alt="Wordle: Encore"
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Thursday, June 9, 2011
Thursday, December 18, 2008
The Word Crisis
The word CRISIS comes from the Greek word krinein meaning "to decide." It is defined as a crucial time, a climax, or a juncture and is often depicted by the Chinese symbol that means danger and opportunity. Too often we have thought of crisis as if crisis is primarily, if not exclusively a danger. When we do that we overlook the opportunity for growth, or a crucial time for growth.
The most basic definition of CRISIS is that it is an internal reaction to an external event. This is the first and most frequent mistake we make in talking about crisis; we define an event as a crisis, rather than our reaction to the event as the crisis. We experience an event, and internally we begin to asses the event. We call upon our internal resources and
coping mechanisms in order to respond to what we have experienced as CRISIS.
At 1:30am I find myself dealing with the events of my life as if it were CRISIS, the danger symbol. The reality of it is, the events of my life are actually an opportunity to decide. It's revealing a "crucial time" in my life to decide what is it I believe about God.
I once wrote in a letter, "This is a breaking time for me. A learning time for me, I’m certain of it. I know that this time is His time, and it’s being used to build me up strong as a leader and as a true gentle man." It took me reading that letter this night, to realize that I have spent enough time looking at the event as CRISIS rather than an opportunity to believe.
In the book Experiencing God, it reads,"The crisis of belief is a turning point or a fork n the road that demands that you make a decision. You must decide what you believe about God. How you respond when you reach this turning point will determine whether you go on to be involved with God in something God-sized that only He can do or whether you will continue to go your own way and miss what God has purposed for your life. This is not a one-time experience. It is a daily experience. How you live your life is a testimony of what you believe about God."
So it's a daily experience you say? Absolutely it is. And what I'm finding is, that there are always the events in our life that will call us to respond in crisis fashion. But we need not look at it with the red flashing lights of danger. We must CHOOSE to see it as a crucial moment in our life when we answer the question, "Who do you believe God to be right now?"
I will be honest, I have been in a breaking time. I need to remember to be a student in this CRISIS time of my life. I need to learn who God says He is, and believe that if He was working before this moment, He certainly is working now. I KNOW that this time is in fact His time, and I AM being built up to lead with strength and integrity, and to be ready for God's next call on my life.
So what CRISES are you faced with? Is it a time of danger and panic for you, or are you WILLING to let God do something God-sized in this moment? Will you walk along with Him, at this "crucial time" in your life, and trust Him to be everything He promises to be? My prayer is that whatever crisis you face today, that it will be faced with confidence that the event will not be what breaks you, but rather a loving Father that wants to break you in order to build you up ready to be that much stronger...to LEAD! Let it be so!
The most basic definition of CRISIS is that it is an internal reaction to an external event. This is the first and most frequent mistake we make in talking about crisis; we define an event as a crisis, rather than our reaction to the event as the crisis. We experience an event, and internally we begin to asses the event. We call upon our internal resources and
coping mechanisms in order to respond to what we have experienced as CRISIS.
At 1:30am I find myself dealing with the events of my life as if it were CRISIS, the danger symbol. The reality of it is, the events of my life are actually an opportunity to decide. It's revealing a "crucial time" in my life to decide what is it I believe about God.
I once wrote in a letter, "This is a breaking time for me. A learning time for me, I’m certain of it. I know that this time is His time, and it’s being used to build me up strong as a leader and as a true gentle man." It took me reading that letter this night, to realize that I have spent enough time looking at the event as CRISIS rather than an opportunity to believe.
In the book Experiencing God, it reads,"The crisis of belief is a turning point or a fork n the road that demands that you make a decision. You must decide what you believe about God. How you respond when you reach this turning point will determine whether you go on to be involved with God in something God-sized that only He can do or whether you will continue to go your own way and miss what God has purposed for your life. This is not a one-time experience. It is a daily experience. How you live your life is a testimony of what you believe about God."
