Why We Serve

There is nothing more amazing than being a servant to God. Just the fact that our God allows us to serve him blows my mind. I mean think about it, He created the universe, people, animals, everything we see, surly he can make lights come on if wants, or a band to sound great. Instead he gives us the ability to do these things so we can use it to glorify him. I am so amazed everyday that he has allowed me, with all my faults, to still show up and be a servant to him. Sometimes serving isn’t always a fun thing, like when you put stickers on cars in 112 degree weather, but it is always a blessing to serve the one that created us. I wonder though if everyone who serves thinks the same way. I know that I have seen people serve for reasons that really have nothing to do with God. And I always wonder what they really think they stand to gain from it. I have seen people serve for reasons like, getting the attention of girls, drawing attention to themselves, and getting praise from people around. Which leads me to this conclusion, don’t you know that if you are seeking the praise of man, then you get all the praise you will ever get. I believe that God wants to give us thanks and praise for the things we do for him when we get to heaven, but he wants us to do these things here on earth to glorify Him, not to be seen by man. Now I know there are things that we do every week that are ways of serving that will be seen by man but it’s where our heart is when we are doing it that really matters. I know that I want my praise to come from God and God alone. I would not mind if I never heard a thank you from a single person for the things I do every week, cause I know that when the day comes God will look at me and say “well done good and faithful servant.” There is no praise greater than hearing our Lord say those words to us for the things that we have done. So I ask this, what are your motivations for serving? If they are to pick up girls, maybe you should step back and think about your reasons. We should never use service to God as a way to find a date. If your reasons are to receive praise form man, then I think you need to figure out if the instant gratification is more important than God’s praise. God loves a humble servant, one that is willing to serve God in whatever he is called to serve, without seeking praise from man, but serving out of love for God.

What are your thoughts?

Building Community

Do you remember the first time you went to church? Or maybe it was the first time you went back to church after falling away for awhile? Or maybe it was a new church in a new place? Do you remember how you felt when you walked in the doors and down the aisle to find a seat? Do you remember the first person you met that made you feel welcomed?

I remember going to church with a friend almost 8 years ago. I was not a believer at the time, in fact I considered myself an atheist. I went though because I felt like my life was falling apart, and she invited me to church with her. I remember walking in and instantly feeling like hundreds of people were looking at me wondering what I was doing there. I knew I didn’t belong, I was different. I didn’t believe in this God they were all worshipping. I looked around for lightning that I knew was going to strike me. I listened to the message and walked away thinking all these people were nuts for believing in some God. It was about a week later though that I gave my life to Jesus Christ. I went to another church, a bigger one, because I knew I could get lost in the crowd. I felt the same way though, like I just didn’t belong. I felt like everyone was looking at me and wondering what I was doing at church. It took almost a year for me to feel like I belonged there. It wasn’t the people or the church, it was me. I was still trying to figure out what my life as a Christian really looked like. I wasn’t making any friends, and I wasn’t trying to. I went to church and walked out without ever talking to anyone. After a couple years of that though, I decided to serve God. It was then that I really started to meet people and make friends. It was an amazing feeling to know that I belonged. When I moved to Arizona I had to start over again, new church, new friends. I remember walking into the church and feeling like everyone was looking at me again. But this time it wasn’t because I didn’t belong, this time it was because I was the new guy. Instantly though a few people reached out and I knew I was home. It still took some time to get to know people, and to make friends, but from the moment I walked in I knew I was home. But I have never forgotten the way I felt the first time I went to church.

As we have talked about building community at church recently, it has brought up a lot of these memories. Sometimes we as the church forget what its like to be new. We forget what its like to not know anyone, to feel like no one is reaching out to us. What if we took the time every week to reach out to one person that we didn’t know? How would that person feel? And not just reach out to them that once, but took the time during the week to call them, or have coffee with them. What would church look like if we took the time to make sure that every person who walked through the doors felt like there was someone that cared about them more than to just say hello. What if reaching out to person with more than just a hello was the thing that changed that person’s life. What if we as the Church made a point to let everyone who walked in the door feel like they were home? How many more hearts would be won for Jesus Christ? And what if each one of those people went out and did the same thing? Community starts when we open up our lives, and share it with another. I believe that if we did this we would see more people staying at the church, rather than just checking it out. We would be a group of people that don’t just talk about community, but define community.

