Christmas is always a great time for family to get together and enjoy each other's company. We were able to attend PBF's Christmas Eve Service. We were reminded of the miracle of God invading the natural realm in the form of a baby. Nothing spectacular from the world's perspective but, awe inspiring for the shepherds and wisemen. Jesus was content with the position in life he was given.
We all should rejoice in the simple things life has to offer. We need to be content where God has placed us in life. Like Jesus, we need to be faithful being Christ in whatever circumstances we find ourselves. Living like Christ will bring us the greatest joy. Luke 1 & 2.
Monday, December 31, 2007
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
it's all about God stupid!
During the 1992 Clinton campaign, a slogan surfaced to get people's attention,"It's the economy stupid." It must of had some success geting people to focus on the issue. An evangelical thinks Christians should have a similar slogan written on their foreheads or on their shirts that states,"It's about God, stupid!"
What are we about? What are you about? Our culture says, "Life is all about you." We are convinced, "It's all about me." What does God, our Creator, our Designer, what does He say about the subject?
Eph 3:19 -
and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Eph 5:18 -
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
Colossians 3:16 -
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.
It's all about God the Father, Son and Spirit.
Colossians 2:7
You're deeply rooted in him. You're well constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you've been taught. School's out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving.
Let's not have to have a stupid slogan on our foreheads. Let's remind each other and encourage each other to live for Jesus and pray we become more like Him. Let's stay focused on Jesus:
Colossians 3:1-3 -
1 So if you're serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. 2 Don't shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ - that's where the action is. See things from his perspective. 3 Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life - even though invisible to spectators - is with Christ in God. He is your life
Happy Thanksgiving
What are we about? What are you about? Our culture says, "Life is all about you." We are convinced, "It's all about me." What does God, our Creator, our Designer, what does He say about the subject?
Eph 3:19 -
and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Eph 5:18 -
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
Colossians 3:16 -
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.
It's all about God the Father, Son and Spirit.
Colossians 2:7
You're deeply rooted in him. You're well constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you've been taught. School's out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving.
Let's not have to have a stupid slogan on our foreheads. Let's remind each other and encourage each other to live for Jesus and pray we become more like Him. Let's stay focused on Jesus:
Colossians 3:1-3 -
1 So if you're serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. 2 Don't shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ - that's where the action is. See things from his perspective. 3 Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life - even though invisible to spectators - is with Christ in God. He is your life
Happy Thanksgiving
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Living in Community
Jean Vanier was born in Canada. After his career as a naval officer, he felt moved to change his life. He earned a doctorate in moral philosophy and in 1964 invited two men with Down's Syndrome to leave the institution and live with him. The simple act has turned into the L'Arche movement. The relationships he developed changed his life.
"Living with men and women with mental disabilities has helped me discover what it means to live in communion (community)with someone. To be in communion means to be with someone and to discover that we actually belong together. Communion means accepting people just as they are, with all their limits and inner pain, but also with their gifts and their beauty and their capcity to grow: to see the beauty inside of all the pain. To love someone is not first of all to do things for them, but to reveal to them their beauty and value, to say to them through our attitude: "You are beautiful. You are important. I trust you. You can trust yourself." We all know well that we can do things for others and in the process crush them, making them feel that they are incapable of doing things by themselves. To love someone is to reveal to them their capacity for life, the light that is shining in them.
"Living with men and women with mental disabilities has helped me discover what it means to live in communion (community)with someone. To be in communion means to be with someone and to discover that we actually belong together. Communion means accepting people just as they are, with all their limits and inner pain, but also with their gifts and their beauty and their capcity to grow: to see the beauty inside of all the pain. To love someone is not first of all to do things for them, but to reveal to them their beauty and value, to say to them through our attitude: "You are beautiful. You are important. I trust you. You can trust yourself." We all know well that we can do things for others and in the process crush them, making them feel that they are incapable of doing things by themselves. To love someone is to reveal to them their capacity for life, the light that is shining in them.