So it's a daily experience you say? Absolutely it is. And what I'm finding is, that there are always the events in our life that will call us to respond in crisis fashion. But we need not look at it with the red flashing lights of danger. We must CHOOSE to see it as a crucial moment in our life when we answer the question, "Who do you believe God to be right now?"
I will be honest, I have been in a breaking time. I need to remember to be a student in this CRISIS time of my life. I need to learn who God says He is, and believe that if He was working before this moment, He certainly is working now. I KNOW that this time is in fact His time, and I AM being built up to lead with strength and integrity, and to be ready for God's next call on my life.
So what CRISES are you faced with? Is it a time of danger and panic for you, or are you WILLING to let God do something God-sized in this moment? Will you walk along with Him, at this "crucial time" in your life, and trust Him to be everything He promises to be? My prayer is that whatever crisis you face today, that it will be faced with confidence that the event will not be what breaks you, but rather a loving Father that wants to break you in order to build you up ready to be that much stronger...to LEAD! Let it be so!
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
He Gives and Takes Away
I remember when 2008 began, I had high expectations for a sincerly NEW new year. I was excited about the things God was teaching me and how he was improving me and preparing me for some great days of ministry ahead. What I did not expect was to experience a year unlike any I have had in my 26 years of living.
The year began with me living in Lincoln, Nebraska. I was in the midst of an awesome wave of ministry with the teens from Lincoln First Church. I was having so much fun and saw the reality of a full youth room by the fall. On January 22nd, that all changed. That was the day I found out that I was no longer wanted at Lincoln First Church. I was told that day, that after much thought, it was decided that it would be best for me to move on, and I had until May 1st, to either have a job or have a new home.
Looking back on this year, that was probably the best thing for my life. But in the moment no one likes to face that situation. I was not ready to leave, but nonetheless, I sought out to respect the decision that had been made. So I made the choice...and I say that it was in fact a choice. I made the choice to fulfill the rest of my call, and leave knowing I served God by serving the teens of Lincoln First.
During the last full week of March just after I told my youth group that I was leaving, and about a month before I actually would leave, the issues with my car began. After two weeks of avoiding the issue, I finally relented and spent the $3000to put a new engine in the car. Knowing I was going to need this car to drive back to Washington as I had at that point still not found work.
That was just the first issue with the car...while I was spending the summer in Colorado Springs, Colorado, about two weeks before I was to head back to Washington, the wheel barrings of the car decided to go bad. So another few hundred dollars into the car, I was finally on my way home to Washington.
Two weeks after arriving home in August, the fuel pump in my car decided to go bad. The ridiculous estimate and the lack of funds caused me to fold my arms and say, "Fine you stay there, I'll fix you when I'm good and ready!" And for a month it stayed right there in my parents driveway.
As I was continuing to pursue work, I found myself offered a job in a Ohio, North Dakota, and Minnesota. Each one had good things to offer, but in the end just wasn't the right decision to make for my life.
That brings us to November 2nd. As I was getting ready to go and teach Sunday school to 5th and 6th graders, my dog, who had become my family in Lincoln, got outside the fence, and has been missing ever since.
Now this is obviously the part of the story where God was taking away. A taken job, a taken bank account, a taken car, and a taken dog. This by no means is my attempt to seek sympathy, but simply the story of this year. All I can say is I have a new found respect for Job. I realize that my health has not left me, and that God has in fact been very faithful in this, and I am not at all that bad off. I do realize though that much has been taken from me.
However, through the taking God has a way of giving us just what we need when we need it to hear Him say, "I am with you, just wait with me, and I will show you what I have planned!" While much of what I have has been taken from me, there has been much given to me as well!
In February, I applied to attend Focus on the Family Institute, a college program offered by Focus on the Family. I was ahead of the deadline by a month, knowing my summer was free, and not having set plans, I made the CHOICE...to let God have something to work with. I figured if I wasn't supposed to go, I wouldn't be accepted. Yet, I was.
