learned about a literary device used in the recording of this account.

When John wrote the gospel that bears his name, placing two words with similar meanings near each other actually amplifies the difference between the two. An example in our language might be something like “I love Krispy Kreme, but I adore Dunkin’ Donuts.” The words “love” and “adore” mean very similar things, but in this example, Dunkin’ is the favored product.

We’re looking at something along those lines in these verses, but you can’t see it in English. We’re dealing with two synonyms for the word “love,” but they have slightly different meanings. The one Jesus uses means loving without holding anything back…with complete and total commitment. Peter, still fresh off his stinging denials, isn’t quite so confident as he used to be in declaring his dedication. Instead of using the “total commitment” version, he responds with a synonym that declares his love/affection for Jesus, but is a little shakier as far as the commitment goes. Using our “original language lenses,” we read it again:

“Peter, do you love (total commitment) Me more than these?”

“Yes, you know that I love (I’m super affectionate for you, but maybe not super dedicated) You.”

“Feed My lambs.”

Then a second time:

“Simon, son of Jonah, do you love (total commitment) Me?”

“Yes Lord, You know that I love (affection but not commitment) You.”

“Tend My sheep.”

Now here’s where the twist comes in, and it helps reveal why Peter was so grieved. When Jesus asks the third time, He stops using the word for “love” that He’d been using. He switches to the word Peter’s using. Peter used this version instead of the one Jesus used because he thought he’d be safer. It pierced his heart to have Jesus question even this lesser level of love:

“Simon, son of Jonah, do you love (affection for, but not necessarily committed to) Me?”

Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time “Do you love me?” And he said to Him “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love (affection without dedication) You.”

Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.”

Knowing this little insight, it helps us understand a bit better why Peter was so hurt by this exchange. Jesus knew everything that was still coming in Peter’s future, and this round of questioning helped prepare Peter to deal with his doubts and make the conscious decision to become completely devoted to spreading the Gospel.

God is really amazing in how He prepares people for what the future will bring. Some people seem to just be born with devotion to Christ, while others have to really wrestle with it. In either extreme, and everywhere in between, God knows you, and knows exactly what you need to emerge from that crisis of faith with complete commitment. Maybe you’re in the middle of that struggle right now. I personally would urge you to keep the faith, but for some people God needs them to lose faith before they can find it again. I don’t know what God has planned for your life, but He does, and He’s preparing you for it.

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You Change; Your Strategy Should, Too

I’ve written about kneeboarding before; it was one of my favorite things to do during my last summer in college and the summer after that.

There were a few of us that loved kneeboarding and wakeboarding. We’d get together and see what kind of tricks we could start doing. While it was fun to do solo, it kind of lost its thrill after a while. We got the idea to put two kneeboarders out there at a time. Then we tried two kneeboarders and a wakeboarder. We were able to do a lot more stuff that way; jump over each other’s ropes, switch ropes, hang off the same rope, it gave us more options.

At the end of one summer we were able to get four of us going at the same time. It was two kneeboarders, a wakeboarder, and a guy on a round piece of plywood. The attempt didn’t last very long, but it was fun to be able to say we did it.

We had a lot of fun on the river during those summers, but time marched on and we all went our separate ways.

Fast forward 16 years, and I had the opportunity to try kneeboarding at the same place.

Obviously a lot had changed, and I was a little nervous about it. Now I had a wife and three kids, along with less pliable joints, but I didn’t want to pass up the chance to give it a try. It ended up being a lot of fun, at least for a while.

As we got going, I did some stuff to help the muscle memory come back. After getting comfortable, I did a few basic tricks. Getting settled, I started jumping the wake a little bit. It all started coming back.

There were two main differences between kneeboarding as a young guy and kneeboarding as an “old man.” The first was that my workout routine had changed significantly since I had last gone kneeboarding. In my early 20s I lifted smaller weights at higher repetitions to help me have more endurance throughout the day in a physically demanding job. Years later I had switched to heavier weights at lower reps, so my arms had the power to handle more weight for short lengths of time. The second major difference is that, obviously, 16 years of wear and tear makes the joints less able to absorb impacts. These days my joints do a lot more grinding and popping than back when I did a lot of kneeboarding.

This time around I started out by doing the tricks of my old routine, because that was the mindset I was in. I didn’t realize it at the time, but the types of “tools I had in my toolbox” had changed. As it dawned on me that I had more power available to play with, I started getting more aggressive in the way I cut back and forth, how I followed the boat’s turns, and how I approached jumping the wake.

The cartilage degradation became apparent as I became bolder. Stronger arms helped me launch higher into the air upon hitting the wake, but it also set up my knees for higher impacts when I came back down. I didn’t realize it until it was too late. I cut the water hard, hit the wake hard, and pulled hard, and I think I got higher than I had ever jumped before, but I also landed harder than I ever had before. The kneeboard and I bounced off the water, and I immediately lost interest in continuing the run. The board caught an edge and I flipped over, into the water. I limped the rest of that vacation. (I would totally go kneeboarding again though.)

Unquestionably, it was fun up until that point. The lesson I learned that day was to be realistic about the tools you’ve got, and don’t just assume the tools that used to be there will always be available to you. Sixteen years separated my last two kneeboarding runs, and I instinctively began my latest round by assuming I had the same capabilities I had on the one before.

I’m afraid we might do this as Christians, too, sometimes. We all change as the years go by. The reality might be that we’re no longer willing to take the risks we used to take, but we believe we haven’t changed. Once willing to give of our time, talent, and treasure, we might double up on one of them and skip one of the others, even though God’s Kingdom may benefit the most from the thing you’ve backed away from.

Maybe the opposite is true; you may be in a better position right now than you’ve ever been before to give more of all three. Perhaps something that used to be a major struggle for you in your Christian walk is no longer a problem or a temptation for you, and you can now use your experience to help others with the same issue that was once so challenging for you.

If you’re a Christian, ministry might not be your profession, but you’re in the business of ministry somehow. Time waits for nobody, though. You gain and lose abilities. The tools in your toolbox change over time. Your strengths and weaknesses may switch places, and the goal is to adapt and pivot so that you back away from the areas where you’re losing ground and you’re always using your best skills to glorify God. Vigor and energy are here for a short time and can be crucial to getting something started, but a powerful prayer life often escapes young men and women. With life experience comes wisdom that augments the youthful enthusiasm that’s either on its way out or is long gone.  

Learn from the past, but don’t live there. You’re always moving forward. Any given moment in your life is only a snapshot on a timeline. Your life’s experiences have helped lead you to where you are today, and the things you do today will shape your tomorrow. You are on your way to becoming the person you’re going to be. The question is…are you pivoting to your new strengths as your old ones fade?

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Is It Worth That?

Imagine if someone offered you the chance to live for two weeks with two other people in an area about the size of three or four phone booths.

Before you answer, hold on a minute. It gets worse.

Courtesy of OhioMemory.org

It’s a closed environment, so nothing extra comes in, and no garbage goes out. All the food you’ll be eating during that time needs to be freeze-dried and packed inside. It’s not modern day freeze-dried food, either; it’s like, 1960s freeze-dried food. Add water, stir, and eat. Want to eat it hot? Add hot water.

On top of that, there’s no bathroom. You’ve got a little suction tube for liquid waste and you’ve got some bags for solid waste. Not a great deal of privacy, either.

What do you think, are you in?

Of course not. Why would anyone in their right mind sign up for that?

Now what if I told you that if you can endure these conditions, you get to walk on the moon?

From 1968 to 1972, the American space program sent a series of missions into space that resulted in 12 men walking on the moon and returning safely to earth. Would you be willing to endure the cramped quarters and terrible conditions if you could look forward to setting foot on the lunar surface?

That paints things in a different light, doesn’t it? Life is largely the same for a Christian; the main difference is that instead of two weeks, we’re looking at 80 or maybe 90 years or so.

This life has some fun times, and it has some miserable times. The older you get, the more you understand the temporary nature of things on this earth, and the more you realize that everything around you will one day turn to dust or otherwise become worthless. The joy, however, comes in knowing that you’re on your way to a destination of unspeakable happiness, where you come face to face with God Himself and can ask Him everything you’ve ever wondered about, you can praise Him with no distractions, and you can rejoice in the fact that nobody who’s there will suffer pain, heartache, or loss ever again.

The longest time of any Apollo mission that astronauts spent on the surface of the moon was during the final mission, Apollo 17. Two astronauts spent about 75 hours…a little over three days…either in the Lunar Module or out on the surface of the moon. That whole mission lasted about twelve and a half days from start to finish. Twelve and a half days in cramped quarters eating nasty food in exchange for 75 hours and three moonwalks on the moon.

In a Christian’s case, unspeakable joy that doesn’t end alongside your Savior in a body that doesn’t decay. That’s worth 80 or 90 years, even if a good percentage of them get rough.

Better times are coming. Hang in there.

Enjoying DareGreatlyNow’s posts? Let me know what you think. Email me at tim@daregreatlynow.com.

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Proxy War

Over the past few weeks I’ve touched on how Satan commonly employs the same handful of tactics. I’ve covered how he wants to keep unbelievers unbelieving, and how he wants to water down the effectiveness of those that have become Christ-followers.

So where does that leave us in this epic spiritual struggle for the ages? Well, a historical anecdote might help set the stage:

After World War II, our ally Russia (then the USSR) started to walk down a different path from ours, and our two nations became enemies. It didn’t take long before both sides amassed enough nuclear weapons to destroy each other (and the rest of the world) several times over. In light of this massive weapons buildup, it became crucial that the two countries avoid a direct conflict, because it could very easily escalate into something with terrible consequences for the entire world.

American tanks facing off with Soviet tanks in Berlin

Most of the developed world split into two camps: one that sided with the Soviets and one that sided with the United States. The two sides had radically different ideologies, and both wanted to strengthen their position and gain additional allies. No corner of the world went untouched by this indirect conflict (or “Cold War”).

Both sides knew that war with one another could quickly escalate to global catastrophe. Yet with both sides armed to the teeth, they couldn’t help but rattle sabers at each other in various ways. Both superpowers turned to supporting smaller groups or nations in fights against someone from the other camp. This led to a series of “Proxy Wars.” The Korean War, the space race, the Vietnam War, numerous conflicts in Africa, Asia, and Oceania were all just different chapters of the same story: the US vs. the USSR.

That’s where we are in the spiritual battle right now. The real story has always been God vs. Satan, but the fight plays out across the globe in chapters, fought through Christians and non-Christians.

You and I are “proxies” in a certain sense. We speak on Christ’s behalf when sharing the gospel, and the enemy’s efforts are sometimes manifested, either intentionally or unintentionally, through other people. What’s so easy to do, and I want to caution everyone against this, is to slip into the trap of thinking that the proxy on the other side, the unbeliever, is the enemy. Absolutely not! Satan is the enemy; the proxy is a soul that can potentially be saved, join the Kingdom of God, and do great things for Him! This is so important. Have a look at what the Apostle Paul said in Ephesians:

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. – Ephesians 6:12

It’s very important to stress that although all people are inherently sinful, relatively few of them are malicious or openly hostile toward Christ and Christians. God can even take violent, hateful people and turn them into powerful assets for His kingdom (read the story of Saul’s conversion to Paul for an example). There’s nobody that God doesn’t love, and no matter how bad you think you’ve been (or how bad the worst person you can think of has been), God is willing to extend salvation to them if they accept Him as their Savior. We don’t know who those people will be, though, so it’s up to Christians (and this is where we often have trouble) to treat everyone as if God’s working on their heart to reveal Himself to them and bring them to salvation. This is where another Bible verse comes in:

Look, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. – Matthew 10:16

We’re supposed to be out in dangerous territory, spreading the gospel to people that haven’t heard it, and yes, to people that we believe will reject it or react violently to it. Proxies can harm us in multiple ways. We must balance between being on guard against them while showing them love, compassion, and the truth in the hopes that we help win them for Christ.

One of my favorite sayings is that you do not know what’s on the other side of your obedience. At some point you, as a Christian, will likely feel called to do something that makes you uncomfortable, and that’s by design. The Bible is full of stories of people that God stretched in some way to go do things they thought were impossible. God makes no pledge about giving you cushy assignments. He’ll take care of you…maybe not in the way you’d like, but if you follow through with what you’re supposed to do, you might be surprised at how things fall into place for you.

As I close today, I just want to reiterate that other people are not the enemy in our spiritual struggle; they are the prize! You will do nothing on your own to win them for Christ, but you have no idea what Christ will do through you according to His plan. Boldly accept His invitation to play a part in His master plan. You won’t be able to see where the road leads, but part of growing your faith is taking the first few steps without seeing where you’re going.

God didn’t offer to let us be choosy about the people to whom we bring the Gospel. They all need to hear it, and you might be the only chance someone gets to hear it.

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Red Teaming Humanity: The Christian Strikes Back (Part 4 of 4)

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Today we wrap up the discussion on Red Teaming humanity…looking through the adversary’s eyes at how to fight against God’s plan for individual people.

In the way of review, let’s take a look back at what we’ve covered so far.

Part 1 of the series set the stage and described the likely mentality of the enemy we’re dealing with.

After that, to help as a memory aid, everything is arranged in groups of three that all start with the same letter. In Part 2 we looked at the basic steps God uses to lead someone to faith, along with the tools Satan uses to counter any or all of them. Whereas God addresses a Wanderer, then Wakens them by revealing Himself to them, after which they begin their Walk with Him, Satan takes a different approach. He’ll try to Fulfill the longings of the wanderer through other means, Fight the wakening by inciting chaos in the person’s life, and try to Flatten their walk if it turns out they’re serious about following Christ.

Last time, in Part 3, we started looking at how our adversary attacks Christians. If the goal is to prevent Christians from using their God-given gifts, talents, and resources to grow the Kingdom of God, many of the techniques he uses boil down to Dividing them so they cannot function as a cohesive team, Distracting them from what they should be focused on, and Delaying them from taking action.

Today we look at how Christians can combat the effectiveness of the tactics in Part 3. It’s very simple. Christians maximize their effectiveness in working for the Lord when they follow the three Gs:

Gather, Grow, and Go.

It’s so simple that it’s easy to overlook. Right now, though, it’s so important to understand these three Gs and follow through with them.

The Bible instructs us to Gather. Alone we are vulnerable to fear, quicker to question whether living a life of service to the Lord is worth pursuing, and prone to give up more easily. Together we can spur each other on to overcome those obstacles and encourage one another. Iron sharpens iron.

And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. – Hebrews 10:24-25

For where two or three gather together in My name, there am I with them. –Matthew 18:20

And though one may be overpowered, two can resist. Moreover, a cord of three strands is not quickly broken. –Ecclesiastes 4:12

Today’s world looks very different than most people would have imagined a year ago. We’ve all essentially been thrown into pioneer roles; we’re figuring out what “gather” looks like as we go right now. There may be a few places that are largely unaffected, but for the most part, if you’re physically going to church these days, you’re probably wearing a mask at least part of the time and you’re not sitting as close to others as you normally would. If you’re not going in person you might still get to hear the worship and sermon through online church, but it’s very hard to actually connect with people that way. As restrictions ease and we’re allowed more social freedoms, I encourage you to make an effort to get back to church, even if you have to sing with a mask on. There simply is no substitute for physically being in the same room with other believers.

It’s essential to find other means of meeting with fellow believers, especially if you consider yourself part of an at-risk demographic or if your church will undergo an extended period of time without being able to physically meet. Online meetings can work, conference calls can work, but I’d encourage you to be physically present with other believers SOMEhow. Outside-the-box thinking may help here; if it’s with just one or two other people, you can meet for coffee or in a park and maintain a decent distance between yourselves and still be close enough for great conversation that builds, encourages, and lifts up one another. If it’s a larger group, you can do the same thing or get more creative. It’s probably going to be awhile before we can have widespread potlucks again, but in the meantime, we can have get-togethers in church parking lots for example. If you have a big group of folks at your church that are just longing for time together, have everyone bring a camp chair and a bottle of water and sit, one person per parking space, and rearrange the group every 10 minutes or so. It’s important to have opportunities both for unstructured fellowship as well as those that are meant to build one another up.

Gather and Grow often go hand in hand. While you can watch videos and study the Bible on your own, living life as part of a community of Christian believers will help you really learn and embrace the Bible’s teachings. Other people see things in scripture that you don’t; you have experiences and interests that are different from other peoples’. Together you collectively bring more than what you have on your own. Much of the growing occurs as you read the Bible and supporting material on your own, but another big chunk of it also happens as you interact with other Christians. You can grow by learning from other believers, and on the flip side you can grow by mentoring other believers. Growth happens when you’re together.

When it comes to Go, the distinguishing characteristic of Christians is supposed to be the way they show love for one another. John 13:34-35 says A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

Unbelievers are supposed to see Christians in action and know who we are by the way we love and care for people. You don’t have to go far to Go. There are limitless ways to show love to your neighbor, and your neighbor is…anyone and everyone. It’s not just people you know and have a good relationship with. Everyone has physical needs. Everyone needs human contact. Everyone needs a little shot of optimism, especially these days. If you can provide any of those things in a way that would make God smile, that might be exactly what He’s looking at you to do. It could be digging wells in a far-off land, going on a missions trip elsewhere in your own country, or taking a meal to a lonely shut-in in your neighborhood. There is literally no limit to the number of ways you can show love and compassion to someone that needs it, and your acts of love make people more willing to listen to what you have to say about Christ.

Congratulations! You’ve made it to the end of this series. I’ve said it a number of times before on this blog, but it bears repeating in light of what we’ve been covering. Christians are empowered to do much more than what they think they are capable of doing, and it’s because the power of the Holy Spirit resides in them. If you consider yourself a Christ-follower, I urge you to take up the challenge you find before you; seek direction through prayer and move out with confidence. Not confidence in your abilities and prowess, mind you, confidence in the one that holds your life in His hands. Sometimes God prepares you for years to perform a given task, but other times you witness a need that anyone can fulfill, and you just happen to be the only “anyone” around. Please…be willing to let God work through you. You have no idea what events your obedience will set in motion.

In closing, I’ll say that as a Christian you should expect opposition. I recently heard it described as “if you’re holding the football, you’re going to get tackled.” Don’t be surprised when it happens, because it’s going to happen. It’s not the end of the game though. You can head to the sidelines for a break and for talking some strategy with teammates, but if you sit down and don’t plan to get up off the bench again, the other team has nothing to fear from you. In this game, the Coach is going to walk down the sidelines, point His finger at you, and tell you to get out there. It’s going to be scary, you’re not going to know how it’s all going to turn out, and you may end up having to be carried off the field. Just remember that you’re on the winning team and you’re not alone out there. Rely on your teammates and let them know they can rely on you. The Coach wouldn’t have pointed at you if He didn’t think you could do it.

Gather, Grow, and Go.

You hold more worth and value to God’s Kingdom than you can possibly imagine. There’s no ceiling as far as what God can do through His truly dedicated followers, but only He knows His plans for your life. Subscribe or check back every week for encouragement in reaching your God-given potential!

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

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Red Teaming Humanity: Keep the Christians on the Couch (Part 3 of 4)

Part 1 | Part 2

Last time we covered how Satan tries to keep unbelievers from believing. This time we’ll take a look at how he tries to keep Christians on the couch.

From Satan’s perspective the real danger of losing a soul to Christianity is not that his kingdom shrinks, it’s that he has absolutely no idea how Christ will use this new asset to build His kingdom. For the people that become Christians, Satan wants to stifle their growth as much as possible so their relationship with God suffers and they don’t become effective at bringing others to a saving faith. He wants to prevent walkers from maturing to the point that they can enable other unsaved souls to become walkers.

If Satan wants to limit the impact of his losses, he’ll do what he can to prevent Christians from using their spiritual gifts or submitting themselves to Christ’s plan. He ultimately wants Christians to die with untapped potential. What kind of Christian do you think Satan likes better, a passionate Billy Graham, or an apathetic average Joe that got saved as a kid, but whose only present-day indication of faith is going to church on Christmas Eve? Clearly, he’d rather have a world full of couch-potato Christians; they don’t even have an impact that he needs to counter!

Well, let’s get to it. How do you keep Christians on the couch instead of in the trenches?

It turns out there are a variety of ways. God made people with different personalities and vulnerabilities. Everyone is susceptible to something. There’s a group of well-used tactics in Satan’s bag of tricks; if one doesn’t work, he’ll try another, then another, until he finds something that shows promise. (You may recognize a particular weakness in your own life that prevents you from being used by God to do greater things than you’ve done up to this point.)

None of the tactics are overly complicated, but there are many different ways to employ them. Think of it in terms of Satan having a dossier on you. He knows what works on you and what doesn’t. For some it’s ego. For others it’s jealousy or fear. Some people have major problems with anger, while others are crippled by depression or doubts that God could forgive the things they’ve done. You don’t think Satan’s figured you out and takes advantage of your personality quirks and triggers? Although one person may not have a problem with lust or pornography, it can absolutely shatter the ministry effectiveness of another. The same holds true with drug addiction, insecurity, arrogance, self-pity, apathy, or any number of other ways to take you off mission…Satan has a tailored attack plan for you that will give him the best chance of minimizing your effectiveness as a Christian in ministering to others.

In the last post I named three general steps God takes to bring a person to faith, and three methods Satan takes to combat those steps. For the Christian, I’m going to reverse it by giving you Satan’s tactics first. When it comes to marginalizing a Christian’s effectiveness, he uses the three Ds.

The many tools Satan uses to keep Christians from doing God’s work can largely be categorized into three groups: Divide them to make unity impossible, Distract them from what’s really important, and Delay them from actually doing anything in God’s plan.

Let’s talk “Divide” first. Ever see a schism in a church? It’s ugly. What happens to the people in that church? They may have been focused on going out into the world to preach Christ at one point, but if the right issue comes to the forefront, a surprising number of parishioners give in to things that Christians should not fall prey to. Back biting, gossip, pettiness, bitterness and grudges are some of the big ones. Is that church an effective light to the world at that point? While it’s true that church splits sometimes happen for good reason, the fallout can hobble many Christ followers’ effectiveness and cause long-lasting divisions. Anything that divides Christians compromises their ability to serve God as a unit.

This is just an example of a single church in a single community. We’re living in the most divided period our country has been at any point in recent memory. Try to get churches across the nation to agree on and endorse a political party. Some pick the party that helps the poor. Others pick the party that believes life begins at conception. Are these not both Christian values? Why do we have to choose to embrace one and ignore the other? Division is built in. How can one side be pro-life, yet be pro-death penalty? On the other hand, how will you help the poor by de-funding the police?

Talking politics tends to get people going. If that paragraph made your blood pressure start to rise, it’s a perfect illustration of how effective division can be. Do you get as heated or willing to give a response when someone puts down Christian values? In the grand scheme of things, Christians around the world should probably have the same views and be the most willing to reach out to other cultures because we all have Jesus as our model. It’s not that Jesus is so different to various countries and cultures around the world, it’s that we view Him and His teachings through many different prisms. We have the same model, but we’re quite divided about our opinions of what’s important and what’s not.

This concept overlaps with “Distract,” too. At the most basic level, a distraction is something that siphons time, focus, and effort from a primary objective. If you’re a Christian, your two main objectives in this life are to draw closer to Him and share Him with others. Anything that takes away from your ability to do that is a distraction.

We don’t always have large events that distract us, but we instead fall victim to general busy-ness. Our schedules are so full that we don’t have much time to proactively pursue God’s calling for our lives. Being busy doesn’t make us bad people, but we need to be clear-headed and understand that busy-ness doesn’t directly translate into good use of time, nor is it an excuse to duck the plans God has for you. In order to get a handle on our lives we have to be intentional; we have to manage our calendars rather than allow our calendars to manage us. It falls to us individually to make God’s calling for our lives a priority.

Finally, Satan uses “Delay” as a class of tactics. Think back to when you were a kid. What were your dreams for when you got older? What did you want to be when you grew up? Are you that today? If not, why not; did something unforeseen come up? Maybe a little more recently for some, what big vacation plans did you and your significant other envision early in your relationship? If you haven’t done it yet, and the years have started to get away from you, it may now be too late to do it. Rarely does a single, large event derail the intentions, but more commonly a variety of things get in the way to ensure “someday” never arrives.

This is the same principle Satan hopes for with “delay.” If the adversary can postpone your big plans for doing God’s will even by a short amount of time, a new day can bring a whole new set of circumstances. Your enthusiasm to take on new responsibility in an organization died a slow death after your accident. You’re still willing to go on that missions trip, but the opportunity died when Coronavirus emerged. You’re not promised tomorrow. You’re not even promised the rest of today. All you have is right now, and if you don’t make use of it, your future will be imposed on you, rather than be influenced by you. You can serve God in a way that only you can, but it takes conscious, devoted, and persistent effort.

Boy, I run out of room quickly when I take on complex topics. Time for a quick review. Many of the enemy’s tools can be boiled down into the three Ds: Divide, Distract, and Delay. It’s important for individual Christians to learn what they’re vulnerable to, and to learn to recognize when it’s happening to them. The goal is to have no more unrealized potential left when you pass from this life into eternity. To borrow from author Erwin McManus’ book, how many unused arrows will still be in your quiver when you die?

We are under constant attack, it’s true, but take heart! In the final installment of this series, I’ll touch on the three items Christ followers can use to fight against the enemy’s three Ds. If it feels like you’re alone in this fight, it’s by design. I can assure you that you are not alone, but you may have to do some reaching out.

Subscribe or check back next Thursday for the final installment in the series “Red Teaming Humanity!”

Part 1 | Part 2

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Red Teaming Humanity: Keep the Unbelieving From Believing (Part 2 of 4)

Part 1 | Part 3

Let’s problem-solve for a bit. If you’re Satan, lashing out against God by trying to rob Him of the joy of humans receiving salvation, how do you go about doing it?

Well, it might help to take a look at the process God uses to bring the lost to faith, then use whatever means are necessary to interrupt or counter any of the steps in that process.

Let’s establish a few assumptions. First, ever since the fall of Adam and Eve, we all live with something called “original sin.” That means we’re born with a sinful nature, and our default setting when we die is to spend eternity separated from God. (The good news is we’re given the option to be rescued from that fate through acceptance of Christ’s sacrifice, but in reality, few choose it.) In that sense, when it comes to the fate of any given soul, Satan doesn’t need to play to win, he just needs to play to not lose.

Also, it’s important to understand that for Satan, the death of any human being is beneficial. A death for the unsaved is like taking that soul to the bank. It’s over. That soul no longer has the opportunity to embrace Christ. God’s possible joy over that soul’s salvation will forever go unrealized. On the flip side, the enemy rejoices in the death of Christians because they can no longer rob from his fiefdom after that. Either way, he’s happy to see death occur. He may not be able to inflict death on people directly, but he can attempt to persuade some to inflict it on others or themselves. Although I’m unsure of what his capabilities might be, I imagine he does what he can to instigate famines, disease outbreaks, and other types of natural disasters, all in the hopes of raising the death toll.

He’s got a split focus; his goal has to be keeping unsaved people unsaved while minimizing the evangelical effectiveness of those he loses to Christ. Hamstringing Christians reduces the glory brought to God, and if that means some people get saved later in life than they otherwise would have, it collectively reduces the amount of lifetime that Christians spend as effective doers of God’s will. We’ll cover more on how Satan might approach Christians next time, but for now let’s take a look at how he might aim to keep unbelievers from believing.

At a simplistic level, we’ll define God’s process of bringing the unsaved to faith in Him by way of the three W’s: He takes a wanderer who is searching but does not have a saving relationship with Him, He wakens them by revealing Himself to them, at which point they begin their walk with God. Again, very simplified here. There are countless ways through which these steps can occur, and I doubt if any two stories of salvation are exactly alike, but these are the basic steps in the process.

What do you do if you want to disrupt that three-step process? To counter any or all of the three Ws, you might use the three F’s: You fulfill the longings of the wanderer through other means, you fight the wakening by inciting chaos in the person’s life, and you try to flatten their walk if it turns out they’re serious about following Christ.

Let’s start with the “fulfill” step. God created humans with a longing, a hunger, for something more in this life. I’ve heard it said that people are created with a God-shaped hole in their heart. Satan’s goal is to fill that hole with anything other than God. One tactic is straightforward and easy: use other religions to fill the void. Christ said “I am the way, the truth, and the light. No one comes to the Father except through me.” If that’s true, no other religions are valid means of entering Heaven after death. What simpler way to throw people off a Heavenly course than by providing impotent facsimiles where people still get to believe in a god? Even if a religion’s founder completely believes that he or she witnessed a supernatural being delivering a special message that doesn’t jive with what God says, there’s a reason for that, found in 2 Corinthians 11:14-15: And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Satan and his minions can assume a beautiful or supernatural form and employ that showmanship to start entire new religions meant to distract from the real thing.

There are numerous other ways to fill that hole in the heart. Christ created us to know that there’s something bigger than us out there, so we have a need to fill a sense of belonging. What’s the counter? Come up with ways to fill that need without addressing the deeper yearning. The focus could be good things, like family, pride in your nation or occupation, or volunteer work at shelters. Maybe it’s something neutral, like being a fanatical sports fan, or, depending on the cause, being a dedicated activist for a cause you believe in. They could be things that turn bad too, like alcoholism, destructive relationships, or doing things to feed your greed. The enemy wants to see unbelievers get caught up in something that fulfills the longing in their heart at least enough to stop searching for something lasting to fill the void. (This is why Communist nations ban or tightly control religion. Those governments want the people to seek fulfillment through the State and its success, not turn to any other entity for hope and morality.)

Try this additional method on for size. Some people have an exceptional thirst for the supernatural. Well, if you’re Satan or one of his minions and can assume numerous forms and do things a human being can’t, it’s probably a piece of cake to inspire ghost and alien sightings. People want to believe in the supernatural, and Satan long ago invented ways that allow them to do it without embracing Christ.

Let’s move on to the “fighting” step. Sometimes God will work on a person’s heart for years before they accept Him as Savior; for others the timeline is much shorter. As Satan recognizes that a person is about to come to faith in Christ, many times he tries to ensure their life becomes chaotic. He plants seeds in their minds. The person’s head is flooded with thoughts like “What will your family say?” “You’ll lose your position or status if you join them!” “You mean you want to be one of those nuts that think the earth was created in 7 days and an old man went out and gathered two of every kind of animal on the planet and put them in an ark to survive a flood that covered the whole earth?” “Are you crazy?! Think about the shame you’ll bring to the people that care about you!” “You’ll lose everything you’ve worked for!” “YOU?! You think God could ever love or forgive you after all the things YOU’VE done?!”

These planted thoughts are meant to inspire fear, make you rationalize away the things you’ve been experiencing, and get you to turn your back on the idea of embracing Christ as your Savior. It’s like pulling a transplanted sapling out of the dirt before the sapling has a chance to take root. (If you want a closer look at the rational side of the faith, see this blog’s “This would make Spock raise an eyebrow and say ‘Curious’” category. There’s only one entry there right now, but more are on the way.)

Finally, Satan will try to “flatten” a new believer’s faith. Some people may very well lose friends or a good relationship with their family. In some sections of the world, they’ll forfeit their life if their faith becomes known.

I’ve been on youth retreats where people become Christians. They’re caught up in the emotion of it all, everybody’s singing songs, and there’s a great speaker. Telling a counselor or pastor of their decision brings happiness all around, and everyone is supportive of their decision to accept Christ. Then they go back to their normal life. Are they really supposed to turn their backs on the behaviors that have been a regular part of their life for so long? Are they supposed to read the whole Bible? That thing’s huge! “Do I have to stop hanging out with my friends?” They rationalize their decision away. “Well, I was sleep-deprived, the speaker was convincing…I kind of felt pressured to do it.” They talk themselves out of it, and turn their back on what they heard.

This is a simplified version of what happens to new Christians of any age (and is a good example of why your Christian walk should not be based on emotion and feelings…there will be low points, so building your faith using facts and reasoning is important too). Without a supportive network, many new Christians fizzle out, and isolated baby Christians are prime targets for the adversary to pick off. Preventing them from connecting with and being mentored by other Christians will go a long way toward getting them to fall away from their newfound faith.

Well there’s a lot to this, but people are going to stop reading if I keep going. To wrap up, Satan will use any means necessary to interfere with the process God uses to bring people to faith. God uses the three Ws: He takes a Wanderer, He Wakens them, and helps establish their Walk with Him. Looking to counter at least one of those steps, Satan uses the three Fs: he tries to Fulfill our innate desire for God by using other things, he Fights God’s process of wakening a lost soul, and if neither of those work, he’ll try to Flatten the new Christian’s belief.

Eternity is at stake, and the consequences are deadly serious. Today’s post addressed the non-Christian aspect of Satan’s war with humanity; come back next time for some of the ways he reduces the spiritual effectiveness of those who have embraced Christ as their savior. It might save your spiritual life, or help you be a part of saving someone else’s!

Part 1 | Part 3

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Red Teaming Humanity (Part 1 of 4: Intro)

Part 2 | Part 3

In the United States military there’s a tremendous amount of information that can be lost if our side isn’t careful about protecting it. We want information on our weaknesses or vulnerabilities, be they physical, cyber, medical, whatever they are…to be kept from adversaries. There’s a practice in the Department of Defense that encourages designated individuals or teams to look at themselves through the eyes of an adversary, with the intent to identify where information is leaking. The goal, of course, is to find and plug those leaks. This practice, that of looking at your own unit’s operation through the eyes of your adversary, is called “Red Teaming.”

Over the next several entries I’m going to Red Team Humanity from the perspective of our enemy, Satan.

Before we get into that, let’s take a step back to set the stage. It’s not a truth that people like to hear, but upon their death, humans by default are not on the path to Heaven. God made a way for us to reach Heaven along with an eternity in His presence, but there are some obstacles we need to overcome in this life. Although many people might think of him as a silly little red cartoon character, Satan is very real, and his tactics are simple but effective. His bitterness toward Christ at having already beaten him is beyond description, and he seethes with jealousy. I’m sure there has been some lashing out in rage, but he’s also not a mindless fool. He’s cunning, sophisticated, and intelligent. He was created as the greatest of all angels. Knowing that he cannot actually harm God or stop His plan, Satan’s best chance of hurting God now is to do everything in his power to rob God of the thing He loves the most…a loving relationship with us, the crown of God’s creation.

God gave us an amazing gift, and this time I’m not talking about salvation. Imagine creating us, giving us a free path to rescue us from our default path of destruction, but still leaving the door open for us to have the freedom to choose to accept it or reject it. This is a God that loves us so much that He won’t force us to love Him back because that would force us to be someone we’re not; the only souls in Heaven will be the people that chose willingly and genuinely to embrace Him as their savior.

So now put yourself in Satan’s place. You hate God, but you can’t beat him. The worst you can do to Him is to make Him sad. You recognize that God doesn’t mandate that people love Him, so if they have free will, there’s an opening for you to exploit. You can do anything within your power to prevent people from embracing Christ or sharing Him with others. Some things are off limits for Satan (he asked permission to sift Peter and the disciples “like wheat” in Luke 22:31-32 and had to seek permission to bring certain circumstances against Job). He may not be allowed to bring physical harm to some, but our minds are always fair game and are always open to attack. If you can consistently attack someone’s mind in an effective manner, you’ve got a great chance of getting the result you’re looking for.

Photo courtesy of Pinterest

How, then, do you attack someone’s mind?

I’m not going to give you an exhaustive list (I’d have to be pretty arrogant to claim to know all the tricks Satan uses), but using variations of only a handful of concepts has worked well for millennia against us humans. Even if we each live to be 100 years old, that’s still pretty short compared to the amount of time Satan’s had to hone his skills of trickery and deception. Hopefully it will help give you a better understanding of why the different pieces of the Armor of God referenced in Ephesians 6:10-18 are so vital to a Christian, and at the same time help give new urgency to why it’s so important to reach non-Christians.

In all things remember that God will be with us and He won’t desert us, but it’s up to us to believe it and not give up, even when our persistent prayers are met with silence. We are the ones that are most likely to come up short when it comes to the lifelong struggle we each face. Hanging in there and knowing God takes the long term over the short term is the way we’ll get through it.

There’s more going on out there than what we can see, and my prayer is that this series helps you think more in those terms so that you can recognize when you’re being influenced and can make good choices in times of high stress. God works through people to implement His will, and Satan will use any means to water down your effectiveness at glorifying God. Protect your mind. Take comfort in knowing that your helmet of salvation provides a great deal of protection, but don’t allow yourself to let your guard down.

Stick with me over the next few weeks, because these are going to be important. If you’re not a subscriber, check back every Thursday for a new entry in this four-part series, or sign up to receive new posts in your email.

Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. –Ephesians 6:11

Part 2 | Part 3

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I Used to Skinny Dip. Now I Chunky Dunk.

If you’ve read some of my previous posts and suspected that I’m crazy, you’ll be sure of it after this one. Stick with me though, it’s going somewhere.

For a few summers in high school and college, I worked at a Christian conference center. The summer staff, made up mostly of teenagers, lived on the campus and did a variety of jobs during the summer. “Summer staff” made for lots of fun memories. The days were long, but the weeks (and summers) were short.