Friday, November 10, 2006
Measuring True Spirituality
People who are alive:
Experience a full inner life because of knowing God
Are passionate, primarily about knowing God personally - (John 17:3)
Manifest humility and acknowledge a healthy dependence on God - (John 15:5; Romans 12:3)
Demonstrate contentedness and stability, joy and delight - (Proverbs 19:23; Philippians 4: 11 b-12)
Understand themselves as those who possess a unique set of gifts, strengths, and weaknesses - (Psalm 139)
Are able to think clearly and to experience a full range of emotion - (John 11 :33-35; 2 Corinthians 10:5)
Cultivate rich relationships with God and others
Hear and respond appropriately to God in love, obedience, and repentance with minimal coercion - (John 14:21,23)
Demonstrate empathy that leads to appropriate action - (John 11 :33-35)
Effectively engage with other people without being preoccupied with themselves - (Philippians 2:3-4; Hebrews 10:24-25)
Seek godly wisdom and counsel - (Proverbs 3:5-6)
Pay careful attention to "invisible, eternal reality" beyond "visible, temporary reality" - (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)
Demonstrate a sense of Purpose and Vision
Understand their own "story" (how their longings, wounds, and life themes enable God's plan for their lives) - (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
Create a perspective on what God desires to accomplish regardless of their experience - (Hebrews 11: 13-16) Demonstrate confidence in God through boldness of action - (Jeremiah 17:7)
Recognize that they are dead to domination of sin - (Romans 6: 11; 1 Peter 2:24)
Pursue dreams with commitment and endurance - (Acts 20:24; Philippians 3:13-14)
Experience a full inner life because of knowing God
Are passionate, primarily about knowing God personally - (John 17:3)
Manifest humility and acknowledge a healthy dependence on God - (John 15:5; Romans 12:3)
Demonstrate contentedness and stability, joy and delight - (Proverbs 19:23; Philippians 4: 11 b-12)
Understand themselves as those who possess a unique set of gifts, strengths, and weaknesses - (Psalm 139)
Are able to think clearly and to experience a full range of emotion - (John 11 :33-35; 2 Corinthians 10:5)
Cultivate rich relationships with God and others
Hear and respond appropriately to God in love, obedience, and repentance with minimal coercion - (John 14:21,23)
Demonstrate empathy that leads to appropriate action - (John 11 :33-35)
Effectively engage with other people without being preoccupied with themselves - (Philippians 2:3-4; Hebrews 10:24-25)
Seek godly wisdom and counsel - (Proverbs 3:5-6)
Pay careful attention to "invisible, eternal reality" beyond "visible, temporary reality" - (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)
Demonstrate a sense of Purpose and Vision
Understand their own "story" (how their longings, wounds, and life themes enable God's plan for their lives) - (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)
Create a perspective on what God desires to accomplish regardless of their experience - (Hebrews 11: 13-16) Demonstrate confidence in God through boldness of action - (Jeremiah 17:7)
Recognize that they are dead to domination of sin - (Romans 6: 11; 1 Peter 2:24)
Pursue dreams with commitment and endurance - (Acts 20:24; Philippians 3:13-14)
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Life's journey with purpose
Life is about learning to love.
Sounds good. Can a person learn to love? Depends on one's definition of love.
Is there a universal, unchanging definition for love? Or are we left to our own finite understanding?
As always, if society creates standards based on our whims and wants a slippery slope is created and definitions change based our mood or situation. Where do we find true love?
Life is all about love and relationships - with God and others.
God has told us and showed us how to love through Jesus.
Learning to love is life's most important lesson.
Jesus called it the "greatest commandement" (Matthew 11:28)
Love God, and then love others. Love God first. When we learn who God is and what he says love is, then we learn how to love others the way it was inteneded.
Sounds good. Can a person learn to love? Depends on one's definition of love.
Is there a universal, unchanging definition for love? Or are we left to our own finite understanding?
As always, if society creates standards based on our whims and wants a slippery slope is created and definitions change based our mood or situation. Where do we find true love?
Life is all about love and relationships - with God and others.
God has told us and showed us how to love through Jesus.
Learning to love is life's most important lesson.
