Use a Mirror, not Photoshop

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I started my growth journey by reading books from John Maxwell. I thought I’d become a better leader. I didn’t realize that first I had to become a better me. I read books about changing my behavior and my mindset, but when I came to some chapters about reflection and looking in my past to evaluate things I was wrecked.

The truth: I grew up in a loving family who cares about each other and is passionate about helping other people be great.

The truth: Our family has suffered through many types of abuse and addiction and none of us escaped without scars.

Both of these are true. The problem was that I wasn’t acknowledging the second truth. I passed off some very extreme circumstances as normal (I’m not ready to share these to the WWW yet.) I had some severe pain and very low self esteem that stemmed from that abuse.

To avoid assumptions, my parents were not abusive. They were loving and supportive. They did an amazing job of raising us coming from where they were and in a time that we were in. I am proud of them and thankful for their love and support.

Once I started to reflect on the things that happened to me that shouldn’t have, I had to reflect on the things I did that I shouldn’t have. I still had a very bad self esteem. The problem was that I was justifying my bad behavior by what happened to me, which meant I wasn’t able to truly celebrate wins and accomplishments because I justified or blamed everything through the lens of my past. I didn’t take responsibility for my behavior so I couldn’t take credit for my wins. It was a very hard place to live for so long.

SO I HAD TO BE HONEST!!!!

Once I was honest to myself I realized that My Response is My Responsibility. My response to my past sin and people I’ve hurt was my responsibility. I couldn’t blame my past since I was the one who made the choices. I had to stop looking at a Photoshopped history of Jason. Once I did I was able to accept responsibility for my present and make some changes.

BLACK LIVES MATTER

We in America tend to view life and our history through a Photoshopped set up pictures.

Truth: America is a great nation that has done so much for our world and is full of people who care and want to see people live in peace and freedom and happiness.

Truth: America has historically been racist and has not always given the rights of America to every person living here, and we have been systemically unfair and unjust in our treatment of minorities.

Both are true, but if we look in the mirror and only see or acknowledge one of them we are not able to truly admit our shortfalls or to celebrate what’s great about our country.

We have turned our eyes away from the painful areas of our past and our present. If we continue to do that we will have these same issues in our future. Yes we can celebrate the past and our American heroes, but if we only concentrate on the Photoshopped view we can’t truly and honestly grow to become what we are intended to become.

It’s time for us to Grow!!! If we want to Make America Great Again then we need to use a mirror, admit our faults, take responsibility for our past, and move forward into a healthy tomorrow.

WE MUST BE AUTHENTIC TO GROW

Train Wreck of a Life

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Why is my life a train wreck? In reality, it’s not that bad, but it could be.

Things are very uncertain right now with the Coronavirus on the move here in the United States and around the world. Moments like this have a way of raising our awareness of all the what ifs in life. What if my money doesn’t come in this month? What if I get sick? What if someone in my family gets sick? What if Disney+ crashes? If we live in the What Ifs we will see life as a Train Wreck. Here’s what I’ve been learning about myself.

  1. I hate debt. The fear of finances would be so much less if I had none. I am now highly motivated to get rid of all debt. It steals and destroys your finances.
  2. I use too much toilet paper. I’ve switched to using tissues to blow my nose instead of TP. It’s a few extra steps to solve a possible problem later.
  3. It doesn’t matter how much value you have to offer if people can’t see past their circumstance. You can offer free this and free that, but people can’t see past their circumstance to go after growth and there is so much out there that it causes shut down instead of buy in.
  4. Kids are way more resilient than we think.
  5. Worry isn’t a good thermometer. We make decisions about life based upon worry instead of reality and then the world runs out of toilet paper and eggs.
  6. I don’t work efficiently on a regular basis. I’ve found so many ways to connect with people that I wish I had connected with earlier, but was always waiting for a chance to get coffee or lunch.
  7. My mother is stubborn. If you know her, tell her to stay in and order groceries for pick up or delivery.
  8. God has placed inside of us what is needed for this moment in History. It’s our job to look for it and share it.

If we concentrate on the Worries and What Ifs then life looks like a train wreck. If we look outside our circumstances and look for ways to add value to others and to our own growth journeys then we’re going to win this crisis.

We are praying for you today.

Am I Happy?