I don’t know if this still happens today, but back then the girls had a tradition where, once a summer, they’d sneak out after curfew and hit the pool for some late-night skinny dipping. Every summer, the morning after the annual excursion happened, the guys would be disappointed because it had gone on right under our noses, while we were sleeping, and we hadn’t even been aware that it was happening. (We caught them in the act the previous summer, but I was on crutches, so I couldn’t play much of a role in it.) It was a huge morale boost for the ladies to get away with something so dangerous, and it would temporarily suck the morale right out of the guys’ side of the dorm.

Well, the following summer I was a counselor, so the curfew wasn’t an issue for me. It would have been fun to catch the girls in the act, but it would’ve been impossible to keep watch every night of the summer. Rather than have the guys stay up late trying to catch the girls (and making it tougher to stay healthy in the process), I decided I would instead try to deter the girls from sneaking out for their annual tradition. A few complete coincidences worked in my favor, and I probably went a little overboard further developing my “unhinged” persona. One time, by complete luck, while I was locking up the kitchen at night, I looked out the window and saw three of the summer staff girls running out of the dorm toward the kitchen, for what I can only guess was the need to raid the fridge. I couldn’t resist the opportunity. That night when I had entered the kitchen, I didn’t turn on any of the lights, so I was walking around in the dark. I hid and waited silently. Sure enough, the three came sneaking in without turning on the lights. As they drew near, I jumped out from wherever I was hiding and yelled “YOU’RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE IN HERE!” They screamed in absolute terror and ran out with their hair standing straight up. Hopefully they got a snack somewhere else.

Now, you have to understand that back then, I had more enthusiasm and energy than direction. I got a little crazier and, in my exuberance, I dug up a camouflage military uniform that I would put on as it drew near the time for lights out. Sometimes the camo makeup went on, too. I’d let everyone see me in it, and the impression everyone got was that even as everyone was going to bed, I was heading outside into the dark to do Heaven-only-knows what. I wouldn’t do this every night, but I did it often enough to keep would-be curfew breakers guessing whether or not I was out there waiting for them. It was a page from Bruce Wayne’s book.

In full summer camo one night…

Another complete coincidence worked in my favor. Sometimes I really would head outside, all dressed in camo. My main purpose was merely to be seen heading out into the darkness, but since I didn’t want to be seen coming right back in again, I had to stay out for awhile. Most of the time I just found a comfy place to lay down in the grass, and in truth I enjoyed the quiet and stillness of the normally busy place while I was out there. Sometimes I fell asleep. One time, though, as I turned the corner of a building, I came across four of the staff girls, just sitting on the grass overlooking the pool, breaking curfew. At least one of them was someone that I had earlier caught sneaking into the kitchen. They weren’t doing anything wrong (other than being out after curfew), but to them it seemed like I just…knew when they were out there doing something they shouldn’t be doing.

This is the winter version; blowing my nose wiped off part of the makeup, but when I painted up it looked like this

The end result of all this was that I cultivated an impression that just wasn’t true, and it ended up influencing others’ behavior in a way that I wanted. There were countless nights where they could’ve made it to the pool without any problem at all, but it was the fear of some weirdo in camouflage hiding in the bushes that kept them from taking part in the adventure they wanted to be a part of. More often than not, I was actually asleep in my bed way before lights out, but without knowing that truth, late-night pool adventures got postponed.

Here’s where we “land the plane” on this entry. As Christians, we have an enemy that cultivates the same kind of image. If you’re a Jesus-follower, you have the unimaginable power of the Holy Spirit residing in you, but if your enemy can intimidate you into entertaining or giving in to your doubts, he’s effectively countered the power you have inside you. In military terms, he’s negated your will or capacity to fight, even though you’re equipped to dominate.

It’s all just clever tricks and deception. Remember the truth: as a Christian, you are more than a conqueror! Don’t be held captive by lies! Not only do you have defensive armor available to you, but you have the greatest offensive weapon there is…the Sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:10-18). Properly prepared, you can walk boldly and confidently into a spiritual battle and emerge victorious. Think of it this way: if you don’t have the will to fight, the enemy can use the resources he would have used on you…somewhere else. Make no mistake: he’s going to use them, if not on you, then on someone else. If you and the Holy Spirit combat those forces, you are fighting back against the darkness and tying up enemy forces, enabling relief elsewhere. (See Daniel 10:1-14 for an example where this happened to an angel.)

The Prince of Darkness excels in lying and deception. Do you believe the lies he wants you to believe, or are you willing to trust God’s truth? Don’t believe the lies. Get up and get in the fight.

In a couple of weeks I hope to start a series on some more of the tactics Satan uses against you. Subscribe today to be sure you don’t miss it!

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How Fast Can You Forget?

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve always been amazed at how quickly the Old Testament Israelites forgot about the role of God in their history. Even the actual people that He led out of slavery in Egypt started complaining about how much better it would have been if they’d stayed slaves, where at least they had variety in their diet rather than the manna that God provided for their daily needs.

A few generations later, the Israelites were back at their whining. “We want a king! We want to be like the other nations around us!” So God gave them kings. Not every king was good, though, and some of them flat out led Israel away from God. Eventually a good king would come along and try to undo the damage that was done, but it would never quite get back to where it had been before. Asherah poles and high places seemed constantly to be put up and torn down.

God got fed up with it. He gave them plenty of warning, but the Israelites ignored it. Then foreign nations overran the country, plundered the nation, and carried them away as captives to a different land. Even then, decades later, some were able to return and begin to rebuild, but the cycle of abandoning God, then crying out to Him for help continued.

I’d read this when I was younger and think “Seriously? How could they forget everything that God did for them?” The only thing I can think of is that the stories of God’s goodness and provision weren’t being passed down from one generation to the next. As a result, the account of just how good God is…got lost.

So it bothers me quite a bit as I’m watching this happen in our own nation. The United States of America does not have a blemish-free past, but I challenge anyone to find a country that does. When I see mobs of angry people forcibly tearing down or defacing statues or monuments, it makes me wonder if the rioters even know enough history to appreciate the whole context of what those monuments represent. People that try to set the record straight, rather than allow misguided notions of historical tidbits rule the day, are said to use “divisive language.” Hmmmm. Well, facts can be that way, I guess.

Removing monuments will not change our past, but it will help remove our memory of it. When we don’t remember the past, we end up making the same mistakes that people who came before us have already made. “No, no, they removed that monument because they were offended by it!” Um, excuse me, I’m offended by their lawlessness and arrogance to think they’re entitled to make the decision to destroy/deface public property on their own, but why is their offense considered more warranted than mine? Are we not equal? Do I also need to participate in criminal activity in order to be heard?

History is important. When you ignore it, bad things will happen (again). Think about those Israelites. “Haven’t they learned anything?” We’re at the same point now! We’ve become them!

If you’re in an authority role (or even if you’re not), I implore you to please use your influence to encourage people to live according to the law. I understand that there are things you don’t like (there are things that I don’t like, either), and we can work on those things, but we have other methods of addressing citizens’ concerns. If people feel that it’s acceptable to break any old law because they dislike it, and we apply that standard to everyone, well that’s going to get pretty ugly, now isn’t it?

Your country has history, and it’s important to remember it. Sure, I’m on board with revamping some things, but history is not included in that column. We can alter or redesign some statues, but there should be a plan in place to come up with another means of commemorating what happened at that particular monument. You know why? Because history is ugly. Life is messy. In the heat of the moment, not everyone makes the right choice. That’s something that will happen in every country, just about every day, from now until there are no people left to make mistakes. Here’s the thing about mistakes though: you’re supposed to learn from them.

So let’s not be the Israelites. We’ve all made mistakes, and there are things we all could have done better. Let’s not make the error of thinking that we can flush a few unpleasant things and it will change what happened in the past. If we do that, we’ll find ourselves making the same old mistakes again for the first time.

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Sad Update

Hi everyone, just a sad, quick update. A few weeks ago I mentioned Molly, a little 7-year-old warrior fighting for her life in the hospital. I’m very sad to report that this morning she passed from this life into the next.

God was gracious, and even though it’s been very difficult, I consider myself blessed to have been able to follow her story. In their updates, the family mentioned that every time they put out an urgent call for prayer, there was an improvement in Molly’s condition a short time later. An army of prayer warriors did what they could, but in the end, God wanted Molly in Heaven more than he wanted her here.

Please pray for the Ingram family, who, I have to imagine, is shattered, exhausted, confused, and has been focused on nothing else for the past month or so and now has to deal with the insulting reality that the world continues to turn even though their lives have been turned upside-down. Molly leaves behind a Mom, Dad, and little sister Sunny.

Molly, for those of us who trust in Christ as Savior, we’ll see you on the other side; it just hurts that we have to wait until then. Thanks for touching so many lives.

Lord Jesus, we don’t understand, but we know you’re good. May your name be praised, and may you bring good out of this somehow.

For additional info, please see Molly’s Belly Blog on Facebook. (You’ll have to request access, but it shouldn’t be an issue.) Also feel free to check out the Team Ingram Blood Donation Group in honor of Molly.

The most recent Belly Blog entry breaking the tough news from her dad, Cam:

5-Jul, 5:55AM (Hour 0)

Molly Alice Ingram was met at the heavenly gates by Jesus, who took her in his arms and said “well done, my good and faithful child.”

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How Important is Focus?

Starting training in the military is generally a miserable experience. In the Air Force, it’s called Basic Military Training (BMT). If you’re an instructor at BMT, you have to take Americans from all cultural backgrounds and give them a common understanding, giving them the foundation to be a professional warrior, sometimes for people as young as 17.

Before you can build recruits into what you want them to become, you have to tear down what they currently are…individuals with their own sense of self, their own moral compasses, and their own priorities.

On the first day you arrive for BMT, you’re arriving in buses that came from airports, railroad stations, or other bus stations. Everybody’s dressed in their own street clothes. Some men have long hair, some are completely bald, some have mohawks. For the instructors to begin their work of tearing down recruits’ sense of individuality, they largely take the approach of scaring the bejeezus out of everyone.

Almost no instructor speaks in a normal voice. It’s all yelling. If they whisper or speak quietly to you, it’s really bad. You’re taught to stand there, motionless, with a thousand-yard stare. For how long? It doesn’t matter, keep standing there until they tell you to move. That was one of the first lessons they taught us on the first day…there are times when you are not to be distracted, even when you’ve got nothing to do.

The sheer logistics of confirming the identities of hundreds of men and women and verifying that they arrived safely takes a well-oiled machine. They eventually had to start moving us from the parking lot to a spot indoors, so they arranged groups of us in line and we’d wait our turn to shuffle inside.

As the line crept forward and I neared the entrance to the building, there was a large window to the foyer, through which a waiting room was visible. Inside it stood a man dressed in street clothes. I didn’t look at him directly, but he started gently knocking on the window, and from the corner of my eye it looked like he was trying to get the attention of either me or the guy in front of me.

Man, I didn’t want any trouble. Our friendly instructors had just finished telling us not to be distracted. Maybe this guy wanted to tell me my shoelace was untied or my fly was open or something. He kept knocking, but I kept staring at the back of the head of the guy in front of me. That knocking was persistent. Focus, focus, focus! Knock, knock, knock. Just as I was about to look over at him, the guy in front of me turned his head just a little too much to look at the guy, who then got a big smile and then pointed straight at the guy in front of me. Immediately what seemed like a horde of angry instructors descended upon this guy, yelling with red faces and bulging neck veins, reminding the offender that they had just talked about the importance of not losing focus!

I knew it was probably a trap, and I was still about to give in!

I’ll lay it out there in plain terms. As Christians, we’re here for two very simple reasons: 1. know God, and 2. make Him known. While there are countless ways of sharing the news of God’s love with the world, anything that’s taking you off point is a distraction. A word of caution: sometimes you may recognize that a distraction is a trap, but I’d guess more often than not, you’re not going to see it for what it is. Be on guard.

Think Trump will be re-elected? Who’s right, Black Lives Matter, Blue Lives Matter, or All Lives Matter? Will COVID-19 and climate change wipe out half the earth’s population by 2030?

See what I mean? It’s easy to allow yourself to be pulled off course. You may have already completely lost sight of what I’ve been writing about. Don’t take your eye off the prize. There will always be distractions, and they’ll come in many shapes and sizes, but they can all be characterized as things that take you off your mission: 1. know God, and 2. make Him known.

And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s business?” – Luke 2:49

Happy Birthday America! You’re not perfect, but neither am I and there’s nowhere I’d rather live!

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I Can’t Shake Him!

As a teenager there were a few summers where I worked on the summer staff of a Christian conference center. We’d work during the day, and then in the evening we usually had some kind of staff activity to hang out together.

One night after work, for our staff activity we headed off to one of the more remote sections of the campus. We were going to have some kind of get-messy fight. I forget exactly what it was, but the basic idea was to get everyone else messier than you, and I think the weapon of the day was either shaving cream or whipped cream.

I wasn’t too enthusiastic about it, so once we started, rather than get right in the thick of it I sort of hung out on the edge and let everyone else get messy. The cream went flying, there were shrieks, shouts, and general mayhem ruled the day. I tried moving around enough so that I didn’t really look like I was avoiding the mess, but eventually someone noticed I was still as clean as when we started.

There was a guy on staff named Dave. Dave was super fast. Someone noticed I wasn’t messy and yelled “Dave! Get Tim!”

Dave stopped and looked at me. Our eyes met, and that’s all it took. Man, I was gone. I took off sprinting away from him as fast as I possibly could. I didn’t hold anything back because I knew he was the only person that could catch me. All the lap-swimming and other training I did for lifeguarding helped me stay in shape and run pretty fast, but I wasn’t going to be fast enough to outrun Dave. My only hope was that he’d give up the chase before he caught me.

I sprinted for over a hundred yards, but he was still back there, with two hands’ worth of shaving cream, and he was closer than when we’d started. By the time we’d gone another 50 yards, it was clear that I wasn’t going to get away from him. He was relentless. It seemed like the closer he got, the more energized he became, invigorated at the prospect of running me down.

As he got within a few feet, I was done. I could’ve kept running, but I couldn’t sprint anymore. My half-hearted attempt at zigzagging only helped him close the distance faster. He caught up to me and I got a face full of shaving cream.

Spiritually, I don’t know where you stand. For all I know, you’re not really into that “god” thing, but you somehow came across this post. You’re open to the idea of some higher power being out there, but you don’t have a concrete idea of what that entails.

Let me tell you about this God. He’s not one that sits on a throne laughing maniacally while shooting lightning bolts at anyone who displeases him. This version is unlike any that you’ve heard of before. He’s watching you, yes, but He’s not “out to get” you. This is someone that loves you without remorse, and will pursue you with abandon. He will chase you relentlessly, even if you choose to ignore Him. He will love you until your dying breath, but cares too deeply about who you really are to force you to love Him back. His name is Jesus Christ.

If you’re even still reading, you can scoff at what I say, but my goal is to help plant a seed in your mind that will grow into something more. Watch as later today, maybe tomorrow, or maybe sometime much later down the road, something happens in your life that makes you think back to this story. You’ll remember that you heard about God loving you recklessly. Though you run, He will pursue you without mercy just for the mere possibility that you even think about being curious about Him, caring too much to give up the chase and not be there in the event you stop running and turn around.

The decision you have to make is how long you’ll keep on running. No matter how long or how far you run…He’s faster and can do it longer. Try having an open mind; why don’t you see what happens when you get caught?

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Pray With Fury

Have you ever been so mentally or physically worn out that you can’t even take care of yourself?

Emotionally wrung out, physically depleted, and/or mentally exhausted people have a difficult time performing all but the most basic of functions. If they’re providing care for someone else while in this state, they’re certainly not taking proper care of themselves.

In these situations it can be extraordinarily difficult to have any prayer life to speak of, save for a singular focus. I’ve heard the term “intercessory prayer” for a long time, but only recently heard it described as praying on someone else’s behalf because they are either unable or unwilling to do it themselves.

To look at it another way, you might be the only person with the ability to address a certain issue through prayer.

There’s a special family in Northern Virginia whose little girl, Molly, developed a condition in the womb that resulted in her being born with some of her internal organs on the outside of her body. Now 7 years old, last week Molly went into surgery after months of preparatory procedures aimed at moving those organs inside her body. Initially things looked good, but as time went on, Molly’s heart and lungs had a very difficult time adapting to the increased pressure of having not only the organs moved inside her abdominal cavity, but the added pressure of swelling due to surgery. It’s been a very fluid situation since the process first began over a week ago, and at times it seemed doubtful that this sweet little girl would make it through the night. Molly, her parents, and her medical team at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia have been forced to contend with countless complications that cast a heavy fog over the path that would bring her back from the brink.

Imagine sending your little girl back for surgery, and you and your spouse await word from the surgeons to find out how it went. During the surgery, a nurse comes hurrying out of the operating room, only to return a short time later with a cooler containing blood for transfusing, and your daughter’s name is printed on it. Then later they bring in still more blood for her. In the first 18 hours after her initial surgery started, Molly required 40 units of blood. In the days that followed, her medical team had to advocate on her behalf in order to convince the hospital to allow Molly access to its critical reserve of blood products.

Molly in her room (Photo courtesy of “Molly’s Belly Blog”)

In all of this, Molly’s parents are staying with a host family during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. Their little girl has undergone half a dozen surgeries since the first one, some of which focused on unexpected areas of her body that were fine before she went under. Molly simply wouldn’t stop bleeding, her blood pressure wouldn’t come up enough, and the clotting and blood pressure medication the team administered robbed her extremities of oxygen.

Her parents, while obviously prayerful for their daughter’s life, are exhausted, separated from their other daughter, and dealing with a situation that changes often. In the week following the initial surgery there’s been much more bad news than good, and if you’re prone to worry, there’s been much to worry about. Molly and her parents are simply unable to pray for everything that needs to be brought to God and still function on a day-to-day basis.

That’s where we come in. As it became evident that the surgery had not worked as planned and that Molly’s life was in a precarious state, people began praying by the hundreds. These people, from around the globe, have covered this family in prayer 24 hours a day.

About a week into the ordeal, Molly turned a corner and began to improve. It’s still not clear what the outcome will be, but at this point there are literally thousands of people praying on behalf of Molly and her family, lifting them up in constant prayer. This little girl, whose life at times seemed to be hanging by a thread, has to date received a whopping 150 units of blood.

Acutely aware of just how precious a resource available blood is, the family found a way to tap in to the desire of everyone that wanted to help the family. After forming “Team Ingram” on a Red Cross app, the family requested that volunteers donate blood in Molly’s name. In just 24 hours, Team Ingram jumped into the top 1% of blood-donation groups, replenishing many times over the amount of blood used in Molly’s treatment so far, and potentially saving many other lives in the process.

Although I’m sure there were numerous “passing prayers” or quick prayers uttered in half a breath for Molly, there have collectively been many hours of deliberate prayer on behalf of her and her family. Some of this was intentional, focused prayer pleading with the Lord for Molly’s life. She’s still here, but still needs persistent prayer. God still listens to the prayers of His people. I don’t know how all this will end, but the targeted prayers focused on specific topics seem to have moved Molly in the right direction. All glory and honor belong to the Lord, Jesus Christ.

Graphic courtesy of “Molly’s Belly Blog”

If you’d like to follow along with Molly’s saga and add your prayer (or blood donation) support to her and her family, please request to join the “Molly’s Belly Blog” or watch this YouTube video of her story…and please keep her full recovery in your prayers, because God listens to His people’s requests.

Please pass this post along to anyone you think will make an appeal to God on behalf of Molly and her family.

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Someone Call Security

Consider this paragraph a brief public service announcement: The major news outlets seem to have perfected the art of presenting lots of material that evokes powerful emotions without giving many facts. That being the case, I’d encourage you to limit the amount of time you spend watching the news (if it’s important enough, you’ll find out about it). I’m not encouraging ignorance, I’m simply noting that when there are few facts to present, you don’t need all the conjecture that gets you amped up in the process. If anxiety is a problem for you, I can just about guarantee this will help you out. Anyway, I thought I’d take this opportunity to share something a little more lighthearted.

My wife is one of four sisters, all of whom are married. At one point three of those sisters were married to men in the Air Force. As you might imagine, Uncle Sam has a way of scattering military folks around the country (and sometimes the globe). As a result, it’s not easy to arrange family get-togethers where everyone is present, and sometimes we can go for years without seeing certain family members in person.

When we found out one of my far-flung brothers-in-law was going to be flying through our area on his way to a deployment overseas, we decided to go meet him on his last layover before leaving the states. The logistics weren’t going to work out to bring him back to our place, so we collectively decided we’d go hang out at a mall near the airport and go out to eat while we were together. Some malls are great for sitting around and relaxing while others aren’t. We weren’t familiar with this mall, so after we picked him up from the airport we just sort of showed up at the mall and started walking around.

At the time we had two young kiddos who were generally well-behaved, but they would only stay happy for so long unless we found something to keep them occupied. We figured there had to be a play place around somewhere nearby, but for some reason the mall directory in this particular mall was very difficult to find. We found a spot with games and flashing lights that would keep the kids occupied for a little while, then my brother-in-law and I parted ways with my wife and kids and set out looking either for a playground or a mall directory.

We turned past a few corners and walked down a few hallways, but still couldn’t find anything helpful. Mindful that the clock was ticking and that walking around a mall like this was probably not going to make the start of a deployment any less stressful, I decided to go against the male instinct and ask for directions.

I spotted a mall cop standing on one of those motorized Segues. I didn’t think about it until after the words came out of my mouth, but I probably got us onto mall security’s radar screen. If you were a mall cop, what would you think if two thirty-something dudes with military haircuts and generally humorless demeanors walk up to you and say “hey man, where do the kids hang out in this mall?”

I haven’t been back to that mall since then, but if I did, I wouldn’t be surprised if I were tailed by my own personal mall cop soon after being identified.

Strange story, I know. Just meant to give you a chuckle. Anyway, it’s rough out there these days, but don’t let that steal your joy in Christ. Your joy in Christ is one of the things that will attract nonbelievers to the light you have inside you, especially during difficult times. Don’t let stuff get you down, because in times like this, your joy shines bright, and people need that right now.

Take care of yourselves and take care of each other.

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How Can a Rational Person be a Christian?

So you’re a Christian, huh? You seem like a pretty rational person other than the fact that you believe the universe and mankind were created in seven 24-hour days less than 10,000 years ago, that a 500-year-old man built a huge boat and then went out and gathered two of every kind of animal in the world onto it, that a big fish swallowed a dude and swam around with him alive in its belly for three days before vomiting him up unharmed, and that a virgin gave birth to the Messiah, who was able to turn water into wine, walk on water, and raise himself from the dead. But yeah, other than that you seem pretty rational.

Why on earth would any reasonable person become a Christian?

It’s okay to have and explore questions like this, because if you can’t provide a response, how will skeptics in your life ever learn the truth? This is the “mind” part of when Christ stated the importance of loving the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind. I’ll share a little bit about one thing that helps assure me that God is out there and that He’s in charge of history.

People that aren’t familiar with the Bible usually don’t understand that it’s not a monolith. It’s not a huge book that was written by a single author. It consists of 66 books written by nearly 40 authors, spread out over the course of hundreds of years (with a big gap between the Old and New Testaments).

Aside from the events that took place in the Bible, there are a lot of “nonreligious” things that happened in history. Think about major international news events of the modern era. World War II took place; men landed on the moon; the Berlin Wall came down; 9/11 happened; Russia annexed Crimea; and the Chicago Cubs finally won the World Series. In the same way that those events can all be verified outside of religion, there are plenty of other writers outside the Bible that captured some of the world’s major events that the Bible wrote about.

Can you imagine if someone predicted all those major events I just mentioned decades, or even hundreds of years before they happened, with a decent amount of specificity? It would surely raise a few eyebrows, and odds are you’d be curious to take a look at the other things the author wrote.

That’s exactly what happens in the book of Daniel. It predicted the rise and fall of several empires, and even described each of them to some degree. Daniel predicted the then-future (which is our history), and now in hindsight we are able to corroborate from non-biblical sources the accuracy of those predictions. That’s like Abraham Lincoln stating that Tom Brady would one day join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers…before the sport of football had even been invented. We can look in history books to verify that the Babylonian Empire was captured by the Persian Empire, who then fell to Alexander the Great, and upon his death the territory he’d conquered got split up into four different regions and was given to four of his generals. We hear of an unbelievably arrogant king that we learn from extra-biblical sources to be Antiochus IV Epiphenes. Daniel chapter 11 discusses some of the efforts at diplomacy and trickery between some of these four. Then the book describes events that are still in our future.

When you consider the magnitude of what this represents, you begin to understand that the book of Daniel is about much more than a story about a lion’s den. If you study the book of Daniel closely, you see that it laid out the future with a startling amount of detail. To anyone alive during the time Daniel’s prophecies came true, imagine the credibility his writings gained. Wouldn’t you want to learn more about what Daniel said and how he knew the future? Daniel pointed straight to God and gave Him the glory for being able to control and know the future.

This is only one case of how common sense and logical thought build a case for the idea that there’s more than what we can see. Put them together and the case starts to get pretty strong. How can a rational person be a Christian? How can you not at least consider it?

Mr. Spock: one of the most rational (half) people I know. Courtesy of Pinterest.

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To the Class of 2020

Graduations look a little different these days

It’s difficult to overstate the level of disruption the Coronavirus has brought into our daily lives. A few years from now we’ll likely view this period as a lost six months, year, whatever. For many of us, we’ll probably be able to shake off this experience and view it as no more than a strange blip that we lived through. There are simply some things, however, that will be permanently lost. One of the first that comes to mind is the opportunity to walk with your peers at an in-person graduation ceremony.

Whether we’re talking high school or college, your senior year is special. After all the waiting, you’re now in the class that’s at the top of the heap. After graduation, you’ll probably keep in touch with some of your friends, but it’s never quite going to be the same again. In that sense, graduation ceremonies are bittersweet mixes of celebrations and goodbyes. In my mind the lack of an opportunity to partake in a traditional ceremony robs students of closure both in triumphing over the academic struggles and in parting ways with classmates.

To all the Seniors out there, I’m sorry the virus robbed you of this memorable experience. There’s nothing I can do to restore that for you, but this week’s post is in honor of you, and hopefully you can live vicariously through the experiences shared here. It’s nothing major, but hopefully it’s at least fun to read.

One other major thing that distinguishes your senior year from all others is that, as upperclassmen, you’ve got dibs on pulling pranks. It’s important to understand that pranks are usually pretty pointless in terms of what they achieve, but they can be a thrill to plan and execute. The journey is the destination. Very seldom does a prank result in something that alters the course of history, but history is full of memorable “what was the point of that?” pranks.

As a senior in college, I was super busy my senior year (see this post for more background about how I brought this on myself). Some of my friends and other people from my class took part in some antics around the campus, but I just didn’t have the time to participate. A group of my friends snuck into the cafeteria one evening under the noses of the cafeteria workers and swiped a few stacks of the trays students used during meal times. They then brought them to the gym after hours, where one of the participants had “accidentally” neglected to secure a certain door upon locking up for the night. The next morning a whole bunch of meal trays were discovered floating in the pool, and I’m not sure how the cafeteria supplied trays for breakfast.

To our college’s credit (and to our dismay as student delinquents), they had a fantastic prank clean-up crew. I was on my way to class one winter morning, at least a few days after it had snowed, and as I walked along one of the main routes that included a tunnel through one of the buildings, it was odd to see one of the maintenance staff using a snow blower to remove a huge pile of snow near the tunnel entrance. I didn’t think too much of it until later, when I learned that someone I knew and a group of his buddies had filled up the bed of a pickup truck with snow multiple times, and then proceeded to dump the loads of snow in front of this tunnel. (And I know at least one of you is reading this…it was a great attempt, thanks for filling me in on it later!)

We eventually figured out that the diligence of the “clean-up crew” was the largest barrier to the “epic-ness” of whatever prank we would attempt. How frustrating it was to undertake these endeavors only for them to be covered up or countered by the college staff. We had to come up with something more diabolical. (These days I use my creative powers for good. Mostly. I am a dad of three kids, so there’s still some mischief.)

In our last month of senior year, a group of us decided that in order to have a bigger impact, we had to do something that would overwhelm the ability of the cleanup crew to quickly return things to normal. We decided that to get the largest percentage of the student body to see our handiwork, we would target the campus chapel on one of the nights before a chapel session would be held the next morning.

Coincidentally, all of us had work/study jobs as a way to pick up a little money. One of us had a job as a janitor somewhere on the campus. I don’t remember if it was a little at a time or if it was all at once, but one guy snuck a garbage bag full of toilet paper rolls that would be used to TP the chapel. Considering how precious a commodity toilet paper has been over the past few months, this seems like it could be considered a felony today. It also lends some insight into the truth behind why tuition prices keep going up so much.

I didn’t have an appreciation for how wasteful this was until recently

I was still very busy with things to do, but on this occasion I figured out a way to get stuff done while being a part of this prank. We had recently returned from an eventful club whitewater rafting trip, and I wanted to record many of the details in a journal before I forgot them. (You can read about some of those adventures here and here.) Between classwork, activities, studying for finals, and winding down my final college semester, I didn’t have time to effectively capture those memories. I even recorded more of those trip details while sitting onstage during Baccalaureate and graduation.

For this prank, I was going to be the lookout, with a walkie-talkie, who journaled during the dull parts. This was a unique situation, because although two of us had walkie-talkies (the lookout and one of the TPers), I would be the only one talking. I ended up using different voices to pretend to be a couple of different people on the radio who were playing some kind of game nearby, and we had established certain words ahead of time to indicate how safe it was to participate in the hooliganism. The guy on the other radio would listen to my babblings, keeping an ear out for these code words.

I sat at a spot where I could see most of the entrances to the chapel, and saw the pranksters moving one or two at a time toward the door they’d arranged to enter. A few of them carried garbage bags. They got inside and got to work. I think someone else heard my radio’s transmissions though, because a few people showed up in the area looking like they expected to find someone. A security guard eventually made his rounds, and even stopped to chat with me. I’m sure it was unusual, though probably not the weirdest thing he’s seen, to find a college student writing in a book in the dark. He probably put two and two together the next day, but we didn’t get caught that night. I gave the TPers as much time as I could to do their thing, but little things kept adding up, and I eventually gave the signal to scram.

We all met back up afterwards, and the TPers were very enthusiastic about the feat they’d accomplished. I didn’t get to see the final results of their work, but they told me they’d been running around up in the catwalks and loft, tossing TP through the chandeliers and other hard-to-reach places for all they were worth. “Man, they won’t have it all cleaned up for a week!”

I don’t know if I ever looked forward to a chapel session so much. The next day as I walked into the chapel, there was no sign whatsoever that Team TP had even been there.

Thwarted again.

Class of 2020, pranks may not have been at the top of your to-do list, but you probably didn’t get to do all the things you wanted to do before your last day of in-person class. That’s not the end for you, though. As you move into your next phase of life you’ll have setbacks and you’ll have triumphs, but the most important thing will be for you to keep plugging away, even…no…especially if there’s more “rough” than “smooth.” I believe you can do it, and that this will shape your outlook even after things pick back up again. Good luck, God bless, and best wishes as you make the most of the opportunities you encounter.

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You’re the Key

Those are all keys behind him

When I was really young, my dad was a maintenance guy at a Christian conference center in eastern Pennsylvania, and our family lived on the campus. Groups of people from churches in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania would come and attend retreats at this place. Once the groups departed, somebody had to walk around to all the rooms that had just been vacated, and make sure all the lights were turned off and the heat/air conditioning weren’t blasting in a vacant room. Sometimes that duty fell to my dad, and every once in awhile he’d take me along.

As a part of the maintenance staff, Dad had a key ring that was chock full of keys that opened just about anything and everything on the whole complex. It could be a master key for all the guest rooms in a given building, the key to the room in the gymnasium where they kept all the spare basketballs, the padlock to the room in the basement of the snack shack where they kept a bunch of electronics and motors, or a little key to adjust the thermostat in the meeting rooms. If you needed to open a lock anywhere on the campus, there’s a good chance my dad’s key ring had a solution.

As a kid, it was impossible to keep track of the differences between all the keys. A few of them stood out from the others; maybe some were shinier, bigger, or the head had a distinct shape or color. To me, though, most of them were indistinguishable from one another. If someone plunked me down in front of a random locked door somewhere on the campus with that key ring, it would’ve taken a good deal of time by trial and error for me to open it. Dad knew what each one did, though.

Now imagine that every Christian is a key on God’s giant key ring. There’s a door, or maybe a group of doors, that you have the ability to unlock (or lock). It’s your purpose; it’s what you were made for. You can be jealous of what other keys were built for, but it sure isn’t going to help you fulfill your role any better. You might even try to function in a lock you weren’t designed to operate, but it’s not what you were made for. Some people are dissatisfied or in denial about the lock in which they fit, and they want to choose their own lock.

Sorry Pardner, it doesn’t work that way.

There’s a lock out there for which you are the key, and you might encounter your lock during this unique time in history. The Man holding the key ring wants to use you according to His schedule, but if you’re unwilling or are too focused on a lock for which you’re not the key, you’re missing your calling. My request to you would be: work the lock you’re built for.

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Planned Obsolescence

Ever notice how you can say “they just don’t make it like they used to” about a lot of things?

For example, my parents have a clothes dryer that’s older than me. It’s complained a bit every now and then, but the thing is built like a tank and is still going after a few fixes. Modern ones seem to break if you look at them the wrong way.

Newer cars seem to fall apart much easier than the ones from, say, 30 years ago. What used to be fixed by a good hit with a ball peen hammer now requires more genteel computer diagnostics to figure anything out before you can start to make repairs.

I don’t know if this is true or not, but I heard that back in the 1940s and 50s, women’s pantyhose was of such high quality that the manufacturers worried they weren’t selling enough to sustain their businesses. Their product was so good that after a woman bought some, she didn’t need any more for a long time.

Enter the idea of planned obsolescence, or the intentional use of lower quality materials and construction to shorten the lifespan of a product in an effort to induce consumers to buy more of them. If it falls apart sooner, you’ll end up buying more units than you otherwise would have.

Here’s an odd thought: what if we are the lower-quality product? In 2017 the average life expectancy for Americans was 78.54 years. By comparison, at that point in Moses’ life, he hadn’t even stood before Pharaoh yet. Abraham didn’t have his first child until he was 86, and then he lived about 90 years beyond that. Noah was over 500 years old when he started building the ark, was 600 when the flood started, and he lived another 350 years beyond that until he was 950 years old! This was before antibiotics, nutritional supplements, and the medical knowledge we enjoy today. My friends, you and I are some of the best examples of planned obsolescence I can think of.

Even great figures of Biblical history are shuffled off the stage of God’s theater. Consider King David. Though flawed, he was one of the most genuine and passionate characters in the whole Bible. He’s the stuff legends are made of; as a youngster he vanquished a giant professional soldier with a sling and a rock, then went on to lead raids of enemy camps with ragtag mercenaries as his companions. Although defined as a man of war, his zeal for the Lord led him to set the stage for Solomon’s construction of the Temple by collecting an unbelievable amount of precious metals and other materials. Jesus came from the line of David, for goodness’ sake! At the end of his life, he was unquestionably recognized as a giant of the Faith. Yet even he was just a man, and was intended to play a small role in God’s overall plan. In spite of all his accomplishments, listen to how David is described in Acts 13:36:

“Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed.”

“Falling asleep” in the Bible is usually a euphemism for dying. That’s not the interesting thing though. There are a few different things we can take from this verse, but the two I want to focus on are 1. that he served God’s purpose “in his own generation,” and 2. when he had fulfilled God’s reason for putting him here on Earth, he moved on into eternity.

To the first point, can you imagine if you lived during a different time period? You could have lived 4,000 years ago, or you could have been placed on hold and not made your debut here on Earth for another 200 years. God put you in the here and now intentionally. You are a part of “your generation” because you are to fulfill God’s purpose within it. I don’t know what that purpose is and you might not either, but the fact that you’re reading this right now, today, means you probably weren’t born before 1940 or so. The “today” you see is not an accident or a random assignment, you belong here.

To the second point, you’re here on Earth to do whatever God put you here to do, and you might not be going anywhere until you do it. At some point after that He’ll escort you from this life, but it could be seconds or decades between when you “complete your mission” and you make your departure. To throw a curveball at the situation: almost none of us know with full certainty what our specific purpose is or when we’ll accomplish it.

Zooming back out to the big picture and our limited time on Earth, it seems we might be a little bit more like an aging toaster than we care to admit. We can tell when things are getting toward the end, but most of us can’t predict when we’re toasting our last bagel.

What are we to do then? I’ll summarize it as best I can:

Love God ferociously and use the talents, resources, and circumstances He’s matched you up with to make a positive difference in people’s lives, all the while giving the glory to Him. You will fall, you will have self doubts, and in many cases you will fail. There may be more bad days than good days, but you have been placed here, at this exact point in history, to make an eternal difference in some way.