God and the Storm

If you live in Arizona I hope you appreciate the monsoons as much as I do. I think they are one of the most beautiful things to sit back and watch. It makes the summers here amazing. Tonight was one of the first real storms that passed through. I sat on my patio just watching the rain fall and lightning crash. The thunder was so loud. As I sat back in awe of this, I felt like pouring my heart out to God. I have gone to him a lot lately with request for healing for some friends and issues they have going on in thier life. I have gone to him many times about all these things, but in the midst of all these issues I have forgot to just offer up my love for Him. So tonight I did just that. I stood on the patio, in the rain, as the thunder rolled and lightning crashed, I lifted up my voice to him. I thanked him for everything that he has done in my life recently, the good and the bad. I wish there was more good, and no bad, but I know that there is a reason for it all, and that he is working in everything that happens. He never leaves us alone, and never lets us walk a rocky road without holding our hand through it. Its so easy to thank him when things are good, but how much more amazing is it to thank him when things are bad. I know in my life I have never felt closer to my God than the times when things are bad. Its those times that I lean on Him most. I don’t always hear his voice, or feel his presence, but I always know that he is there. I always know that he is working things out and I just have to sit back and trust him. He walks with us through the fire’s in our lives, cause His love for us is bigger than anything we go through in life. As I lifted up my voice to him, all I could do was thank him for his love and grace, and let Him know how much I loved Him. I know I need to do this more, but sometimes its hard to do when in the middle of a storm. But we must remember that no matter how big the storm, he is there, holding our hand, and loving us through it. I know that when the storm is over, I can stand before people and say, This is just how BIG my God is. Thank you God for your love and grace.

Compromise

I have not always been a Christian, and since becoming a Christian I have not always made the right decisions. I’ve lived most of my life not believing that there was a God, and the choices I made showed that. What I have more trouble with is the decisions I have made since becoming a Christian. What troubles me even more though, is not always realizing the effects of my decisions on other people. In the past few years I have been in situations in which I had to make decisions that could compromise my faith. Sadly to say many times I made the wrong decision. I allowed myself to compromise who I am as a Christian man, and in the process hurt people that I cared deeply for. The part that troubles me the most though is that I was blind to the pain I was causing while I was doing it. Sometimes it takes hearing from others how they felt when they compromised themselves, for me to see the hurt that I caused others. I am thankful that I have had the opportunity to sit back and listen too many people tell me how they felt when they were in the same situation. As I have sat back and listened to people share with me how they felt in some of the same situations, I have seen them break down and sometimes cry cause of the hurt it caused them. I wish I could go back in time and do it all over again. I wish I could take the pain away. I wish I had been the man I was supposed to be, instead of the man the world tells me I am. God has called us to be more than the world tells us we are. He has put before us a path that we are to follow. How I wish I had followed that path. I wish I had listened more to the people in my life, and not compromised myself, because in doing so I not only compromised myself, I caused them to compromise themselves as well. I know that God forgives, and I am thankful for that. I hope that the people I have cause to compromise, can also forgive me. I know that is a big request, but I also know how big my God is. I know that He can do the work in their hearts to forgive me, and I pray that if He hasn’t already, he does soon. I wish that it didn’t take me hearing it from others to see how much pain in caused. Reality is that I just didn’t listen when I was being told. I know the areas that I am strong, and I know the areas I am weak, what I don’t understand is why I have only worked on the areas that I am already strong in, instead of the areas that I am weak. I would like to take this moment to say that I am sorry to anyone that has compromised themselves and their faith because of me over the years. I pray that God will continue to do the woke in me that I know he is doing, but I also pray that he works even harder on the areas that I don’t always allow him to, the areas that I am weak and really need the work.