I don’t have a reference for this since it was posted by someone I know and she didn’t/wouldn’t openly share the name of the book it was from.  I was super concerned after reading it, but I was having trouble articulating exactly why.

Check it out:

3. Do Things You Love

When you constantly deny yourself the people, food, things, and experiences that make you feel the most alive, that sends a pretty lousy message home. Look at your life and see where you’re letting yourself down If you hear yourself saying things like “I love going out to see live music! I can’t remember the last time I did it,” make time.

We’re all busy, but it’s the people who make enjoying their lives a priority who, um, enjoy their lives. Right now, there are thousands of people all over the world at yoga retreats overlooking the ocean, dancing their booties off at outdoor music festivals or whooping it up on the Disney Cruise of their dreams. Really listen to how you speak and pay attention to what you do, and make a conscious effort to increase your joy in whatever capacity you can. It can be anything from spending a weekday afternoon with a great friend to quitting your hateful job to buying a pair of completely impractical but completely awesome new shoes to going on a surf vacation in Costa Rica. It’s about being proactive about creating a life you love instead of meekly living the one you think you’re stuck with. Give yourself the gift of a joyous life while you’re still among the living.

I’ve read it a number of times now, and I think my biggest issue is that there are so many half truths laced into this whole philosophy of life.  Do I have a problem with being happy?  No!!!  I love to laugh.  (picture me floating and having a tea party with friends on the ceiling) (Mary Poppins for those of you who don’t get the reference)  I love to be happy and to help other people be happy to.  I like to make other people laugh and I always hope they are enjoying themselves when we’re together.  I love to host events or parties where people have fun.

Why would this excerpt concern me then?  I guess the first half truth is that people who make enjoying their life a priority enjoy their lives.  I know a lot of people who have set out to please themselves and find happiness who have found at the end that everything they’ve been chasing has been nothing but grasping at the wind.

Ecclesiastes 2New American Standard Bible (NASB)

The Futility of Pleasure and Possessions

I said to myself, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure. So enjoy yourself.” And behold, it too was futility. I said of laughter, “It is madness,” and of pleasure, “What does it accomplish?” I explored with my mind how to stimulate my body with wine while my mind was guiding me wisely, and how to take hold of folly, until I could see what good there is for the sons of men to do under heaven the few years of their lives. I enlarged my works: I built houses for myself, I planted vineyards for myself; I made gardens and parks for myself and I planted in them all kinds of fruit trees; I made ponds of water for myself from which to irrigate a forest of growing trees. I bought male and female slaves and I had homeborn slaves. Also I possessed flocks and herds larger than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. Also, I collected for myself silver and gold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I provided for myself male and female singers and the pleasures of men—many concubines.

Then I became great and increased more than all who preceded me in Jerusalem. My wisdom also stood by me. 10 All that my eyes desired I did not refuse them. I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure, for my heart was pleased because of all my labor and this was my reward for all my labor. 11 Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun.

The second half truth is that pleasing yourself will increase your joy and happiness. I don’t know if it’s possible to find complete joy without doing what you were created for.  Joy will come when you find out what God created you for.  We have all heard the generalities of being created to worship or to spread the gospel, but I mean beyond that.  finding what He has created you for will bring lasting joy, not a yoga class or a cruise.

If we keep searching for moments to bring us happiness and joy, then when those moments pass, where will we be left?  We’ll be searching for the next moment.  I’ve had quite a few moments lately where I’ve looked around at the mission God has given me here in Michigan, the family he has given me, and the home, friends, and people I work with and I’ve realized just how content I am with life.  I’ve tried to figure out which of these things bring that feeling most.  I have figured out that being the Husband God has called me to be makes me feel that way.  Being the Father God has called me to be makes me feel that way.  Being the minister God has called me to be brings that feeling.  Overall, following God’s plan for my life brings me the most joy, peace, contentment, and love that I could ever imagine.  I’ve tried to gain these things on my own, but only when I found God’s plan for these different areas in my life did I find true Joy.  Am I happy?  Yes! Is it based on the things I’ve found and attained on my own?  No!  Only when I found the plan my Creator had for me did I find what I couldn’t get by making “enjoying my life a priority.”