While I was home in May, I went to work umpiring little league for what I thought at the time was minimum wage, only to find out after I got paid for the month, that I was actually making nearly $16 bucks an hour! I also worked for two weeks with my mom. So in the month of May God provided for me two jobs that helped me pay for part of this summer, and for the food and fun of the summer.
While in Colorado, I was GIVEN the opportunity to meet solid Christian men and women, who have become great friends; experience white water the way it was supposed to be experienced; camping in the Rockies; and be refined and renewed!
I was GIVEN the chance to meet and get to know an amazing woman. Spontaneous cribbage games, dinners, lounging at the Broadmore hotel, and hiking the trails of Colorado, these were just a few of the moments that began building a foundation of friendship that would later be blessed.
As I left Colorado in August, I went and was GIVEN the chance to speak at a boys camp back in Washington. Later I was GIVEN the opportunity to enter into children's ministry in October. I was GIVEN the opportunity to volunteer in a youth group and actually teach twice in November. I was GIVEN the opportunity to return to Nebraska and see all the faces I had come to love and teach them during a weekend retreat about the blessing that comes from letting God teach us and stretch us.
And as I write this today, I have been GIVEN the most amazing opportunity. The opportunity to do life with someone else. To share in the goodness of God, the tests of God, and the glory and faithfulness of His mighty hand. The song says, "He gives and takes away, He gives and takes away, My heart will CHOOSE to say, Blessed be YOUR name!" This is a choice to bless the name of God. My year has been the toughest one I've had to face. I've seen a lot of things that are important taken from me. Yet, God is so faithful. Yes, sometimes He takes things from us, but He really does know what He is doing, and if He takes one thing from you it's only so He can GIVE you something else.
Looking back, I would have never left Lincoln, God knew that if I would have stayed there I would have been burned up, and dried up. He knew that my gifts and abilities were not going to be embraced and watered for growth. He need to TAKE me from that place in order to GIVE me to where I need to be.
I'm still not where He's preparing to give me, but in the midst of waiting for that, He has given me the gift of holy love and friendship in my future wife, Carrie. If you've read this far, thanks for doing so. My hope in sharing this story is to hopefully communicate to you, that in the midst of dark circumstances and no sign of light, you CAN BLESS THE LORD! Jobs will come and go, money is not a rock to stand on, and pets are a nice compliment to life. The ROCK to stand on is that of Jesus Christ. He can be praised in the midst of stormy weather in your life. So take the gift of hope this Christmas, and take the gift that is GIVEN to you and rejoice, for 2009 is only a few days away! Praise the Lord!
The year began with me living in Lincoln, Nebraska. I was in the midst of an awesome wave of ministry with the teens from Lincoln First Church. I was having so much fun and saw the reality of a full youth room by the fall. On January 22nd, that all changed. That was the day I found out that I was no longer wanted at Lincoln First Church. I was told that day, that after much thought, it was decided that it would be best for me to move on, and I had until May 1st, to either have a job or have a new home.
Looking back on this year, that was probably the best thing for my life. But in the moment no one likes to face that situation. I was not ready to leave, but nonetheless, I sought out to respect the decision that had been made. So I made the choice...and I say that it was in fact a choice. I made the choice to fulfill the rest of my call, and leave knowing I served God by serving the teens of Lincoln First.
During the last full week of March just after I told my youth group that I was leaving, and about a month before I actually would leave, the issues with my car began. After two weeks of avoiding the issue, I finally relented and spent the $3000to put a new engine in the car. Knowing I was going to need this car to drive back to Washington as I had at that point still not found work.
That was just the first issue with the car...while I was spending the summer in Colorado Springs, Colorado, about two weeks before I was to head back to Washington, the wheel barrings of the car decided to go bad. So another few hundred dollars into the car, I was finally on my way home to Washington.