Kate McRae

There are somes things in life that drive you to your knees, and cause you to cry out to God. This past week has been one of those times. There is a beautiful 5 year old girl named Kate that is fighting a brain tumor. She was taken in on Monday, diagnosed, and had brain surgery on Friday. There is a long road ahead of her still with a lot of things unanswered right now. As we have set out to pray for this family, I have been overwhelmed with the support we have seen for this family. Because of things like twitter and facebook the message has spread so far. Dr. Phil has even gotten involved, how amazing. I know there are thousands praying for each and everyday. My hope though is that we keep reaching out to more and more people with her story. I have seen the Church do exactly what the Church is supposed to do in a time like this. I know that people are praying for her in every state, and many countries as well. Lets continue to be the church, and continue to reach out to more people. If you don’t know the story yet you can check it out here at www.prayforkate.com. Please help us spread the word and get more people praying for her. How amazing would it be if this spread allover the world and had millions of people praying, what do you think God woud do with a moment like that.

Guarding your heart

Today in church we talked about something that really hit me hard. As the message went on my heart was very troubled. So often I have followed my heart even when I felt it might not be the right thing to do. I did it though because I thought it was the easy thing to do, or because it felt good, or maybe even because I thought it would get me the result I was looking for. Even though I thought it might be wrong, I still did it because my heart thought it was right. In the process of that, I have done things in my life that have ended up hurting people, people that I cared very much for. Instead of doing what it says in proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your path.” So often in life I have followed my own understanding, and tried to work things out my way. If only I had just let God lead my path, things would be so different now. But I can not go back and do it over again; all I can do now is what every person should do when they are wrong. I humbly ask for forgiveness, not only from my God, but also from the people that I have hurt with my words or actions. I know that I have not always chosen the right words to use and for that I am sorry. I know that I have not always listened to what a person has said, for that I am sorry. I also know that my actions when I am hurt or confused, have led to me doing things that are hurtful to others, and for that I am sorry. If you are reading this and feel as if I have hurt you in some way, I want to say I am sorry, and hope that you will forgive me. I hope that you will understand my heart and accept my apology. I know that the most important thing a man can do is sometimes the hardest, and that is to get down on his knees and humbly ask for forgiveness from others. This is something I have not always been good at, but please know that I am sorry. I have been brought to my knees many times lately in prayer, and I know that this is one area that God is trying to work on in me. I hope to not make the same mistakes again that I have made in the past, but when I do, know this, I will be a man and get down on my knees again, before my God and you, and ask for forgiveness.

one year ago

It was a year ago on the 4th of July that I got the call from the police telling me my apartment was on fire. It was a call that altered my life. Today as I celebrated with friends I was reminded of all the things that God has given me. The material things in life are not important at all. What I lost was really nothing because God has given me so much more to be thankful for. It says in James, “Consider it joy when we face trails of many kinds, cause the testing of our faith produces perseverance.” There have been many trials since that night and I know there will be many more in my lifetime. I hope that through all of them I can have the same attitude that I had then. I know there was a reason for it, and I believe that some lives were changed because of it. I remember a fireman asking me what church I went to after we found my bible with not a page burnt. I don’t know if he went to church after that or not but I know that it made an impression on him. I also remember the reporter that interviewed me after and told me that she had been angry at God, but realized what she was angry for was no where near what I had just gone through. I don’t know where she is at today but I do know that if her life was touched by what happened then everything I lost was worth it. I know that one soul being changed for the Kingdom of God was worth everything I lost. And to be honest I wouldn’t be upset to lose everything again if it meant that someone’s life was changed for the Kingdom. I know I make mistakes and fall short of this sometimes, but I am always reminded of how I felt when all this happened and hope that I can always have the same outlook no matter how big or small the situation. I hope I will always remember that no matter what the situation is, it is an opportunity to show Christ to someone, and what I say or do just might be the thing that changes their life. I hope every decision I make is one that honors God, even when it isn’t the easy thing to do. Consider is pure joy when you face trials of many kinds.