 

The Big Announcement

I have seen some very cool birth announcements. I like the ones where they show the different shoes next to baby shoes, or when they put a big brother or sister shirt on the soon to be older brother or sister. There are some very creative ideas out there. I must admit, when we announced Madelyn’s upcoming birth we had a great idea in our minds, but it didn’t come out quite as cool as I expected. We used Christmas stockings and a Christmas tree. We had to set it up and decorate it in April, but we did it. We made a little pink stocking to represent Madelyn’s approaching arrival, but also that she was a Madelyn and not a ……(not sure what a boy would have been named). It was fun. There are so many ideas out there that I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of the new and fun creative ways of announcing a new baby. I don’t know what they did throughout history to make the announcement, but I think the idea of doing something big and cool is definitely a God thing I mean, He used an Angelic Choir for goodness sake. He had a star shine just right in the sky to lead 3 kings to come for the babies 3rd Birthday. I mean, He went all out.

The story of that First Christmas, the birth of Christ, is often told. It has been told in film, in written version, as a story around a fireplace. Our family always reads it on Christmas morning before we pray and exchange gifts. It is an amazing story. We always remember the angels, the manger, the innkeeper, and of course Mary, Joseph, and the Baby…THE Baby. We mention the Shepherds in passing most of the time, but is there more significance to the fact that Christ’s birth was announced by the greatest choir of all time to the lowliest profession in that time and area?

I had a supervisor at a previous job who also owned sheep. He used to tell me stories of how mean, dumb, and dirty they were. It made sense that after working with them, he was often in need of a good cleaning himself. These dirty guys, hanging out on a hillside were the ones who received the greatest announcement of al time from the most amazing heralds of all time. I have to believe that is significant.

Christ is called our Good Shepherd (John 10:11,14). If you look throughout scripture the word shepherd is used over and over to describe His relationship to us. An article “Shepherds” By Anthony D. Palma on www.ag.org lists these distinctive types of Shepherd comparisons for Chrit. In Matthew’s quotation from Micah 5, Jesus is called the one “who will shepherd My people Israel” (2:6*). the Lamb “shall be their shepherd [literally, ‘shall shepherd them’], and shall guide them to springs of the water of life” (Rev 7:17). Jesus is further called the Great Shepherd of the sheep (Hebrews 13:20) and the One Shepherd (John 10:16; cf., Ezekiel 34:23; 37:24). Peter called him the Chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5:4); one writer suggests the translation is“Master-Shepherd.”

The Great News of Christ’s birth was brought to shepherds who chose to
respond, to worship, and to share that news with the whole countryside. The news was given to people who instinctively reacted to it the way Christ reacts to His flock and the way He has called His disciples to react to the news of His death and resurrection. He told Peter that day on the beach, “Feed My Sheep.”

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:6 NIV) We are like sheep in how we act. We are like sheep in how we wander and need guidance. The Greatest Message of all time from the most Magnificent Heralds of all time was brought to the lowliest people of that time, because we needed to know what Christ has in store for us. We need to know that He will keep us from want; lead us beside still waters; prepare a table before us in the presence of our enemies; and He will annount our heads with oil. We have a dwelling that is eternal and prepared for us in the House of our Lord. He is My Shepherd.

How we (the Forsmans) give to God.

Wow, what a crazy and fun week.  I’ve had some time to look back and reflect on the journey to where we are today, but not much.  As I write this we only need 5 people to give $15/month and we will have reached our 75% goal before deadline.  Wow.  The way things have been going, that may actually change before I finish this blog.  It has been a miracle after miracle kind of month.

Lindsay and I had about 50% of our budget raised and we talked about how we were going to show God that we appreciated what He was doing to help us.  We obviously tithe on everything we earn and even up to the gross, not the net.  That’s a given if you are a Christian.  Yes, God can get money from the mouth of a fish, but He won’t need to if we do what He has asked us to.  We decided that as we reach each 20% mile marker we need to give $20/month to another missionary who is trying to raise their own budget.  Well, we had passed 40% and decided to add 2 missionaries that we knew personally.  Once we did that, our increase came in at crazy speeds and from unforeseen places.  God was proving all sorts of things to us and  really just blessing us like crazy.

We had a deadline to reach 60% and we finally blew past that and hit 65%.  Wow, we were going into camp season and summer and everything else that brings and were just so happy to have gotten there.  We were given a 3 month extension to reach 75%.  Ok, that seemed doable at the rate everything was happening.  Well, summer was decent with a few people joining our support team, but it wasn’t what we were needing.  We were 40 days from our deadline and we posted that we needed 40 people to do $15/month to reach our goal by deadline.