There’s a song we’ve all heard a million times; it’s one we usually hear in December, but its message fits with the core of this post. If you were meeting the newborn King of Kings, and you simply couldn’t compete with the expensive gifts that others brought, one of the best things you could do is use the talents He’s given you to make Him smile. Isn’t that what we’re all after? (There’s a fun version of this song below.)  

Do your best to serve God’s purpose in your generation.

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I Hear What You’re Saying, But…

If I told you I’m a parent, you’d probably believe me, but it’s not the same thing as seeing evidence that I’m a parent.

I came home from work one day and saw a Frisbee on the roof over our garage. We often have misspelled words and stick figures drawn in different colors of chalk on our driveway or sidewalk. In the summertime I often see little bits of broken water balloons on our porch. Inside the house, the living room is seldom “all the way” cleaned up, even if we tell the kids to make it “Mommy and Daddy mode.”

We have kids, and there are signs of them everywhere. (It’s unquestionably a good thing, even though sometimes there are a few too many signs.)

These things, in and of themselves, are not proof that I’m a parent. To an observer though, these signs make the notion a lot more believable.

There’s something similar when it comes to Christianity. If you claim to be a Christian, yet you haven’t changed at all from the way you were before joining the faith, something’s probably not quite right.

Galations 5:22-23 describes the qualities that a Christian will develop over time. The author’s not saying that only a Christian could have these qualities, but, in the same way that the Frisbee on my roof is probably there because of a kid rather than an adult, a Christian’s life will contain signs, indicators, or evidence of the faith they’re claiming.

When someone accepts Christ, at that moment the Holy Spirit sets up shop in that person’s life. What does that mean? It means that from that moment on, God starts working on changing your attitude to be more like His. I heard someone say once that God accepts you for who you are, but He loves you too much to leave you that way.

My mom used to have a tee shirt with a three-by-three grid on it. Inside each box was a picture of some kind of fruit, but instead of labeling them “grapes” or “watermelon,” they’d say things like “patience” and “self control.” These nine things (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control) collectively make up what the Bible calls “the fruit of the Spirit.”

Having these fruits is not something that happens quickly. Fruit takes a long time to grow. You can’t put in a weekend of intensive Bible reading and prayer and have these things spring forth in your life; it takes time. The outcome of being a Christian and continuously pursuing a relationship with Christ is a life that is characterized by these nine fruits.

Consider taking a closer look at these traits. Is there one (or several) that you’d like to develop or increase in your walk with Christ?

Happy birthday Mom! Love ya!

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When a Fail is a Win

Strange times we’re in. While there are many people that no longer have the job they held a month or two ago, many others now work from home. For those folks, the reality is that sometimes they just can’t produce the same quality from home that they’re able to at their normal place of business. I don’t advocate for shoddy workmanship, but it’s important to understand that if you’ve turned in low-quality work of some kind, all is not lost.

We’ve heard many times that God can take terrible things and use them for good. It’s like saying God loves us. We’ve heard it so many times we lose our appreciation for what it means. What if I told you there’s a story in the Bible where God used someone’s poor-quality work to both glorify Himself and accomplish His will at the same time? That might make you feel better when you’re unable to produce the same quality of work you’re accustomed to turning in.

There’s a story in 1 Kings 20 that has a funny little twist. The Bible often glosses over big events in a very short amount of time, and if you blink, you’ll miss it. In this case, the Israelites were at war with a numerically superior foe, the Arameans. Verse 27 says that the Israelites were like two little flocks of goats, but the Arameans covered the countryside.

The Lord was kinda mad at the Arameans in this engagement, so he enabled the Israelites to cut down 100,000 of their enemy in one day, and verse 30 says that the rest fled into a nearby city. Here’s where you’ll miss it if you blink: “But the rest fled to Aphek into the city, and the wall fell on 27,000 men who were left.”

Now, I don’t know about you, but I’ve never seen a wall large enough to fall on 27,000 men. In order to have a wall that big fall on so many people at once, we’re talking about failure at a spectacular level. The book doesn’t say anything about how that wall was constructed or what made it collapse; we just know that it happened, it was bad news for the Arameans, and it was all part of God’s plan.

Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not condoning work that’s intentionally sloppy or poor. If you can’t meet the level of what you’re ordinarily capable of though, do the best you can. There may be a divine purpose for that imperfection later on down the line.

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Life Lessons From…Skydiving?

Exiting an aircraft with Tony and his very recognizable jumpsuit

I’m certainly no skydiving guru. While I was a skydiving student, though, I had a few memorable jumps. I’m not sure what the requirement is now, but when I was working on getting my A License (the most basic jumping certification), the rule was that you had to accumulate at least 25 jumps and meet certain milestones along the way.

I was in the plane on the way up for my 23rd jump. The weather was turning sour, so this was the drop zone’s last load of jumpers for at least a few hours. We saw the cloud bank rolling in, and we were trying to rush up to altitude so we could jump out and land before the clouds obscured our view of the ground.

Another student named Jeremy and I were going to jump with our coach Tony. Tony was pretty familiar with us and we had all jumped together before. He wore a neon orange jumpsuit that was so bright it looked like it ran on batteries.

On a jump with Tony as my coach

I don’t remember what the freefall objectives of the jump were, but once we arrived at altitude we hopped out together and began going through our freefall plan. We fell through our predetermined “time to separate” altitude, so we broke apart to get some distance between us before we opened our parachutes. All three of us opened the chutes without a problem, but much to our surprise, the cloud cover had blown in much faster than we anticipated. We couldn’t see the ground anywhere. The only thing we had were our altimeters; we knew how high we were off the ground, but we didn’t know where we were in relation to the airport, so we couldn’t line up in our landing pattern. Since the wind was pushing us the whole time, the longer we floated aimlessly, the further off course we drifted, leaving us less margin of error for a safe landing at the airport.

Since Jeremy and I were still students, each of us had a one-way radio in our jumpsuit shoulder pockets. There was a guy on the ground with a walkie talkie that was waiting to spot us, and he would radio instructions about which way to turn and when to do it. Until we popped through the clouds though, it was useless for all of us.

Tony took the lead; he was the lowest jumper “under canopy,” so I followed him, and Jeremy followed me. I was glad Tony’s jumpsuit was so bright. It was eerie and unsettling to drift without direction in a thick fog. The last time we saw the airport, we were right over it, but the wind can be a lot stronger than you realize when you don’t have any visible references.

Suddenly we popped through the bottom of the clouds at a low altitude. The airport was impossibly far away! We had bled off so much altitude in the fog that there was no way we could make it back. Tony’s canopy had a much higher performance capability, so he made a break for the airport and was able to make it back. With our “vanilla” student rigs and oversized canopies, though, Jeremy and I had no chance of reaching the airport.

The dropzone where I learned to jump was home to the Guinness World Record holder of sport parachute jumps. Don Kellner, who just recently completed his 45,000th jump, was on the radio giving instructions to Jeremy and I. Don’s a funny guy; he doesn’t pull any punches, so he says it like it is and doesn’t sugar coat it.

“Well…find a place to land” came through the radio. Thanks Don.

We had blown way off course. We were now downwind not just of the runway, but of the entire airport complex, and we had a choice: land somewhere in a neighborhood, land somewhere in a wooded area, or land in a big rock quarry. Don advised us to shoot for the quarry.

When you’re a novice jumper, you usually have a flat patch of grass that’s as big as a football field to land on, and there’s usually plenty of other open space nearby (runways and the grassy areas next to them are usually pretty long). All of a sudden, a hilly rock quarry that didn’t have any wind indicators seemed like a pretty hostile place to land. It was the best of our bad options though, so we went for it.

With Tony out of the picture, I was now the lead in the flight pattern. I made a series of turns to get us lined up for what looked like the longest stretch of the flattest ground at the bottom of the quarry. We floated below the horizon and became committed to our flight path.

We both stumbled and took a few bumps and bruises as we tried running out our landings on the side of a hill. We made it safely to the ground without any blood or major injuries. After the canopies fell to the ground, we excitedly checked in with each other and exaggerated to each other just how truly awesome we were with lots of laughs, wild gestures to help relive the experience, and congratulatory slaps on the back. As we took a deep breath and looked around the bottom of this hole, we realized that we didn’t even know which way we should start climbing up out of the quarry. With all the midair turns we did, we lost all sense of direction and couldn’t even point to the airport or the nearest road.

Something tells me that we weren’t the first wayward skydivers to land in this quarry. Before we could even decide what to do, two of our other instructors, in their goofy neon jumpsuits, appeared on the rim of the quarry, shouting and waving to us. We were rescued!

Some general perspective on living: Life isn’t always going to go the way you planned. There are going to be times you find yourself traveling through a disorienting fog. Sometimes you’ll feel abandoned by the people you depended on (or you simply can’t keep up with them). In those times, when you’re at the bottom of a hole, someone might just show up to help you. They may not be what you expected, but it’s still an opportunity to find out which way to climb out of the hole.

We’re passing through strange times; it might not be a bad idea to accept a hand up when it’s offered. Keep your chin up; brighter days are coming.

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Worrywarts

I’ve got three kids. It’s fun to watch them grow, figure stuff out, and then teach each other the things they’ve picked up over time.

My older two have figured out that when they’re scared of doing something, whether it’s go down in the basement or knock on a neighbor’s door, it’s usually not as bad if they take someone along with them. As a result, their little sister often ends up going down in the basement or knocking on a neighbor’s door along with them.

Taking it a step further, the two older kids are downright brave if they’re watching out for their little sister, even if it’s something that ordinarily gives them the willies.

Ever notice how you tend to be more brave if you’re watching out for someone? You can more easily pull yourself together in a bad situation when someone else depends on you. When someone else relies on you, it takes you out of yourself, and you can rise above your fears.

There are a lot of very anxious people out there these days. If you’re one of them, the first thing I’d probably recommend is to ease back on the amount of news coverage you take in. News reports aren’t known for their soothing nature. Beyond that, though, consider mentoring someone or helping them through the unique circumstances in which we now find ourselves. If you’re focused on helping someone else get through a difficult time, you spend less time worrying about how you are going to make it.

Don’t get me wrong, take care of yourself first. What I’m talking about is the extra time and energy you might waste worrying. I’ve heard it said that worrying is like rocking in a rocking chair; it gives you something to do, but it doesn’t get you anywhere.

If you’re prone to excess worry, take a look around and see who you can help settle. It’s going to be okay, but in order for some folks to believe that, they might need to hear it from you.

Hang in there, we’re going to get through this.

New posts every Thursday on daregreatlynow.com

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Marching in Your Own Direction

You know, the world has been dealing with a lot of serious stuff lately, so here’s an entry that has no point other than to entertain you.

In Air Force Basic Training, you’re part of a “flight” of anywhere between probably 40-60 people. In my particular flight, we probably had 45-50 guys that all showed up from across America and got thrown together to live in two giant rooms for the duration of Basic Training.

In Basic, we had to travel all over the base on foot. Imagine mass-processing people off the street and turning them into professional Airmen. In order to do this on an industrial scale, there are facilities set up exactly for this purpose. Getting clothing issued, haircuts, physical training, vaccinations, eating three times a day, going to medical appointments, getting financial accounts established, talking to counselors about your career choice and their additional requirements…it all needs to happen in an orderly fashion, and the Air Force has become pretty good at it.

To get anywhere, our instructors needed to march us between locations. I hated marching. Flights would march four trainees abreast and the column would extend as far back as it needed in order to include the entire flight. The tallest people would be in the front, decreasing in height the further back you go in the column. As one of the tallest guys in my flight, I was always very near the front of the group anytime we’d be marching anywhere. That’s fine, except you need to be paying close attention to the instructor’s commands to turn left or right, because you’ll have less time to react than if you’re in the back.

I don’t know what it is about Basic Training, but it has a way of making people that are ordinarily smart into…well…people that aren’t smart. Honest, most of the time I’m a smart guy. Put me in Basic Training, though, and I overthink things, question myself, stumble over my words, and agonize over whether I sufficiently folded my socks. Things that are not normally a big deal become obsessions. I hated Basic.

I don’t remember where we were coming from, but one day we were on our way to lunch. It was old hat for us at this point. Our flight usually got “parked” outside the door while we awaited our turn to go in. As we arrived we could see the “parking space” where our instructor was going to put us, but we needed to do a pair of turns to end up there. This is where I almost got myself into trouble.

To end up in our spot, we could either turn left and then right, or right and then left. I’m not sure what happened, but I somehow got it into my head that our instructor told us to turn right, but the flight of trainees had started turning left. I could have just gone along with everyone else, but in my sleep-deprived state I must have decided that no, we were all going to be punished somehow for not paying attention to the instructor’s verbal commands. Well not this guy!

In a rare flash of independent thought at Basic Training, I decided to strike out on my own and break away from the pack. When the entire column of men in my flight turned left, I turned right.

This was an absurd sight. Hopefully there were no cameras that caught this moment. If there were, I imagine it got lots of air time in the instructors’ lounge. I marched at the same cadence as everyone else, but in the opposite direction. Our instructor either didn’t notice or pretended not to see me. He gave the command for the second turn, and I don’t know which direction he said, but I didn’t care anymore, and took the opportunity to start moving back to rejoin the flight. I met back up perfectly with the group and slipped right back into the spot I had just left.

I don’t think anyone ever said anything to me, and to this day I honestly don’t know who was right (though I tend to believe the massive group of people who turned left probably outweighs the single schmuck who turned right and was out there marching around on his own).

I guess it’s true what they say…I’ve always marched to the beat of my own drum. Thankfully it didn’t land me in hot water this time!

Hey, don’t be afraid to laugh at yourself. It’s rough out there these days, but things are looking up. Wash your hands and avoid groups of people, but if you think you can make someone smile with something as dumb as a story like this, go for it. We could all use a smile right now.

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Unprecedented

Skydiving is an awesome experience.

I’ve done two tandem jumps (where you’re connected to a licensed instructor) and 75 solo jumps. I’ve taken off in a plane 77 more times than I’ve landed in one. Cumulatively I’ve racked up just over 51 minutes of freefall.

To those that have never jumped, that might sound like a lot. For those in the know, though, it’s not that impressive. Seventy seven jumps is enough to know what you’re doing, but it’s nothing to brag about.

Contrast that with Don Kellner. He’s one of the owners of the drop zone where I learned to skydive, and is the Guinness World Record holder for most sport parachute jumps. In 2019 Don made his 45,000th jump! He probably doesn’t even remember the last time he landed in a plane.

I can’t find Don’s cumulative freefall total anywhere, but if you can measure mine in minutes, his can probably be measured in days or weeks. He’s performed over 10,000 tandem jumps; if he got 30 seconds of freefall for each one of those, that’s nearly three and a half days of his life he’s spent falling to the earth with someone else connected to his harness. The time he’s spent steering his parachute to the ground is in addition to that. Between plane rides up, freefalls, and parachute rides down, Don’s probably spent more than a year of his life off the ground.

Don and his team turn in his log books to make the record official after every thousandth jump, but in reality every jump Don Kellner makes is a new world record. Nobody has jumped as many times as him; every jump he makes is an endeavor nobody else has ever undertaken. Every single one is unprecedented.

I asked him once if any jump sticks out in his mind more than others, or if he ever had any especially dangerous problems during a jump. He recalled one jump where he tried to deploy his main chute, but when he tried, nothing happened. He then pulled the handle to open his reserve chute. Nothing happened then, either. Hurtling toward the earth without any functioning parachute, Don Kellner resigned himself to his fate. God must have smiled on him that day though, because one of the chutes shook loose and opened on its own, allowing Don to live to tell the tale.

He’s famous for not making a big deal of any particular jump. The folks around him have staged big events to commemorate big, round-number jumps, but leading up to it he always waves off the extra attention and says “just another jump.” It’s important to remember that jump number 45,000 could not have happened without jump number 26,373, without jump 999, or without jump 12.

Like Don, you and I lead lives that are record-setting in their own way. God calls us to a life of service in His honor. No two lives are the same. Each act of service we perform on Christ’s behalf, whether it’s something we’ve never done before or is the 45,000th time we’ve done the same thing, is unprecedented.

Also like Don, we don’t know how much longer we’ll be able to do the things God’s called us to do and what number “jump” will be our last. Sometimes we’re a part of doing something for God that’s surrounded by more fanfare, but most of the time our obedience is tied to things that are relatively unspectacular and rely on our regular faithfulness day after day.

That brings us to today. Each day we wake up presents opportunities to live for and honor God. Right now we live in very unusual times, which means we can collectively be faithful in ways we normally aren’t. I don’t know what that looks like for all of us, but you might already have a pretty good idea of how you can do the work God’s calling you to do.

Quarantines, social distancing, stay-at-home orders, and all the other recent buzz words result in a new (hopefully temporary) version of what we consider normal. There are a lot of lonely, confused, and/or scared people out there. In order to radiate God’s love during times of this “new normal,” we may need to take unprecedented steps to deliver it. From now until COVID-19 is a thing of the past, every day in a sense is a record-breaker in terms of the actions we take. We…you…are breaking new ground here, every day. Take the precautions you need to (and in some cases have been mandated to do), and within those parameters, have a look at practical new ways to love your neighbor.

And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ -Matthew 25:40

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Brainstorm!

I don’t know if you or I are going to make it through this COVID-19 thing. I bet that we will, though.

How do Christians band together in a time of social distancing and self-quarantines? It’s an interesting question, and it’s going to take some innovative thinking. This is where the world needs your help.

Ordinarily the term “disruptive” has a negative connotation. “He’s disruptive in class,” etc. That’s not the only meaning of the word, thankfully. “Disruption” can also mean an upsetting of established norms in such a way that it forces a new norm. It’s what happened when motorized vehicles replaced horses. Digital cameras replaced film cameras. Cell phones took over for landlines. Amazon.com came on the scene and drove a lot of brick and mortar stores out of business. The people behind these seismic shifts are known as “disruptors.”

Coronavirus has certainly upended large portions of our lives and caused us to have to readjust in major ways. Schools and colleges are all of a sudden shutting their doors for the rest of the year. Churches are canceling in-person services. Bible studies and prayer meetings can no longer meet in the traditional sense.

People don’t usually like change. Well, this time around, a virus is forcing change on us all. Things are changing so fast that we don’t yet have established “norms” in the wake of this pandemic. For a lot of folks a major burden of our new reality is the loneliness and lack of in-person human contact.

We were created to be social beings. It’s simply how God made us. Some people need social interaction a lot more than others, but we all need it to some degree. When we’re suddenly unable to socialize in the ways to which we’re accustomed, it’s a major shock for a lot of folks. As Christians, we’re often reminded in scripture to meet together regularly, to “do life” together, and build one another up.

How do we do that when we can’t meet in person? I’ve watched church on my computer for the past two Sundays. I heard recently about a church that held a service at a drive-in movie theater. I think that’s a fantastic idea, but those facilities are not as common as they once were.

This is where you come in. I’m challenging you to think like a disruptor. Because this is an actual problem the world currently faces, I’d really like to encourage you to provide comments here. Here’s your challenge:

How can people still meet together to build one another up without physically being closer than six feet?

Technology is a mixed bag. Now we can have meetings without even being near the other attendees. You have Zoom, Facetime, and Skype, and those are incredibly valuable tools in some respects. Connecting two users isn’t difficult, but it gets a little more complicated if you want to have a dozen people in the same meeting. Also, when you’re stuck in your home, it’s a poor substitute if you’re facing anxiety or depression (to be sure, it’s better than nothing!). What other ways can we leverage technology to decrease isolation? Please post your thoughts!

The phone also works. I’m talking about actual voice calls. Everyone has phones, but nobody calls anymore. For some people, chatting on the phone versus sending an email or text goes a long way.

Then you have in-person meetings. These days I yell to my neighbors from across the street. It doesn’t quite have to be that far, but if you want to honor the authorities’ guidelines of having meetings no larger than 10 people, no closer than six feet together, is there a way to make that happen feasibly? This might be a ridiculous mental image, but it’s a thought-prompt; is there a way to have a dozen people sit close together by building little plexiglass “cells” (imagine a scene from a TV show or movie where someone is visiting someone else in prison)? What if a dozen cars came together in a circle in an otherwise empty church parking lot and everyone on the driver’s side of the car rolled down their windows to have a discussion? (That circle is probably a little too big and everyone would need hearing aids and megaphones, but can we make the idea work somehow?)

I don’t know what the answer is, I’m just trying to get the creative juices going. Right now Christians (and non-Christians, for that matter) need ways of meeting together and helping each other up after they fall or get knocked down. A lot has happened, and a lot of change has been forced on us. How can we implement change on our own to make this situation a little more bearable, especially for the people that need to be around other people?

“How does my idea help?” Well, you’re reading this, aren’t you? I don’t normally have a huge readership, but you’re not the only one that reads this. Your idea, even if it’s incomplete, can spark an idea for someone else. Let’s say you have no ideas. That’s okay, you can still help crack the code on this problem. Will you pass this entry on, either by forwarding it to someone or sharing it on your social media?

You are a string, but we are a rope. We WILL get through this…maybe in part by using your ideas.

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What is a Life Verse?

I believe all scripture is God-inspired and useful for Christian instruction/education in some respect. I’ll also acknowledge, though, that some portions of it resonate more strongly than others.

Ever read a verse (or group of verses) that really jump out at you? It’s as if that section applies directly to you, and God had you in mind when He inspired the author to write it down. It might be that this section of scripture can be identified as your life verse. A life verse is a verse in the Bible that speaks to you in a profound way, somehow has special meaning to you personally, or otherwise reaches you in ways that other areas of scripture do not.

Sometimes you hear another person’s life verse and you can totally see how it fits them. It makes so much sense that they would have that verse memorized! Just because they claim it as their life verse does not mean it’s exclusively theirs, though. I like to think that if someone has selected a life verse that fits well, it helps illustrate that verse’s meaning to others, who then internalize and appreciate it in a new way. In this manner, a person can become a living illustration to others of what God meant when He inspired that particular verse. In the hopes that that’s true, I’d like to share my life verse with you.

Mine comes from a point in Biblical history where there was a passing of the torch, and the successor had enormous shoes to fill. Humbled, perhaps even fearful of fulfilling the daunting role placed before him, Joshua knew that he could not take Moses’ place without the Lord’s help. Imagine Joshua falling to his knees, unable to lift his eyes, saying “God, I’m so afraid!” It’s as if God reached down and lifted Joshua’s chin with one finger and told him exactly what he needed to hear:

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” –Joshua 1:9

There are a few different kinds of “fear.” There’s the kind when someone sneaks up behind you and startles you, but that’s not the kind this verse is talking about. This is the kind of fear that causes anxiety and gives you an ulcer from worrying about it all the time. There are all kinds of things to worry about in this life if you choose to. We currently live in a time, especially as we seem powerless to stop pandemics, where there is much fear. It’s okay to be afraid…until it stops you from doing what God’s called you to do. God has a purpose for your life, and fear is not a legitimate excuse for avoiding it.

I’m not in the business of translating the Bible, and I don’t pretend to be. If I could paraphrase this verse and put it in our vernacular though, I’d probably state it a little more like this: “I already told you, hold nothing back! Don’t be anxious and don’t lose focus, because I’ll be right beside you every step of the way.” It’s easy for fear to get in the way of the tasks God’s called you to do, and it’s a very easy tool for God’s enemies to exploit.

Because of the life I’ve lived, the sights I’ve seen, and the things I’ve done, this verse resonates with me in a special way. It encourages me to work toward not blinking when God throws an enormous challenge in my path. I’m of the opinion that I will always have doubts during those times, but God’s with me every step of the way, and I’m trying to get better at not flinching when I “receive a new assignment.” Assuming I have more tasks to perform on God’s behalf in this life, this verse will help me when I feel inadequate or ill-equipped to do them.

What’s your life verse? Have you shared it with others? Will you share it with other readers in the “comments” section of this blog? There might be a verse out there that your life can provide a perfect illustration for. That would fall under the “love other people” portion of the “love God and love other people” mandate that God gives His followers.

Hang in there, keep the faith, and wash your hands. 🙂

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Church Canceled Today?

Good morning everyone!

Due to the whole “pandemic thing,” there are a lot of disruptions in life, including the cancellation of a lot of church services.

Don’t let that stop you from learning about the power of Christ working in and through you. If you need a substitute lesson today, try this one. There’s no worship music, but it’s almost 40 minutes of learning about how Christ’s power can be increased in you.

Hang tight, keep the faith, and look for new opportunities during this once-in-a-lifetime event we’re living through!

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Meaning of Life

Imagine you’re at the top of your game and you are successful in everything you put your mind to. You have a great reputation, you have a great job, you have a great family, and your volunteer work makes a difference. Money isn’t a problem, and you lack nothing.

Does this give meaning to your life?

Long ago the world’s richest and wisest man took it upon himself to seek out the meaning of life. In the book of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon decided to investigate how to achieve fulfillment in life. First he tried living a life of pleasure, but learned that this wasn’t the answer. He studied the generalities of life and upon reflection was disappointed that death comes both to the wise man and the fool. He implemented public projects on an enormous scale, only to conclude that his lifetime of achievements could easily be wasted after his death if his successor squanders what he inherits.

Very aware of his own mortality, Solomon realizes that this life is short; it’s fleeting. We busy ourselves with many projects and endeavors, but in the end we all pass through and then move on from this life. Many times in the book of Ecclesiastes does Solomon exclaim “meaningless! It’s all a chasing after the wind!”

The book is almost depressing; he spends 12 chapters exploring different aspects of life in hopes of finding fulfillment, only to realize that even our most notable achievements will be forgotten after a few generations. Then at the very end of the book, almost as an afterthought, Solomon abruptly gives us his conclusion. These two verses, only two verses out of the whole book, provide us insight into what he’s learned. If you give up reading the book before the very end, you miss out on Solomon’s “secret of life:”

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil. –Ecclesiastes 12:13-14

After years of experiencing everything life has to offer, Solomon concluded that your purpose is to please God and to live in such a way that you will not fear judgment.

I don’t have the time or space to go into all of God’s commandments here, but I’ll summarize them this way: love God and love people. Each of these topics can have books written about them. It’s a lifelong endeavor, though; there are always opportunities to keep getting better at it.

If you’ve got the “love God” portion down pat, it’s time to “love people.” There are people everywhere you go. You know what I’ve discovered? A lot of them are hard to get along with. It can be draining to interact with them! That’s probably why so much of the Bible talks about how to live and deal with others. Here’s the neat thing: you’re equipped to do it. You have everything you need to do what you’ve been called to do.

For many of us, that calling has to do with making someone’s life better somehow. That’s one exciting (yes, exciting) thing about the Coronavirus-dominated time we’re living through…there are new opportunities to love on people in ways that are not normally available. All you have to do is look for them; you’re in the best position to see them and act on them.

Fear God and keep His commandments, and remember that He’ll judge all of your works. This comes from a lifetime of reflection from the wisest man who ever lived. Just a little something to keep in mind if life gets a little too meaningless for you.

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Be Where You’re Supposed To Be

There’s an old problem-solving technique called “The Five Whys.” It’s simple in its execution. You start with a problem:

We can’t go on the vacation we’ve been planning.

Ask: Why? (Number 1)

We had to spend a big chunk of that money on a car repair.

Ask: Why? (Number 2)

The car broke down unexpectedly.

Ask: Why? (Number 3)

(Sheepishly) Because I haven’t been maintaining it.

The idea is that by the time you’ve asked “Why?” five times, you’ve arrived at the root cause of the problem you’re facing.

King David is one of the most famous characters in the Bible. He had incredible highs and also some very low lows. In the end, this “man after God’s own heart” was an imperfect human, but he always sought God’s mercy and forgiveness.

His most famous shortcoming occurred with a beautiful woman named Bathsheba. Here’s a quick refresher from 2 Samuel chapter 11:

11 In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem.

2 One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, 3 and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” 4 Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her.

Bathsheba, of course, became pregnant. David made matters worse by trying to cover it up, and when that didn’t work, he had Bathsheba’s husband intentionally killed in battle. It took a prophet to confront him in order to make him admit his wrongdoing. While there’s much we can learn from David, we’ll focus on this tragic tale and try to apply a lesson to our own lives. Let’s use the “Five Whys” with David’s situation:

David got taken to task by Nathan the prophet for murdering an innocent man.

Why? (Number 1)

David ordered the death of Uriah, one of his faithful warriors.

Why? (Number 2)

He had an affair with Uriah’s wife Bathsheba.

Why? (Number 3)

David saw her bathing on the rooftop and decided that he had to have her.

Why? (Number 4)

He wasn’t where he was supposed to be, fighting with his army at Rabbah.

And here we have the root cause. The text doesn’t say why David remained behind in Jerusalem; it just says that he did. By not being with his army, as was the custom of the day’s kings, it opened the door to temptation, which resulted in adultery, lies, and murder.

While you may not be in charge of an army, there’s probably been at least one time in your life when something bad happened because you were somewhere you didn’t belong.

The lesson here? Be where you’re supposed to be.

If you’re a Christ-follower, God has equipped and tasked you to perform certain functions or roles here on Earth. Once you know what He wants you to do, you can either run from it (think Jonah) or you can work toward it (think Paul). The road is never guaranteed to be easy, but there’s peace of mind when you work toward it. Running from it causes restlessness, unrest, and numerous complications.

The simplest way to avoid all of that? Be where you’re supposed to be.

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All Thrust and No Vector

Ever meet somebody that’s just sort of all over the place? They’ve got all kinds of vim and vigor, but they seem to be missing a purpose or outlet for that energy. A good way to describe them might be to think of them as a balloon you inflate, but before tying a knot in it, you let it go and watch as it flies all over the place without apparent direction.

In the Air Force we had a saying for people like that. We’d say they’re “all thrust and no vector.” The apostle Paul has a different take on it; he describes it as a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.

In 1 Corinthians chapter 13, Paul explains that even if you’re spiritually gifted and have perfect doctrine, it’s all for nothing if you’re using those assets for the wrong reasons or you have the wrong motivation. Christians in the early Corinthian church were unsatisfied with the spiritual gifts they possessed, or jealous of the showy or flashy gifts that others had, so they started arguing and bickering. It got to the point where they would do “spiritual” things or things that Christians are “supposed” to do, but they did it for the sake of appearance rather than out of love.

Paul’s point here is the importance of having the right attitude in performing ministry. It is to be done out of love for God and love for others. All other reasons for doing it are like that resounding gong: just noise.

You have a specific mix of spiritual gifts so that you can fulfill the purpose God’s given to you. The same holds true for Christians with other combinations of spiritual gifts. There are people out there that need you to do your thing, but before you do, make sure you’re doing it for the right reason. Check your vector before engaging the thrust.

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Fortune Favors the Prepared

A college buddy and I took the opportunity in February of 2002 to drive from New York to Utah in order to attend the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

Bobsledding is one of the hallmarks of the Winter Olympics, and it’s fun to see. Since the track is so expensive to install and maintain, however, organizers sought other ways to make use of the venue. That’s partly how the sport of luge came to be an Olympic event. Luge athletes lay belly-up on a one-person sled and go sliding feet first down the track. (Then somebody thought it would be a good idea to put two people on one of these tiny sleds.)

  • Bobsled
  • Luge
  • Luge doubles

The 2002 Olympics saw the introduction of a new sport that used the same track: Skeleton. This is an event where an athlete runs down the track as fast as they can, then dives onto a tiny sled. Once on the sled, the competitor is laying on their belly, flying head first down the track with their chin just a few inches off the ice. Of the three different sports that use this venue, Skeleton competitors seem least concerned with clinging to sanity.

Photo courtesy of NBC

We didn’t attend any of the Skeleton runs while in Salt Lake City, but during out time there we were well aware of what happened in the Skeleton competition. Everywhere we went, there were magazines and newspapers (when those were still popular) with American Jim Shea on the cover. He showed up in the highlights of just about every Olympic video we saw for the rest of those games. If I’m not mistaken, Jim was America’s first third-generation Olympian; both his grandfather and father competed in Winter Olympic events in their day. Jim actually won gold in Skeleton that year.

If you saw Jim without knowing anything about him, you’d probably have no idea that he was an Olympian. He looked like he could be your next-door neighbor or some guy that you see in church. He didn’t look terribly athletic. There were a few qualities he had, though, that helped him win this event. When it came to competing in Skeleton, Jim Shea possessed intensity, passion, and drive.

In no way do I want to sound like I’m diminishing the athleticism of Skeleton competitors. The biggest athletic output that occurs during a Skeleton run takes place at the beginning, when the competitor sprints down the track and jumps onto the sled. For the rest of the run beyond that, it’s focus and body control; leaning this way or that way, sometimes grazing the ice with a toe to make a small correction, all while trying to control breathing on a sled that’s flying down a track at up to 80 mph.

Jim Shea approached his Olympic run with ferocity. He wasn’t a “hope for the best” kind of guy. I later saw a picture of him that demonstrated how he approached the run that earned him a gold medal, and that image stuck with me:

This is a man that knew where he wanted to go, knew what he needed to do in order to get there, and focused all of his mental and physical resources so that he had the best chance of succeeding during his single opportunity to make it happen. While people have all different kinds of personalities and some will never be as driven as others to succeed in their goals, it’s the quality and type of preparation and planning they put into it that will help drive their success.

In the future you may only get one shot to make it happen. Are you preparing for success in achieving your goals, or are you just hoping for the best?

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Bride of Christ

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. It’s often viewed as a time to pause and reflect on the “special-ness” of the important people in your life.

While the celebration of love is nice, our culture seems to have adopted the idea that “anything goes” in the name of love, and that finding true love means everything after that point will be perfect. Love stories end with the main characters living “happily ever after.” The unfortunate fact is that taking two imperfect people and placing them in a relationship will always yield less-than-perfect results. Sadly, many committed relationships crumble despite the noble intentions of those involved.

People who have known great heartache can therefore best appreciate the idea of a love that will not fail.

In Bible times, weddings worked a little differently from the way they do today. Back then when a couple became engaged, the groom-to-be departed to make preparations for the wedding, their living arrangements, and their future together. The bride-to-be remained with her family while this took place, and she waited for the groom while he made preparations. Without texts, emails, or any other expedient form of communication, she would have to wait and be perpetually ready for her groom to show up and whisk her away to their wedding and new life together. Imagine not only having no input on the details of your own wedding, but also being left completely in the dark about when it would even take place!

This is the situation where we currently find ourselves. We’re waiting, and we don’t know for how long. In my last post I wrote a bit about the importance of the Church. The Church is sometimes referred to as the “Bride of Christ.” Jesus has gone on ahead to make preparations, but He fully intends to return for us, the Church:

…I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. John 14:2c-3.

Now that’s a kind of love we can celebrate.

Like in Bible times, we receive very little information about the details of when the Bridegroom is planning to come back. Even though we live in an era of instant gratification, lack of a specific date on the calendar actually changes very little about what’s important in this case. It’s important to remember that while waiting, we are to remain faithful and we are to remain ready, no matter how long it takes. It is imperative that we watch with expectation and with anticipation, ever on the lookout for when our Lord will make His return and escort us to a deeper phase of our relationship with Him.

The question is…have you stopped making yourself ready? You know in your mind that He’ll come someday, but it probably won’t be anytime soon, right? I mean, it’s been about 2,000 years since Christ walked the earth; what are the odds that He’ll come during this lifetime?

What you decide to do is up to you, but I’ll pose one last question to you today. Are you living faithfully for the one to whom you are betrothed?

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Ever Look at Bad News This Way?

Let’s be real for a moment.

If you’re a Christian, the world sometimes seems like it’s getting darker. The culture is becoming more and more godless. Today’s young adults are less and less interested in attending church. Many local churches are dead or dying, and many of those still around are consumed with arguments over what kind of music to play or what should or should not be present on the stage during the worship service, rather than reaching the lost.

This is exciting stuff.

You read that right. This is exciting. Why?

Because the Church (capital “c”) is God’s plan for reaching the world. Regardless of the current state of affairs, the Church is going to emerge triumphant. That’s a fact. If the times we’re living in are making today’s local church bodies less and less relevant in reaching the lost, that simply means that the Church we see today is not the version that’s going to be most effective in performing the mission. It means we’re in a time of transition to something new.

So what does that future version of the Church look like? I can’t tell you.

It’s not that I know and I’m withholding the information from you; I can’t tell you because I don’t yet know the manner in which you’re going to be a part of helping the church evolve. In other words, it’s exciting because the Church is going to be effective in new ways because you, as a Christ-follower and part of the Church, are going to change how the Church approaches the problem of delivering the Gospel to people who haven’t heard it before.

Don’t look at the current state of affairs and see despair; look at it and see that opportunities abound! At its core, Christianity is about two things: loving God and loving people (after all, only a handful of the 10 Commandments pertain to our relationship with God; the vast majority of them deal with our relationship with each other). In what way(s) are you able to develop a relationship with someone for the purpose of glorifying God?