Matthew 5:44

“But I tell you: Love your enemies [fn] and pray for those who persecute you,”

I wish it was easy to do this.  Sometimes in life when things have happened, its hard to step back and pray for the person that has said things or done things that hurt you.  Its much easier to spend time trying to get back at them, or plot ways to get even.  We are called to more than that though.  For it is not enough to just love the ones that love you.  Have you found yourself in a situation where someone has done something or said something that is deeply hurtful to you?  How did you handle the situation?  Did your reaction honor God?

I have found myself in this situation before.  My first reaction was a very human one, I wanted to get even.  I wanted to clear my name, at all cost.  After sitting back and thinking about it though I realized that if I reacted in the way I wanted to in that moment, my actions would not have been Honorable to God or anyone involved.  I stopped and thought about the long term damage that could be done for the sake of revenge.  What I realized is that the most Honorable thing I could do is pray for that person.  After talking to a few people about the situation, I was overwhelmed with the love and support that was shown to me during this struggle.  My heart hoped that the others involved would be shown as much if not more love than I was being shown.  I’m not really sure what the right thing to do is sometimes, but the bible tells us, “If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.”  I will admit its not easy to do this, but we are not called to do the easy thing, we called to do the honorable thing.  We are called to die to self.  I pray the choices I have made are the choices that God wants me to make, and I pray that God will continue to help me turn the other cheek, and do the honorable thing.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this.

God and being sick

The past days I have been feeling really sick, sicker than I usually feel. So I went to the doctor yesterday only to find out that I have pneumonia. So I have been lying around resting for the last few days trying to get better. I have decided to use this time to draw closer to God. Perhaps he is knocking me down so that I can do nothing else but listen to him. I know that it is when we are weak that He is strong, something I haven’t displayed lately, and need to do more of. So I am going to use this time to draw closer to him, and let him speak to me. God meet me here and speak to me.

my thoughts

I was sitting around with a few guys the other night just talking about God.  As we sat there and shared what was on our hearts a question was posed.  How do you live 100% on fire for God, and not just 80 or 90 or sometimes less?  I sat back and thought about it for a minute, and this is what I came up with.

 

It starts with getting past ourselves.  All too often we want to blame others, work, family, the world, or anything else that is out there.  If we really stepped back though we would see that the only thing standing in our way is ourselves.  When we can find a way to let self die, the will to rule die, then and only then can we start to see what being 100% for God is like.  It’s when we stop looking around, and start looking up.  It’s when we stop going through the motions, and start living a life sold out for Jesus Christ. 

 

How do we do this though?

 

I have found that I am guilty of going through the motions all too often.  I go to Church every week, I serve God, I read, I pray, and I worship.  But I find that I do that because that is what I have programmed myself to do.  I go through the motions of being a Christian, when what I really need to do is step back and look up at this amazing God we serve and allow him take complete control of my life.  I need to let him do everything, not just the things I don’t think I can handle.  I need to realize that I am totally dependent on him for everything, no matter how big or small the situation is, he will take control if only we let him.  I have failed to do this too many times, and it always turns out bad.  Doing this has caused me to hurt others, myself, and even God.  I believe His heart breaks when we try to do things on our own and don’t look up to Him and trust Him to move. 

 

I have chosen to let go of myself, to give it all to Him.  To let him take control of my life, because I am nothing without him.  I know what I struggle with is letting go of hurt.  But I also know that Jesus looks at us and says, “That thing that hurt you KILLED me.”  When he hung on that cross he took all the pain and hurt that would ever happen upon him for us.  So I chose to let go of everything and forgive anyone that I have not yet.  Not just forgive, but I want to love as well.  I want to look up and not around. 

 

I choose to stop going through the motions, and allow God live 100 % in me, and pray that others will see that.  After the things that have happened in the past year, I am finally feeling like myself again, and finally feel like my heart is in the place it needs to be.  I will stop looking around, and choose everyday to spend my time looking up.