Sadly, we had taken a little too much time to decide who that 3rd missionary we were going to add was.  Not that we did it on purpose, but we had just been very busy and distracted and very stressed.  One day about 20 days out, I messaged Lindsay about a particular missionary.  She laughed because she was looking at their facebook page at that very moment.  Ok, no questions, we added them that day.

So, we were leaving for General Council still sitting at 66% and in need of a miracle.  We had just added that 3rd missionary and wow, God began to do some amazing things.  In a week where I wasn’t able to really do much as far as support raising God increased our support by about $200.  Talk about 10 times return on investment.  It hasn’t stopped either.  We are now 9 days away from our deadline and only need $75/month more.  That’s a miracle.  God has done a miracle for us.

Why do I call it a miracle…because I’m not very good at raising support.  Trust me, there’s plenty of proof to support that statement.  In spite of me, God has provided.  He told me He would provide for our budget through prayer and it is working.  He is doing it.

Now, some would say that I’m saying I give so I can get from God.  No, I give out of obedience.  I give, because He has commanded me to give.  I give, because the more I get to know Him I love and trust Him all that much more.  I find pleasure in giving regardless of what comes in for us.  During the tough times when we were struggling and there was no increase (we’ve had months and months of that), we continued to give because there is no other option.  Not giving our tithe and now our missions faith promises is not an option.   I can cut out amenities before I cut out giving, because He can provide for me better on 10% income(which He did) than I can provide for myself on 100%.

Lindsay and I are  humbled by every gift given to us.  We are humbled by the $5 and the $250.  They are the same to God who requires equal sacrifice not equal gifts.  We have decided that as time goes on and we pass the 100% mark we will work towards a different goal.  Our finances will look like this.  We will tithe our 10% on the gross.  We will give 10% to missions, and we will put 10% in some sort of savings/retirement.  If we can learn to live on the 70% then as God increases not only will we be able to increase for ourselves some nice things, but we will be able to increase our giving.  At current numbers and depending upon our Faith Promise amount for each missionary we will be able to support at least 20 missionaries personally and hopefully more.  As God increases for us, maybe we can just give them each a raise every year.  How awesome would that be?

That’s just how we do it and the journey we are on.  I wish I had all sorts of Bible verses to support these things.  I know there are some, and as I learn more about Biblical giving I will possibly change some of the things we do and how we do them, but right now, I’m so excited about being able to give back to God.  He is fun to give to, because He can always do crazy things with what little we give to Him.

3 Cupcake War Winners and a Cakery…in my humble opinion.

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So, we have a new found fascination with cupcakes.  By we, I mean all of America.  So, as it happens, I have stumbled upon 3 Cupcake War winners and one Last Cake Standing Winner.  All I have to say is…well, I have a lot to say so keep reading.

Here is an amateur’s review:

Suger High – Frankenmuth, MI

Lindsay and I were able to go to Frankenmuth for my Birthday this past June.  We had lunch with her parents and then decided to walk a little bit.  We came across Sugar High.  It was hot outside and we had the baby so we stepped in.   It was a very neat little place that sold cupcakes as well as fun little tchotchkes.  We didn’t stay, but I did notice that it had a sign up saying they had won the Ninja Turtle Cupcake War.  We walked around a bit and then I just had to go back.  We bought one cupcake and decided to split it and call it my birthday cake.

WOW!!!  It was very good.  Lindsay and I both decided it was the best cupcake we had ever had.  It was a Peanut Butter Cup Cupcake and it was amazing.  We waited until we were home and each grabbed a fork and shared it while watching a movie.  By the time we were done we were sad that we had only purchased one.  It was delicious.  Great flavor and texture.  Loved it.

We are very glad we only live 40 minutes from this place.

The Cupcake Cowgirls – Spring, TX

Well, this was our second run in with a Cupcake War winner and we were excited.  We stopped and each of us chose one cupcake.  My mother chose 4 to share with the rest of the family that was coming, but I hid ours so we could try them later.  When everyone was gone, we each decided to try our choice.  The cake was very good and the flavor of the frosting was good, but the texture left a lot to be desired.  (FOR US).  You may love these cupcakes, but I had trouble getting past the whipped buttercream frosting.  It was a very soft whipped type frosting that had a good taste, but just didn’t have that cupcake feel in my mouth.  I did finish them, but almost like eating a spoonful of Cool Whip, I felt like I needed something else to really complete them.