Jesus called it the "greatest commandement" (Matthew 11:28)
Love God, and then love others. Love God first. When we learn who God is and what he says love is, then we learn how to love others the way it was inteneded.
Sunday, May 01, 2005
Can you measure spirituality?
I have been supporting and attending our church for over 30 years. I love the fellowship and support I have received. There have been dificult times, it is to be expected, and good times. I believe one must be commited and engaged in a community of believers if they are to grow in their faith and mature in their mandate to love God and love one another. I pray I have been able to give back to others as much as I have received.
The tension I have wrestled with, as a coach the past 13 years, is the decreased time I have to spend with the body of believers I am committed to nurture and the time I am out in the community coaching high school basketball.
Can this it a sign of spiritual maturity or backsliding?
Obviously one cannot determine growth or atrophy by one aspect of a person's life. So what are the other indicators that can shed light on the subject of spiritual maturity?
George Gallup speaks of four markers from his experience polling churches through the years: "beliefs, practices, attitudes, and lifestyle. Those indicators tell you whether a person has a transforming, integrated faith or just a statement of faith. The test is in the action. The deeper one goes - from belief to lifestyle - the more obvious are the markers."
Spirituality is not a checklist you check off and say you have it or you do not. If you can quantify it then you probably process less of it than you should. You can not capture the wholeness of spirituality with a checklist. It is a matter of the heart. There may be indicators, but the reall issue is with the heart.
Spiritual maturity is an ongoing process; a journey we are on in this life which flows into the life after death. It is the matter of the heart. Has my beliefs affected my practices and attitudes in this journey? It will show or be lacking in my lifestyle. If my belief is that God has gifted me in areas that further his kingdom through coaching, then it needs to be seen in my lifestyle.
Am I becoming more like Jesus? Am I challenging or inspiring those who I coach to consider following Christ? Am I encouraging those who are believers to continue in the race? Am I doing what Jesus would do to make His Father known in my words and deeds? If I am, I am maturing in the faith. I am doing His will on earth as it is in heaven.
The tension I have wrestled with, as a coach the past 13 years, is the decreased time I have to spend with the body of believers I am committed to nurture and the time I am out in the community coaching high school basketball.
Can this it a sign of spiritual maturity or backsliding?
Obviously one cannot determine growth or atrophy by one aspect of a person's life. So what are the other indicators that can shed light on the subject of spiritual maturity?
George Gallup speaks of four markers from his experience polling churches through the years: "beliefs, practices, attitudes, and lifestyle. Those indicators tell you whether a person has a transforming, integrated faith or just a statement of faith. The test is in the action. The deeper one goes - from belief to lifestyle - the more obvious are the markers."
Spirituality is not a checklist you check off and say you have it or you do not. If you can quantify it then you probably process less of it than you should. You can not capture the wholeness of spirituality with a checklist. It is a matter of the heart. There may be indicators, but the reall issue is with the heart.
Spiritual maturity is an ongoing process; a journey we are on in this life which flows into the life after death. It is the matter of the heart. Has my beliefs affected my practices and attitudes in this journey? It will show or be lacking in my lifestyle. If my belief is that God has gifted me in areas that further his kingdom through coaching, then it needs to be seen in my lifestyle.
Am I becoming more like Jesus? Am I challenging or inspiring those who I coach to consider following Christ? Am I encouraging those who are believers to continue in the race? Am I doing what Jesus would do to make His Father known in my words and deeds? If I am, I am maturing in the faith. I am doing His will on earth as it is in heaven.
Saturday, March 05, 2005
Lessons on the way to state tournament
3/1/2005
On the ride over Al Valencia’s mother passed away. We knew she could die before he left for the tournament. He and his family discussed what to do if this happened. We were in Ritzville. We stopped at Zips to stretch our legs and get shakes. Al did not come in with the rest of us. He was driving a vehicle with our bags. Bev came up to me and said that Al received a call about 30 minutes before telling him of his mother’s death. She asked if it was alright to tell me, he said it would be fine.
When she informed me, we called the team together and went to Al to offer our condolences. We prayed as a group together. We grieved and mourned with Al for a period of time. We learned of our mortality and frailty.