Can’t think of anything? Start out with this: make friends with at least one person in every decade of life. Regardless of what decade of life you’re currently in, imagine the perspective you can gain by interacting with someone who has the black-and-white outlook of a child, the idealism of a teenager, the enthusiasm of a twenty-something, the ambition of someone in their thirties, the experience of a mid-lifer, the expertise of someone in their fifties, the hindsight of a sixty-something, the clarity of what’s important in life of someone in their seventies, and the wisdom and life experience of everyone else. Whether or not all those people are Christians, you’re going to learn something, and they might too.

The Church is changing, and that’s not a bad thing. If you see a spot where the Church should be doing something but isn’t, you may have just found your calling. The entire purpose of this blog is to come alongside you, put a hand on your shoulder, tell you that God is capable of doing amazing things through broken and imperfect people, and encourage and exhort you to use the resources and spiritual gifts God’s provided…all for the purpose of reaching the lost and glorifying God. You’re not only capable of helping the Church meet the world’s current needs, you were designed to.

The exciting part is that even though (and perhaps because) the Church will evolve, it’s going to reach people in ways it hasn’t before. So by all means, if you’ve been prompted to or are toying with the idea of doing something unconventional, yet purposeful…please…start pursuing that course and see where it goes.

I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. –Matthew 16:18b.

Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us,to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. –Ephesians 3:20-21

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What’s That Sound?

We live near Washington, DC, where traffic is a part of life. When we want to go visit family that lives far away, sometimes we get up very early and hit the road in the wee hours of the morning. After the initial excitement of stealing away during the night, the kids usually settle down, lulled to sleep by road noise.

The last time we took a trip like this in our minivan, everyone settled in soon after we got on the highway and the inside of the vehicle was quiet. That’s when we noticed an annoying squeak that happened each time we hit a bump in the road or the vehicle’s chassis twisted slightly. It came from somewhere near the second row of seats, a squeak that was quiet, but loud enough to be annoying if you’re trying to fall asleep. We tried to track it down and stop it, with no success. After awhile the kids were able to tune it out and fall asleep.

We eventually arrived at our destination and had fun with family over Christmas. On several occasions while we were there, I drove the van around town, just doing errands or driving us to friends/family’s houses. I’d actively listen for the squeak, and it was often audible, but it was hidden in the sound of the kids laughing, the current conversation, or whatever was playing on the radio.

Just like the still small voice of the Holy Spirit, the squeak is always there, but you have to actively listen for it if there’s a lot of other noise going on. It doesn’t stop squeaking, but it’s a lot easier to hear when there are no distractions. If there’s a lot of other noise in the mix you have to deliberately focus in on it to notice it. It’s much harder to get a fix on it if you have to pluck it out of the background.

Are you having a regular quiet time where you get alone with your prayer and devotions, away from all the noise and distractions? If not, don’t be surprised that you don’t hear from the Holy Spirit.

You’re an expert on you; you know you better than anyone else. Take the steps you need to create the right environment. If your phone is a distraction, shut it off during this time. If you need to wake up earlier, before others are up and moving around, maybe that’s the way to go. If you’re a night owl, finding the right time before bed might be your sweet spot.

I’d urge you to do what it takes to make your quiet time work. How agonizing would it be to one day find out that God was whispering to you all along but you couldn’t hear Him because of all the noise going on around you?

“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” Psalm 46:10

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When You Can’t Even Breathe

At Air Force Basic Training, there’s a stretch where recruits spend time in conditions that simulate a field deployment. Instead of focusing on Air Force customs, academics, how to salute, march, etc., trainees focus on some of the fundamental skills necessary for functioning in a combat zone. It’s here that trainees first fire weapons, learn about field hygiene and first aid, etc.

One of the more memorable activities is learning how to use a gas mask. Trainees spent the greater part of the day learning how to properly don a gas mask, when to put on a chemical suit, and generally experience how cumbersome it becomes to perform routine tasks while wearing a heavy suit in hot weather and trying to take a drink from a canteen while wearing a gas mask.

We spent most of the day learning how to use the equipment properly, and the culmination of the experience was “getting gassed.” We put on our equipment and filed into a square room that had a pedestal in the middle of it. Each group that went into the room stood with their backs against a wall. There were some instructors that gave us directions and then came around to inspect the way we had donned our masks. At the end, one of the instructors walked to the pedestal in the middle of the room and activated some tear gas on it.

It’s a little unsettling to see a big white cloud rising and filling the room. Tear gas…isn’t that the stuff they use on rioters? You start to instinctively hold your breath, but you eventually decide to give this gas mask thing a try. You take some little breaths just to make sure you’re not going to start coughing like a maniac. The air smells weird, but you can breathe it. You don’t seem to have any reaction so far, so you start breathing deeper. Before long you’re breathing just like you practiced earlier in the day, and you’re able to function in a chemical environment.

Then the fun part comes. It would’ve been nice to experience an environment like this, then walk out the door and say to the instructors “thanks fellas, that was pretty cool to see.” If we had done that though, the lesson wouldn’t have been cemented into our minds. In order to make the lesson stick, the instructors wanted us to understand how well our equipment was protecting us. To help us do that, we filed toward the exit door in pairs. Still in a gas-filled room, we were directed to remove our masks and provide a verbal response to a question the instructors asked us. They wanted us to have to breathe in the stuff our equipment had been protecting us from, and this aspect of the training helped us remember the experience in a much more vivid manner. I know I wasn’t able to finish answering the instructor before I started coughing, and he waved me out the door and into the fresh air.

It’s one thing to know something in your mind, and it’s something different to experience it. There were plenty of other times in the Air Force where I donned gas masks during exercises, but that was the only time I’ve ever had to use a gas mask to actually protect myself from something that threatened harm to my body. The more you use the equipment, the more comfortable you become with it.

It’s the same thing with following Christ. We “practice with our equipment” by building a relationship with Him. That means spending time together: reading the Bible, spending time in prayer, and removing unnecessary or harmful things from your life.

As you walk with Christ, you’ll find that He gives you assignments to do. Rather than giving you something you think is easy to do, however, He likes to challenge you. Those challenges stretch you and make you lean on Him to do the things you can’t. Sometimes they’re physically easy to do, but they take a certain boldness to complete. Others are completely beyond you, but you find that once you step out in faith, the pieces start falling into place because He’s paving the way for you. Much like the gas mask training, the trust you build in this endeavor enables you to overcome the worry and preoccupation of “will this work when I need it to?” As a result, with His power and support you’re able to operate and excel in environments where you can’t even breathe on your own.

This is my one hundredth post! Many thanks to my faithful readers, and to those that just stumbled upon this site. I hope you’re somehow blessed by what you read here! Feel free to share on social media or email, or leave a comment. You can also email me at tim@daregreatlynow.com.

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Play Like There’s No Tomorrow

Graphic courtesy of WEBN/NFL

As a fan of professional football, this is an exciting time of year. It’s playoff season. There are 32 teams in the league and at the end of the regular season only 12 teams extend their season into the playoffs. As of today there are only four teams left. This weekend two games will occur, and the winners of those two games will face off in the Super Bowl during the first weekend of February.

One of the things that make the playoffs so exciting is that anything can happen. This past weekend the team with the best record in the league was eliminated by a team that barely made it into the playoffs. While many of the games in the regular season are blowouts or otherwise unexciting, each team in the playoffs has earned the right to be there. The level of play is elevated and the games are more interesting to watch.

When you’re watching a great game, it’s a shame that one of the teams has to lose and be eliminated. As the game draws near to the end and it becomes more evident which team is facing elimination, you see the desperation as they pull out all the stops. They think bigger; they take more risks. The really exciting games are the ones that aren’t decided until the last play of the game. When teams are neck-in-neck, they both raise their level of play, and the players sometimes seem to find another gear as they push each other to perform at their highest potential.

How is this like the Christian life? Think of it this way: a football game isn’t over until there’s no time left on the game clock. Sure, there are cases where games go to overtime, but the vast majority of games end when the clock runs out. Just like a football game, a Christian only has a finite amount of time to be on the field, making plays for the team and for the coach. After the clock runs out, the impact of the individual’s efforts cannot be changed. What’s done is done, and it’s too late to go back and add anything to it.

While we don’t have the advantage of seeing how much time is left on the clock in our lives, we can still make efforts to “up our game” and play to our full potential. Are you disciplined in your spiritual diet (do you consume good things and avoid bad things)? Are you surrounding yourself with people that push you to operate at your highest level?

When we’re done with this life, we’re going to want to be able to say “I left it all out there on the field.” Don’t keep anything in reserve; use it all up before the clock runs out. If you do that, believe me, the coach is going to take notice.

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Redeeming the Time

Want to hear some really exciting news? It doesn’t take much for God’s spiritual power to be available to you.

Not long ago I was reading in the book of Ephesians. It’s hard for me to read Paul’s letters. He sometimes gets so excited that he starts a sentence focused on one topic, gets distracted and sort of rambles on about something for awhile, then ends up in a totally different area. To me, a single sentence of Paul’s can seem like the Israelites wandering around the desert. Despite all the detours though, he eventually arrives at his destination.

I’m blessed to have a study bible that explains a lot of the text, context, and/or traditions of the day that help me understand the text as it was originally written. In Ephesians 3:14-19, Paul expressed to his audience his desire that God would make His love and fullness known to them. The part I want to zoom in on is verse 16: “…that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man…”

Having a study Bible helps me quite a bit when it comes to catching the main theme of what Paul’s saying. For this verse, notes from the McArthur Study Bible say “Spiritual power is a mark of every Christian who submits to God’s Word and Spirit. It is not reserved for some special class of Christian, but for all those who discipline their minds and spirits to study the Word, understand it, and live by it. Although the outer, physical person becomes weaker with age, the inner, spiritual person should grow stronger through the Holy Spirit, who will energize, revitalize, and empower the obedient, committed Christian.”

Isn’t that amazing? If you discipline yourself to regular study of the Bible and heed what it says, God grants you access to something you didn’t have before. It’s extraordinary just how ordinary it is. That brings me back to my point at the top of this post. It doesn’t take much for God’s spiritual power to be available to you. Discipline yourself to study the Word, understand it, and live by it.

Skipping ahead in Ephesians to chapter 5, verses 15 and 16, Paul tells us how to spend our days: “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Zeroing in on that phrase “redeeming the time” in the notes helps lay out how we are to be purposeful in our lives. Again, from the McArthur Study Bible: “The Greek word for “time” denotes a fixed, measured, allocated season; with the definite article “the,” it likely refers to one’s lifetime as a believer. We are to make the most of our time on this evil earth in fulfilling God’s purposes, lining up every opportunity for useful worship and service. Be aware of the brevity of life.”

Be intentional in how you spend your time, energy, and resources. To borrow a spinoff saying I saw on tee shirts back when Reebok’s slogan was popular, “Life is short. Pray hard.”

The year 2020 is still shiny and new, and it’s not too late to start working on some good habits. In your life, if you combine the concept of “study the Word, understand it, and live by it” with the concept of “redeeming the time,” you’re going to see some exciting developments. God prompted me to write this, then He prompted you to read this, and where it goes from here I don’t have a clue. That’s the beauty of it though; even though you and I may only see a piece or two of the puzzle, it’s all building toward a bigger picture. The key to it is that you and I have to put forth some regular effort.

Will you “redeem the time” this year?

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Too Much of a Good Thing?

One of the first “grown up” movies I saw as a kid was “Back to the Future.” It was a movie about a high-schooler that used a crazy scientist’s time machine to travel back in time 30 years to when his parents were in high school themselves. It was my introduction to the time travel aspect of science fiction, and I thought it was pretty cool.

Two sequels followed. A couple of my friends and I all loved the trilogy, and the three of us were constantly quoting different parts of the movies to each other. We even had a “Back to the Future” night for my buddy’s birthday sleepover, where we watched all three movies in one night. A couple of years later I was a roommate with that same buddy at a summer camp where we worked. One night after lights out I recited the script of the entire first movie from memory to him.

This is an extreme (or maybe misguided) example of what an engaged mind can do when it obsesses over something. The three of us were around each other and tossed quotes back and forth so often that they became second nature to us. The things we spent time thinking about became the things most important in our relationship to one another.

In the book of Philippians, Paul tells readers to dwell on the things that are worthy of being, well, dwelled on:

And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. –Philippians 4:8 (New Living Translation)

I don’t think “Back to the Future” quotes qualify, but I can see why Paul makes the point. The things you frequently think about are the things your mind is moving toward.

Now that Christmas and New Years have passed and we’re closer to getting back into the normal routine, I challenge you to “think on” the things mentioned in Philippians 4:8. As far as quiet time with God, prayer, doing Bible readings, or some other type of devotionals, if you’re not someone who regularly practices them, consider building those items into your 2020 routine. If you do them sporadically, but not on a regular basis, consider doing them more routinely.

Try doing them for 30 days in a row. The reason you’ll often hear people talking about doing something for 30 days is because that’s roughly how long it takes to develop a new habit. In other words, if you were going to make this a part of your routine for the rest of your life, the first 30 days would be the most difficult to accomplish; after that it would be habitual and would require less conscious effort to complete.

God can use you for great things. Take the first step toward embracing that calling by spending time dwelling on the things Christ taught and did. Hopefully by this time next year, you’ll be closer to/more in tune with God than you are right now.

Happy New Year!

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Christmas…Surprise?

Man, when I was a kid, the final few days before Christmas were an exciting time. We didn’t do Santa, so we had the presents sitting out under the tree for days, or even weeks, ahead of time. As Christmas got closer, the pile under the tree got bigger.

Normally I was pretty good. Sure, I’d pick up the presents and give ‘em a shake every now and then, but usually didn’t do anything too crazy. There was one year, though, where my parents headed out for the evening, leaving my sister and I home alone with all those presents under the tree.

I don’t remember what I was looking for, I think I was just excited about the opportunity to try out an idea I’d had earlier. Soon after the coast was clear, I brought out the scissors and the tape. Using one of the scissor’s blades, I carefully sliced the tape on one of the presents with my name on it. I was able to open up the wrapping paper enough to see what was hidden inside, then fold everything back up the way it was and put a new piece of tape right over the one I’d cut. Only a very careful inspection would reveal what had happened.

I went through most of my gifts this way. I learned what was waiting for me, then restored all the wrapping jobs. My sister, meanwhile, only wanted to know about one of hers. For the life of me, I can’t remember any of the things I snuck a peek at, but I remember that my little sister, with the “keys to the kingdom” that her devious older brother offered her, was perfectly content to know for sure that she was going to be receiving the animated version of “Beauty and the Beast” and didn’t care to find out about any more until it was actually the appropriate time to open them.

This time of year, with many new memories of time spent with loved ones, is generally thought of as one of the happiest seasons. But then it’s all over. The gifts are exchanged, everyone travels back home, and the decorations are all put away. There’s really nothing wrong with celebrating with the special people in your life, but it’s very important to realize that everything here in this life is temporary. Lower your expectations for how happy this world will make you.

Even something that’s bright, shiny, new, and sparkly on Christmas morning soon fades in either its actual luster or the level of interest you have in it. That’s why it’s so important for people seeking true happiness to place their hope and joy in Jesus Christ, someone whose luster will never fade.

This is my last post of the year. I hope you all enjoy special time celebrating Christ’s birth with loved ones this week. Rest up and enjoy some downtime!

Thanks for reading; I wish you all a Merry Christmas!

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All You Have To Do is Be There

(Since it’s Christmas season right now, it’s Christmas movie time. For the first time my wife and I recently showed our kids a classic from our childhood, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, which helped give me the idea for this post.)

Both of my parents grew up in New York City, and when I was a kid we’d go into the city to visit family. Every now and then we’d branch off from family and take a trip into Manhattan to go do some sight-seeing.

On one particular trip into NYC, it wasn’t long after I first saw the second Home Alone movie. For those of you that haven’t seen it, it’s about a 10-year-old kid that somehow ends up flying to New York City by himself around Christmastime. While he enjoys being a tourist at first, it doesn’t take long before things start unraveling for him and he really wants to get back to his family.

As we walked around NYC, the Plaza Hotel, the famous hotel featured in the movie, was on our list of things to check out. Central Park is nearby, along with Rockefeller Center, Radio City Music Hall, and a bunch of other famous sites.

We walked into the hotel and it was really cool, because it looked almost exactly like scenes out of the movie. (It’s funny how movies make places look bigger and brighter, though.)

  • My amateur photography
  • Kevin in Home Alone 2
Just off the Plaza Hotel’s main lobby

I thought it was pretty cool being there at a place where they filmed a movie I enjoyed. Everyone else in the lobby was doing normal hotel stuff. There was a long line of people waiting to check in, and as near as I could tell, none of them were even thinking about the movie. I decided I’d snap a picture to remember this by. I walked over to a spot where I could capture the check-in desk, raised my camera, and took a picture.

The Check-in Desk at the Plaza Hotel in the early 1990s

I didn’t really anticipate it as a kid, but now I understand why the hotel would want to make its guests feel like their privacy was protected. Right after the flash went off, a very large, well-dressed man strode across the lobby toward us, walked around us, and stood directly behind me. He didn’t say a word, nor did he act in a rude manner, but it was perfectly obvious my behavior was not welcome. We took the hint and moved along.

Although it’s sort of a strange tie-in, Christians can be a lot like that guy from the lobby. People who know they’re not living right are uncomfortable when they’re around people that are. If you’re a Christian it’s not necessarily your job to make people feel uncomfortable, but sometimes God uses you as a reminder to others in a way that pricks their conscience.

We’re coming up on the time of year where we spend time with loved ones that we may not see that often. That’s easy for some, not so easy for others. If you have a difficult time at Christmas because you’re around people you love, but don’t always get along with due to religious/lifestyle differences, just keep loving on them. Like the guy in the hotel, you don’t need to be rude or belligerent, you just need to be there. Don’t for a second feel bad for living the way God wants you to. God could be chipping away at their heart, and using you as a way of making them uncomfortable with the way they live when they know they’re not living the right way.

By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. –John 13:35

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Luck O’ The Ducks

When I was a kid I used to love watching cartoons. I don’t know what happened since then, but I guess somewhere along the line they decided they were going to stop making good cartoons.

One of my favorite cartoons to watch was “Duck Tales.” It featured Scrooge McDuck (of “Christmas Carol” fame), the three young duckling triplets Huey, Dewey, and Louie, and the lovable (but terrible) pilot, Launchpad McQuack.

Scrooge McDuck was a greedy guy, there’s no doubt about it. Part of the draw for a younger me was that he was always mounting expeditions to go in search of lost treasures. Off to faraway jungles, canyons, deserts, mountains, the ocean floor…no matter the danger, Scrooge McDuck’s greed drove him to adventure.

One such adventure involved catching a leprechaun. The main characters caught a leprechaun and demanded that he show them to the massive underground treasure caverns (because a pot o’ gold at the end of the rainbow just ain’t enough sometimes). The leprechaun showed them to the hidden entrance, which was under a young tree. I don’t remember why they couldn’t go exploring down the tunnel right then and there, but for some reason they had to temporarily abandon their quest. Knowing that it would be extremely difficult to identify this one tree in the middle of the forest, McDuck took out a handkerchief and tied it to one of the branches of the tree. After binding the leprechaun by making him promise not to mess with the hanky or the tree, the adventurers departed.

I think it was the next day when the treasure hunters returned. The hanky and the tree were indeed untouched, but now the forest was littered with hundreds of white hankies. The leprechaun had kept his promise, but still managed to obscure the value of the makeshift marker.

Let’s switch gears for a minute. Take the perspective of Satan and the other fallen angels. You’ve had definite limits imposed on you, but you’re free to meddle with humanity in other ways. How can you divert people from the true way to God and eternal life, which is a relationship with Jesus Christ? You can’t touch that one true hanky, but you can sure hang up a lot of other ones that look enough like the original to make the real one hard to spot.

Aside from Christianity, there are a handful of major world religions on the scene, but there are an untold number of minor ones, splinter groups, minor sects, and other less popular religions. All of them are fake hankies.

In addition to using other religions, the adversary attempts to muddy the waters for actual Bible-based events. The focus of Christmas and Easter used to be Jesus’ birth and Jesus’ triumph over sin, respectively. Now it’s Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. Being a Santa fan doesn’t make you a bad person, but consider this: this Christmas, are you and yours giving at least as much emphasis on the story of Jesus’ birth as you are to Santa?

There’s a lot of distraction out there, but remember the true reason for the season and the fact that the adversary has to ask permission to launch certain attacks on Christ-followers.

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat…” Luke 22:31

8Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one on earth like him, a man who is blameless and upright, who fears God and shuns evil.”

9Satan answered the LORD, “Does Job fear God for nothing? 10Have You not placed a hedge on every side around him and his household and all that he owns? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. 11But stretch out Your hand and strike all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face.”

12“Very well,” said the LORD to Satan. “Everything he has is in your hands, but you must not lay a hand on the man himself.”

Then Satan went out from the presence of the LORD. Job 1:8-12

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Divine Appointments

My wife is a wonderful woman. Not only does she take care of our kiddos and I, she also pours into the lives of many of the women she knows.

At any given time she has at least one friend that’s going through heartbreaking circumstances or challenges, and she tries to help them in various ways. One weekday at church she was the lead for her class’s Bible study, which was a source of stress for her in terms of preparation and delivering the material. Though the class itself went well, another woman she knew sought her out afterward, and it resulted in a conversation that required a lot of mental energy and focus. It wasn’t a bad encounter, but it added to the stress of a particularly draining day. By the time she left church with our preschool-aged daughter, she just wanted to get home and do something that didn’t require any thought or energy, but she knew our little girl would want to read some books or play pretend with some of her toys.

Mentally exhausted and physically worn out, she arrived home to see that I had come home early for a dental appointment, and was just about to leave. Instead of driving right from work to the dentist, I came home first because I wanted to change clothes so I could run an errand after the dentist. My daughter got excited and wanted to go with me because the last time she went with me to the dentist, one of the assistants had allowed her to pick a toy out of the little treasure chest, just for tagging along. Well, that sounded good to everyone, so my little sidekick and I drove off.

My wife came inside to a quiet house and collapsed on the couch. Before long she thought of something she needed to do online. She picked up our laptop and went to turn it on, but the battery was dead. Taking this as a sign, she put it back down and closed her eyes for just a few moments. She ended up getting a half hour of much-needed quiet…an opportunity that would not have happened if our daughter stayed home and if the laptop’s battery had any life in it.

People often forget this, but the God of the big things is God of the little things, too. Foreseeing this need, God laid the groundwork for that day. There were at least three separate things that needed to happen in order for these conditions to exist for my wife. I don’t remember what errand I intended to run after the dentist, but God worked it out that instead of going right from work to the dentist, I first came home to change clothes. In addition to that, I don’t know how long before that day my daughter came with me to the dentist, but somehow God set up the circumstances for that previous visit so that I was home and took my little girl with me and she got a toy, conditioning her to want to go again the next time. Similarly, however we used the laptop the day before (or the morning of) the Bible study resulted in a dead battery by the time my wife arrived home.

It’s as if God says “if you follow me and work for me, you’re going to have hard times, but I’m going to take care of you.” Never forget that God is sovereign; there is nothing He can’t control. When you’re living in His will, He goes before you and “plows the road” ahead of you to get you where He wants you to be. On the flip side, if you’re not living in His will, there will probably be times when it seems like there hasn’t been one particularly difficult challenge, but you feel like you’re expending a lot of energy just to accomplish something minor.

So, especially during this busy season, remember: the God of the big things is God of the little things, too.

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It’s All About Perspective

(Programming note: In observance of the Thanksgiving holiday, I’m switching up this week’s posting schedule. Next week will be back to Thursday.)

When my kids were very young, like a lot of kids, they were pretty self-centered. This wasn’t a surprise; when any child’s world is still very small, they naturally think of themselves as the center of the universe.

My wife and I found a way to start breaking them out of that thought process. Every night at bedtime, we started doing what we call “Thankful Hearts.” We’d each say a few things for which we were thankful. My wife and I started out with some examples. We might say something like “I’m thankful we had enough food to eat today, I’m thankful you didn’t get hurt worse when you fell down today, and I’m thankful our house is keeping us warm and dry while it’s rainy and cold outside.”

It took a little adjustment for them, but over time our kids began focusing less on their “I wants” and more on their “I already haves.” This roundabout way of counting their blessings helped our kids understand that it’s a special thing to have enough when others don’t. That type of security allows people to turn their focus outward; instead of our kids’ prayer requests sounding like a Christmas list for items they wanted for themselves, they soon began bringing their requests to God on behalf of the needs of others.

In a world where every commercial or advertisement you watch, read, or hear tries to convince you that what you already have is inadequate, it’s easy to become dissatisfied. That’s the goal of advertising. It’s also easy to get caught in the whole “keep up with the Joneses” mentality. Don’t forget though, especially as we head into Christmas season, to be thankful for the areas of your life where you already have “enough,” especially if you’re assured of your salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Thankfulness of that eternal assurance allows you to be confident and enables you to turn your focus outward and share the good news with those who, in that sense, aren’t as blessed as you are.

I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High. Psalm 9:1-2

Happy Thanksgiving!

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You’ve Made Your Bed, Now Sleep in it

Your decisions have consequences, but don’t let those consequences put limits on you.        

In college I majored in Biology, but I went the first three semesters without identifying what I wanted to focus my studies on.

You can get through your college experience that way, but I wouldn’t advise it. The best part about this route was the blissful ignorance of those first three semesters. I attended a Christian liberal arts college, where as a part of the degree requirements, each student had to complete courses from a wide array of educational topics to round out his or her knowledge base. In those early semesters in college I took courses in anything from Biblical Literature to Psychology to Math to Spanish to Ethics to Macroeconomics to Tennis.

I’m not sure why it took me so long to realize it, but after awhile I figured out that I was running out of these “Gen Eds” to take. I needed to figure out how to fill the remaining five semesters. In an epiphany, I began to understand that I needed to figure out what I wanted to declare for my major. I ended up selecting Biology with an Environmental Emphasis.

As you can imagine, if you want to major in a science, it means you’ll need to take lots of science courses. That’s not a bad thing as long as you start on them right away, but if you wait to get started on them, like I did, it means you’re living, eating, and breathing science classes later on.

After my realization I worked with my faculty adviser to figure out how to make it work. I was a Bio major, but didn’t get signed up for the most basic of biology classes until halfway through my second year. Then I signed up for a four-week summer Bio course with class all morning and lab work all afternoon, Monday through Friday. (My brain nearly melted during that class. I was an average student that just finished my Sophomore year, and most of the other students in the course were Freshmen honors students that had spent a semester abroad and now just needed to catch up.)

Junior year was also packed with science classes, but I still managed to “kick the can down the road” with one of the key requirements for a Biology major: two semesters’ worth of Chemistry. By the time I began Senior year and started getting into Chemistry, I realized that I was in over my head. I couldn’t stand Chemistry. The professors were great, but I had a terrible time grasping a lot of the material. I had waited until my last two semesters to take two semesters of Chemistry. There would be no withdrawing from the class to arrange a more convenient courseload.

It was already a busy year…I had a Senior Seminar to deliver, I was the Vice President of the Paddle Sports club, I had a few work/study jobs, a buddy and I were getting ready to drive out to the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, I had a weekly workout routine at the gym, and there was general fun to be had (after all, it was Senior year!).

Even with all I had going on, my whole senior year began to revolve around how I could pass Chemistry. I skipped out on some pranks or outings that would have been fun to be a part of. There was a study group that I started attending each time it met. I linked up with one of the Chemistry Majors, who never seemed to sleep, for help on my homework when I was frustrated and at the end of my rope. With plenty of patience he walked me through each problem. Joel, if you’re out there, thanks for all your help! You saved my bacon!

After all of the craziness and mental anguish, I finally passed both semesters of Chemistry. Never was I so happy to complete two classes.

I whine about it, but this was a crisis of my own making. Because of the choices I made, I backed myself into a corner and made my path to success much more difficult. Here’s the tie-in: even when you become a Christian, your problems don’t go away. God loves you and forgives you if you’re truly sorry, but you must still live with the consequences of your past actions.

Becoming a Christian does not remove all the pain and agony you face. In some ways it makes things more difficult. The good news is that a relationship with Christ gives you hope and strength to face each day, even when each day has repercussions of your previous actions.

As one of God’s chosen, He provides what you need to overcome each obstacle. You may have made your circumstances more complex, but He’s the one that is able to supply for all of your needs. Christianity is not an escape from your problems; it is an opportunity to have hope when facing them. Consider that as you work toward becoming the person He wants you to be.

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What Am I?

Photo courtesy of https://medium.com/@joseph.r.pack/the-bourne-transformation-cb507485415c

Last week I posted about how we’re in a war. It can be difficult to see the best way to gird up and fight back, though. How can we be part of God’s plan to overcome the world? Well, I’ll tell you.

When it first came out, I really enjoyed the movie “The Bourne Identity.” For those of you that haven’t seen it, it’s about an American that gets recovered while floating unconscious off the coast of France; he has no memory of who he is, how he ended up in the water, or why he has a pair of gunshot wounds in his back.

As the story unfolds we try to solve the mystery alongside him, but what’s very interesting is that even though he can’t remember who he is, certain skills come very naturally to him. He speaks at least three different languages, he ties complicated knots without knowing why he knows how to do it. He excels at hand-to-hand fighting, combat driving, and use of various weapons. He’s got serious skills, but doesn’t have a clue about the purpose behind applying them.

Obviously he fits into a larger story, but when we meet him, he’s just a guy with skills trying to figure out his place in the world. He’s a highly skilled, but uncertain fellow without a purpose.

Does that sound like you?

We all come pre-loaded with different talents, skills, and gifts. Some have obvious application (leadership or teaching, for example), while others seem like little more than amusing party tricks. We can use them for our own benefit in some cases, but it’s important to remember that we were given specific skills for a specific reason.

What’s the definition of a gift? An excerpt from the video below says that it’s “the thing you do the absolute best with the least amount of effort.” It’s something that comes naturally to you; something you can do without even trying. It doesn’t have to be something spiritual or church-y. Running focus groups; skateboarding; comforting hurting people; competing in triathlons; interior decorating; creating various forms of art; plumbing. It doesn’t have to make sense to you, but by pursuing your gift or using your talent right now, God will position you in a place He wants you to be at just the right time in the future. Many people turn or run from their gift because it’s something they don’t want to be gifted in, and they pursue something that “makes more sense” but doesn’t fit who they are. If that’s you, I urge you to stop chasing something you’re not meant to be and embrace the tools you already possess. You have them for a reason.

Our mystery American from the movie eventually discovers what he is, and having that context makes him more comfortable in his own skin; learning more about the background of his skills gives him purpose and structure to help him apply his skills. Christians have the same thing. After you’ve accepted Christ as your Savior, your purpose is no longer to find God, it is to glorify Him. You want to know how to be a part of that? Do what you were made to do: use your God-given talents to live your life in honor of Him.

Think of a tool that goes unused: a hammer that doesn’t strike; scissors that don’t cut. These are tools with unmet potential. It’s not up to the tools to be used in the right way or envision the details of what they’re used for; that’s the craftsman’s job. As “Christian tools,” we don’t need to be overwhelmed by trying to discover what the plan is; we only need to place ourselves in the hands of the Master and be used the way He sees best.

I’m including a link to a motivational YouTube video. It’s a little lengthy (about half an hour), but since it’s audio only, you don’t need to watch it as it plays. It’s a good listen while folding laundry, working in the garage, cooking dinner, working out, or driving. It can give you a better idea about how to honor God by employing your gift(s).

Know someone that would like to read this? Pass it along to them! New content posted every Thursday.

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This Isn’t a Game; This is for Real

In the military, especially in units that operate fighter aircraft, there’s something called a “show of force.” This is a tactic that was used a lot in Iraq and Afghanistan early in our military’s operations in those countries. A show of force is when a very maneuverable plane gets low to the ground, goes full throttle, and flies as close as possible past the enemy on the ground.

If you’re on the receiving end, this tactic is not something that will physically affect you; there are no shots fired and there’s typically no ordnance dropped. If you’re unaccustomed to sudden loud noises, though, it’s something that will make you wet your pants. The idea behind a show of forces is simply to make you cower in fear and, at least for a little while, make you stop doing what you were doing while you question your life decisions.

A few years back I experienced a spiritual show of force. I had been working for a few weeks to prepare a talk for a group at church. To use another military analogy, to “red-team” something means to examine your own capabilities/facilities from the perspective of the enemy, taking the opportunity to uncover weaknesses and vulnerabilities. For the talk I had been preparing, I focused on “red-teaming humanity” from the perspective of Satan and his fallen angels. If you’re familiar with C.S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters, it was kind of like that, but delivered in the form of a brief/presentation.

At first I thought it was a cool idea. It was neat to gauge Humanity’s collective spiritual weaknesses. The problem was that to do it effectively, you have to think like you’re a member of the bad guys’ team, and that becomes uncomfortable and even troubling to do for an extended period of time when you have Christ living in you. As the time drew near for me to present the project, I was excited to share what I had prepared, but I was very eager to be done with it.

I know I’m jumping all over the place and mixing metaphors, but I need to throw another one at you. Imagine you’re on a professional football team, and somehow your team gets hold of your opponent’s playbook. You’d be ecstatic, but if the other team found out, they’d do just about anything to keep you from exploiting it. I had put together a brief that was going to show some of the basic strategies from the Devil’s playbook. I even thought “you know, leading up to this brief, it wouldn’t be surprising if I had some sort of experience that was a little outside the norm.”

I had no idea at the time, but I was spot on. Less than a week before I was to give the talk, I experienced the show of force.

I was at a gas station, getting my car inspected. There was a spot inside the gas station where people could hang out while their cars were in the garage. I was sitting there, doing stuff on my phone, when the door opened and someone walked in. I didn’t look up, but I heard a woman start speaking strangely. I assumed two people had walked in, or that she was speaking to someone nearby. There are a lot of weirdos around, so I didn’t look up; I assumed she was speaking to someone she knew. Still looking at my phone, I was surprised when she reached down and touched my arm. I was startled to look up and see her staring down at me with a pretty intense look.

She seemed a little bit like she wasn’t playing with a full deck, if you know what I mean. I don’t even remember what she said next, but I totally blew her off. She walked past me and sat down on a chair behind me.

I wasn’t sure what to make of the whole situation, but as I refocused on whatever I was doing on my phone, I started thinking about some of our pastor’s main themes of his then-current series: don’t stay silent; engage.

I kind of worked my way up to it, then turned to face this woman. I was caught off guard to see that she wasn’t sitting like a normal person. She was sort of sliding off the chair, rigid, with both arms stretched behind her unnaturally and her head tilted far back.

I plowed ahead anyway. I asked her about one of the strange words I remembered her saying. Thus began a bizarre encounter that I don’t even remember very much of. I do remember that without me giving any indication of my spiritual beliefs, she started ripping on Jesus Christ pretty hard. She behaved very unnaturally and aggressively tried to persuade me that Christianity was false and misleading.

This went on for a few minutes, and I can’t even tell you how glad I was when the guy told me that my car was ready. I didn’t even care whether it passed or failed; I popped up out of my seat and started walking his way. The woman suddenly became very adamant about touching my hand. “Let me shake your hand.” I declined, and she extended her hand quite urgently, saying “I need to touch you.” I later recounted these events to my pastor, and when I asked him what that part was all about, he explained that some people believe they can transfer spirits from one person to another by touching. Now, because God only allows demonic forces to go so far, I don’t think that would have been a concern, but let me tell you…I had absolutely no problem skipping out of there without saying a cordial goodbye.

Friends, I don’t know if this has occurred to you, but we’re in a war. There’s a whole lot out there that our senses cannot perceive. Looking at the last 10, 20, or 30 years, it seems like the dark forces are the ones making all the moves and all the noise (has our country moved toward or away from Christianity during that time?). To use another metaphor, imagine there’s a fire that needs to be put out, and that God’s Holy Spirit takes the form of a nearby lake. The water to extinguish that fire is present, but without something the Holy Spirit can fill, a vessel of some sort (Christians), the water does nothing to fight the fire. Please don’t misunderstand me; I’m not saying that God is powerless without us, but I am saying that He chooses to work through us. When we allow God to work through us, we become that cup, that jug, that bucket, or that fire hose that gets filled with the Holy Spirit and gets to have a front-row seat when God fights the fire. Are you going to be a part of something big when God invites you along to strike at the powers of darkness, or are you going to put your feet up and watch TV?

Here’s part of one of my favorite Bible stories from the Old Testament. When an enemy king and his army tried to attack Israel, God spoke through the prophet Elisha to warn the Israelite king, who was then able to effectively counter the enemy’s moves multiple times. Naturally, this frustrated the enemy king, and he wanted to capture Elisha to increase his chances of success. The most exciting part of the story is the perspective of Elisha’s servant:

One of his servants said, “No, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.” So he said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and take him.” And it was told him, saying, “Behold, he is in Dothan.” He sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city.