You may like this type of frosting so this place might be perfect for you, but I probably won’t buy anymore from there.

Sweet by Good Golly Miss Holly – Orlando, FL

Now, this one I searched out.  I decided that if I was going to be in Orlando for a week I wanted to see if there were any Cupcake War Winners there.  Turns out, this place won 3 times.  Kinda awesome feat if you ask me.  So, I had forgotten about this place and Lindsay mentioned a cupcake place somewhere close by our hotel.  It jogged my memory so I took my nephew Adam and left my niece Brianna, Lindsay, and Madelyn at the hotel; and we booked it to this place which was 20 minutes away.

Brianna chose the Blackout Cupcake, Adam chose the S’Mores Cupcake (it was National S’Mores Day), Lindsay chose the Boston Cream Pie Cupcake, and I chose the Peanut Butter Cup, Whiteout, and S’Mores Cupcakes.  I knew I’d bring 2 of them home so we could enjoy them over the next couple days.  In fact, the last part of the Whiteout one is in my fridge right now.

We all enjoyed our cupcakes.  Time Out:::::We all loved our cupcakes.  I would say the cupcakes I tried were the best I’ve ever had.  They were perfect.  Delicious, great texture, amazing flavors, and perfect size for sharing.  I’m already looking forward to going back in 2 years for the next General Council.  They were amazing.  I really don’t have much more to say about them, because you will have to try one for yourself.  That’s the only way you’ll get it.

Cake Nouveau – Ann Arbor, MI

Unfortunately I have never had one of their cakes.  My wife saw the owner on Last Cake Standing and mentioned that she had gone to school with Lindsay’s older brother.  I like connections, so I insisted we stop by one day as we passed near there.  We walked in and they did not have any cupcakes or other cakes, for that matter, available.  There were some truffles and cookies.  We bought some, and even a couple flavors I wasn’t thrilled with…until I tried them.  Oh My!!!!!  If their cakes and cupcakes are even close to as good as what I tried from there that day then this place is my winner.  I’m already planning to get a cake from them for Madelyn’s First Birthday in December.  This is, so far, my bakery of choice.  The talent, artistry, and downright great taste of their stuff blew me away.  If you are in Ann Arbor, you must find them and try them.  You will not be disappointed.

I hope you enjoyed this blog.  I know you didn’t enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed researching it.  Hopefully there will be more entries in the future.

 

The Skinny on the Deadlines

So, I hate having to put stuff out there that says, this is our deadline and we’re sunk if we don’t meet it without giving a little (or a lot) of clarity. So, if you are at all interested in the process, here it is.

As a Nationally Appointed U.S. Missionary with the Assemblies of God I had to go through a process to sit here today. Lindsay and I each had to take multiple hundred question tests and fill out applications and learn to juggle while standing on our heads and balancing baby elephants on our feet. Ok, not all of that is true. The application was a little shorter. Anyway, I qualified for this national appointment, because I went to school and took some tests and was ordained with the Assemblies of God. All things that took years to accomplish. National appointment allows me to  have access to Speed the Light funds and BGMC funds at some point in the future and it allows me to have a reasonable salary to live on which includes some necessary benefits like insurance and retirement. Yes, I have to raise all of that as a part of my budget, but at least it is afforded to me.

Now that we have cleared that up, I have been given certain deadlines to hit certain percentages of my budget. I am supposed to be doing nothing but raising that budget until I reach 100%. Admittedly, I have probably done more on the ministry side of things than I should have which has slowed me down a bit, but has also just given me a greater passion to reach the schools here in Michigan.

Up until this year, U.S. Missionaries have had a much looser road to their 100%. I have had some even tell me that it won’t be a big deal and they haven’t ever hit 100% and they’ve been on the field for 7-8 years. Ok, so that gave me some preconceptions about how this whole thing would work. Well, U.S. Missions has decided (rightfully so) that they will not be taking a loose attitude with budgets anymore. The budget has been set, because we have a mission and this is the budget we need to most effectively succeed in our mission. I’m glad the change is here, just was hoping I’d maybe squeak by a little. I didn’t.