Two weeks after arriving home in August, the fuel pump in my car decided to go bad. The ridiculous estimate and the lack of funds caused me to fold my arms and say, "Fine you stay there, I'll fix you when I'm good and ready!" And for a month it stayed right there in my parents driveway.
As I was continuing to pursue work, I found myself offered a job in a Ohio, North Dakota, and Minnesota. Each one had good things to offer, but in the end just wasn't the right decision to make for my life.
That brings us to November 2nd. As I was getting ready to go and teach Sunday school to 5th and 6th graders, my dog, who had become my family in Lincoln, got outside the fence, and has been missing ever since.
Now this is obviously the part of the story where God was taking away. A taken job, a taken bank account, a taken car, and a taken dog. This by no means is my attempt to seek sympathy, but simply the story of this year. All I can say is I have a new found respect for Job. I realize that my health has not left me, and that God has in fact been very faithful in this, and I am not at all that bad off. I do realize though that much has been taken from me.
However, through the taking God has a way of giving us just what we need when we need it to hear Him say, "I am with you, just wait with me, and I will show you what I have planned!" While much of what I have has been taken from me, there has been much given to me as well!
In February, I applied to attend Focus on the Family Institute, a college program offered by Focus on the Family. I was ahead of the deadline by a month, knowing my summer was free, and not having set plans, I made the CHOICE...to let God have something to work with. I figured if I wasn't supposed to go, I wouldn't be accepted. Yet, I was.
While I was home in May, I went to work umpiring little league for what I thought at the time was minimum wage, only to find out after I got paid for the month, that I was actually making nearly $16 bucks an hour! I also worked for two weeks with my mom. So in the month of May God provided for me two jobs that helped me pay for part of this summer, and for the food and fun of the summer.
While in Colorado, I was GIVEN the opportunity to meet solid Christian men and women, who have become great friends; experience white water the way it was supposed to be experienced; camping in the Rockies; and be refined and renewed!
I was GIVEN the chance to meet and get to know an amazing woman. Spontaneous cribbage games, dinners, lounging at the Broadmore hotel, and hiking the trails of Colorado, these were just a few of the moments that began building a foundation of friendship that would later be blessed.
As I left Colorado in August, I went and was GIVEN the chance to speak at a boys camp back in Washington. Later I was GIVEN the opportunity to enter into children's ministry in October. I was GIVEN the opportunity to volunteer in a youth group and actually teach twice in November. I was GIVEN the opportunity to return to Nebraska and see all the faces I had come to love and teach them during a weekend retreat about the blessing that comes from letting God teach us and stretch us.
And as I write this today, I have been GIVEN the most amazing opportunity. The opportunity to do life with someone else. To share in the goodness of God, the tests of God, and the glory and faithfulness of His mighty hand. The song says, "He gives and takes away, He gives and takes away, My heart will CHOOSE to say, Blessed be YOUR name!" This is a choice to bless the name of God. My year has been the toughest one I've had to face. I've seen a lot of things that are important taken from me. Yet, God is so faithful. Yes, sometimes He takes things from us, but He really does know what He is doing, and if He takes one thing from you it's only so He can GIVE you something else.
Looking back, I would have never left Lincoln, God knew that if I would have stayed there I would have been burned up, and dried up. He knew that my gifts and abilities were not going to be embraced and watered for growth. He need to TAKE me from that place in order to GIVE me to where I need to be.
I'm still not where He's preparing to give me, but in the midst of waiting for that, He has given me the gift of holy love and friendship in my future wife, Carrie. If you've read this far, thanks for doing so. My hope in sharing this story is to hopefully communicate to you, that in the midst of dark circumstances and no sign of light, you CAN BLESS THE LORD! Jobs will come and go, money is not a rock to stand on, and pets are a nice compliment to life. The ROCK to stand on is that of Jesus Christ. He can be praised in the midst of stormy weather in your life. So take the gift of hope this Christmas, and take the gift that is GIVEN to you and rejoice, for 2009 is only a few days away! Praise the Lord!
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