Now when the attendant of the man of God had risen early and gone out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was circling the city. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then Elisha prayed and said, “O LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” And the LORD opened the servant’s eyes and he saw; and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. -2 Kings 6:12-17

There’s more going on than what you can see. You’re smack dab in the middle of a war. While it’s very important to have a sober respect for the enemy’s power, don’t be put off by a show of force. Ask that God “fill this vessel,” and that you have the boldness to live out your faith and your calling. When you do, there’s no telling how God will use you to fight the enemy’s fire.

You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. -1 John 4:4

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Too Small To Make a Difference

We’ve got a fireplace at home, and we like having fires once it gets cold. Buying or collecting wood for the fireplace can be a hassle though, and this year we happened upon a different solution. Earlier this summer a nearby neighborhood cut down a lot of trees and sliced the trunks into slabs, leaving them to rot throughout the neighborhood. I actually enjoy splitting wood by hand (especially after aggravating days at work), so I went and picked up a bunch of them and brought them home for splitting and burning.

The problem is that I don’t have an efficient method of splitting the wood. Most people know what an ax is, but not everyone knows what a maul is. A maul is kind of like a sledgehammer with a wedge on one side. When I first started splitting wood earlier this summer though, I didn’t have a full-sized maul. The one I have is meant for splitting pieces of wood that have already been split, but are still a bit too big for the fireplace. It’s kind of a hand-held “mini-maul.”

This tool is great for splitting branches or small trunks that are, say, the diameter of a coffee-can. Once you get into dealing with slabs of trunk though, it becomes much more difficult.

I had a slab I was determined to split up, but it was so big I couldn’t even put my arms around it. Nonetheless, I put it on top of another piece and started looking at the natural grain of the wood, then started taking shots at it. At first the mini-maul just bounced off the wood. A few more shots, and each time the mini maul bounced. Each time the tool struck the wood, though, it left a pock mark. I started striking the slab in a way that the pock marks lined up to create a fault line across it. I didn’t really feel like I was making much progress, so I turned the slab and started doing the same thing in a different direction. Then I did it in yet another direction.

I struck the wood over and over and over again. Sometimes the tool bounced and other times it started penetrating into the wood. I was out there for a long time. My hands got sore and hot, like blisters were starting to form. I was tired, and eventually my shirt was so soaked with sweat that it had almost no dry spots, and I thought about packing it in. I must’ve left nearly a hundred pock marks before anything began happening.

Finally, the sound of the impact changed, and a crack emerged. When it did, it breathed new life into my effort.

Once the crack was established, it was easy to exploit into a split, and things moved quickly from there. After splitting it in two, it only took a few shots to make additional splits in one of the two sides. Those smaller chunks became infinitely easier to break into the size I wanted, often in a single blow.

In the end, this little tool was able to deliver enough targeted force to smash a strong, sturdy slab of oak into about 35 splinters that were shadows of what they once were. All of them were done in by the persistent strikes of a tool that was “too small” to do the job.

It’s an alarming spiritual analogy for those things we do that we know we shouldn’t be doing. It might not be anything major, but it happens again and again. Call it the straw that broke the camel’s back, or call it death by a thousand paper cuts. It’s something that doesn’t seem too bad, in and of itself. It’s not a crushing blow, but it’s something that delivers targeted strike after targeted strike against your Christian walk and, if it’s not stopped, has the ability to cause major damage to your spiritual health and relationships.

Maybe it’s gossip. It could be reading a certain kind of novel. Maybe it’s a glance that lingers longer than it should. Perhaps it’s tension in your marriage that goes unresolved and festers. Doing these things a single time is not something that’s devastating to your spiritual walk, but each of them is something that leaves a pock mark. You may have even told yourself “it’s not a big deal, it doesn’t hurt anybody.” Well, maybe doing it once isn’t a big deal, but have you only done it once? Consider whether your pock marks are aligning in a way that will lead to cracks and problems in the future, maybe soon.

Is there something you’re doing that you know you shouldn’t be doing? If you’re wrapped up in something that hinders your ministry or God-given purpose, even just a little bit, it can affect your ability to make your maximum impact for Christ’s kingdom. Like athletes that train hard to compete at a high level, cut yourself off from things you know aren’t helping you. Don’t run for third place, or for second place; run to win.

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. –Hebrews 12:1-2

I demolished each of these pieces of wood using that mini maul. If you feel you’ve stripped the unneeded junk out of your life, how can you help the “other pieces of wood” around you to do the same, so that they can better resist the onslaught of strikes that hit them every day?
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God Wants You Dead

When I was in college I took classes in Outdoor Leadership, which included developing skills in both technical areas and in leading individuals and teams toward outcomes. One day our class was learning about how to properly set rope anchors for rock climbing. Obviously, it’s very important that your equipment catches you if you fall off a rock face, so our instructor was teaching us how to secure the safety rope to a number of anchors we had established at the top of the cliff.

The instructor, Kevin, demonstrated a variety of ways to attach safety equipment to boulders and trees at the top. He made a point to emphasize that we’d need to establish three solid anchors before being able to proceed. “That way, if one of them fails, you’ve still got two. Even if two of them fail, you’ll still have one more.”

Of course, someone asked the question. “What if this one goes, that one fails, and the other one goes, too?”

Kevin looked at him, confused. “You mean if all three of them fail?”

“Yeah.”

“Then God wants you dead.”

When you have a God-given task laid out in front of you, it’s certainly a good thing to spend time planning and preparing, but there comes a point where you’re prepared enough and it’s time to get moving. Kevin didn’t want us to establish four anchors, or five. Three was enough. The chances of all three anchors failing was so low that setting more of them would have been a waste of time. If we spent time focusing on more than three, that time took away from our actual reason for showing up at the cliff that day.

It’s possible to take so many safety precautions that it becomes too cumbersome to do anything. There comes a point at which you are suitably prepared, reasonable precautions have been taken, and you’re ready to leave the comfortable behind. The only thing that remains is for you to take action.

By all means plan effectively. Expect problems and make backup plans if necessary, but don’t let perpetual planning stop you from getting started. If all the necessary pieces are in place, it might be that you are the only thing holding you back. What are you waiting for?

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You’re Not the First

Here’s a paddler going over a 10+ foot drop

By the start of senior year of college, most students are thinking about their last classes and life beyond their degree. I was thinking about it being my last year to take advantage of all the institution’s adventure sports programs.

I was into kayaking and whitewater rafting at the time. Coming back to college at the end of summer meant that the water in the local creeks and river was still warm. For kayaking, that was nice, but it was also the time of year where the flow rate was the lowest, so a lot of creeks and rivers were either too low or too slow to be enjoyable. Thankfully, we had a solution for that.

Not far from the college was a man-made lake with a concrete dam. The lake provided summer boating opportunities for visitors and residents. Every year, about this time in September, the dam operator dropped the lake’s water level roughly 10-15 feet to kill most of the shallow water algae over the winter. That way the water in these areas the following spring and summer would stay clear of excessive plant growth.

The faculty adviser for the college’s paddle sports club, a guy named Tim, was in touch with the dam operator. The operator was pretty cool about releasing the water in a time and manner that Tim would request. If we wanted a longer, sustained flow, this guy would accommodate us. If we wanted a bigger, shorter burst, he’d make it happen. The two would agree on a schedule for when the release would begin, and prior to that date’s arrival, Tim and a few other people would walk down through the creek bed with chainsaws to clear potential obstacles. It was a custom-ordered whitewater run!

I had only become interested in kayaking the previous academic year. I’m not sure why, but I got it into my head that I wanted to go over a drop in a kayak. A drop is just like it sounds…it’s a sudden change in the elevation of the creek/river bed. It could be a shelf that spans the whole width of the body of water you’re going down, or maybe a formation where one side of the river has a big drop while the other side has a more gradual slope. As it turns out, this run had a drop of probably 4-5 feet right at the beginning…great for a first-time drop. When I got the invite, this is the feature that sold me.

The day arrived and I met up with a few other guys. One of them, a maintenance guy at the college, was named Charlie. Charlie’s hobbies included woodworking and generally “MacGyvering” things. He carved his own wooden kayak paddle. He also fashioned a wooden bumper for his car when it needed to be replaced. His family hosted a number of us for dinner once, and his kids showed off a system of pulleys that allowed them to raise or lower their beds depending on whether they wanted more floor space or to go to bed. Charlie was going to walk me through my first drop.

We drove to the lake, geared up, and carried our boats down to the creek. We put in just downstream of the spillway, and the drop wasn’t far beyond. Charlie had walked me through the process a bit, laying out the mechanics of what needed to happen and the order in which they needed to happen. Much like I had learned years before, it was important to not reduce speed as you approach the drop.

Charlie was going to be the first to do the drop, so I could see where to do it and how to approach it. He worked out a signal with me before he went over the edge. A drop of 4 or 5 feet isn’t that much, but when you’re sitting in a boat that’s barely on top of the water, your eyes are only about two feet off the surface, so it looked much higher. After Charlie went over the edge, I wouldn’t be able to see him. Once he was safely down and he was ready for me to proceed, he’d stick his paddle up in the air and wave it back and forth, and that would be my “green light.”

Deciding that we were both ready, he went for it. He started paddling and kept going, right up until the bow of his boat dropped, his stern popped up out of the water, and he disappeared over the edge. A few seconds followed, and then I saw one end of a hand-carved wooden paddle stick up in the air and start waving around. It was my turn.

I went for it. I started paddling, and got faster as I neared the shelf. As I slid over the ledge, my boat’s bow dipped and for a fraction of a second I was in midair. The bow then sliced deep into the water before the kayak’s buoyancy bounced it back up to the surface. It was easier than I thought, and it was cool!

The thing that made this part of the adventure so easy was that I had someone right there to walk me through it. It was someone who had been through it before, who knew what to expect, and was physically right there to help me in case I got into a jam. In this situation, Charlie mentored me through the challenge successfully, and it was much different than if I had been there by myself and decided to try it and see what happened.

How about you? Do you have a mentor that can help guide you through a situation that’s foreign and scary to you? This life is full of unknowns, but it’s also full of people with lots of experience that you don’t have. Don’t be afraid of taking a shortcut to spare yourself some painful lessons by learning from others’ hard-won experience.

Maybe you’re more like Charlie. You’ve been around the block a few times. You see someone who’s enthusiastic but inexperienced, and it looks like they’re in an awfully big hurry to get themselves hurt or stuck in a bad situation. Why not see if they’re willing to allow you to help channel that enthusiasm into something productive? Don’t do it because you think it’ll make you look good; do it because you can help them.

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Don’t Let Go of Your Single Opportunity

There was a lake not too far away from the college I attended. Some of the college’s classes either took place on the lake or took field trips here. I did some canoeing on the lake for one of the Outdoor Leadership Training courses. The college offered waterskiing during the first half of the fall semester, too.

I don’t remember what course it was; it must have been some kind of Biology or Ecology class that brought us to the Lake one September day. Our class was going to use the same speedboat that the college used for waterskiing to go out into the lake and take water samples at various depths.

There were too many students in the class to bring out in the boat all at once, so we split into two or three groups that took turns heading out to the middle of the lake. The driver, a student named Laura, spent a few minutes driving out to deeper water, a few minutes taking samples, a few minutes joyriding, and a few minutes heading back to the dock to switch out students.

I was in the last group of students to head out on the lake. In order to make room for more students, the professor stayed behind on the dock while the rest of us rode off to the middle of the lake. As we sped along, I looked around the boat. It was very similar to the one I had driven for a few summers and had enjoyed going kneeboarding behind. As providence would have it, on the floor of the boat sat a lifejacket, a kneeboard, and a ski rope.

We started collecting our samples or doing whatever experiments we were supposed to do. I wanted to say something about wanting to give kneeboarding a try, but thought it would be too crazy. As we wrapped up our tasks on the lake, I couldn’t help myself any longer. I forget how I did it, but I asked Laura if she’d be open to letting me jump in the lake to go kneeboarding. To my great surprise, she said “sure.”

I didn’t ask any other questions. I lost the shirt/shoes/socks, emptied my pockets, donned the life jacket, grabbed the board and rope, and jumped into the water. It was cold, but I didn’t care. We got lined up, Laura hit it, and we were off to the races. The water was a lot choppier from the wind than I was used to, but I was kneeboarding in a science class.

We were far enough away from the dock, or maybe around a bend in the lake so that the professor and my classmates on land couldn’t see us. We didn’t want to goof off too long and get in trouble, so after a bit of tooling around, Laura stopped the boat and I climbed back in. We stowed everything and headed back to shore. Come to think of it, I don’t think anyone on shore even knew what we’d done.

There will be key moments in your life where you only have a single opportunity to seize the chance to do something you want to do. There’ll be times when it simply will not happen unless you step out and make it happen. If you hem and haw, you’ll be stuck watching as the opportunity passes you by.

You might have to abandon the norms you’re accustomed to. I didn’t even have swim trunks, but when Laura said she was open to my request, I was in the water with no questions asked, wearing whatever clothes I already had on.

Many times in this blog I’ve written that God will place opportunities in your path to do something great. I’ll use this post to clarify: He will place the opportunity for you to do something great just off your path. God loves the timid, but He also has a special place in His heart for the bold.

If there’s something big, bold, and brash that you feel called to do on Christ’s behalf…don’t sit on it. God might bring an opportunity near your orbit, but you’re going to have to pursue that chance…you’ll need to run after it and chase it down. If you feel called to make it happen, live with abandon. You might even have to jump into the cold water with your regular clothes on.

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Outside That Door There’s a 10,000-foot Drop

This is my hair BEFORE skydiving…

Once I finished college, I didn’t do anything related to my academic major. I needed a job, but didn’t have anything professional in mind, so I moved back in with Mom and Dad and worked construction.

Since I had worked construction the past few summers, nothing felt different initially. Doing the job as a college grad didn’t feel any different than doing the job the previous summer. It didn’t really seem strange until the end of the summer, when I ordinarily would have prepared to head back to school. To help mark the occasion of our entry into the “real world,” a college buddy and I decided to go skydiving.

We made some reservations, then showed up at the airport one Saturday morning early in September. We signed the waivers, took the short class, then waited our turn.

We signed up for tandem jumps. That’s where you’re connected to an experienced jumper that’s trained to do two-person jumps. You don’t have to focus on any of the flight plan, what your altitude is, etc. All you have to do is go along for the ride and enjoy yourself. My tandem instructor was Frank. He took us over to the tiny plane we’d use and walked us through the steps we’d later take when exiting the aircraft. After that we squeezed into the plane, took off, and started the climb to 10,000 feet.

(I paid extra to have my jump recorded, so there was a jumper with a camera and video camera on her helmet that went along. Unfortunately I don’t have a digital copy; it’s still on VHS format, so I can’t show it here. I can share some of the pictures though.)

There were six jumpers and a pilot crammed into a little Cessna. As we reached 3,000 feet, the door opened and one of the guys jumped out. I’m not sure if I was aware of this at the time or not, but it turns out this man was Don Kellner, who was (and still is) the world record holder for the number of sport parachute jumps. At the time, he had about 30,000 jumps or something ridiculous like that. In order to set and build on his record, he’d be on just about every plane that went up, and most of the time he’d hop out around 3,000 feet. He’d skip the freefall and deploy his parachute right away. They called this type of jump a “hop ‘n pop.” I didn’t see it coming, so all I knew was that the door blew open without warning and a guy fell out.

The rest of the climb to altitude was uneventful. It was my buddy and I, our two tandem instructors, and a videographer. They kept the mood light by making plenty of jokes, so that we’d stay loose and not seize up when the door opened and we stuck our heads outside the plane and looked down.

The time finally arrived. We shuffled around inside the plane to get connected to the instructors. We went over a few last-minute things, gave a final thumbs-up, and then they opened the door.

Inside the plane it got windy and much cooler than it had been on the ground. We inched up to the doorway, and the videographer actually climbed outside the plane and hung from the wing strut while she waited for us to exit. Frank shouted in my ear, I did what he had showed me on the ground earlier, and out the door we went.

This is the only part that feels like you’re falling

There’s really not a good way to convey what it’s like to freefall. It’s unlike anything else. There was only a brief fraction of a second where there was any falling sensation, and that was as you fell out of the plane. The ground didn’t seem like it was rushing up at me at all. It was just windy, loud, and amazing. You can judge for yourself just how miserable I was.

We fell for about 30 seconds, reaching a max speed of around 120 mph. It didn’t feel that fast, because there were no references other than people falling at the same speed (it’s not like you fell past a bird or a hot air balloon at 120 mph, for example). It was smooth. The video shows that Frank and I did some goofy stuff and made weird faces (imagine what kind of silly stuff you’d do if someone pointed a leaf blower at your face). Then Frank deployed the main chute, and after the rapid deceleration the loud rush of air gave way to a gentle breeze and relative silence as we slowed down to about 20 mph. He then gave me an aerial tour of the surrounding area as we continued our descent. Five minutes later we were safely on the ground, and I was ready to do it all again.

I fell over a mile and a half straight down and lived to tell the tale

I was hooked. Eventually I went back and did it again, and I’ll share more skydiving stories in the future, but for now here’s what’s important. When you jump out of a plane, there’s no doing it halfway. There’s no way to stay in the plane and at the same time experience what it’s like to leave it midair. You either leave the plane or you don’t, and the two outcomes are vastly different.

Despite what many people seem to think, access to Heaven is based on an either/or criterion: you either have a saving relationship with Jesus Christ, or you don’t. Here too, the two outcomes are vastly different. If you don’t have that relationship, you’re not going to get into Heaven.

“That’s incredibly intolerant!” It’s okay to think that, because it is. I serve an intolerant God. For some reason that seems to shock people. God doesn’t tolerate our antics and rationalizations.  I can’t really blame Him. Why should He? Imagine you had a child that wanted nothing to do with you, yet demanded all the benefits of being associated with you. On top of that, they replace you with someone else and still want the rights and privileges of being your child. How tolerant would you be?

These days there seems to be very little in terms of pure black and white. Just because the world looks at things with a “everything is relative” mindset however, doesn’t make it true or mean we get to water down God’s truth. There ARE absolutes. One of them is that the only way to Heaven is through Jesus Christ.

People will decry this view as having a lack of inclusivity. I’d counter that Christ was one of the most inclusive historical figures ever. He went out of His way to reach the dregs of society; He violated cultural norms by empowering and addressing women directly; and He advocated for fair treatment of foreigners.

The difference is that Christ wanted all people to hear the truth so they could make their own decision. He wanted everybody to have access to this information regardless of their background or standing. What they did with it was entirely up to them, but He wanted everyone in the world to know that the only way to God (and Heaven) was through Him.

You either have that saving relationship or you don’t. There’s no doing it halfway, and there’s no middle ground. The good…no…the great news is that you’re welcome to start that saving relationship right now. Even if you think you’re beyond saving or that you’ve done things that are too terrible to be forgiven, He won’t turn you away.

Maybe you’ve never prayed before, but if you’re open to this, pray this prayer along with me:

Dear Jesus…thank you so much for loving me even when I don’t deserve you at all. Lord, come into my life, change me, break me, make me new, make me whole…forgive me. Purify my heart. Jesus I believe you died on the cross and rose again three days later. You are my savior and one day I will live with You forever. But meanwhile, help me to stand for you. To shine for you, to make a difference and let your truth be known. Use me Lord, Holy Spirit fill me to overflowing. I love you so much! In Jesus’ name, amen.

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Don’t Rob the World of it…

The church we attend is fortunate to have a large amount of musical talent among its congregation.

Each week the church holds multiple services, so it’s asking a lot for the same people to be on the worship team week after week for all the services. Volunteers from the congregation stepped up, and as a result the worship team has a good amount of “bench strength.”

When the team is leading worship, there are usually a lot of people on stage. Normally there are two keyboardists, three or four guitarists, a drummer, and some singers. There’s a lot happening during a given song.

I’m not sure why, it’s probably the amount of movement, but my eye is always drawn to the drummer. Like any other role on the worship team, there are different types of people that play the drums. All of them can keep the beat just fine, but while some of them look calm and in complete control of the rhythm, others play with intensity and look like they’re out of breath and are right on the edge of losing musical control.

I always enjoy when one young man in particular takes his turn at the drums. Not only are his arms flailing around in perfect timing, smashing his instruments, but his head also bobs to help keep the beat. At the same time his facial expression conveys his sheer passion for the task.

The drums and cymbals our church uses are electronic; I’m guessing that someone made the decision to use electronic cymbals so that metal ones don’t overpower the rest of the worship team. They make less noise when the drumsticks physically strike them, and the sound system adds it in to the overall mix coming out of the speakers. When I’m sitting in the congregation and this guy is drumming, I can clearly hear the sound of his drumsticks slapping the cymbals no matter where I sit in the room.

This is someone that’s doing what he was created to do, and it’s a joy to behold.

We’re all created with gifts. I heard someone describe a gift as “the thing you do the best with the least amount of effort.” You might make a living from it, but not necessarily. For some people, standing up in front of a group and teaching is something that comes naturally, but for others that idea is terrifying. Some people are amazing hosts/hostesses. It’s possible to be an incredibly empathetic conversationalist and have an occupation where that skill isn’t used at all.

Your gift might be something you think is absurd, or even worthless. It doesn’t matter how you feel about it, but I’ll tell you that you’ll feel satisfaction in using your gifts to glorify God. If you make amazing fried chicken…fry it while giving God glory. If mowing grass in cool patterns comes naturally to you, mow it like there’s no tomorrow. If you write computer code or create algorithms effortlessly, write and create with passion! There’s no telling how your gift will combine with others that are using their gifts, and what that will result in.

What were you created to do? The more important question is: are you doing it? (What good is a drum that can’t be played, or a Lamborghini that sits in the garage?)

The drummer in our church isn’t changing lives or saving souls by playing the drums. I can only imagine though, that if it’s fun for me, an ordinary guy, to watch him play, our Heavenly Father is smiling even bigger to see one of his beloved children employ the talents entrusted to him to pursue his calling. Wouldn’t you like to bring the same kind of smile to God’s face?

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Season of Change

As a kid I always hated this time of year. There’s a mental shift once the calendar gets close to rolling over from August to September. Even if the temperature is in the 80s or 90s, the pool’s still closed after Labor Day. All the fun and relaxed schedules of summer come to an end, and it’s time to once again get into the routine of a new academic year.

As an adult I look forward to this time of year. The heat and humidity of summer (ever so slightly) start to fade, it becomes safer to venture outside without breaking into a sweat, and football season starts up again.

It’s a time of new routines.

Once you’re set in a routine, it becomes difficult to make changes to it. My guess is that if you regularly attend a church, there are either end-of-summer events going on right now or a series of kickoff events for various ministry programs coming up in the next month.

My challenge to you: be intentional about designing your Fall schedule. If you’re like most people, you probably don’t have a whole lot of extra time. If you’re interested in a Bible Study, some kind of home group, or discipleship class that’s starting up soon, you’re not likely to join it once it’s already been meeting for a month or two. If you want to make it happen, do what you’ve got to do so you’re at the kickoff event or the first meeting.

Hello Fall

I know it doesn’t seem like it now, but in about six weeks you’re probably not going to be willing to commit to an ongoing gathering because Thanksgiving is right around the corner. After that December starts and, well, we all know how busy that month can be, so you won’t be able to jump in to anything new until a few weeks into the new year.

Whoa! In two sentences, four months flew by! I meant for this to be a little ridiculous, but I suspect it also rings true for a lot of people. The sole point of this post is that you can’t just let life “happen” to you; you have to take control of your calendar and wrangle it so that you set yourself up to spend time doing the things you want to be doing.

The end of summer is a great time to look ahead. By all means celebrate the fun memories you’ve made over the past few months, but if you spend too much time looking backward, your schedule will be dictated for you.

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How Are You Not Cheating?!

My wife is one of four sisters, and each one of them is married with kids. The four families are spread out across the country, but when we can make it happen, it’s fun to get together.

A few times in the past, after most of the kids go down for the night, the parents have pulled out board games. It usually ends up that the teams get split into husbands vs. wives. The hubbies are able to squeak out wins in some games, but the wives are freakishly dominant when it comes to Pictionary.

I don’t know what it is; maybe all that time spent together as kids developed some kind of shared consciousness or something. It’s actually embarrassing to be on the other team. One of the sisters will be halfway into drawing a stick figure when another one shouts “ooh, ooooh…the Berlin Wall!” “YES! You got it!” Or one of them might draw a circle, and a half second later two of them will simultaneously yell “an apple a day keeps the doctor away!” After that the artist excitedly points at them and shouts “Yes, that’s it!”

Team Hubby just sits there bewildered, looking at the drawing, then at each other. The ladies are either extremely good at cheating and not letting us find out about it, or they benefit from a collection of minds that are on the same wavelength, with a singular focus and common understanding.

Oddly enough, that’s sometimes how Christianity works. I love hearing stories about how God weaves lives together to benefit one or more of them. Believers (and even unbelievers) become answers to urgent prayers. Complete strangers walk up to someone and, prompted only by the Holy Spirit, hand over money that the recipient desperately needed. Collectively, people employ their different spiritual gifts or use their various resources to achieve improbable or unique feats.

At times Christians work together without any earthly coordination. Something from your devotions combines with a “random” song on the radio and something you read (maybe even this blog!) to result in a message that’s being shouted at the hearer.

The hearer asks “what does this mean?” Well, if you’re the one hearing it, you’re the one that’s in the best position to make sense of it. Continue praying and seeking God’s guidance for your life. Not just once or twice more, but each day, multiple times a day, and He will eventually make it clear. Once He does, act on it. It’s your ticket to being a part of the freakishly dominant team.

PS – No, we don’t play Pictionary at family events anymore. The wives see that Team Hubby is getting bent out of shape, so they let us win other stuff and act like we won through our raw talent.

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Need a Boost?

I used to love going kneeboarding. You kneel on a board and get pulled behind a boat, skimming across the top of the water. It’s not as popular as waterskiing or wakeboarding, but I had a lot of fun doing it.

When I was new to it, it was really cool just to get going and go back and forth across the wake. Then you start doing little tricks, like 360s or riding backwards. Then you start hitting the wake a little harder to get some air. Then you start hitting it really hard to see how far you can jump.

After hitting the wake hard and getting a decent amount of air, somehow I got it into my head that I wanted to pull off a barrel roll. Now that I’m older and wiser, I know that we just didn’t have the right setup to make this trick work, but back then I didn’t know it was impossible. I was willing to try it as many times as I could. Each time I wanted to get just a little closer to making it happen, but there was always a point in the rotation past which I couldn’t go.

I tried dozens of times, but always ended up falling into the water without the board rotating around nearly enough. I even bought a video camera (when such things existed) and had someone in the boat film what was going on so I could try to learn from my mistakes. I have film somewhere of me rolling between 180 and 270 degrees over and over again. I’d land on my head or I’d land on my side, the kneeboard would go flying up into the air, and it never once worked out for me.

What none of us knew at the time is that I couldn’t pull off the roll without mounting the rope at a higher point on the boat. The boat’s pylon – the point where the rope I hung onto was connected to the boat – was fine for waterskiing and even basic kneeboarding, but it simply was not going to allow me to achieve what I wanted to do. The professionals that successfully do these tricks use boats with elevated mounts. That way when the kneeboarders hit the wake and make it into the air, the boat is not only pulling them forward, but slightly upward as well. It’s not a lot, but it helps provide just a little bit of extra hang time that makes a huge difference in the person’s overall ability to perform tricks.

People are like that too. Each person is unique in their own story, but there’s usually a ceiling of some kind that everyone hits. It could be trying to find contentment, get past guilt, grant forgiveness, or even trying to establish a ministry. Whatever it is, people need to be connected to something higher than just the basic level. You hit your limit a lot sooner when you’re doing it on your own, and you need that extra boost that only comes from God.

Work diligently and don’t be afraid to put yourself out there, but remember to ask God for help and to guide your steps in any effort that glorifies Him. When you work hard to complete the assignment God’s given you, He provides that little boost that makes all the difference. He may not provide it exactly when you want it or exactly how you anticipate it, but He gives it to you. It’s the thing that makes a huge difference in your overall ability to perform His work.

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Stifle the Outcry

China in green, Taiwan in red

This post will likely be censored or unavailable for readers in east Asia.

At the end of World War II, many nations across the globe were exhausted, in physical and financial shambles, and/or struggling to define their identity. One of those nations was China.

The quick version is that in the late 1940s the two most powerful groups in China that had worked with the United States to combat Japanese forces struggled against each other for control of the nation. The Nationalist group, losing strength and support, began to flee toward the ocean in order to escape the Communist group. Upon reaching the Pacific, with the adversary not far behind, the Nationalist leadership escaped to an island off the coast of China, an island now known as Taiwan. The Communists went on to establish firm control over mainland China, and vowed to someday reclaim Taiwan, which they view as a rogue Chinese territory.

That was 70 years ago. China still intends to reclaim and annex Taiwan, by force if necessary. The Chinese Government knows, however, that if it suddenly grabs Taiwan all at once, the international outcry would be detrimental to its long-term goals, so it came up with a different plan. It’s been slowly exerting pressure on those within its sphere of influence to either support the idea that Taiwan belongs to China, or at least avoid supporting Taiwan in any way. The Chinese populace is not nearly as distracted and forgetful as we are in America, and the idea is that over time there will be so little international resistance that eventually China will reach out and pluck Taiwan for itself and the outcry will be manageable. Unfortunately for Taiwan, there’s evidence that the plan is working.

Don’t believe me? Let me show you an example.

Not long ago Tom Cruise introduced a trailer for his upcoming movie, Top Gun: Maverick. This is a sequel to the original Top Gun movie that came out 34 years before the sequel. I’ll admit, I’ve watched the trailer a few times and I’m definitely excited to see the movie some day.

It wasn’t long after the trailer went public that an eagle-eyed fan noticed something very peculiar. There’s a brief shot in the trailer where Maverick (Tom Cruise’s character) puts on an old bomber jacket that he wore in the first movie. The jacket is full of unit patches that signify some of the assignments Maverick completed. The fan did a side-by-side comparison of the jacket from the 1986 film and the jacket from the sequel. He noticed that where the 1986 jacket had a large patch containing flags from Japan and Taiwan, the 2020 movie replaced those two portions of that patch with similarly colored ambiguous shapes.

This was not an accident; it was quite intentional. China doesn’t get along with Japan or Taiwan. Rather than simply write in a minor plot change that uses a different, newer jacket, (or even avoid camera angles showing that particular patch) the people that made this movie decided it would be best to rewrite history in order to appease China. It would be different if China made the change itself before allowing it to play in Chinese theaters, but here the actual patch from the world’s first major summer blockbuster was deemed unpalatable and updated before it was even released in America. Now the movie posters act like it never even happened, history is erased, and the people that never saw the original won’t even know anything happened.

Imagine…this level of sinister manipulation by “soft power” methods is engineered by earthly minds. If mere humans can orchestrate this type of behavior, imagine the level of sneakiness and underhandedness that the most powerful of all angels is capable of.

Now, before you get any crazy ideas, no, I’m not saying that China is run by the devil. I think this instance is an excellent illustration of one of his tactics, though. He knows he’s headed for an epic clash that he’ll eventually lose. In the meantime though, he hates God and us so much that his main motivation is to rob God from receiving glory. He does it through discouraging/distracting Christians from doing the work God calls them to do and by doing everything in his power to prevent humans from becoming Christians. That’s it. At the end of the day, that’s all it is.

Satan knows that a sudden power grab is too overt and people would too easily recognize it for what it is. With that in mind, he works a little slower, in smaller steps but always pushing toward making the world a place where anything goes and Christianity is labeled as too intolerant and restrictive. Think about how much Christian influence the United States has lost over the last hundred years, or even the last 20 years.

When you shape the narrative, it’s much easier to control the outcome. As a Christian you can’t just hide your head in the sand and hope things will get better; you need to engage the culture. If someone tells you that “there are no absolutes,” you can politely remind them that their statement is self-contradicting. If someone tells you that “everything in life is meaningless!” you can ask whether or not they believe their assertion has meaning.

Engage the culture. It’s your culture, after all. Push back against ideas that run counter to what you know God would want. It’s not easy and you might be alone, but if you don’t do it, it won’t be long before Christians end up in a situation with the adversary posturing to reach out and pluck this isolated refugee enclave so it can do what it feels is best with this group of troublesome upstarts.

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It’s Okay, He’s Got Me

Little kids are a hoot, man. Mine are all old enough to swim on their own at this point, but it’s fun to think about when they were younger and the things they’d do at the pool.

As a dad, one of the fun things to see is the trust your kids place in you. The pool is a place where the trust you’ve built with your kids becomes most evident. For a kiddo that’s 3 or 4 years old and doesn’t know how to swim yet, it’s a scary thing to walk to the edge of the pool and jump into water that might be too deep to stand in. It’s a big deal to jump off the side of the pool into Daddy’s arms! You look at them and you can almost see the wheels turning. It’s like they’re thinking “Daddy’s right there, but will he catch me if I jump?”

It’s so fun to stand in the pool, looking up at them, and say “go ahead, I’ll catch you,” and to see them think it over. I have three kids, so I’ve seen a few different reactions. There’s always some hesitation; sometimes it passes quickly and other times it takes some additional coaxing for them to commit to the jump.

It’s fun to watch their eyes, too. They look at my outstretched arms, gauging whether or not they think they can make it. Once they decide they think they can do it, they look me in the eyes, seeking assurance that I’m focused on them and will be there when they need me. My next move would be to give them a non-verbal green light. Sometimes it was a silent nod. Other times it was a big smile. With intense focus, they’d stick out their little tongue, crouch, and take a flying leap into Daddy’s arms.

It’s a simple, but beautiful picture. As the father to my children, I cherish that trust that we’ve developed together. They each placed so much trust in me that each one of them were willing to step outside their comfort zones to do something beyond what they could do on their own. Building trust is something that’s done over time, but can be shattered in an instant. As they each belly-flopped their way into my arms, it was so fun to join in their celebration with exclamations, smiles, and laughs. Almost right away they wanted to do it again, and then again. Building further on that trust, I was able to back farther away from the edge, or move into deeper water, and they’d be okay with making the leap because they knew. They knew “it’s okay, he’s got me.”

Your Heavenly Father takes pleasure in seeing you demonstrate your trust in Him, too. Nothing brings Him a smile quite like seeing His children trust Him and leap with both feet into the challenge He’s given to them. Like an earthly father, He coaxes the child according to what he or she needs. Maybe it’s a silent nod, a big smile, or in some cases, a push from behind.

Give Him an opportunity to build more trust with you. Summon up your courage and concentration, stick out your tongue, and take that flying leap. He’s got you.

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Can Your Teacher Teach?

Photo courtesy of YouTube

A few summers in my teens/early 20s I drove a ski boat at a Christian conference center on the Delaware River between Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The vast majority of the people I drove came for tubing rides, but every now and then there were people that wanted to waterski.

If they were experienced waterskiers, it wasn’t a problem. They knew what to do, I knew how to drive for it, and it usually worked out pretty well.

On the other hand, it was much more difficult when beginners gave it a shot. We had a limited selection of ski sizes, so if the skier was small/light, they usually struggled to get into a good starting position. Just wrestling with the skis while trying to stay in the right “crouched” position was usually enough to get both the skier and the driver frustrated. Add to this the fact that their teacher…me…had never been successful at waterskiing, and it’s no surprise that I can probably count on one hand the number of people that were able to ski for the first time under my tutelage over the course of two or three summers. Sometimes it’s true what they say: those that can’t do…teach.

If you want to learn something from someone, you’d expect your instructor…regardless of what they’re instructing…to be proficient at it, wouldn’t you? I grew up near that conference center and since I was a kid I’d hung out by the river and heard lots of different boat drivers describe to beginners how to get up and out of the water on waterskis. The problem was that I didn’t have any experience doing it myself, so it was very difficult for me to successfully translate that theoretical knowledge into something usable for someone else.

In the Christian life we’re supposed to devote ourselves to passionately pursuing Christ. In the twelfth chapter of the book of Mark, someone asked Jesus what the greatest commandment is. He responded in verse 30 “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your mind and all your soul and all your strength.” Pursue Christ with everything you’ve got, but while you’re doing it, make sure that the sources you’re learning from, getting excited by, gaining encouragement from, and using to be renewed are credible sources. Some of the enemy’s greatest weapons employ half-truths or sound like they’re religious, but are in fact more misleading and damaging than flat-out lies.

The voices you’re listening to…are they walking the walk, or only talking the talk?

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Were You AIMING for the Bridge? (Part 2 of 2)

The arrow is pointing at the pillar where the canoe got pinned.

(View Part 1 here.)

I sat in the van, more than a little worried. Remnants of a hurricane had swollen the river to a level that wasn’t safe for recreational canoe usage, which became painfully obvious on our last canoe run. Earlier in the afternoon another lifeguard and I had accompanied a group of canoers on our standard trip, but one pair of boaters somehow managed to broadside a bridge pillar. The current was so strong that it dumped the boaters and bent the canoe around the pillar. My boss, Allen, and I were on our way to retrieve the “shipwrecked” canoe, and I was a teenager that was getting less and less comfortable.