SO HERE’S MY PART OF THE STORY:

I received a call saying that if I did not reach 60% by the beginning of March I would have my National Appointment pulled and would be given Missionary Associate status. (This would cut my salary in half and take away all my benefits.) Missionary Associate status is not an option for us. We would have had to start sending out resumes to find employment. So, when I said I needed to reach my deadline I was actually serious. Due to some circumstances outside of anyone’s control the National Office gave me some grace because I had 2 large events still to attend and those would possibly help me reach that goal.

I did reach the goal and Praise God we are now on our way to the next goal. This one is a much shorter time period (September 1st to reach 75%), but if we reach this one we will be given a six month extension to complete the initial fundraising portion of our ministry.

So, the deadline was a hard and fast deadline with real consequences for not succeeding. I am grateful to the Assemblies of God U.S. Missions department for the grace they were able to afford me, and I pray that we won’t even come close to missing a deadline again.

Thank you for your prayers and financial support. We “got by with a little help from our friends.” and we appreciate that immensely. THANK YOU!!!

Extra Ordinary

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I want to do something Extra Ordinary. I want to go farther than I ever have and achieve more than I can imagine. I’ve been reading over the past few weeks of people who have achieved Extraordinary things. I watched last night as Angela Miller (Angie) sang and blew away the judges, the audience, and the competition on American Idol. It’s amazing that a single person can gain so much notoriety and fame in a short amount of time. I’m amazed with the number of people who can go out on a ball court or field and do things that are ESPN Top 10 worthy. People are capable of achieving the extraordinary.

I’ve read about and seen news about the Boston Marathon bombers. They achieved something extraordinary, just not in a good way. People al over the world do some horrific things that are quite extraordinary and not at all praise worthy. Apartheid, mass killings in Somalia, Hitler, world wide crime and poverty are all things that are extraordinary, or are they?

ex·traor·di·nar·y
/ikˈstrôrdnˌerē/
Adjective
Very unusual or remarkable.
Unusually great.
Synonyms
uncommon – unusual – singular – remarkable – exceptional

These things are not at all very unusual. There isn’t a city I can think of where there aren’t homeless and broken people. There isn’t a country that doesn’t have crime at every level of it’s class system. (Yes we all live in a class system, even if it’s ignored) These things aren’t even always remarkable because we largely ignore them and pretend we don’t see the pain.

WHAT WILL IT TAKE TO TRULY BE EXTRAORDINARY?????

Live like Christ. He was the direct opposite of the culture around Him. I’ve realized just how much of the culture I’ve allowed in my life as I watch TV with my Baby Girl in the room. Do I want her to see all the crime scenes? Do I want those images to be common place in her mind? Do I want her to have a worldview that is Biblical or dictated by ratings? Christ is Life, the rest is details: was what my t-shirt said back in the day. I want Madelyn to Seek out the HOLY and not what culture tells her to seek out.

In a world where we are called intolerant for saying that sin is sin, I have a question: Is being intolerant bad? When you cut your hand or leg and it gets germs in it, don’t you want your body to be intolerant to infection? When you drop your child off at a daycare or school; don’t you want them to be intolerant when it comes to hiring sex offenders, or is it ok to just hire one? When someone tries to hurt your family, friends, loved ones, won’t you be intolerant and attempt to stop that?

I love the people of this planet. I believe that sin is going to kill people(Romans 3:23). Shouldn’t I be intolerant of that sin and do everything I can to help stop the infection in our society? I DON’T HAVE TO BE UNLOVING TO BE INTOLERANT!!! I’m not unloving when I stop someone from robbing you. I’m not unloving when I don’t hire a pedophile to work with children. I’m not unloving when I tell you that sin will take your life. In fact, it’s the only way I know to truly be extraordinary.

A heart of mourning

As I write this my wife and I are about to have our first child. That fact neither adds to or distinguishes the reason for mourning over and above anyone else’s reason. We all should mourn the terrible loss of life and innocence in Connecticut today. The feeling in the pit of my stomach reminded me of that day 11 years ago when I heard about the towers. An incredible sick and sinking feeling. How could this be happening? How could such a terrible thing happen? Why would someone do this?