3/2/2005
A busy day was ahead of us. We visited the Discovery School in Spokane on behalf of the WIAA’s TEAM UP program to address the kids in the areas of sportsmanship, academic excellence and character. We put on a mini-basketball clinic. Some of the kids learned the drills and asked questions about being a student-athlete. Adam spoke on AE, Erk on C, and Jesse on sportsmanship – they all did a great job.When we were done the 3rd and 4th grade challenged the team to a game of bump. The guys couldn’t say no. Jesse was the first one out there. There was a big line and it took some time to get through them all. Jesse, David and one student were left. Jesse was going up for a shot and was undercut by the student and landed on his back. He got up shaking and massaging his wrist. I thought – oh no headline read, “ JR breaks wrist at state tournament playing bump with school children.” He ended up being fine. We learned about the gift of sharing our life; our light with others.
3/3/05
Today I thought what lesson God would teach us today. Just before leaving our room for the arena it hit me. The boys were going to see the fruit of their labor – a victory to insure them of a trophy!
On the ride over Al Valencia’s mother passed away. We knew she could die before he left for the tournament. He and his family discussed what to do if this happened. We were in Ritzville. We stopped at Zips to stretch our legs and get shakes. Al did not come in with the rest of us. He was driving a vehicle with our bags. Bev came up to me and said that Al received a call about 30 minutes before telling him of his mother’s death. She asked if it was alright to tell me, he said it would be fine.
When she informed me, we called the team together and went to Al to offer our condolences. We prayed as a group together. We grieved and mourned with Al for a period of time. We learned of our mortality and frailty.
3/2/2005
A busy day was ahead of us. We visited the Discovery School in Spokane on behalf of the WIAA’s TEAM UP program to address the kids in the areas of sportsmanship, academic excellence and character. We put on a mini-basketball clinic. Some of the kids learned the drills and asked questions about being a student-athlete. Adam spoke on AE, Erk on C, and Jesse on sportsmanship – they all did a great job.When we were done the 3rd and 4th grade challenged the team to a game of bump. The guys couldn’t say no. Jesse was the first one out there. There was a big line and it took some time to get through them all. Jesse, David and one student were left. Jesse was going up for a shot and was undercut by the student and landed on his back. He got up shaking and massaging his wrist. I thought – oh no headline read, “ JR breaks wrist at state tournament playing bump with school children.” He ended up being fine. We learned about the gift of sharing our life; our light with others.
3/3/05
Today I thought what lesson God would teach us today. Just before leaving our room for the arena it hit me. The boys were going to see the fruit of their labor – a victory to insure them of a trophy!
Friday, February 04, 2005
Press on Toword the Goal
Everyone is guided by something. We either know who or what guides us or we run blindly through life thinking we are a free spirit and free from any sort of influence. Look at the style clothes you wear, the toothpaste your use, the kind of food you eat, your hair style, what music you listen to and the movies you watch. You have been influenced to choose those things. The question to ask is, "Where is it taking you?"
Paul, a follower of Jesus said, "..I count all things loss for Christ." He goes on to reject fame and fortune as a way to define meaning and purpose in life. "I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me." Philippians 3:12.
God calls individuals to himself for a purpose. I found early on in life, trusting Christ provides guidance in this journey of life; this race. It will take a lifetime to discover all its riches and an eternity to fully understand its depth.
Read the letter to the Philippians to see Paul's passion for life in Christ.
Paul, a follower of Jesus said, "..I count all things loss for Christ." He goes on to reject fame and fortune as a way to define meaning and purpose in life. "I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me." Philippians 3:12.
God calls individuals to himself for a purpose. I found early on in life, trusting Christ provides guidance in this journey of life; this race. It will take a lifetime to discover all its riches and an eternity to fully understand its depth.
Read the letter to the Philippians to see Paul's passion for life in Christ.
The Race
The Race is about my journey through life. We all are in a race, but do we know where we are going and how to get there. These are my thoughts and experiences in life. I hope it can be helpful for those who are running the race and for those watching from the sidelines.
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