Herb, the director of the Christian conference center where I worked, was driving us upriver. The plan was that we’d get into a single canoe, paddle over to the spot where the bent canoe was still pinned against the bridge pillar, and break it loose. If it was in good enough shape, one of us would transfer to it and we’d each paddle a canoe back home. If it was too damaged for that, we’d both remain in the same canoe and tow the damaged one behind us.

We could see the pinned canoe from the boat ramp. I buckled my life jacket and climbed into the front of our canoe. Allen skipped a life jacket, but had a rescue tube (one of those big red floats that you see pool lifeguards standing around with) wedged under his seat. We shoved off and right away got swept into the bright brown water’s swift current.

The river moved so quickly that we barely had to paddle. As we approached the bridge, we started paddling backwards to slow ourselves down. We slowed down perfectly, turned so we were parallel with the pinned canoe, and gently bumped up against it. A perfect docking.

The problem was the current was moving so quickly that when it crashed against the bridge pillar and the two canoes, it pillowed up and created undercurrents that we couldn’t see or anticipate. Even though we sat completely still in relation to the shore, the water churned and frothed angrily beneath us as the river pounded the keel relentlessly. Our boat shuddered, then flipped over, dumping us both upstream.

That water was flowing hard. I didn’t even have time to be pinned against the canoe; I got dumped in and immediately got swept under the boat. I was able to get a hand onto the side of the boat, and hung onto it with one hand, and held the paddle in the other. I was laid out horizontally, completely underwater, flapping in the current like a flag on a windy day.

I had no idea where Allen was or what his status was. He had probably safely cleared everything and was downstream by now, but maybe he had managed to hang on somehow. In the event that he was still there somewhere, I needed to get into a position where we could make something happen. I needed to breathe, but if I let go, not only would I be unable to help Allen with recovering the canoe, but the attempt would be over because he’d have to abandon the recovery effort and come after me. Still horizontal underwater, I tried to do a chin-up so I could get my face out of the water enough to catch a breath and maybe see where Allen was, but the current was so strong I couldn’t do it. I think I tried again, probably with both hands this time, but it still wasn’t working. With no choice (and not knowing how long it would be before the river let me get to the surface), I let go and got flung into the current, now at the whim of the river.

Honestly, when I surfaced, I expected to see Allen downriver. When I came up though, I didn’t see him. I turned and looked upriver, but didn’t see him there, either. I couldn’t see him anywhere. The only place he could be was still with the canoe, somewhere underwater.

The current pushed me into the eddy behind the pillar, but I was about to be carried out of it. Once I left the eddy, there would be no chance of getting back upstream. Allen was in the process of drowning about 20 feet away from me; I swam with everything I had, but I barely got anywhere.

While I was still fighting to get upstream, he popped through the surface. I found out later that the strap to the rescue tube wedged under his seat had somehow wrapped around his leg, so even though he wasn’t hanging onto the canoe at all, the canoe was hanging onto him. He had been dangling by his knee at the end of a strap, batted around underwater without any way of getting air. It must’ve been his guardian angel that shook the rescue tube loose from under his seat.

Just relieved that we were both alive, my sense of humor returned. While we were still drifting downstream, I asked him “well, do you want to try again?” Thankfully he said “uh, no.” We were able to swim to shore and get out of the water, but we were down another canoe.

What would’ve happened if Allen’s rescue tube hadn’t come loose? Could I have made it far enough upstream to be able to help him at all? If it meant I would exhaust myself, what should I have done, considering I’d probably still need a good reserve of strength if we both needed to rely on me to get out of the jam we were still in? Thankfully, I didn’t have the chance to think of any of this at the time. Allen bobbed to the surface before I had time to think about it.

This event helped put things in perspective for me. In this life, there are things you can control and there are things you can’t. When you can’t handle it, God will take care of it. If the only way out of a situation is via something that’s beyond you, there’s only so much you can bring to the table, and you have to rely on Him for the rest. Life has countless opportunities for you to bear witness to the fact that you’re not in control as much as you like to think you are. Every day brings new challenges, and a lot of them need God-sized help to overcome.

It’s important to remember that if God hands you an assignment that you’re totally confident that you’ll be able to accomplish, the task just might be too small. By all means do it, but recognize that if it’s something you can handle on your own, there’s not much room for God to be glorified. On the other hand, if you get to be part of something that you could in no way have accomplished on your own, it’s harder to take the credit for it. I give all the credit to God for shaking Allen loose and granting us overall safety that day, and pray that recounting this story glorifies Him further.

(Also, hypothetically, if you ever find yourself in a similar situation with shipwrecked canoes, don’t forget to call the local fire/rescue folks and let them know that everyone’s safe and accounted for. Otherwise, someone will eventually report two canoes pinned against a bridge, the rescue team will get all kinds of excited, and then they’ll let you have an earful when they find out what actually happened and that you didn’t fill them in.)

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Were You AIMING for the Bridge? (Part 1 of 2)

Lots of rain that week…

This week’s posts took place at roughly this time one July. I got certified as a lifeguard very late in the summer when I was 15, so I didn’t get much experience actually working on duty that year. The next summer was different.

The Christian conference center where I worked not only had two pools that needed lifeguards, but it also conducted waterfront activities on the Delaware River. It had a boat that guests could use for waterskiing and tubing, but it also did a lot of “canoe runs.” A canoe run was where someone on staff drove guests a few miles upriver and dropped them off with canoes, along with a lifeguard to guide the group. This stretch of river was mostly flat, but did have a few sets of progressively choppier or rougher rapids that helped break up the monotony. Canoe runs usually occurred four or five days a week, many times twice a day. As a result, the lifeguards became very familiar with the river and where they might encounter trouble spots or submerged obstacles. They almost never went more than a few days without being on the river, except for once each summer.

There’s a week every summer where the organization’s program offerings change, and it does not offer any waterfront activities. During this particular summer’s no-river-activities week, the remnants of a hurricane blew through our area. It rained hard for a few days that week, swelling streams and tributaries locally and for miles upstream of us. The water level rose and the current quickened many times over as that water made its way into the river.

For the first canoe run of the following week, plenty of people were excited to go. Recognizing that the river had risen substantially, an extra lifeguard went on this trip. I was one of them. Things started out uneventfully, but we were still within sight of the boat ramp when something very unexpected happened.

Here’s the bridge, with the supporting pillars. The one in question is the one right over this guy’s shoulder.

Soon after the put-in point there’s a bridge that crosses the river. The bridge is built for vehicles, so its pillars are pretty solid. I’m not exactly sure what happened, but I think the two men in one of the canoes were trying to get past one of the columns and got surprised by how swift the current was moving. They somehow ended up slamming broadside into the pillar. The current was so strong that the impact dumped both people into the river and the force of the water physically wrapped the canoe around the upstream side of the pillar.

With the current moving so quickly, everyone else who had not hit a bridge went flying past the site of the impact. The other lifeguard and I, still a little stunned that someone had actually run into the only thing they could have possibly hit, spun our canoe around and began paddling upstream as hard as we could, but it was all we could do to not lose any further ground to the current. Just about all of the other canoes did the same thing, but with varying degrees of success. The two guys that got dumped in the water didn’t quite know what to do, and were stuck in the eddy downstream of the pillar. Everyone paddling hard was getting tired, so we had to shout to the guys to start swimming downstream, out of the eddy, so we could reach them. They did, and we eventually reached them and placed them in two of the remaining canoes.

This all happened within sight of where we put the canoes into the water. We still had almost three miles to go! I started worrying about all kinds of things. “What are the rapids gonna look like?” “If the current’s moving this fast, is our whole group going to be able to make land if they all arrive at our destination at the same time?” “How do I tell my boss I lost a canoe?”

The rest of the trip wasn’t nearly as eventful as what I feared. The river was so high that the rapids no longer existed, and the current moved so quickly that we made it downstream in record time. It was a struggle at the end, but we were able to get everyone back on land at the right spot. After counting heads and accounting for all of the gear (minus one boat and a few paddles), it was time to go tell the boss.

You might remember Allen from an earlier post. He’s the guy that recruited me into lifeguard training. He was in charge of all the recreational activities, and he was the guy I needed to tell. Allen’s the kind of guy that usually has the same facial expression whether he’s happy, sad, conflicted, ecstatic, flabbergasted, or thinking about a baloney sandwich.

“Dude, Al! We lost a canoe! These guys hit one of the bridge pillars, the canoe wrapped around it, they got dumped out, we picked ’em up and made it back, and as far as I know, the canoe’s still there, stuck on the bridge!”

He just kind of stood there and blinked at me, digesting what he just heard. He asked me a few clarification questions, paused to think for a few moments, and then hit me with:

“Well, let’s go get it.”

Then it was my turn to stand there and blink.

I should have protested more, maybe making more of an attempt to convey the river’s strength. I was fresh off the situation…I had just been there and seen the power of the current, and how crazy high the water actually was. Allen knew the conditions were much different from what they normally were, but he hadn’t been there to witness the ease with which the river destroyed a canoe. At 16 years old, though, I wasn’t confident enough to challenge my boss and say “I’ve been there, I’ve seen it! You’ve gotta believe me!”

There’s a difference between knowing something with your mind and having experienced that same thing in person. If you follow Christ, He enables you to do things that you can’t do without Him. The Bible talks about how we’re supposed to go out and tell the world about Christ, being bold and taking steps forward when we can’t see what’s in front of us. It talks about being strong and courageous, and it even talks about how, if you’re faithful with a few things, you’ll be granted authority over more resources so you can further demonstrate your faithfulness.

Yet it’s one thing to read about and say “yeah, I know that, I’ve known that for years” and quite another to do it. Keeping your keister parked on the couch instead of being obedient is a loss for Christ’s kingdom. You, as a child of God, need not fear even when seemingly impossible and daunting obstacles stand before you. If you know that God will empower His followers to do His work, do you believe Him? Going a step further, if you know that God has charged you to do something overwhelming, are you stepping out in faith even when you can’t see what’s in front of you?

Take the next step. Step out in faith. He’s going to give you what you need to succeed in His name. I’ve been there. I’ve seen it. You’ve gotta believe me!

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What Do You Use as a Crutch?

I won’t be posting on Independence Day, so I’ll do it today and then not again until next week. Have a safe, enjoyable holiday, and happy birthday, America!

The summer after I graduated high school I worked at a Christian conference center, where a bunch of teenagers worked on the organization’s summer staff. One day after work there were a bunch of us just hanging around with nothing to do. The part of the campus near the staff quarters and the dining room had a circular decorative fountain outside of it, but it needed repair and had been drained. All that was left inside it was nasty rainwater with decaying leaves in it.

We had a guy on staff, Dave, who was very nimble. He hopped from outside the fountain to the pedestal in the middle, and then hopped out the other side, making it look easy. Well shoot, I thought that was pretty cool, so I had to give it a try, too.

It turns out I wasn’t quite as nimble as Dave. I got to the middle without much trouble, but I couldn’t slow down fast enough to stay on it. Caught in that awkward spot of “should I try to stop all the way, or keep going and hop out again?”…I ended up making a leap for the exit. The problem was that since I had already tried to stop, this wasn’t a full-blown attempt to reach the other side and I didn’t have enough momentum to do it. Only the first few inches of my foot landed on the other side, and the full weight of my body came crashing down on this part of my foot, overextending my ankle beyond its normal range.

This resulted in a complex injury that was a combination of a strain, sprain, and possibly even a break (I don’t remember, but it hurt). I ended up being on crutches a lot that summer.

I had a lot of appointments with an orthopedic doctor after that. The injury was the sort where it didn’t need a hard cast, it just needed some immobilization, so he gave me an air cast that I could take on and off. In one of the earlier visits that summer he told me “once you can tolerate it, you can start putting some weight on it.” I thought that was great news, so I grit my teeth and walked out of the office after that appointment without using my crutches. I went slow and limped a lot, but in my mind the doctor wouldn’t have said that if I hadn’t been making some good progress.

I’m not sure if it was stubbornness, ego, or if I was just grossly misguided, but over the next few weeks I ditched the crutches and got comfortable being uncomfortable (and slow). I got where I needed to go, I just took a little longer to get there. The next time I went to the doctor, he seemed a little perplexed why the healing wasn’t progressing as quickly as he expected. Once he found out about my “grin and bear it” attitude, he set me straight. I went back on crutches.

It’s amazing how much better your injuries heal when you give them what they need. I remember being super excited toward the end of the healing, when I was once again off crutches. After using my bad leg more or less as a peg leg when I walked, it felt great when I could once again use muscle in that foot to propel myself forward, rather than only using it as something to balance on mid-stride while I waited for my good foot to hit the ground.

It makes me think…what else in life do we do to sabotage ourselves? By the stubborn actions we take, are we delaying the healing of some other literal or figurative injury? Are there areas in which we should be further along than we are at this point? By neglecting a practice of some sort, how have we shortchanged ourselves? This could be anything from not reading God’s word on a regular basis to harboring a grudge or bitterness to not taking the next step to heal a wounded relationship.

Now’s the time. Set aside the ego, stop pretending it’s getting better, and pick up the crutches again. Are you really gaining anything by clinging to a “grin and bear it” attitude? Take that step you know you’re supposed to take. It’s the only way the real healing begins.

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There Is No “Plan B”

Photo courtesy of experienceperception.com

Boy, I’m a fan of those Marvel superhero movies. I’m not nearly as big a fan as some of the people out there, but it’s been fun to keep up with each new movie and see how the stories unfold. My wife and I went to see the first one…Iron Man…when it first came out in theaters in 2008 (she’s a cool wife). That was back before we had kids. Now, 11 years and over 20 movies later, the whole “Avengers” franchise came to a head with its most recent installment, “Avengers: Endgame” this past spring.

It’s been very interesting to observe, because while each individual movie was its own story, each one also contributed to the telling of a larger story that was always looming in the background. You’d probably be okay if you missed one or two of the minor movies, but if you hadn’t seen any of them before and you just walked in and watched the latest one, you’d be completely lost and you would have missed out on so many of the details.

In the superhero movies, the good guys always win, right? Well normally yes, but that’s not what happened last year with “Avengers: Infinity War.” At the end of that movie, the team of superheroes had been defeated soundly. Many of them were killed, and everyone on the planet (and beyond) had to endure the consequences of the heroes’ failure. It was a far cry from the fun, upbeat “save the world” superhero movie Marvel usually produced. When my wife and I went to see that one, we actually heard kids in the back of the theater, crying.

After watching “Infinity War,” we had to wait a whole year…until just a few weeks ago…to find out what happened next. We knew they couldn’t just end the story like that; the good guys have to win! We knew that by the end of “Endgame,” it would all be okay and the heroes would be back on top, but we didn’t know what path the story would take to get there. We could even make some solid guesses at a few of the major plot points, but we had no idea how the movie would fill in all the details.

Photo courtesy of comicbook.com

My friends, though it’s a strange comparison, this is exactly what it’s like being a Christian and serving the God that created the universe. The Bible lets us know that things are going to get very dark and bleak in the years ahead. Even right now, I’d say that during this time period in history, fewer Americans than ever before value God or attending church. Christianity is viewed as an intolerant and archaic belief system that’s essentially just a bunch of rules about what you can and can’t do. The influence of church in today’s society has weakened to the point where even people within the Christian community pick and choose what they believe from the Bible, or twist what it says in order to justify tolerating things God hates. I just recently heard about the president of a seminary here in the United States who does not believe in the virgin birth or that Jesus rose from the dead. How far have we decayed that a person with this type of belief system could be president of an institution that educates future pastors?

There’s good news though. The good guys will win. What’s really interesting is that the church is still God’s plan for the world. Christ redeemed the world, but it’s the church’s job to get the word out. In order to let people know about it, God’s “Plan A” is to use the church, and there is no “Plan B.”

Do you know what that means? This is the exciting part…it means that even if the church as we know it completely dies out and loses all influence over today’s culture, it will morph into something new and more effective that reaches people with the news of how unsaved souls can gain salvation through Christ. The book of Revelation foretells of a revival toward the end. This means that the evolving church…whatever it looks like at that point…won’t just do an okay job, it’ll rock at it with God’s help.

Well that brings up an interesting point. If the collective church is going to undergo so many changes, how will we know what we’re supposed to do? If you’re really serious about studying the fall of the church’s influence and the tough times ahead, it’s easy to stress out. I find that the easiest way to not stress out about it is to simply follow God’s prompting when you feel it. (You’ll know it when you feel it.) In Matthew chapter 10, Jesus instructs the disciples about how to conduct themselves as they go out and spread the message. Notice how he discourages worry here:

“18…and you will even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. 19“But when they hand you over, do not worry about how or what you are to say; for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say. 20“For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.”

It’s as if He’s saying “I have a plan. I’m going to have you be a part of it. All you have to do is whatever I tell you, and it’s all going to be okay.”

At this point, some people would say “sure, but that’s for other people…pastors, missionaries, people who get paid for it.” Nope. It’s for everyone that follows Christ, whether it’s your occupation or not. We’ll all be given opportunities to be part of the plan, and all we have to do is whatever task He sets before us.

The good guy wins in the end. We can guess at some of the major plot points, but we don’t know how the details will get filled in. There will be epic struggles, and we’ll lose some friends far too soon. In the end though, the wrongs will be set right, the tears will be wiped away, and we’ll all celebrate together when it’s over. Isn’t that the team you want to work alongside and contribute to?

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Tomorrow Might Never Come

Picture courtesy of GoogleMaps

I don’t remember if I was 16 or 17 but I worked as a lifeguard a few of my teenaged summers. The Christian conference center where I worked was always very busy in the summer time, so when I wasn’t doing lifeguard or pool stuff, I usually had some other type of work to do.

One morning I sat in an office near the conference center’s front desk, doing data entry for some upcoming summer programs. I heard someone come running in the front door, and breathlessly told the front desk attendant, Kari, that there had been an accident down on the river. On the other side of the Delaware River, right across from us, there was a rope swing. Apparently a pair of guys that had been paddling down the river stopped to play around on the rope, but the rope snapped on one of them while they were mid-swing. According to the guy who came running in, his buddy was conscious, but couldn’t get up. Since there were some people hanging out on the conference center’s dock, the uninjured guy saw them and paddled over to ask for help.

Kari called an ambulance to get them rolling, then came back to where I was. She asked if I could just go see if there was anything I could do to help or if there was anything I could find out.

As I ran across the street and arrived down at the dock, the guy in the boat was just paddling away in his boat, heading back over to his buddy. I asked the people on the dock what was going on, and got the same info I already had. It sounded like the guy in the boat was super panicky, and it wasn’t clear if the injured guy had a hurt ankle or a hurt back. There were no other boats around. A canoe would have been absolutely fantastic at that point, and the conference center’s ski boat would have been even better, but the waterfront equipment wasn’t going to be set out for the day for another half hour or so.

I didn’t know how long it would be before the ambulance arrived. I looked across the river to where the guy was still laying in the water. That was too far to swim. Well…maybe? It was, right? I had never tried it, but that didn’t mean it was too far. I’d been swimming laps in the pool; in fact I swam hundreds of yards most weeks, but I never went more than 25 yards without touching a wall. This was probably only four or five pool lengths. The guy over there might have a broken back, and if his buddy did anything crazy, it could have a lasting impact. Before I knew it, I ran up to the pool and grabbed a big red rescue tube, then ran back down to the river. I was already wearing swim trunks; I kicked off my shoes and took off my shirt. I put the rescue tube’s strap across my chest and waded into the water to start swimming across the river.

No big deal, right? It was the same thing that I did in the pool. Everything went fine at first. I swam with purpose, I was confident I could do it, and the adrenaline gave me a boost. I had swum hundreds of laps in the pool, so I knew to lay as horizontally in the water as possible, even though it felt unnatural, so I could streamline my body and reduce the effort I’d need to expend.

But that was in a nice clear pool, with goggles. There were no lines on the floor here telling me I was going in the right direction. I had to keep picking my head up to check where I was, where my destination was, how fast the current was taking me, and if there were any boats coming. Picking my head up meant my body was more slanted in the water, so I had to work harder to go the same distance. Without goggles, the water kept getting in my eyes and I had to squint or miss half a stroke to wipe my eyes to see again. My feet kept kicking the rescue tube or the strap it was attached to, so I had to modify my kick. The adrenaline burned off, and I was in the middle of the river, getting tired and starting to doubt myself.

I ended up switching strokes for awhile. I didn’t move very fast, but it helped me rest enough to resume my previous stroke. After what seemed like forever, I made it to the other side. I was glad when my feet touched land again and I was able to walk up out of the water to find out what was going on.

It turns out the guy hadn’t broken his back or anything quite so severe, but his leg was probably broken. The river bank was too steep to get him up to the top, especially since he was a bigger guy and I didn’t have any shoes. The rope swing was on the back edge of a field. Any emergency vehicles were probably going to have a rough time finding the dirt road that led to us. I sent the injured guy’s buddy out to the main road to help the ambulance find us, while I stayed with busted-leg guy.

The emergency folks didn’t have all the information they would have liked, so they activated the swift-water rescue team. Now, my hat’s off to volunteer paramedics and river rescue folks, because they never know what they’re going to deal with when they show up to a call. I have to say, though, I was a little amused when a guy in a life jacket, wetsuit, and a helmet tossed a throw-bag (a rope with a weighted end) near us as I sat on the shore of a gently flowing river, wearing only swim trunks, while the water gently lapped our feet.

They got the guy out and loaded him into the ambulance. They patched him up, and I don’t know what happened, but I’m sure he was fine after a few weeks on crutches. Thankfully by the time they were driving off our waterfront equipment was getting set out, and of all people, my dad came idling up to me in the conference center’s ski boat to give me a ride home. I was glad I didn’t have to swim back.

What a crazy story. Where in the world am I going with this? I have three things to elaborate on:

First, no matter who you are, daunting tasks lay before you. Whether it’s the struggle to make it through yet another mundane day or fighting against something that threatens to annihilate your way of life, the choice to either stand on the sidelines and watch or step forward to get your feet wet is up to you. The road will be hard, but things God placed in your pathway previously have helped equip you for the journey.

Secondly, you don’t have to have all the answers in order to be helpful. I was afraid this guy fell off a rope swing and broke his back and that I was going to have to deal with some crazy complicated scenario. I wasn’t an EMT, I was just a teenaged lifeguard that was trained in CPR and first aid. I don’t think I even had a driver’s license yet. If the guy had been in real bad shape, the only thing I had with me was a glorified pool float. I knew more than either of those two other guys did, though. I may not have done anything to save the day, but by deciding to wade into the river, I kept things from getting worse. We’ve all been there. Maybe you see something at work or at church where you know it’s not going to end well, despite the best intentions of the people involved. If you see something they don’t, even if you’re not the expert, consider offering some insight that can keep things from getting worse.

Finally, when God made you, He broke the mold. While we’re all made in His image, you’re not like anybody else on Earth. Think about the things that come naturally to you…the combination of talents, interests, and traits that are unique to you. We’ll call that unique combination your X factor. In this day and age there is an urgent need for people to make use of the X factors God gave them. There is nobody else in the world that possesses the exact same X factor you do. You might be thinking something like “but you don’t understand…I don’t have a position of authority…I don’t even talk with that many people…I’m a nobody.” Let me tell you something: the Bible is full of “nobodys” that chose to get out of the way and let God put their X factor to good use.

Many, if not all, of us have been given opportunities…opportunities to do whatever it is that we’re best at. It’s one of the greatest gifts a person can receive: a chance to do what you were made to do. Incredibly, many of us put it off. “I’ll do it tomorrow,” or even “next week.” What kind of arrogance is it we have when we assume “the same opportunity God is giving me right now will still be there in the morning”? The only thing you have for sure is right now. If God’s been nudging you to do something, what are you waiting for? It’s time to do it right now. Call that person right now. Stop delaying and set your idea in motion right now. Get it done right now. Wade into the water…right now.

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. -Philippians 4:13

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Some Days You’re the Dog, Other Days You’re the Hydrant

My old college laptop: before wireless capability, with a battery that lasted about 20 minutes

I’m not exactly the most technologically savvy person out there. I’d probably still have a flip phone if the one I used to have didn’t quit working. Up until a few months ago, I had a Blackberry. I’m not yet to the point where I’ll have to ask my kids for help adding a new contact, but I can see that happening some day. I had to get my wife’s help emailing these pictures from my phone to the computer.

When I was in college, the school I attended was pretty advanced as far as how “connected” the campus was. I don’t know what the actual ranking was, but I think it was in the “Top 100 Most-Wired Campuses in America” or something like that. Our class was the second or third that the school mandated purchase a specific model of laptop. All our dorm rooms, classrooms, and hangouts had Ethernet connections. It was horrible and clunky by today’s standards, but it was pretty cutting-edge at the time. (Anybody else remember something called a “dongle?”)

A dongle…let’s take the most fragile piece of equipment and put it where it’s most likely to break.

Some aspects of living on a wired campus were nice, but back when this was all very new, we had a lot of network outages. Sometimes it was only for a short time, but every now and then they’d last for an hour or more, and it always seemed to happen exactly when you needed connectivity the most. One afternoon I was in my room, trying to get something done online before my next class. The network lost connectivity, and I wasn’t able to do whatever I was trying to do.

For whatever reason, this outage was particularly frustrating for me. Normally I’d just do something else for awhile and check back later to see if the network was back up. This time I figured I’d go in and mess with my computer’s settings; I thought I’d heard some tech-smart friends talking about getting their laptops to work during outages sometimes by changing some of their computers’ settings, so I thought I’d give it a shot. I don’t even remember what I did…I think I changed some ports or something in a tab somewhere. I couldn’t figure anything out and I had to get to class, so I left my computer running on my desk and left for class, frustrated.

When I came back about an hour later, our dorm’s Director and the college’s head IT guy were standing at my door, about to head in. Apparently the network started to come back up, but the settings I changed impacted not just my laptop, but the school’s whole network. Nobody on the college’s IT staff could bring it back up until my computer was either disconnected from the network or the proper settings were restored. It turns out I was an accidental cyberterrorist, and the dorm’s Director had to vouch for me so they didn’t get security involved. “Honest, I’m not a hacker…I just don’t know what I’m doing!” I’m pretty sure they made it so net-wide settings like that couldn’t be changed by unauthorized personnel after that. To all the students that came after me and didn’t have to deal with outages due to fellow students’ actions…you’re welcome.

(Not too long after that we had a weekend where parents came to visit. We were having lunch on Saturday with some of the parents, along with some faculty/staff. The professor that sat with us was one of my teachers, and he was complaining about a recent time when a student actually took down the whole network. He wasn’t laughing at the absurdity of it, he was actually still kind of mad about it. I’m sitting right next to the guy, having a hard time in his class. “Oh really, THAT’S what happened? Man, that’s a shame.”)

Sometimes you make decisions that have an impact on what you’re doing. Sometimes you make decisions that have an impact on what other people are doing. Even worse, with some of these latter decisions, you don’t even realize the ramifications of what you’ve done until it’s after the fact. I crippled the ability of the whole student body to do anything online, and I did it without even knowing it. In order to set things right, an expert in the subject area had to step into the situation and fix it.

There will be times when you’re the goober that gums everything up, and there’ll be times when you’re the one in a position to help make things right. The goal is to minimize the number of times you’re in the first category and to not take it out on the goobers too bad when you’re in the second category.

People make mistakes, and people let you down. We’ve all done it. Some people are extraordinarily talented at holding grudges for even the slightest of mistakes. While it’s true that you should take notice of trends in a person’s “mistake history,” it’s also worth thinking about giving them another chance, especially if you’ve already kept them in the doghouse for awhile. If it were you that messed up, wouldn’t you want another chance?

I’m thinking of getting a t-shirt that says “I was a hacker before it was cool,” but because some people know I can’t even find what I’m looking for on Netflix, I’d probably have to tell this story every time I wore it.

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Just Give it to Me Straight, Doc

I’ve got three kids. I’ve had my share of seeing one or more of them knowing that they ought to tell me something, even though they don’t want to.

You can see the nervous fidgeting, their eyes looking anywhere but at you, and you know right away that the longer they take to tell you, the worse the irreversible damage might be somewhere. Did they flush something weird down the toilet and now it’s clogged and overflowing all over the floor? Did they pick up a fish from the fishbowl and accidentally drop it on the floor? Did they accidentally hurt their brother or sister, who now needs help in a hurry?

Your mind goes crazy thinking about all the things that could be wrong, and all you want to do is find out the truth so you can take immediate action if you need to. As the kiddo stands there, searching for the right way to break the news to Dad, it’s maddening to see them slow down even further, hinting at things to gauge how Dad reacts to different approaches. On the inside you’re screaming “just TELL me already!”, but you know that will stall the truth even more, so you have to cover any appearance of urgency and gently coax it out of them without looking mad.

Have you ever been in a situation like that? All you want is the truth. It might be at the doctor’s office after some test results come back. You see them start to hem and haw, uncertain about the best way to deliver the news. All the uncertainty you’ve been wrestling with has created more anxiety, and all you want to do is yell “just TELL me already!”

Have you ever felt that way on a grander scale? Not just for a blip during your past, but over a much longer span of time. You’ve had your ups and downs, but it feels like there ought to be more. Maybe you have a nice family, a nice house, you even have a great career, but it still feels like something’s missing, or that you’re waiting for the other shoe to drop. What’s this life all about? You don’t even care how it’s going to make you feel; you just want someone to tell you the rest of the story.

Well if you want it, here it is.

You’re not good enough.

I’m not talking about not being good enough at your job, at being a nice person, or at not burning the crust in the oven. I’m talking big picture. When everyone, including you, was born, they were set on a course that does not lead to Heaven. And why? Because nobody’s perfect. Heaven only accepts perfection. Even if folks are good people that lead good, moral lives, after this life they are headed for eternal suffering and anguish. It’s not good news, but this is the sound of the other shoe dropping. If you don’t believe in the afterlife, I understand how it might sound kooky. Here’s the thing though…have you ever been on the other side of death?

There’s good news about all this: there is a sure way to change course. There is a way out of this default eventuality.

You’ve heard the name Jesus Christ. You may even have said it a few times, but who is He? He’s God’s Son…the power of God incarnate…all the power of God in human form. If He lived in Heaven, why would God show up as a person on Earth?

It’s kind of an odd answer: to withstand your punishment and serve your sentence on your behalf. Christ was perfect and fulfilled all of God’s laws flawlessly, but was wrongfully accused and executed. He spent a full day in Hell, taking my place, taking your place, taking the sweet grandma down the street’s place, taking the death row inmate’s place. Then He conquered it: He came back to life the third day after His death. By doing this He broke the power of Hell. Out of love, Jesus Christ now extends a hand to everyone, regardless of age, race, gender, orientation, national origin, regardless of everything. None of that matters, because each of those people falls short of perfection. By accepting His invitation, you switch sides…you’re no longer destined for eternal suffering and sorrow regarding this missed opportunity. People that take His hand are clothed in His perfection; they are destined instead for a joyous future in God’s presence alongside others that have made the same decision.

Some will tell you that many roads lead to Heaven. I’m sorry, but that’s simply not accurate. A relationship with Jesus Christ is the only way to ensure an eternity in Heaven. He even said so in John 14:6 – Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Now I just want to explain something. My writing is simply not compelling enough to convince people to make this decision. If you feel something tugging at your mind and heart, though, that’s God working on you. I’m just the method He’s using to reach you. Please don’t ignore the pull…Christ can whisper to you, but He won’t force you to switch sides. You don’t have anything to lose, but you have everything to gain.

Maybe you’ve never prayed before, but if you’re open to this, pray this prayer along with me:

Dear Jesus…thank you so much for loving me even when I don’t deserve you at all. Lord, come into my life, change me, break me, make me new, make me whole…forgive me. Purify my heart. Jesus I believe you died on the cross and rose again three days later. You are my savior and one day I will live with You forever. But meanwhile, help me to stand for you. To shine for you, to make a difference and let your truth be known. Use me Lord, Holy Spirit fill me to overflowing. I love you so much! In Jesus’ name, amen.

If you’re not quite ready for that, but you’re open to hearing more, I encourage you to listen to this man’s story. We’ve heard of instances where people die for a few moments on the operating table, only to be revived and tell stories of a brief vision of Heaven. But what if we got a brief view of Hell? It’s a remarkable story.

For those with a little less time (or for more encouragement after the first video), have a listen to this song. It conveys why Jesus would give up everything…because the Savior of the World would rather die than live without you.

Even if you’re skeptical about all this, please consider passing this on. If you’re already on board, please share it either by posting it in your social media or by forwarding this link: https://daregreatlynow.com/?p=650

Eternity hangs in the balance. Will you see someone in Heaven because you helped them get there?

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You’re Affected…But How?

You can tell a lot about where someone’s from by the words they use and the accent they have. Do they call it “soda,” “pop,” “sodapop,” or “coke?” Is it a “lollipop” or a “sucker?” “Do they wear “tennis shoes” or “sneakers?” Is the word “y’all” a part of their vernacular?

As a kid I lived in Pennsylvania. I’m a little biased, but I don’t think I had any kind of accent as a kid. It’s a funny thing though; we had some people move to our neighborhood that came from North Dakota. There were also some grandparents nearby that had long summer visits from a family that lived in Minnesota. As I played and spent time with the kids of these Midwestern families, a funny thing happened…I started saying words the way they did.

Accent map courtesy of the Washington Post

That time spent together influenced the way I spoke. This is a pretty harmless instance of what I’m getting at, but it’s a great example of how you are influenced by your surroundings. You become like the people and attitudes that are around you.

Take a moment to stop and think about the people and attitudes that are a part of your environment. This is where you are headed. You are becoming more like them. Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing depends on what kind of people make up your environment.

It’s a two-way street, though. The new neighbors from North Dakota were immersed in a new region, surrounded by people that did not have the same accent as them. For that family’s kids especially, the accent faded with time. You’re not the only one being influenced; you also possess influence over those that are part of your life. Do you exude positivity and an uplifting outlook, or do you drag people down with your presence?

It might be time to re-examine the things and people you have in your life. What kind of friends do you have? What kind of things are you doing together? Other relationships, like family or work, give you fewer options with regard to your ability to choose whether or not to interact with them. In those cases, focus instead on your ability to make a positive difference in your shared environment.

In either case, whether you can choose your associations or not, you have a choice as far as what kind of contribution you will make to your environment.


“whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.” Philippians 4:8

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If I Can’t Walk, Then I’m Crawling

In honor of the upcoming Memorial Day holiday, I’ll share a military-themed post. When I was younger I really enjoyed the movie “Saving Private Ryan.” It’s a story that took place during World War II in Europe, and starred Tom Hanks as Army Captain John Miller.

Throughout the movie Miller had led men against formidable obstacles; he was always able to get his team past the obstacle, but each time someone paid for it with their life. There’s a lot more to the story than this, but at the end of the movie, Captain Miller and a small group of soldiers find themselves vastly outnumbered and outgunned while defending an important bridge from an enemy onslaught.

It’s a losing battle. During the clash we repeatedly witness the demise of characters we’ve known for most of the movie, all while valiantly trying to defend either the bridge or each other. The enemy forces continue advancing, and the bridge appears as though it’s about to fall to the enemy.

As a last resort, the Americans have wired explosives to the bridge to prevent the enemy from using it. When it became apparent that the Americans couldn’t hold the bridge, they decided to destroy it. Retreating across the river, Miller prepared to activate the detonator, but in the process was mortally wounded and unable to set off the explosives. With an enemy tank about to begin moving across the bridge, Miller, unable to stand, leaned himself up against some debris and pulled out his sidearm. With nothing left to do, he began firing a pistol at an advancing tank.

  • CAPT Miller in “Saving Private Ryan”
  • CAPT Miller in “Saving Private Ryan”

I don’t want to spoil the ending if you haven’t seen it, but how do you get to the point where you’re trying to stop a tank with a pistol? Miller was a man that simply did not give up once he had made up his mind about an objective. There was no quit in him. He fought the way he could make the maximum impact, and once that method failed or circumstances changed, he switched to the next most effective method. He adjusted his approach as his men and resources dwindled. As he sat on a bridge bleeding out, the only option available to him, his last-ditch effort, was to pull out his pistol and start firing at a tank. This was all he had left.

This man was determined, and makes me reflect on my own life. Do I have determination like that? Am I giving my all, even if I don’t have much left? If I can’t run, am I at least walking toward where I need to go? When I can’t walk, am I crawling?

There’s much work to be done. We’ll have setbacks. Our resources and assets will change, reducing or increasing our capability to do things at a given point in time. Are we letting the loss of those things, or a self-defeating attitude get in the way from us making progress toward where we need to go? Don’t stop. Keep pushing forward, even if it’s at a crawl.

This Monday is Memorial Day. There are a whole lot of men and women who gave their all for us; some didn’t make it back, while others are no longer what they used to be. Thank a vet today.

Just a reminder…after Memorial Day, I’ll be switching to a once-a-week posting format. Have a happy and safe holiday weekend!

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Playing Paintball With No Paintballs

Photo courtesy of pballcentral.com

After graduating from college I moved back home and worked construction to help pay off my school loans. During this time I helped out with the youth group at church on Tuesday nights and sometimes for weekend events.