There are no answers that will ever satisfy. They can come up with the events that led to today or they can figure out why this individual was so out of his mind that he would turn a weapon on innocent children, but there will never be a real answer to why it happened except that we live in a broken world. Our world is spinning in chaos on every continent. Every neighborhood, city, state and country needs truth. Every person needs to hear that there is an answer to the questions we can’t seem to find an answer to. It seems very cliche to say that Jesus is the answer. The truth is, He is the answer, but how will the people who are asking the questions ever know that unless we share.

There are people who will struggle with responsibility for years to come. Parents who made their child go to school when they didn’t want to. Teachers who sent a student to the office. Family members who should have seen the signs. The responsibility falls on every one of us. We need to see the people around us, really see them. We all need to look for ways to help someone who may not know how to deal with their situation. We need to intentionally seek out opportunities to love our neighbor. I don’t ever want to be the person in the story who could have made a difference if I had just been paying attention.

There are families who will be struggling to make sense of this. Husbands and wives will be pulled apart by their own grief and not knowing how to console each other. Children who will be sleeping in alone in a room they used to share will be filled with fear because they can’t hear the breathing of their brother or sister. We all have a responsibility. Pray. Seek out a chance to minister and love someone today. Pray that the churches, pastors, leaders, and people in that community can somehow help keep things together.

Everyone has a story. If God gives us an opportunity, we all need to be a good chapter, a turning point, in someone else’s story. We can’t see the end, but we don’t have to. We need to get involved before it’s too late to help.

Thank You!

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I learned quite a bit last week about God’s schedule. As things were falling apart around me I took a few minutes to pray. In the middle of the DTW I found the prayer chapel and just fell on my face. I didn’t even want to take the trip anymore, but after those few moments with God He began to move. I know you all were praying, because things began to happen in force. Meetings and contacts that I never could have imagined sprung up. I ended up in a meeting with all the Sectional Youth Reps for the Southern New England Ministry Network. I met with some people who just “get it” when it comes to the ministry of Youth Alive. It really did end up being a great week. The only flight that was not delayed was the return flight from Boston to Detroit. That was the one that had me waiting for 3+ hours before flying back to Midland. So, I still landed 30 minutes late but I’m home. Praise the Lord.

As I was reading in Genesis I began to see some things about stories that I’ve mostly just glossed over since I was a kid. I mean, I had seen the flannel graph how much more could there be to them? Well, in the story about Abraham and Isaac climbing the mountain to sacrifice to the Lord a bunch of things popped out to me.
1. Abraham was asked to sacrifice something he loved more than anything.
a. Isaac was promised from God.
b. Isaac was his legacy
c. Isaac was his son
d. He had waited 100 years for Isaac
2. They climbed the mountain
a. Abraham didn’t just say ok and then God said just kidding. He had to put action to the sactifice.
b. Abraham had to fight through what he “felt” to obey God. (i.e. “I just don’t feel called to that…”)
c. Abraham was prepared to go all the way because he had faith that God would keep His promise one way or another.
3. They built the altar and prepared to sacrifice.
4. Abraham heard from God
a. While he was going about the business of Sacrifice he was able to hear God’s voice.
b. His obedience showed that he would listen to God
5. God provided a sacrifice.
a. Through that ram God provided a physical sacrifice
b. He provided the promise of nations through Isaac
c. He provided the son Abraham thought he was losing (second time God gave Isaac to him)
d. The mountain is still today called “the Mountain of God’s Provision.”
When we make the sacrifice and follow through God will bring the provision. Sometimes when we think we’re in a valley, we are really on the top of the mountain, but we are procrastinating the building of the altar and preparing of the sacrifice. We know God has called us to make a sacrifice, but we don’t want to follow through. We complain about not hearing His voice, but sometimes we won’t hear until He knows we’ll be obedient. Have you climbed the mountain today, but not followed through on the sacrifice? You will hear from God and receive His provision when you are obedient to His calling. His calling is never for our glorification. It is four our sacrifice so He can be glorified.

When Lindsay and I came to Michigan we made a lot of sacrifices. We left people we loved. We left a house we loved. We left financial security. We sacrificed all of this because we knew God was calling. We’ve climbed the mountain. We built the altar. God has been faithful to provide people who have supported us and gone over and above. He has provided financial miracles and brought support from places we weren’t even looking. We are so thankful that people have heard from God and helped us. We know we have more mountains to climb and more sacrifices of our own desires to make. We also know that wherever we build that altar will be the Mountain of God’s Provision. Thank you for your support, prayer, and love.