Quotables Day 4

"The great thing in life is not so much where you stand, but in what direction you are moving."

-Oliver Wendell Holmes

The start of a new year brings about the requisite list of resolutions, a look back at the year that was, and an increased focus on bettering yourself.  I think it is safe to say that we all have things we want to improve in ourselves (if not I would challenge your honesty) and that the new year can be an impetus to work at those changes.  The discouragement comes when we don't see the results as quickly as we had hoped or when we realize that our actual resolutions have been the same for the past five years.  It has taken me several years to get to a point where I didn't allow the vision of who I could & should be to overwhelm the current reality of who I am at this moment.

I've shared with youth for several years now that God will meet you exactly where you are at, but He won't leave you there.  My point is that even though you may have convinced yourself that you are "too far gone", that God doesn't believe so.  However, when you are truly striving to be a committed follower, He moves you down a pathway that leads to you resembling Him more as you strive each day. 

In my mind that is the point that Sir Holmes is trying to make.  As long as we live here we are a work in progress.  The key is to be moving in a direction that leads to us becoming the men & women that God has created us to be. 

Quotables Day 3

"It's not what you do once in a while, it's what you do day in and day out that makes the difference."

-Jenny Craig

Yes-I know that I just quoted Jenny Craig, but the principle is true on so many levels.

When I worked in athletics and was fortunate to be part of multiple state championships, coaches and athletes alike would tell you that championships were not won because we showed up at the big game and had good athletes.  It began in the offseason while in the weight room and in the preparation that goes into it ahead of time.

A successful marriage is not had because you do great things for your husband/wife on your anniversary or because you have a romantic date night once a week.  It happens when you love each other, pray for & with each other, and communicate on a daily basis.

Being a godly parent and raising godly children doesn't happen because we take them to church on Sunday or have a special day.  It's in the teachable moments throughout their lives and in the way that we show them how much we love them unconditionally each day of the week.

Being a pastor that makes a difference in the lives of those around you doesn't happen because you are a great communicator and preached a message that blew their socks off on Sunday.  It happens when you are daily in God's Word and when you are a minister to people each day of the week in the middle of their needs.

Becoming a committed follower of Christ doesn't happen when we turn God into a vending machine to be there for us when our times get tough.  It is through the daily discipline of constantly seeking His leadership and guidance and asking for Him to transform us into His likeness that we truly gain a relationship that is consistently authentic.

Quotables Day 2

"My life is my message."  Mahatma Ghandi

Seems pretty simple doesn't it?  No matter what we might aim to be or do, the life that we actually live will describe who we are.  I can stand and proclaim that I desire to be a dedicated Christ-follower, a loving and encouraging husband, a Christ-like father to my children, and a great pastor.  Unless the choices that I make each day reflect those desires, my life will send another message entirely.  It is difficult to see what we are sending to those around us (we are in the middle of our own lives after all and not merely spectators watching from the outside) but if we want to accurately represent our life ambitions, we must give thought to the life that we lead.  It brings to mind one of my favorite verses-Philippians 1:21, "For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."

Quotables

When I worked at the high school I would gather my athletic training staff before our Friday night football games to give them their game-time assignments, pray as a group, and challenge them with a leadership quote for the evening.  I have collected those quotes throughout the years and thought that I would devote a week of blogging to throwing out a quote each day and issuing a challenge based on it.  Interesting to readers or not, here it goes:

"The great end of life is not knowledge, but action." T.H. Huxley

I heard a pastor share the thought that the American church is filled with the most well-read and educated believers that the world has ever seen.  The unfortunate part, he continued to say, is that the same group of believers is also less willing to put what they know into action.  If you were to venture into any bookstore you would find volumes of books dedicated to better prayer lives, healing, repentance, restoration, how to have a godly marriage, etc.  The question (and one that I like to ask people all the time) is: What are you going to do with it? 

It's nice to sit in church and not miss a Sunday.  It's admirable to say that you haven't missed a Bible study/Sunday school in the last 25 years.  It's good to know that you read your Bible every day and have read through the whole Bible 156 times.  What are you doing with what you have learned?  How has the knowledge of God transformed your life to the point where you care for others?  God did not call us to be students only.  The point of knowledge is to lead to a change of lifestyle that is more Christ-like and has an impact on the people around us.

Final Sunday Reflections of 2009

We are at the last Sunday of 2009 and the last blog of reflections.  There will be a blog reflecting on all that 2009 has brought to us at some point, but we'll focus on the weekend a few Christmas thoughts for now:

• Our family celebrated our very 1st Christmas Eve service this past week-what a true blessing! We have always been out of town and it was incredible to take part in this worship with Northridge
• We are surrounded by an incredibly loving group of friends & family-they amaze me with their generosity and true appreciation for our family
• It was a great Christmas for us-blending old traditions and establishing new ones for our family
• My wife put on one heck of a feast on Christmas Eve after service!
• I love to watch the joy in the faces of those receiving gifts-that is why I prefer to give instead of get!
• Christmas with cold weather is just the way I think it should be done-I love that we can have a fire rolling in our fireplace all day
• I am so blessed to work under the leadership of a godly man like Mike-he has helped to make me a better pastor and communicator
• We had a two-headed sermon in service today as Mike & I had a "Fireside Chat" style of message
• I pray the people will take seriously their commitment to feeding themselves and feeding others this coming year
• I love a good acoustic worship set-something about the simplicity of it that is a nice change of pace
• I see great things in store for Northridge in 2010-can't wait to see God blow the doors off and do more than we could possibly ask or imagine

More Than I Deserve

My 15th wedding anniversary was Tuesday of this week.  It's one of those odd feelings-I can't believe we have been together for that long & I also don't remember being without her.  We have been through tough times & times of blessing and God has continually reinforced our love for each other through it all. 

I can attest to the fact that we didn't think we would be where we today when we started this journey a decade and a half ago, but I couldn't ask for a better traveling partner.  She is a fantastic mother, loving wife, my best friend and lover, and most importantly, a woman pursuing God's heart.  I thank God for the gift of my wife and how He brought us together. 

I love you Dana.  Thank you for the best 15 years of my life so far.

Sunday Reflections Again

Alright-it's official.  I am a blogging slacker.  Not only have I not blogged since last week I am also a day late (again) on my Sunday reflections.  I'm not a big resolutions guy, but I do want to be better about this and will be finding a way for that to come true.  Having said that here we go:

• It seems as if we have Florida guests every week, but I can tell you that it never gets old
• We spent the bulk of Saturday talking with Richard Walker & his nephew Aaron Breeding-Aaron has been to Arizona with me two times & is a truly incredible young man & I can't say enough good things about Richard and his friendship
• We spent Saturday night talking away with the Herbruck family after they arrive-what great friends & it is so positive to see what God is doing in their lives-I miss leading worship with Sam & Jesse-what talented musicians that are gonna rock the house for God!
• This was our first year seeing the Live Nativity @ Northridge (obviously) and it was a very cool experience-I am certain it impacted the community as we saw many people coming through
• I love a church that is passionate about helping those in need-our Christmas party for Midway Elementary was a huge success-big shout-out to Tish McKenzie for pulling it all together!
• I love sharing God's Word-not because of anything that it does for me (which it does), but because it is my calling and I treasure every opportunity to steer someone to Christ
• Any time you can end (or begin) a service with a baptism it's a good day!
• I truly have a sense of peace concerning our events of the past 3 months-our God is so good to work in our circumstances-I am truly thankful that He is bigger than our intentions!
• God is starting to give me a vision of the future here at Northridge & I can't wait to see Him bring it into reality!