One time that autumn our youth group went paintballing. I had never been paintballing before, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect and how much ammo I should buy. We played a couple of games, and I ended up not doing a whole lot of shooting, so I was able to make my ammo last most of the day. We played a few types of games on a couple of different courses, and then it was time for our last match of the day.

We had played a few games of capture the flag, but this time was a different variation. There was a really cool stockade fort that looked like something you’d see in the American frontier, and it was surrounded by a number of trenches that more or less served as a moat. Rain from the previous night made the trenches nasty and muddy, and there were still large puddles in many areas of the trenches. The stockade had a large courtyard, and in the courtyard stood a large stake with a flag on it. The only way for the assaulting team to win was to grab the flag off the stake without getting shot. If the flag was still on the stake when time ran out, the defending team won.

Since I was low on ammo, I couldn’t be much help in any kind of assault on the stockade. I noticed that the stake with the flag was near one of the trenches, so I decided I’d try to sneak through the trenches and go for the flag.

It took forever. I stayed low so people in the stockade wouldn’t know I was there. Stealth made for slow going, though. Every now and then I’d be able to take a pot shot at an opponent, or I’d be able to lay down some covering fire while a teammate tried something. I wasn’t able to help for very long though. I ran out of ammo. I was in the middle of a paintball match without having any paintballs.

I focused on the fact that the objective of the game wasn’t to shoot the most paint, but to capture the flag. Although it wasn’t the most natural thing to do, I pressed forward with a paintball gun that was little more than a decoration. I slogged through the mud until I finally arrived as close to the stake as the trench would take me. I waited until I heard a bit of a skirmish nearby, and rolled up out of the trench behind some cover. Now that my secret was out, I had to move fast; I sprinted toward the stake while shooting harmless bursts of CO2 in the general direction of defenders up on the stockade. The flag was just feet away!

I didn’t even get close. I got lit up with paintballs. I was muddy, wet, cold, and suddenly out of the game. Time expired, and the defending team won.

Photo courtesy of hurlburt.af.mil

It was an important lesson, though. As you go through your Christian life, you’re going to encounter situations you didn’t anticipate, and you’re going to feel unprepared for them. During those times it’s important to keep your eye on the goal. In this example, I didn’t need to have paintballs to help our team win a game of capture the flag. Don’t be distracted by things that seem like they should matter, but in the end have little or no bearing on whether or not you obtain your objective.

I’m not sure what your contribution to the Kingdom of God is, but don’t fall into the trap of thinking that you only have one thing to offer. If your primary means of service is sidelined for some reason, either temporarily or permanently, look around at other ways you can get in the game. This may be your opportunity to try something you wouldn’t have tried otherwise.

If something has recently sidelined your usual means of serving and you find yourself “playing paintball with no paintballs,” keep your eye on the objective. You’re still in the fight.

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Time To Stand And Fight

.gif courtesy of farajiwhalen.com

The Bible has this way of covering epic events in just a few verses. One such story comes from 2 Samuel 23. The text is describing some of King David’s “Mighty Men.” This section is essentially a hall of fame; these are the bravest or fiercest warriors to serve King David. In just two verses, the author describes the feat of a man named Shammah:

11 And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. The Philistines had gathered together into a troop where there was a piece of ground full of lentils. So the people fled from the Philistines. 12 But he stationed himself in the middle of the field, defended it, and killed the Philistines. So the Lord brought about a great victory.

The text is light on details, but we can glean some of the important points. In an environment of panic and fear, everyone started running away. For all we know, Shammah initially ran away right along with everyone else. What we know is that at some point he looked around and saw his countrymen fleeing the enemy, and he decided he was in a position to do something about it.

There’s so much that’s left out. Was he trying to simply buy some time to give his comrades the opportunity to escape, or was he committed to putting a stop to this terror, right here and right now? If he was running away with everyone else, he probably clenched his fists as his sprint slowed, then came to a stop. It doesn’t seem like there was anything special about this particular place, but this was the point in Shammah’s life when he decided to take a stand. Turning to face the Philistines, he may have thought to himself “This is it. Enough is enough. It’s time to fight.”

Taking first one step, then another toward the enemy army, his insolence was an affront to the Philistine warriors. First they sent out one man, then another, to deal with this ingrate. He likely dealt with them one at a time at first. As he struck them down, they sent pairs, then trios, but he dispatched them all. Then they came in droves. We don’t know how it happened; it doesn’t even say what kind of weapon(s) he had available, but considering the feats of the other “Mighty Men,” the list is not an easy one to get your name onto. By making this list, his feats of bravery, skill, and boldness put him in famous company.

We’ve all got battles of our own. You might witness some sort of injustice that you have the power to (legally) rectify. You may have the means, connections, or resources to provide new opportunities where they are desperately needed. Maybe right now all you have is vision and passion. There are overwhelming odds everywhere, but the drive within you has been building and building. When will it happen? At what point will you say “This is it. Enough is enough. It’s time to act”?

It’s time to stop running and take a stand. The army on your heels is fearsome, but if God called you to action, don’t be discouraged. Turn and face it, take your first steps toward it, and watch God work. Station yourself in the middle of the field, defend it, and allow God the opportunity to bring about a great victory today.

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Why Not Give it a Shot?

If you look close, you can see the rope that I’m hooked into, going across the creek

I went to college in western New York, where there are tons of creeks, rivers, and waterfalls. We had a series of waterfalls on a creek not far from our school, and it was a great place to go just for the sake of appreciating the outdoors. It was fun to go swimming there at the start of the school year in August or September, but it was such a nice place that we came up with other stuff to do there that didn’t involve swimming.

I had some rock-climbing ropes and gear, and we decided to try to make a zipline across the creek. It would be so cool to stand at the top of one of the falls and jump off, then go sliding along the rope across the creek in front of the waterfall.

As it turns out, I only had enough gear to tease us into thinking it was possible. I was able to make anchors on both sides of the creek, but we couldn’t get the rope tight enough. If I had jumped off the ledge, I would’ve started zipping across the creek, only to have my weight make the rope sag, and I would’ve slid right into the water.

It wasn’t a bad idea to try out, but it wasn’t feasible with the equipment I had on hand. If the rope was longer, I could’ve anchored it higher on the uphill side and increased the descent slope. Alternatively, if I had some ascenders, we could’ve pulled the rope tighter and had less of a problem with sag. Either way, I likely would’ve ended up in the water anyway.

I don’t share this story with you because the outing was a resounding success. In fact, at the end of the day, I didn’t have a whole lot to show for it, other than these pictures. This near-adventure, however, added to an expanding pool of experience from which I could draw during future adventures. As the saying goes, “good decisions come from experience, and experience comes from bad decisions.”

Some of you might be hesitant to give something a try, even if it’s something you’d ultimately like to do. Don’t let your fear of failure hold you back. Even if you’re not completely successful, it could add to your knowledge base for the next trial.

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” –Thomas Edison, on making the first electric light bulb

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Well Sure, But That’s Already Been Done

Photo courtesy of theconversation.com

We live in a capitalist country that’s driven by creativity and innovation. “The way we’ve always done it” only lasts until someone comes up with a better way to do it.

Did you know that Kodak invented the world’s first digital camera in 1975? Even though it doesn’t sound right, that’s true. But the digital cameras that we know didn’t become popular until the late 1990s or early 2000s. Why such a discrepancy? You’ll never believe it. Kodak sat on the technology because executives thought it would drive them out of the film business.

Back when film was the way we did pictures, Kodak had a major market share of that industry. The company let one of its employees try some hare-brained experiment with digital technology, and he was actually able to take digital pictures in the lab. Rather than play this hand and better position itself for the future, Kodak focused only on the present business environment and buried the technology. Instead of looking where it could go, it tried to prevent the present day from turning into tomorrow.

There are many Christians guilty of the same line of thinking. I understand that traditions are very important, but that doesn’t give license to sacrifice effort to reach people with the news of what Christ has done for them. The church should not be the guardian of tradition unless the tradition we’re talking about is inventing new ways to reach the lost. Solidify evangelism as the tradition, then foster and encourage new ways of doing it.

The church is not made of buildings, it’s made of people. The way people in society interact today is different from the way they interacted 10, 20, or 30 years ago. Looking forward from where we are now, the way people interact will likely continue to change in the future. Speaking generally, Millenials or members of Generation Z think and interact much differently from Baby Boomers or the Silent Generation. Is it something to bemoan? Maybe, maybe not; I think it’s just the reality to which we must adapt. It’s an opportunity for Christians to innovate new methods by which they spread the news. Christians should think like corporate marketers: how can we spread the message of Christ in an effective manner?

By way of example, one of my spiritual gifts is exhortation, and one of my talents is writing. A hundred years ago, that combination would result in something that looks very different from the blog I write today. Back then it might have been a regular column in a newspaper or magazine, or maybe a book of some kind. The modern version is something that’s available for anyone in the world to see. While the methods are different, the goal is the same: encourage readers to live a life of higher impact for Christ using the gifts, talents, and resources entrusted to them. In light of that example, visualize the things you can do, and how you can do them differently than the way they’ve already been done.

As long as we spread the message, it will take root where and when God wants it to. We’re commanded to spread the word and make disciples of all nations, including our own. In a world where everything is relative, there are people that are hungry for truth. What part will you play in delivering that truth to them?

Programming note: between Memorial Day and Labor Day, I’ll be cutting back to posts once a week for most of the time. It’s too early to tell, but that might become permanent. Thanks for reading!

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What Level of Talent Are We Talking?

In Matthew chapter 25, Jesus tells a few different parables to describe the period of time where we wait for the second coming. After telling a story about not knowing when it will occur, He launches into a story about how we’re supposed to act while we’re waiting. It’s the parable of the talents.

In this case a talent is not a “skill.” Here it’s a weight measurement. Before coins were used widely, it was common to use measures of weight for paying amounts of precious metals during transactions. A talent is about 75 pounds, and the most common precious metal used back then was silver. In the context of the passage, we can consider a talent about 20 year’s worth of minimum wage.

Jesus wants to drive home a point each time He uses a parable. In this one He’s stressing that it’s important not to rest on our laurels in terms of building God’s kingdom while we pass through this life. In the story we have a rich man who’s heading out of town for an undetermined amount of time. He calls three of his servants together and entrusts each of them with a large amount of money (five talents, two talents, or one talent), each according to his ability. Each servant is to work at growing the value of the money he’s been entrusted with while the master is away.

The master eventually returns, and he calls everyone together to see what they’ve been able to accomplish. Both the five-talent and the two-talent servants had gone out, worked hard, and doubled the boss’s money, and he praised them both for it. The third guy hadn’t even tried. He went out and hid the money, rather than even bother to put it in the bank where the boss could collect interest off of the deposit. The one-talent servant started making excuses, portraying himself as being afraid of the ruthless opportunist that he calls his master.

“So let me get this straight,” says the master. “You think I’m a ruthless opportunist…you fear what I’m going to do when I find out how little you’ve done…and still the best you can do is dig a hole and hide the money in the ground somewhere? You didn’t even take the time to go put it in the bank so I could collect interest?” The master takes the talent from this guy, who has proven himself incapable of handling this amount of responsibility, and gives it to the five-talent (now 10-talent) servant, who has demonstrated his ability to handle it.

There are a few things I think are interesting about this parable.

First off, the two diligent servants received exactly the same reward, even though they brought different amounts for their boss. This demonstrates that the reward is based on faithfulness, not results. No matter how little (or how much) you have, be faithful with it. Even if you don’t think it’s much, God can do big things with it if you devote it to God’s plan (remember that Christ used a kid’s lunch to feed a crowd of at least 5,000). It’s important to remember that the master gave to them according to their ability. No matter how much you’ve got, be faithful with it.

Secondly, this parable illustrates the idea that as you prove yourself capable of handling responsibility, you’re entrusted with more of it. When the master gave to them according to their ability, he did it with at least the partial intent to develop and grow their ability. Remember that God doesn’t need to see you demonstrate your ability to do something; He already knows better than you what you’re capable of. Demonstrating an ability to handle responsibility is more for you than for Him. At the end of this parable, there was a servant with 11 talents, a servant with four talents, and a servant with no talents. Just from the few verses we see about these men, we know that the first two didn’t always oversee the amount they eventually ended up with. Looking at your own life, have you grown in trust and capability, to the point where you can look back at past experiences and see how they helped lead to areas of greater responsibility later in life? With your current level of faithfulness, might you one day be placed in charge of 20, or even 50 talents?

This is a parable about the tragedy of missed opportunities. Our King, the master in the parable, is coming one day. We’ll be called to account for the things that have been entrusted to us, and we’ll be held responsible for the faithfulness we’re now demonstrating. In light of that accounting, will you be happy to see the Master return, or are there changes you need to make first?



Matthew 25:14-30 (ESV)
14 “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15 To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16 He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17 So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18 But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money.19 Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20 And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’22 And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’26 But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29 For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

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There’s A Way Out

I took a class one time that required me to read a book about traffic. Living in the DC area, I have plenty of opportunities to observe traffic firsthand, so the book helped explain some of the things I see regularly.

One of the concepts that stuck with me is the notion that many car accidents happen when people fixate on the bad situation they’re heading into. If you see that you’re about to impact something, and it’s all you focus on, it’s all but certain that it will happen. You go where your eyes look.

On the flip side, drivers avoid many accidents by focusing on the way out. If you can’t stop the vehicle in time, the only way to avoid an impact is to find another way out. Again, you go where your eyes look.

Reading this book may have helped me avoid an accident once. I was driving our family somewhere, and I wasn’t paying as much attention as I should have. We came around a downhill curve, approaching traffic that was slowing to stop at a traffic light. The gap between us and the car in front of us closed quicker than I anticipated. I stomped on the brakes, but we weren’t going to stop in time. As crazy as it sounds, in a flash I remembered that lesson from the book, and my eyes looked left and right instead of fixating on the looming bumper. I swerved to avoid the car, spilling over into the next lane. Thankfully the spot in the lane right next to us was empty and the vehicle in whose way we just jumped stopped in time.

I’m glad I did my reading assignments for that class.

Sin is a lot like that. We all struggle with it in some way. Some sins are recurring, while others you didn’t even see coming. It could be an addiction, or it could be the result of a heart that’s bitter or holds grudges. Whatever it is, it seems like all it takes is the blink of an eye before you’ve messed up again.

Take heart, though. There’s some good news in the book of 1 Corinthians:

The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. -1 Corinthians 10:13

You haven’t been tempted beyond what you can bear, but there’s another round of temptation coming your way. When it does, instead of fixating on the impact, look for the way out, because there’s going to be one.

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Today’s the Tomorrow We Talked About Yesterday

One day when my youngest daughter was four, she asked Mommy if she could have a lollipop. It was too late in the evening to let her have it though, so my wife told her she could have one the next day. Sure enough, our little one remembered the next day:

“Mom? Is it tomorrow?”

“Yes, today’s the tomorrow we talked about yesterday.”

It’s an off-the-cuff, but profound saying. “Today’s the tomorrow we talked about yesterday.” When you think about it, each of us is the product of our past choices and experiences. You are the person you are today because of the things you’ve gone through.

If you could go back and change something somewhere along the line…erase a mistake…capitalize on the knowledge you have now…you’d have a new set of experiences. You’d no longer be the person you are.

You are the person God knew you’d be at this point. He can, and (if you let Him) He will use you to do great things for His kingdom. All the mistakes, all the missed opportunities, along with all the high points, milestones, and celebrations…they helped shape who you are right now. Because of who you are, with your placement and background, there’s something that only you are equipped to do for God’s glory.

In the same way, the things you experience today will shape your tomorrow. This includes not only the things that happen to you, but the situations you place yourself into. The choices you make hold tremendous bearing over what will happen to your future. Make sure you’re making good ones.

Tomorrow will soon be here; will your future self be thankful for what you’re doing today?

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It’s Not Just About You (Part 2 of 2)

The guy in the back with the dorky pose…don’t know him

The sun came out for our second day on the whitewater. The rain and gloom had passed, and we were all much more relaxed now that we had survived the first day of paddling. The mood lifted once the gray skies, drizzle, and apprehension gave way to sunshine and confidence.

As far as the water level, this was a perfect scenario; it was an April weekend that followed a large amount of rainfall in New York’s Adirondack Mountains, but the warmer temperatures and rain helped melt a lot of the snow, which also ran into the river. The result was a river so swollen with churning whitewater that even many of the local guides had never seen it quite this big.

Our second day was a little different from the first. This time we linked up with one of the local outfits that knew the river pretty well, and we stuck close to them for a collective “safety in numbers” advantage. Laura was still our raft’s captain, and I was still paired with her to project the voice commands a bit further, but we rotated some of the paddlers around between boats.

In the afternoon, the local boat was in front of us, and then the next two rafts were ours. As we came around a sharp bend in the river, all the color drained from our faces. Spanning two thirds of the river was a gigantic standing wave that had a nasty rip curl at the top. It was a freak river feature that could only occur when extreme amounts of water shot through that section of the waterway. The guides didn’t know it was there, and none of us out-of-towners expected to see anything like it.

The local boat saw it too late, and all they could do was try to paddle through it head-on. It was too much for them; the boat got flipped right away and everybody got dumped in the chilly water. The rest of us paddled for all we were worth to get to the safer route. We safely made it past the wave, then surveyed the damage. Since we were the first boat on the scene, we made for the biggest group of helmets bobbing in the water. We started grabbing people by the life jackets and pulling them aboard. The raft behind us picked up the guide, but we got everyone else. Our kayakers started buzzing around the area picking up dropped paddles, disposable waterproof cameras, and even somebody’s bottle of Coke.

We were very near the capsized raft at that point. I thought back to all the raft-flipping I’d done in the pool during the dull winter months. I must’ve flipped a capsized raft at least 50 times in the pool. All that training was perfect for a moment like this; if I couldn’t use that knowledge and experience now, what was the point of doing it at all? I wanted to go after it…

I actually put my foot up on the rim of the raft to jump into the water. I turned back to tell Laura I was about to go after the raft, but that’s when I realized the state of complete disaster our own raft was in. It was pandemonium. Our raft was meant for eight people, but we only put six of us in it at the start of the day. Now our raft was bogged down with 14 people, only half of which had a paddle. Our raft was a self-bailer, meaning it had holes in the bottom so water that splashed in would drain out on its own. Instead of the normal inch or two of water on the floor, now it was midway up our calves. We were still flying down the river, but we were largely at the mercy of the current, headed towards God-only-knows what kind of waves, whirlpools, or strainers, and nobody knew the plan to meet up with the other rafts.

The people we just picked up were understandably chattering away about what just happened. They loudly thanked us for plucking them from the water, but all their excitement started causing a major communication breakdown for our crew and all we wanted was for them to stop talking! Laura’s tiny voice was yelling, trying to establish some sense of order, but it wasn’t doing much to get through to the newcomers. I was paired with her exactly for the purpose of echoing her commands loud enough for everyone to hear. I wanted so badly to go after the flipped raft, but it would’ve meant leaving them in an even more chaotic situation.

I turned my back on the capsized raft and started echoing Laura’s commands in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear. Our guests quieted down and our crewmembers in the front of the raft, no longer distracted by excited yammering in their ears, were able to hear us and start pointing us in the right direction. Everyone with a paddle dug just about as hard as they could, and we sluggishly moved out of the main current into the calmer waters near the riverbank. In the middle of it all, our trip leader, Tim, paddled his kayak up to the flipped raft and jumped on. I was pretty distracted with the situation in our raft, but the last I saw of him, he was laying on the raft with a big grin, paddling hard and looking like he was having the time of his life. (I know you’ll read this at some point, Tim…you beat me to it!) Anyway, it took awhile, but we eventually gathered all three rafts to reunite the guide and crew with their boat.

It was an adventure, for sure. In the moment, it was absolutely crazy and scary, but even now, more than 15 years later, I bet everyone on our trip remembers that portion of it. The trip had so many fun details that I had to journal about the experience (which is where I looked for a refresher)!

I can’t even tell you how much time I spent practicing how to right a capsized raft while in the pool at college. Most of it was done just for fun, but each time I did it, it helped contribute to the overall muscle memory and cementing the automatic steps that would need to occur when a raft actually flipped over on the river. What better time to use this experience could there possibly be than this opportunity?

Here’s the crux of it all though: just because you’ve focused so much time and effort into training or preparing for a specific type of ministry or situation that you ignore things that are “outside your lane” when God drops them in your path. To truly be a player on God’s team, you need to be willing to do what needs to be done, whatever that may be. Even if you haven’t prepared for a given scenario, He’ll make sure you’re equipped with everything you need when He presents a new challenge to you. The only thing you might be missing is a willing heart, and that’s something only you have the power to control.

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It’s Not Just About You (Part 1 of 2)

During my senior year of college I went on a whitewater rafting/kayaking trip with a club at school. It was April, and the following month was graduation, so it was sort of an early celebration of finishing college.

At our pre-trip meeting, our faculty adviser, Tim, told us that we’d have some non-students joining us. Some were alumni from the club, others were people he knew from other endeavors. There was one guy, Joshua John, that joined us for the trip, but he didn’t really know anybody else other than Tim. I thought that was probably kind of an uncomfortable situation for him, and I was one of the club’s officers, so I made a mental note to go out of my way to make him feel welcomed. Turns out he was into some extreme physical fitness workout routines. He was a man of few words, but was definitely someone you’d want sitting in the front seat of your whitewater raft, getting doused by big water while setting the cadence for everyone else in the boat.

We had some crazy experiences on that two-day trip, and I’ll cover one in the next post. We drove to the Adirondacks in upstate New York, and went rafting on the Upper Hudson River. When we left school, everything was sunny and warm and everyone was in good spirits. Everybody started getting quiet as we arrived in the mountains to find that it was raining and some spots still had a good deal of snow on the ground. After some scouting around we set up camp in the rain and in the dark, split up camp chores, and took care of whatever we needed to do, then headed off to bed. Somewhere in here I made sure to track down Joshua John and told him we were glad to have him along with us.

The next morning it was still raining, but we hit the water anyway. The river was even higher than normal during the spring thaw, and everyone was a little jumpy. We had two rafts, and there’s usually a bit of competition among rafters when there are multiple boats. It helps build camaraderie and teamwork, so the competitive spirit is generally a good thing. The other raft was fun; they’d start spinning while going through rapids, or in calm water the crew all stood up on the edge and tried to run around the outside of the raft without falling into the water. Good stuff like this helps make a trip more fun.

Run around the raft rim

The captain of the other boat, Steve, was mischievous. He was out to get the two of us that were co-captains of our boat, an alumnus named Laura and I. Laura was physically on the shorter and smaller side. The other boat’s crew took it upon themselves to sneak up behind us during calm water, grab Laura, and pull her into their boat, essentially kidnapping one of the captains. It was funny, unless you were Laura, who helplessly became a temporary hood ornament for the other raft.

Over the course of the two days they tried sneaking up to try to get me too, but most of the time we were able to either get away or fend them off. On the second day they snuck up on us again and a couple of their goons jumped into our boat and grabbed me. They tried throwing me over the side, into the river. They caught me off guard and I knew they were too much for me, but I didn’t want to make it easy for them. I resolved to hang on as long as I could before they overpowered and dunked me.

While my jaw was clenched hard and my eyes were shut tight, there suddenly came a clamor from the front of my boat. Bodies got shoved out of the way as Joshua John jumped into the fray. He picked up one of the attackers and threw him straight down hard into the water. The other invaders bailed out of our boat and jumped back to their raft. As the first guy surfaced again, confused and gasping for air, he asked with wide eyes “what the heck was THAT?!” He looked up to see Joshua John standing in our raft, barely breathing hard. He resolutely said “I have to protect my captain.”

I’m glad I found him early in the trip to say hi!

Just remember that as you go through life, the way you interact with people affects how they interact with (or on behalf of) you and others. It’s not always going to be quite this dramatic, but are you positively impacting others enough to make a difference?

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You Did That For Me?

Photo courtesy of wordsofreason.wordpress.com

Three or four years ago our family of five went to see my folks for Easter. It was the time of year when the winter’s cold was gone and the kids could finally get some time playing outside.

While we were all in their backyard one day, I told my wife and kids about some of the places I used to visit in the woods nearby when I was a kid. On the spur of the moment, we all decided to take a trip into the forest to have a look for ourselves.

Our kiddos have always enjoyed being in the woods, but most of the places we’ve taken them have had nice wide trails that make it easy to get around. There were no trails here, so we had to find our own way. Without really thinking too much about it, my plan was to bring them into the woods through one section, then bring them down to see some cool spots along the creek, and then start coming back up through a different area.

We got down to the creek, and I showed them an old well, then brought them to the spot where some of us slid down a natural waterslide and built dams as kids. I had a childhood friend whose dad loved golf; in order to work on his swing, he’d stand in his yard and drive old golf balls into the forest. As a kid, friends and I would come across some of these golf balls while playing in the woods; they were always in the same general area, so he must’ve had a consistent swing. J Now, with my own family in tow, I told my kids to keep an eye out for golf balls. Sure enough, we found at least one.

As we started heading back, I took them along an easy route I followed when I was younger. It’s a funny thing though, if you stay out of a forest for 10 or 15 years, you might be surprised at how much it changes while you’re gone.

We crossed back over the creek and started heading back up the hill. It started getting tricky, though, because in our path were numerous thorn bushes I didn’t remember running into before. We’d make some progress up the hill, only to run into a spot that was too thick for us to pass, so we’d have to scoot sideways or even come back down the hill some. There were spots where we could squeeze through, but I had to step on a few thorny branches and hold back others with one hand while my kiddos carefully passed through.

It’s not so bad when you’re tall enough to see over the thorn bushes, but when you’re only about three feet tall and Mom and Dad don’t seem to know where they’re going, it can be scary and even overwhelming. My kids started getting worried, even coming to the verge of tears, so I stopped being delicate with the thorns in order to move us along faster. Instead of grabbing them with just a finger and thumb, I pushed them aside and held them out of the way with the back of my hand so we could make wider openings and move toward our goal a little quicker.

It was slow going, but the kids hung in there and we finally made it out of the woods. As the panic subsided, the kids noticed that one of my hands had a surprising amount of blood on it. I didn’t have any bad cuts, but the thorns had scratched me enough that it caused the blood to start flowing. It looked much worse than it actually was, but my daughter was very concerned because of how much blood she saw. Through her eyes, all she knew was that Daddy was bleeding so that the rest of them could safely pass through the dangerous spots.

As we had approached Easter that year, we had been talking more frequently about the suffering Jesus endured aside from the cross. The beatings, the humiliation, the crown of thorns, the sheer indignity, and all sorts of other often-forgotten things are still part of the story. He was so weak from the beating and other types of suffering that He couldn’t even carry the cross, as the condemned often did. My wife voiced the connection, using our adventure as an object lesson. It’s like it clicked for my oldest daughter. He took my place. I escaped the suffering because someone else did it for me.

I don’t know where you are in life, or if you consider yourself a spiritual person. None of that changes the fact that Christ paid for the price of your admission into Heaven. You can’t earn it, you can’t pay your own way, and you can’t pay Him back. The only way to get into Heaven is to use the ticket He bought you. He bought tickets for everyone, but only a small percentage of people take Him up on the offer.

He’s holding out a ticket for you, and He wants you to take it. Will you accept it?

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Hopelessly Stuck

Photo courtesy of dearlylovedmist.com

When I was probably 6 or 7 years old, a married couple built a new house across the street from us. They had moved in, but the house wasn’t totally finished yet. When you’re a little boy, new houses in the neighborhood are fun because there’s a ton of mud or dirt piles to play in.

One rainy day I was playing outside in my yard. I had my raincoat and my big rain boots, so I was all set. Our yard already had a lawn, so it didn’t really have many puddles. Since the house across the street wasn’t landscaped yet, it had all kinds of puddles and mud to go stomping through.

I knew the neighbors, and they were nice, so I crossed the street and started splashing through the grossest part of the yard. I don’t think the gutters were installed yet, so the water ran right off the roof and into the yard, making for some thick, goopy stomping. My plan was to go knock on the front door to say hi, but it was starting to be a tough slog. The mud felt like it got stickier and sticker, sucking on my boots as I tried to pull them up.

It got to the point where I couldn’t pick my feet up anymore. The rain boots were already much heavier and clunkier than the shoes I normally wore, and now it got even worse with the mud’s suction. My boots were stuck in the mud, and I wasn’t going anywhere.

I started to panic. I tried shaking them loose, but that didn’t work (it probably made it worse). I think I was afraid to pull my feet out of the boots and walk across the mud, scared that my actual feet would get swallowed by the muck. Defeated and out of ideas, I squatted down (afraid to sit, for fear of getting stuck) and started to cry.

I don’t know how long this went on, but soon the front door opened and Joyce, my neighbor, poked her head out. With a look of worried concern, she saw me in my helpless and pitiful situation, and right away got some shoes on, came close enough to grab me, and lifted me right out of the mud.

Cherished readers, this is the story of the gospel, plain and simple. I was in a mess that I couldn’t escape on my own. The difference with the gospel is that we’re all born stuck in the mess, we didn’t wander into it because we made a bad choice.

People have different reactions to being stuck like this. Some choose to just wallow and enjoy the mud as best they can. Others look at the situation and focus on it being a futile, meaningless struggle. To each and every one of us, though, a hand is extended, offering us a way out of the muck and mire. It’s not forced upon us; it is merely offered. This hand, friends, is the hand of Jesus Christ.

If you’ve come to realize that you’re stuck in the mud and would like a way out, I urge you to look into what Christ did for you. He’s gently knocking on the door of your heart. He’s not going to force the door open; He waits for you to open the door. Won’t you consider letting Him in?

It’s better than being stuck in the mire. What do you have to lose?

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Sometimes You Can’t Roll Your Sleeves Up Far Enough

In the Air Force I spent about four or five weeks preparing to pass a screening course for survival instructor candidates. As the time drew near for us to move from preparation to test time, the tone of training got more serious. Up until now we had been building our bodies and learning skills, but there was plenty of goofing off, too. The culmination of our time at Indoc was a nine-day course that was split between rigorous assignments on base and in the barracks for the first half, followed by a period of being out in the field for the second half.

On the last Friday before the course began, it was tradition for instructors to run students through “The Swamp.” The Swamp was a nasty section of Lackland Air Force Base that was just what it sounds like. Making it through the event was not a prerequisite for the course, but it was a way for students to begin making the transition from head knowledge to experience. (It was also fun for the instructors to do.)

A large portion of Air Force Basic Training was focused on professional appearance, making the uniform look good, and establishing a proper demeanor for recruits now living in one of the armed services. While that’s important and has its time and place, preparing to be a survival instructor carried with it a totally different set of objectives. The goal in a survival situation is to do just about whatever it takes to survive and return to friendly territory. A survival instructor goes through grueling circumstances so they better understand how to convey that crucial information to the students they’ll later teach. The Swamp helped students further overcome their reluctance to take actions they might not otherwise take.

Our outing started with some laps up and down a steep hill while wearing heavy rucksacks. We then made our way to the edge of the water. As we got near, we could smell the nasty, stinky, stagnant swamp. It was muddy, had some gross stuff floating in it, and we could only imagine what lived there.

We made our way to where the instructor indicated, then set down our rucks. We weren’t dirty enough yet, so he had us start low crawling through some of the muddiest channels. Naturally, you try to keep your head out of the mud when doing something like that, but that’s exactly what our instructor wanted to break us out of doing. “C’mon, get some mud on your face!”

All of us got herded into an area on the bank of the water, where we started taking turns leading exercises in soaked, muddy uniforms and heavy, waterlogged boots. Pushups, crunches, flutter kicks, eight-count bodybuilders, all sorts of calisthenics made more difficult or tricky by our environment. During flutter kicks, while our soaked boots were up in the air, water would run out of our boots and down our legs. On another occasion I remember that the ground was so soft, while I was in the pushup position my hands sunk down past my elbows into the mud. I couldn’t even bend my elbows to do pushups anymore! We alternately laid on our backs, then on our stomachs, all of us covered in mud except for our necks and heads.

Finally the instructor flat out told us to get every inch of ourselves covered in mud. Then, for his idea of a fun photo-op (which I think is fun too, in retrospect), he had us find some kind of plant to put somewhere on ourselves. By this time, you could hardly even distinguish between the students.

It’s tough to see, but yours truly is the fifth from the left

After awhile, our instructor called an end to the experience. We all headed back toward the bus. Since we couldn’t just walk onto the bus in our current condition, though, we had to get all the mud off. The stinky, dirty, nasty water that once seemed to stink so badly now washed us clean. We walked waist-deep into the water, bent down so the water was up to our neck, and in some cases even went all the way under. Considering how clean we looked when we came up, you wouldn’t know the water was so disgusting and swampy. It later took a few trips through the washing machine for those uniforms to become free of the swamp stink, but they eventually recovered.

This was a crazy experience. It was challenging, certainly, but it was very valuable. All the physical training we’d suffered through for weeks, or even months in some cases, and now this situation, demonstrated something very interesting to all of us: if we try pushing ourselves to the limit, we’ll arrive at our self-imposed mental blocks much sooner than we reach our actual limits. Maybe it’s been awhile since someone asked you: “Are you giving it everything you’ve got?” Maybe nobody’s ever asked you the follow-on question: “Yeah, but, are you really giving it your all?”

It’s also valuable to understand that when you’re confronted by difficult (or even miserable) circumstances, it’s a lot more tolerable when you have others there with you. If you’re headed toward something tough, link up with a few others so you can encourage each other along the way. Alternatively, keep your eyes peeled for someone who’s alone in the mud right now. It could be more encouraging than you’ll ever know for them to see someone wading into the mess to come alongside them.

(To see other posts related to the survival instructor indoctrination course, click here.)

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Who’s Going Back?

Photo courtesy of angryjogger.com

After Air Force Basic Training, I moved on to become a candidate for survival instructor. Since there was a high wash-out rate for that job field, we first had to complete a physically demanding screening course.

Before we could even begin the course, we had to spend a few weeks or even months building up our physical stamina. After having just graduated Basic, most of the people that arrived were very skinny and had not had any serious exercise. By the time people graduated the course, they would need to do hundreds of pushups a day, be able to run a few miles within a certain time limit, and be able to ruck four miles with a 65-pound ruck sack on their back in under 60 minutes.

These things were all possible, but our bodies needed time to build up to those capabilities. Our instructors designed PT programs meant to work us up to those goals. As a way of keeping tabs on who was deficient in which areas, we periodically had performance checks…where we measured and recorded our performance in a task (whether it be a timed run, number of repetitions done, etc.).

When we first started timed runs or timed rucks, everybody went at their own speed because nobody knew how their natural speed would play out over the distance in question. As time went on though, and we learned a bit more, we started recognizing not only our own abilities, but those of our teammates. Some people learned “okay, I’m usually able to make the cutoff with a few minutes to spare, so maybe I don’t need to push it quite so hard.” Others learned “that guy usually sets a pretty good pace…if I can just keep up with him for most of the distance, I can fall off near the end and still make it.”

The result was that trainees would usually pair off or group up according to their ability. During a run they would set the pace for each other, or during a ruck they’d be able to talk and keep each other’s spirits up. Being together helped them draw strength from one another and made them stronger than they would be on their own.

It seemed, though, that in every class you had someone who struggled very hard with certain things. Some people were naturally good at running, others were good at push-ups. Some were gifted at rucking long distances quickly, others were just born leaders. We had a guy in our class, Bob, who wasn’t really good at any of those things.

During runs Bob would always be last. He’d be near the end during ruck marches. His pushups were okay, but his pull-ups were terrible. He was not a leader. He was a goofball that would drag down the team’s average performance, and he didn’t seem too bothered by it.

One day we did a timed run. We had a one-mile dirt track, which made it nice because then we only had to do a quarter of the laps that we’d normally do on a regulation track. I don’t remember how many laps we had to do that day, but it was at least two or three.

The results were predictable. The regulars were first across the finish line, and the next few guys finished in what was a pretty normal order. By the time everyone else had finished and were all doubled over with our hands on our knees in the grass near the finish line, Bob was still on the track, way behind everyone else.

Sometimes on runs, the people who finished early would jog back to meet up with guys still trying to cross the finish line, and go at their speed to encourage them along until the end. I don’t remember everyone’s first names anymore; I’ll just call this guy Jack. Jack looked down the track and asked “who’s going back for Bob?” This was much further back than any time we’d gone back for someone before.

Jack looked around at everyone, and nobody seemed willing to go that far back to meet up with Bob. Without another word, he took off running across the field to meet up with Bob. After he took off he didn’t look back.

You can imagine the mood among those still left at the finish line. A little bit of guilt, a little bit of “but…it’s Bob.” It didn’t take long though, before everyone else started running across the field, too.

Now imagine you’re Bob. You’re plodding along at your best pace, which never seems to be good enough. Everyone else has left you in the dust, and you’re on your own. Even though this is one of your personal best distances and times, you can’t even see anybody anymore. But then here comes Jack, running over the hill and meeting up with you to match your pace and maybe urge you on a bit. As soon as he comes alongside you, a group of more than a half dozen other guys appears over the same hill, coming back for you.

Sometimes you just need to be willing to be the first one to step out. Jack didn’t know what would happen, but he decided that he was going, with or without anyone else. His resolve set everyone else in motion.

If you’re a Christ-follower, there are going to be things in your life that you are not going to want to do. There will be other times where you know there’s something that you ought to do, but you really don’t want to. It could be something like starting a new ministry from scratch because you’re the only one in a position to do it. It might be visiting a shut-in to see how you can help them. Whatever it is, nobody’s doing it, and you have the ability to do it.

After you step out, you just might find that others follow your lead.

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You Can’t Be Serious…

Image courtesy of YouTube

Imagine you’re lost in a jungle, starving, scared, and dirty. Hunger is ever present, and food is all you can think about. Then you see a lizard that you’re pretty confident you can catch.

Right now your stomach might turn a little bit, but if you’re in that situation you might start drooling. What makes the difference?

Part of it is the fact that you’re probably not desperate for food right now. Another part of it might be how squeamish you are about being around little critters.

When I was attending the screening course for Air Force Survival Instructors, the instructors wanted to impress upon students that you can’t let discomfort come between you and the actions you’ll need to take to survive. As a way of helping students get used to that idea, we had a whole slew of terrariums that were filled with all kinds of creepy crawlies. I don’t remember everything that was there, but there were lizards, toads, spiders, bugs, mice, and snakes. We had the opportunity to “get friendly” with them. We had to clean the containers they all lived in, so we had to handle them and get accustomed to holding things we’d ordinarily shy away from.

  • This guy had a Banana Ball Python around his neck

We even had Max, a 20-foot Python, which we needed to feed every few weeks.

  • Taking Max out for feeding time
Max getting ready for lunch

Some of us were more creeped out than others when it came to these critters. Some people weren’t bothered by most of them, but might have a problem with one or two of them. I don’t know that there was anyone who was unfazed by everything, but it was all done for the sake of meeting our discomfort, or even fear, head on.

You might find yourself in the middle of a situation where you’re creeped out by what you see around you. This might be your opportunity to get more comfortable with the idea of functioning well in the presence of something that gives you the willies.

Are you being held back because of your fear of something? It might be that forward progress can only happen after you face your fear. Fighting for your survival can be a messy business, and a lot of it comes down to how much discomfort you’re willing to accept. Are you willing to get uncomfortable?

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The Importance of Stretching

Photo courtesy of picswe.com

After graduating Air Force Basic Training, I began my tryout to become a survival instructor. The Indoctrination course after Basic Training is just a screening course; if you pass it, then you get to move on to take another one. While at “Indoc,” it’s your job to demonstrate that you can handle mental and physical challenges and that you’re determined to make it.

Life at Indoc was physically demanding. Our instructors needed to build our skinny bodies into something that could physically withstand punishment and grueling conditions. Physical Training was a large part of every work day. Pushups became second nature to us all. Calisthenics, weights, running, ruck marches…all intended to build us into something stronger. At that time most members of the Air Force were required to take a PT test once a year. Physical fitness was so important to our training that we did a PT test once a week.

We had some strange workouts. Sometimes we’d be in the woods cutting down trees and setting up shelters. Once every few weeks we’d have a Combat Controller (one type of Air Force special forces) come by and lead us on a run that took us through the woods and the mud, over fences, through base housing, and anywhere else he felt like going.

In order to reduce the risk of injuries and to help prepare ourselves for physical activity, we spent between 20 and 30 minutes at the start of each day stretching. Stretching warms up your muscles and helps enable them to cope with strains, exertion, and overextensions.

There were times when we had a good idea of the upcoming workout. Sometimes we knew we had a run coming up, so we’d perform stretches with a focus on that activity. Other times we knew we’d be in for a long session of calisthenics, so we stretched nearly every muscle we had. When you know the nature of the goal, in this case a particular type of workout, it’s easier to take steps to prepare for meeting that challenge.

The tricky part is when you don’t know what the goal is. On occasion, our instructors didn’t tell us what we were in for. They made sure we performed certain types of stretches, but didn’t give us any clues other than that. We had to trust that the instructors’ preparatory guidance would help set us up for whatever we had to face next.

The workouts were often grueling, but the part that took awhile to see was that successfully making it through a difficult workout was part of the solution to overcoming subsequent challenges we didn’t even know about at the time. At first all we knew was that we were exhausted at the end of a workout session. The following day we’d show up again, then leave exhausted after another workout. Each day we’d show up and go through another session and leave exhausted, but over time we discovered we could withstand more stress, we became stronger and more capable; we were able to tolerate conditions we previously didn’t think we could withstand.

It’s exactly the same thing when living a life for Christ. When we think of “living a life for Christ,” we think of going out and doing amazing or improbable things, but the truth is that some days we’re just trying to survive. We know people who have either made it through intolerable conditions or are currently enduring miserable circumstances. For them, each day is a fight just to make it through. At the end of each day all they know is that they are completely exhausted and worn out, and they don’t know how they’ll ever make it through another day, let alone months (or possibly years) of the same conditions.

The things I learned at Indoc have parallels in life. God is the only one that knows ahead of time what the goal is and how He intends to use individuals to achieve it. If those people knew at the start what they’d have to face, many of them would never believe they could do it. At Indoc we stretched to prevent injuries; going on a run through the woods without stretching is dangerous. It’s easy to twist an ankle. If you stretch your ankle ahead of time, you might still twist it and it will still hurt, but you’ll be able to continue the run without actually sustaining an injury. God’s version of stretching a person sometimes means putting them in experiences that prepare them for follow-on experiences. They hurt, but it allows those people to make it through a subsequent challenge without breaking. Since God is the only one who knows what your upcoming “workout” entails, He’s the one that best knows how to “stretch” you ahead of time.

“But what about when the stretching never seems to end?” Sounds like you’ve moved past the stretching and into the actual workout. It’s important to remember that a muscle doesn’t become stronger by doing a workout a single time. It takes repetition. When you do the same workout repetitively, your muscles adapt. They grow; they meet the challenge. Over weeks, over months, or even years, they prove they can handle it, and so you have to “add more weight” to the workout in order to keep growing. The hard workouts are exhausting and draining, and they make you ask “why?” Looking back at what you were before it all started, aren’t you now stronger and more capable? Are you now in a better position to face the next challenge?

Have you ever been stretched spiritually, physically, mentally, and/or emotionally? Maybe it was to increase your “range of motion,” capacity, or willingness. The stretching and workouts cumulatively built you into someone that can handle something more…something more difficult.

The next challenge is on the way. Whatever it is, it’s going to look intimidating. Remember that God’s been working you up to it, though, and that it’s not too much for you. Your past experiences have prepared you to take it on and succeed; don’t be afraid to accept the challenge.

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You Don’t Wear the Black Armband Forever

A view of Earth rising above the lunar surface during Apollo 8

When I was a kid I wanted to be an astronaut. I loved learning about the space race of the 1960s and 70s, and at one point I knew the name and assigned crew position of every Apollo astronaut that flew on a mission during the Apollo Program.

In 1961 the Americans had barely touched space. America’s first man in space, Alan Shepard, didn’t even complete an orbit; the weak rocket he used only got him high enough to kiss the edge of space. The Soviets had already sent their first Cosmonaut into orbit, and this launch was a weak American response, barely doing enough to keep us in the race. Less than three weeks later, American President Kennedy threw down the audacious goal of beating the Soviets in a manned mission to the moon before the end of the decade, as a way of establishing American preeminence in space.

Thus began a harrowing eight or nine years for NASA. It had to not only figure out the best strategy for meeting the goal, but it also had to develop skills and equipment that didn’t exist.

The process moved fast and grew increasingly complex with time. First NASA sent up one astronaut at a time, and the longest that any mission stayed up was just over a day. Then it started launching two astronauts at a time. They started to do spacewalks, to rendezvous with other orbiting objects, and to see if a capsule and crew could physically last for the two weeks in space that it would take to make it to the moon and back. Finally, it was time for the Apollo missions, which carried three men and the ability to use a lunar lander that would be used to land on the moon.

By all measures, Apollo was a beast of a program. The spacecraft systems’ subsystems had subsystems. Engineers working on the spacecraft worked in round-the-clock shifts, and projects still fell behind schedule. Everyone worked at a breakneck speed to get things ready to meet the deadline. In January 1967, the first Apollo mission finally drew near. Three astronauts sat atop their huge rocket and conducted a final test to demonstrate that all systems were ready to operate on their own.

Then an unmitigated disaster struck, freezing everything in its tracks. As the rocket still sat on the launch pad, a ferocious fire erupted inside the cabin, and killed the three astronauts before they could escape from the capsule. The fire killed America’s second man in space, its first spacewalker, and a rookie astronaut. The devastating setback stunned the nation. All work stopped while NASA, the spacecraft contractors, and even Congress sought answers to what went wrong and whether the moon was worth the cost.

Fellow astronauts escort Grissom’s body to Arlington Cemetery

It wouldn’t be until October 1968, more than a year and a half, before another manned American launch occurred…an eternity when considering JFK’s looming end-of-the-decade deadline. With time running out, everyone needed to figure out how to grieve but still move forward. In the miniseries “From the Earth to the Moon,” Wally Schirra, the commander of the first space mission after the fire, was asked about preparing for his upcoming launch while living in the shadow of the Apollo 1 tragedy. He responded “You’re sad. You mourn the loss.” He paused for a moment before adding “But you don’t wear the black armband forever.”

Without question, there are tragedies in peoples’ lives that knock them down hard. The death of a loved one; a betrayal by someone you trust; a feared diagnosis; a job loss; a terrible injury; an addiction you’re fighting through. There are serious and legitimate times in our lives when we just can’t be an effective contributor to God’s kingdom. Nobody faults you for things that are beyond your control. It takes time to fight through many of these problems, and many times God will make something good out of them. Just make sure that you don’t start using your sorrows and difficulties as an excuse not to move forward with what God’s calling you to do.

You’re the only one that knows whether or not this is an issue you’re dealing with. You WILL be knocked down; Jesus promised that we’d have trouble in this world. Sometimes you need to stay down for a minute, but don’t forget that you do need to get back up again.

Don’t wear the black armband forever. There are people you might not even know about that are waiting for you to get back up again.

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Hanging on by a Thread (Part 3 of 3)

(See Part 1 and Part 2)

Lee with two of his grandkids after returning home from the hospital

When my father-in-law Lee suddenly had a medical emergency right after Christmas a few years ago, it caught us all off guard. For almost a week we didn’t know anything, and all we could do was wait for new developments.

In order to shield the family at the hospital from having to do all the communicating through texting and phone calls, I started emailing out updates to close friends and family. The list of recipients grew quickly though, and soon we had our own Facebook page to help keep people updated and to pass along specific prayer requests both for Lee and for the needs of his family. Lee meant a lot to a whole lot of people, and eventually hundreds of readers received the daily updates I sent out.

There must have been some people hitting their knees hard in prayer on Lee and his family’s behalf, because Lee eventually opened his eyes. After spending a few days in a medically induced coma with a body temperature somewhere in the 80s, his body had some adjusting to do when he regained consciousness. He was extremely disoriented and weak, but, at least for now, he was still with us.

We were all thrilled to see Lee moving in the right direction, but the world didn’t stop turning because he was in the hospital. My young family was far from home; we were able to stay in the area for a few more days, but I had to get back to my job. We had already stayed about a week longer than we had planned, and we couldn’t stay much longer. Lee was still in the hospital when we left to head back home. The day we left the hospital, he was weak from a related surgery he just came through, but was still happy to see us and understood why we had to leave. We had no idea at the time, but that was the last time we would see him in person. We made it back home the next day and we closely stayed in touch to hear the latest news.

Time went on and Lee got discharged from the hospital. Since his scare, the only times that I had spoken with him were in the hospital when he was exhausted or groggy. After he had made it home and had time to recover some of his strength, he called and wanted to speak with me on the phone. After getting a little bit of an update on his progress, he began to thank me. I assumed he was referring to the rescue breathing I did for him when he initially lost consciousness. Just as I was about to brush it off, though, he surprised me.

Of course he appreciated my helping him live long enough to make it to the hospital, but that wasn’t the main reason he wanted to thank me. He was more thankful that throughout all the updates I sent out to the masses, I kept the focus on our family being open to accepting God’s will, rather than forcing God’s will to comply with ours. Lee didn’t have a problem with intercessory prayer, but he appreciated the balance I put on the messaging. It turns out that on multiple occasions during his recovery in the hospital he had read every email I sent out. He was surprised at all he had missed while unconscious; he enjoyed reading the emails to catch up on all of it, and he felt that the updates had taken the right approach.

That was the last time I ever spoke with Lee. A few months after coming home from the hospital, he again caught us off guard and unexpectedly passed from this world into the next. I’m not sure if it was God’s plan all along to have Lee recover enough to come home after his initial scare, or if all of the prayers sufficiently moved God to give us a few more months with Lee, but in the end, God had His way even when it conflicted with ours.

At Lee’s memorial service, as a testament to his character, the church was packed with hundreds of people. Extra chairs had to be brought in to seat everyone. Lee lived his life knowing what was truly important while ignoring what wasn’t, and people recognized that.

It’s so easy to get wrapped up and even be consumed by the things of this life, but it’s important to live in light of eternity. Too often we lose sight of the fact that very few of our daily struggles or any other distractions that preoccupy us will even be a memory once we’ve moved on from this life. The only things that will have eternal significance are the actions you’ve taken to know God and help others know Him too.

How’s your focus? Are you paying attention to the things that are important? As you go through life, are you leaving a positive lasting impact on the people with whom you interact?

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Hanging on by a Thread (Part 2 of 3)

(See Part 1 here and Part 3 here)

The next few days after my father-in-law, Lee, got whisked away to the hospital were a blur. Whatever had gone wrong with his heart was a complicated thing. Doctors put him in a medically induced coma and dropped his body temperature for a few days as a way of “rebooting” him. Since this was right after Christmas, family that had just left turned around and came back. One of Lee and Pam’s daughters flew in from Alaska. People were constantly calling, trying to find out the latest information, even when there was nothing new to report. The adrenaline we all ran on started wearing off, and the exhaustion began setting in.

Lee’s hospital was about an hour away from his house, where my wife and three young kiddos were staying. My wife would go up there every day, but an extra two hours of travel time a day added to the burden. My kids started getting antsy; at the time they were 5, 4, and 14 months, and Mommy had never been away from them this much before. In her place, they got a guy that meant well, but just couldn’t compare to Mommy. Some of the meals I came up with were really just glorified snacks, and sometimes it was the same thing over and over again. The walls started feeling like they were closing in on all of us. We needed to find some kind of better solution as we got closer to the time the doctors were going to try to raise Lee’s body temperature and revive him.

Lee and Pam knew a bunch of people in the area near the hospital, and we decided to make the drive as a family up to that region with the intent to start staying the night up there somewhere. We packed a bunch of our stuff and left Lee and Pam’s house not knowing where we’d be spending the next few nights. We made it to the hospital and went to the waiting room where we saw lots of familiar faces. During the day all kinds of friends and well-wishers came and went, some of them even bringing much-appreciated care packages of food and things to help pass the time. My kids enjoyed the extra time with Mommy, even if it was in a waiting room. Even with all the extra family and friends helping out, though, they didn’t have to stay in the same room long before they started getting antsy again. They needed somewhere to feel settled.

During the day we were still trying to find a place to stay. One family offered us an available room in their home, but five of us is a lot to cram into one room (especially when two of the kids still napped), so we wanted to see if we could find anything else. Someone had two rooms available for us, but they had a dog that my son would’ve been allergic to. Late in the day we got word that there was a family willing to let us stay at their place. They had two rooms for us, no pets, and the house was less than five minutes from the hospital. The offers weren’t going to get much better than that and it was getting late, so we grabbed it. By the time we arrived at the house it was after dark. The house was cheery and still decorated for Christmas, and when the door opened we met some of the sweetest people we could have hoped for. Jay and Esther and their daughter Tracey welcomed us into their home in one of our young family’s hours of greatest need.

Jay and Esther were great-grandparents, and they had a large family. Their house was so warm and welcoming, and someone was always popping in because…that’s just the kind of place it was. They had one of their grandsons staying in their basement at the time, and he and a visiting friend helped us bring in our luggage, pack ‘n plays, and anything we brought with us. By the time we got there, it was time to get the kids to bed. We got our daughters set up in one of the rooms, and we set up our son on the floor in the room where my wife and I stayed. I think my wife and I spent a little time visiting with the family before we collapsed into bed, too. That was our first restful night of sleep since the whole ordeal with Lee began.

The next day my wife headed off to the hospital early again, but my kids and I were able to stay in a place the kids finally felt comfortable and occupied. If memory serves, Jay and Esther had five kids; as grandparents and great-grandparents, many children had come to visit this house, and there were all kinds of fun things for my kids to play with and explore. They also had all kinds of Christmas decorations that sang or danced after it got squeezed (a favorite for kids). In addition to all kinds of stuffed animals and toys, they had a foosball table and a pool table in the basement…something that kept my kids occupied for a very long time.

Our hosts also figured out that Daddy was good at getting his kids riled up and roughhousing, but maybe needed some help in the food preparation department. Oh, man, they were so great. My kids actually started having balanced meals. Those wonderful people made it possible for us to put one foot in front of the other on our march through the trial we faced.

Last story about staying at their place. During naptime one day, I laid down my youngest in a pack ‘n play in a room by herself. I laid my son down in his sleeping bag on the floor in our room, and I set up my oldest daughter to play/color/draw on the bed in our room. My son fell asleep right away, and I told my daughter I was going to read on the floor. Once I laid down, though, I figured out pretty quickly that I wasn’t going to stay awake long, so I let her know I’d probably take a nap on the floor. My five-year-old daughter got down off our bed with her little blanket, came and lay down beside me, and all three of us took a nap in a row on the floor. We were finally in a place where we could rest.

I’ll get you caught up on Lee in my next post, but this one’s about how much we were able to benefit from the generosity and hospitality of these wonderful people. That was their gift, they loved helping people, and it was amazing and much appreciated to be ministered to in that way.

This whole site is geared toward encouraging you to use your gifts to live a life of higher impact for Christ’s Kingdom. Not everyone is going to be an international gospel singer or someone that proclaims the truth boldly in stadiums across the globe. I don’t know what your gifts are. You might not accomplish anything earth-shattering by being hospitable to someone who needs help, but let me tell you…it can mean the world to the person receiving the help. Whatever your gift is…please…find a way to use it. God gave you that gift for a reason, and if you let Him, He’ll tie you into His master plan.

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Hanging on by a Thread (Part 1 of 3)

Read Part 2 or Part 3

For Christmas 2014 we visited my wife’s folks in northwestern Ohio. Instead of going straight there from Virginia, we drove to see some family near Dayton first. The kids had lots of fun playing with cousins, staying up later than usual, and generally wearing themselves (and us) out. At the end of that visit, we drove about two and a half hours to my in-laws’ place.


I think it was the afternoon of the 26th or 27th; I was worn out. There were two Christmas celebrations with two different sides of the family, but my young family had to skip one of them because the kids were worn out, sick, or getting sick. My oldest actually developed an ear infection, so we spent some time in an Urgent Care because of the pain she was in. I was beat, so I was laying on the living room floor, starting to fall asleep.

There were people moving around. My father-in-law, Lee, took a moment to sit down on the couch, put his feet up, and close his eyes. My wife and her mom Pam were moving around the area, working on a few other things as I drifted off.

Then I heard my wife’s worried tone. I don’t remember much of what she was saying, but she was urgently trying to soothe Lee. Pam came rushing over, too, and then there were two worried tones. I opened my eyes to see what was happening, and Lee, still reclining on the couch, looked like he was having a seizure.

I got up and ran over. He was unresponsive, his eyes were fluttering, and his body was spasming. I tried picking him up to lower him to the ground…no easy task when someone’s body goes completely rigid. I laid him flat on the ground, and my CPR training from nearly 20 years prior came rushing back. I checked for breathing, but there didn’t seem like there was any. I retilted his head to try opening his airway, but still nothing. I forgot to do a finger sweep to see if there was anything in his mouth, which ended up causing some complications later. I began doing rescue breathing on my father-in-law.

Finding a pulse can be a tricky thing. When I learned CPR on dummies, we didn’t use the kind that simulated pulses. As a result, we did a pulse check knowing full well there wasn’t going to be one. I tried his neck, I tried his wrist, and I tried his chest. I couldn’t find anything, so by all counts I should have begun doing CPR, but I doubted myself. I thought “well this might be a faint one right here.” In my mind it’s a scary thing to begin chest compressions, because that means someone’s in REAL trouble. I ended up not doing any compressions because I wasn’t thinking objectively; I hadn’t thought about any of this in years and I was scared of messing up.

Somewhere in this sequence we called an ambulance. Thankfully, there was a volunteer fire station not two blocks away, so they arrived very quickly. That time we spent waiting for them seemed like it took forever, though. Between trying to find a pulse, rescue breathing, trying to shoo the kids out of the room, and all the confusion going on, it was chaos. My youngest, who was a little older than a year at the time, crawled over Lee’s legs, cheerfully unaware that anything was wrong, before we got the kids wrangled up.

Once the EMTs arrived I happily yielded to someone who knew a lot more about what to do in this situation. Almost right away after evaluating the situation, they wrapped some kind of band around Lee’s chest, and it began doing chest compressions on its own. We filled in some of the volunteers on what happened, what kind of meds Lee took, etc., all while the EMTs worked on him. It seemed to take awhile, but eventually they prepared to load him into the ambulance. As they were busily moving about, I asked one of them “do we have a pulse?” I was very glad to hear “we do, but it’s weak.”

They loaded Lee into the ambulance, and off they went. I drove Pam to the hospital, chasing right behind. The trip was a short one, thankfully. We went into the ER and eventually met up with the doc on duty, and we told him what we knew. A flurry of phone calls, conversations with doctors, and newly arriving friends of the family followed. This particular hospital wasn’t well equipped to deal with this situation, so they prepared to transfer Lee via helicopter to a larger hospital in Toledo about an hour away by car. Shortly before the helicopter departed, the staff invited a few of us back to where Lee was being prepped for the trip. He was intubated, had IVs and heart monitors in place, and was still unconscious. This was Pam’s opportunity to see Lee one more time before splitting up to travel separately.

After a few moments, we left the ER. Some friends of the family volunteered to drive Pam up to the hospital in Toledo. We went back to the house and got a few things packed for Pam. My wife, deeply concerned about her father, wanted to go along too, so she got ready to leave. In a whirlwind they grabbed a few items and headed out. Once they departed, I was left there with my three young kiddos, just the four of us, in a house that suddenly seemed very quiet, and we didn’t know how long it would be before anyone came back.

Looking back, I didn’t do any chest compressions on Lee even though I probably should have. No, I hadn’t had any refresher training in a long time, but I knew what was next in the sequence. The reason I didn’t do it was because I was so scared of making the wrong decision (starting chest compressions when there was no need to do them) that I ended up making no decision. On the other hand, enough training came back to me to be able to help Lee in the immediate situation until more skilled people arrived. Ultimately the EMTs and volunteers’ speedy arrival was crucial in Lee living long enough to open his eyes again, but for the next few days we weren’t sure if that was going to happen.

You have to train now for things that will happen in the future. By the time you get there and need the knowledge, it will be too late to learn something and start new habits. I’m not talking strictly in the sense of emergency response, but for difficult and trying times in general. They’re coming. How do you react when things go sideways? What are you spending your time thinking about, moving toward, and taking steps to become? When hard times come, do you dig harder into devotions and prayer, or stop doing them altogether? If your track record is to be considered your training regimen, have you been training yourself to turn to God, or away from him?

Lee’s chances of survival were dropping the longer I hesitated. Even though I knew what I should be gearing up to do, I didn’t start doing it because I wasn’t confident about his pulse. The things you’ve spent time repeating, drilling into yourself, come back to you though, and you can draw on them when you need them. What do you do repetitively and regularly today in order to prepare yourself for when you’ll need it in the future?

Read Part 2 or Part 3

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Thinking About Thinking

Sleep analytics

Technology today enables us to obtain “analytics” about everything. Most new cars tell you what kind of gas mileage they’re getting. Social media accounts tell you with ridiculous accuracy all kinds of statistics about interactions between you and your connections. You can wear a watch that tells you how many steps you take and how much and what kind of sleep you get.

What if we had something that tells us how much time (and the level of intensity) we spend thinking about various topics?

Uh oh. It just got uncomfortable in here.

Think about this: your daydreams and wishes may not always come true, but the things you spend your time thinking about represent the direction in which your life will move. Stated another way, your life moves in the direction of your most prevalent thoughts. If you received a pie chart with percentages of the time you spend thinking about different things, both good and bad, would you be pleased with your life moving toward the biggest slice of the chart?

I have a full-time job and a family that includes three kids. Life is busy. After we lay the kids down, most of the time I just want to switch my brain off and watch something entertaining. There’s definitely a time and a place for that, but if that’s what you do most of the time, there’s not much deliberate thought built into moving your life in the direction you want it to go. A life with thoughts that constantly drift leads to the kind of life that does the same thing.

Time for another hypothetical chart. How many hours a week are you a Christian? One hour, sometimes, on Sunday mornings? Are devotions built into your day? Is there a group you can join…some kind of a Bible study or home group you can be a part of? A close friend with which you’re able to discuss the challenges you face in your Christian walk?

I say this not to shame anyone, but to help you determine if any sort of changes are in order. There are five weeknights in a week. Let’s assume that for whatever reason, two of them are already spoken for, and you have three nights available. Consider devoting at least part of one of them to this second chart. Put down that book that isn’t doing anyone any good, and pick up something that’s going to focus your mind where it should be focused. Instead of channel surfing, there are plenty of inspirational talks, or even sermons, on YouTube. To get you started, check out this website’s “Additional Resources” section: https://daregreatlynow.com/additional-resources/.

Your time is valuable. That means that you probably value the things you spend thinking about during your small amounts of free time. Do they honor God? Strive to make that happen, and I promise you your life will move in a better direction.

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Where Do You Come From and Where Are You Going?

I left for Air Force Basic Training one December day in 2003. Young men and women from all over the United States converged on San Antonio, Texas, to begin their Air Force journey.

For those that aren’t familiar with military life, the whole idea of Basic Training for any military service is to take a collection of individuals with nothing in common and teach them, well, the basics of life in that particular branch of service. People of every race and economic background, political persuasion, from all 50 states, Washington DC, and territories like Guam, Puerto Rico, and various other areas, all need to learn how to cooperate and function as a team. The different branches of the military vary in how they do it, but in the Air Force, all enlisted members complete Basic Military Training (BMT) and then move on to train for the particular job they’ll be doing. In the same group of basic trainees, you might have someone that’s going to be an aircraft mechanic, someone that’s going to be a door gunner on a helicopter, someone that’s going to be a medic, someone that works in finance, and someone on the bomb squad.

Basic Military Training is a good idea, and is necessary for military service, but it’s a terrible experience for most. I hated it. The instructors are determined to make every round peg fit into a square hole. If trainees/recruits refuse to conform or play by the instructors’ rules, they don’t make it in the military. All men get the same haircut; we all march in unison; even the name of our clothes–uniform–explains the level of conformity to which we had to acclimate.

For the first few days, before we got our haircuts and initial uniform issue, we looked about as different as could be. After we got our haircuts and clothes, we all pretty much looked the same and even had some difficulties telling each other apart. Over time though, we learned to distinguish between fellow recruits that we couldn’t tell apart before, and we discovered that different people had different strengths. Some were good at leadership, others at academics. While one group might excel at marching, they might be terrible at physical training or shining boots. We learned that if we were to succeed as a team, those who performed at a high level in a particular area needed to help teach those who lagged behind.

In BMT we all worked together to complete whatever tasks the instructors gave us. We didn’t always see the point of a given task, but we knew that we had to do it or life would become more miserable.

It’s a little different in the body of Christ. We all bring something different to the table, but Christ values each individual more than we can know. Christ followers didn’t go through their own version of BMT, but they all have the shared experience of yielding control of their lives to Him. It’s a wonderful experience to “graduate” into becoming a Christian, but that’s when, like when we finish BMT in the Air Force, we scatter and perform our different jobs. We all have different strengths and weaknesses, and we’re free to use our strengths for the glory of God’s kingdom.

In major military conflicts, commanding generals/admirals must decide the best way to position their forces and resources to accomplish their objectives. They can break tasks down and assign them to specific units. The individual Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines in those units don’t have the whole picture available to them, but they have to do their best to accomplish their designated tasks, trusting that their senior officers have made the best decision.

Now imagine if the General assigned tasks not to individual units, but to individual people. Like in the military, in Christianity we don’t always know why we receive the order to accomplish a certain task, but if we don’t do it, our Commanding Officer has to figure out a different way to accomplish His objectives. In His matchless power and wisdom, this shouldn’t be a problem, but there’s always a reason why His “Plan A” was His first choice. When we choose not to accomplish our tasks, or not to accomplish them fully, there’s some sort of fallout for the big picture. We might not learn what it is on this side of Heaven, but I can’t imagine there’s much benefit from telling the Creator of the Universe that your way is better than His.

If that sounds like something you’ve done before, that doesn’t mean it’s the end of the road for your Christian walk. Resolve not to make that choice again. Easier said than done, I know, but you can do it. God doesn’t tell you to do anything that He won’t enable you to do. If it looked like an easy thing to accomplish, people wouldn’t recognize that God had a hand in it. Everything will be in place by the time you need it. I leave you with these words from Joshua 1:9, after Moses died and Joshua, the new leader of the Israelites, had some enormous shoes to fill:

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

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Fatherhood Fun

I don’t know what it is about Dads, but we love to get our kids riled up. We know we shouldn’t  do it as much as we do, but we can’t help it sometimes. Daddies are the loud ones, the human jungle gyms, and the ones that tend to ratchet things up rather than down. Mommies are the soothers, the comforters, the ones the kids go to when something hurts (probably because of something Daddy did while roughhousing).

Since my kids were little, the basement has been the place where they could be loud. If they had too much sugar or they were just a little extra wound up, we’d banish them to the basement for awhile. When my two oldest kids were pretty young, one time I took them in the basement to work off some energy while Mommy got a little peace and quiet upstairs. My oldest daughter and my son loved when Daddy went a little crazy with them.

Around that time we came up with a game that was kind of like dodgeball. Back then our basement was set up so that as you came down the stairs, you pulled a U-turn and walked down a hallway to another room. Right across from the bottom of the stairs was another room. I’d go to the room at the far end of the hall and throw a ball at the wall near the bottom of the stairs while my kiddos ran back and forth between the two safe zones (the blind spot at the bottom of the stairs and the room across from it). It sounds kind of sadistic, but they loved it and they weren’t going to get hurt. I had a ball that was kind of scary because it was very loud when it hit the wall, so any time it “just missed” them, it was a big thrill for them because they had snuck past Daddy’s throw without getting hit. I pegged them plenty of times too, but it usually ended with lots of giggles. J

My kids weren’t very old at this point, probably about 5 and 3. They loved playing this game though, because this is where they learned to use teamwork to “distract” Daddy. One would feint, act like they were going to dash across the line of fire, but it was really just a trick to get Daddy to throw the ball while they were still safe, and then the other one would make a break for it before the ball bounced back to Daddy.

I’d try bouncing the ball off the hallway’s walls, or putting spin on the ball so that it still bounced after them even if they were in the safe zones. Naturally, the ball would get stuck on their side every now and then, but they’d peek out from behind their cover, pick it up, and throw it to me and dive back for cover before I could pick it up and throw it again.

Little dodgeball champions

One time my little guy picked it up and threw it to me, but then forgot to get back behind some cover. I gave him some warning and made a big show of winding up for a big throw, but he still wasn’t catching on that he was exposed. With all the gravity of a life-and-death situation, big sis dashed across the line of fire, knowing full well that Daddy was about to unleash a fastball. My little medal-of-honor-winner-in-training jumped behind him and grabbed him under his armpits, and then yanked him back to safety. He fell down on top of her in the process, with the ball narrowly missing both of them.

There are some things in the Bible that you just don’t fully appreciate unless you deal with young kids a lot. This story about my kids helps me better grasp one story in the book of Mark (10:17-31). A rich young ruler came up to Jesus and asked “what do I need to do to have eternal life?” This guy was probably a young ruler in the local synagogue, steeped in the legalism of the day. With his line of thinking he was essentially looking for some kind of religious deed he could perform that would guarantee his entry into Heaven. Although he was misguided, that didn’t make him insincere.

Jesus more or less told him “you know the deal…follow all the commandments…don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t defraud, and honor your father and mother.”

While most of us at that point probably would have remembered at least one time in our lives where we told a lie or let Mom or Dad down, this guy had a different reaction.

“Yep, I’m good with all that. What else do I need to do?”

If you’re Jesus, and this guy has the nerve to say that to you, even if he believed it was true, what are you gonna be thinking?

Here’s the part that my kids helped me understand. “Jesus looked at him and loved him.”

Some translations might say that Jesus felt great compassion for him. I was truly moved to see my daughter sacrifice her safety for the sake of her little brother. The guy in the story was earnestly seeking the truth from Christ, but he didn’t know he was now playing in a different league. Like seeing my little guy standing in the line of fire without knowing he was in danger, Christ probably looked at this young man and thought to himself “Bless your little heart. You’re so clueless and you don’t even know it.”

There are lots of other fatherhood experiences where those words came to mind: “Jesus looked at him and loved him.” Christ had compassion both for people that were His followers and for people that were not. We’re called to do the same.

Who can you show compassion for today?

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Wait For It…

Sometimes when you’re stuck in a waiting period, you just need to make the best of it.

In my senior year of college, I was the Vice President of the Paddle Sports club. This club was for people that wanted to try their hand at kayaking and whitewater rafting. The academic year is kind of tricky for paddling because school’s not in session during a huge chunk of the prime season, so we held pool sessions twice a week during the entire academic year. During those sessions, it was a great opportunity for newcomers to learn the basics of kayaking. The problem was…when there were no newcomers, or when the winter began dragging on, those pool sessions got kinda dull. If you already knew how to roll a kayak, you had to come up with other ways to keep it interesting.

In the pool, those of us that were regulars would try strange stuff: try to roll a capsized kayak without using a paddle; setting up a kayak on one of the diving boards and getting in, then sliding off the board into the pool; putting on a life jacket and trying to swim down to the bottom of the pool’s deep end to retrieve something from the floor. Out of all of it though, I think the nuttiest stuff we did involved practicing righting a capsized raft.

When you have a whitewater raft full of people, and you’re shooting through some big water, it can be a dangerous thing if the raft flips and people get scattered. It’s best to have at least a couple of people in each raft that know how to flip it back over. That way if a raft gets flipped in some whitewater, whoever’s closest can flip it back over and get on with the business of bringing everyone back into the boat.

Example of righting a capsized raft

Each raft used in whitewater rafting normally has a rope tied to at least one of the sides. If the raft flips upside-down, someone climbs up on top of it. While grabbing the rope and standing on the opposite edge of the raft, they lean backward while pulling on the rope, eventually falling into the water and flipping the capsized raft back over the right way.

Once you know how to do it, it’s not a difficult thing to do. It’s important to practice though, because it’s one thing to do it in the pool, but it’s something entirely different when you’re bobbing through whitewater, trying to climb up on the raft while wearing a wetsuit, helmet, and life jacket, all while holding a paddle and trying to count heads.

We did a lot of raft-flipping in the pool. The basic version gets boring quickly though. You start trying to make it more interesting. I tried dozens of times to flip the raft while timing the jump just right so that I landed in the righted raft without falling in the water. We paired up and had a guy swim under the capsized raft and hang onto a pontoon, so that when the other guy standing on top of the raft flipped it over, there was already a guy in the boat. We doubled the number and had two guys hanging onto pontoons while two other guys flipped the boat. We even had three guys on top of a capsized raft…as two guys flipped it, the third guy tried to get catapulted into the water (although he miscalculated and got flipped the wrong direction). It was goofy stuff that was just fun, didn’t hurt (much), and served no practical purpose other than helping to pass the time.

What am I getting at? Sometimes you’re going to be stuck waiting for awhile. Whether it’s a low-level job where you have to put your time in, maybe a military assignment that’s a terrible but necessary rung on the ladder, or maybe some season of life where you have to put your primary plans on hold for a bit, you’ll probably find that God put you in (or you got yourself into) a situation where the things you want to do are going to have to take a back seat for awhile. In Paddle Sports, we had the luxury of the season being predictable; we knew we wouldn’t do much outdoor paddling from November to February, but things were going to pick up with the spring thaw. A predictable season is the reality for some, but for others, they don’t know how long they’ll be waiting.

If you find yourself in the middle of your own version of the “winter months,” hang in there. Surround yourself with people that will keep your spirits up and keep spurring you on. There’s usually a lot you can do or learn even in those trying times. Spring’s coming, but for now, do your best to make the most of the time you’ve got.