Rock Me Gently, Jeep Liberty

I just saw a commercial. I think we need more commercials like this. Kyle likey.

The squirrel is my favorite. He's quite the performer.

Awaken to the Whole Gospel

I was reading my best friend's blog today and I ran across this video of a pastor and author named John Piper. He is one of my "mentors" though I have never met him. I don't think I would be considered a "Piper-ite," but I owe a lot to him for my development as a lover of God. I have so much respect for him because he speaks truth that many are afraid to speak. His reverence for God is challenging and inspiring to me. This video is about the "Prosperity Gospel" and I believe a necessary message for the church in America- soon to be necessary around the globe.


It's time for the church to awaken to the whole Gospel. Blessings to John Piper.

A Blessing Just Walked in to America's Best Coffee

I am better today than I was yesterday.
I am going to try to put into words how deeply God blessed me today though a man named Dr. Jones. I will try, but I know I will fall short. Those who are familiar with my weekly work routine know that I pretty much office out of America's Best Coffee. Besides it being a Christian-owned and operated organization, I think their place is snazzy and their drinks are fantastic. This morning I was reading through the Psalms and listening to my country playlist on my iPod (yeah, it's pretty wierd) and I was interrupted by a guy named "Dr. Jones." I was a little startled, and immediately thought he was going to ask me about what I was reading. Instead he asked me about my computer. He was dressed very nice and I immediately noticed his dark skin and his African accent- I later found out he was from Kenya. I absolutely love to listen to the African dialect.

Over coffee and a bagel, our conversation morphed from talking about my computer to talking about being Christians. We talked about our churches. He said, like only he can, "I love the church. All of them!" I could tell that the Spirit lived in Dr. Jones- he had such a peace about him. I hope people think or say the same about me when we part ways. I found out that Dr. Jones attends a large church in the area. Our interaction was a blessing in every sense of the word. I had a hard time understanding some of the things he was saying, but it didn't matter. He told me, "You are in the greatest business in the world. You are helping people and loving the Lord." I asked him how long he had been a Christian. He said with a smile, "I have been a Chritian since I was born, but 2 years ago I returned to the Lord to love Him." His answer didn't really fit into the box that I wanted it to fit in. Years ago I would have dug deeper because of my concern that he "didn't answer correctly." I wanted him to talk about how he had "accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior." But I could tell that he knew Jesus. I think with some people it's just really obvious when they have spent time with Jesus. "I have been a Christian since I was born, but 2 years ago I returned to the Lord to love Him." Yeah, I could tell he had spent the last 2 years walking with Jesus. It was like he had been walking on the old dirt road to Emmaus with a man named "Jesus" for the past 2 years.

For some reason I became burdened for him as our conversation progressed. Though it seemed somewhat veiled, it appeared that life had begun to beat him down in a way. He had just come from a meeting with one of his kids' teachers. He was about to head off to work (He is a pharmacist at a nearby hospital). I felt like I should pray for him before he left. As he was getting up to leave, I asked if I could pray for him. Now, I am not one who does that very often- pray for people that I just met in public places. But something inside me told me that praying for this man would be one of my greatest priveledges. That may sound cheezy, but as we talked I honestly could not wait to pray for him. He said, "I would like that very much." I want to honor him by not saying too much here, but he asked that I pray for him and some situations at home. I could tell that he loved the Lord, but he was still struggling with life. He had made some mistakes in the past and now he was trying to fight through shame to be a godly man for his family now. I prayed for him and his family. I believe that I will for a long time.

It sounds strange to describe my fellowship with Dr. Jones like this but I have to say that our time was "sweet." As he left I was thankful for our time and I longed for more times like that. The reason for this, I believe, is because God has set him apart to be a blessing. I thought about Genesis 12, where God tells Abraham that he was going to use him to bless the nations. God's heart was revealed in Genesis 12- He wants to use His people to bless the world. I have no doubt in my mind that God is using Dr. Jones to bless others. That's why I can say that a Blessing walked into America's Best Coffee this morning.

A few things that I thought about after he left:
1. I am glad that I was not over-protective of my time in the Psalms. I was interrupted- and God was in the interruption this morning.
2. It only takes One thing in common to make you friends on a deeply profound level. I have friends around the globe whom I am a part of. Oh how I love the Church! As Dr. Jones walked out of the coffee shop I wanted to pray for those in other countries who were my friends because of Jesus. I was so thankful.
3. We never really talked about Jesus. I am not saying that this is a good thing. I now realize that I want to get to the point where my conversations about being a Christian is more about how great Jesus is and how much I treasure him. I don't believe God is disappointed with me even though we never mentioned the name Jesus. I believe He is teaching me that I still have a ways to go, though. Even so, God blessed our interaction. We danced around Jesus, but we never took his hand. Isn't it odd how easy it is to talk about the Church and about how long we have been Christians, but we kind of dance around mentioning the name "Jesus Christ?" But at the same time, it can be completely evident that Christ is alive in us and the Spirit is working in the midst of the conversation.
4. I am better today than I was yesterday because of this Blessing that God sent my way. I want to be a blessing for all that I come into contact with.

And I hope you do too. Because that is what God created you to be- a living, breathing, walking . . . blessing.

The Rescuer

"Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey. The Lord looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He saw that there was no one, he was apalled that there was no one to intervene; so his own arm worked salvation for him, and his own righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head; he put on the garments of vengeance and wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak."
Isaiah 59:15-17

Isaiah 58 is one of my favorite passages in all of Scripture. But Isaiah 59 must be one of the most beautiful and most emotional pieces that I have read. The imagery, the language, the picture that is painted- it's beautiful. The beauty of it alone helps me to love God's Word even more! Take some time to read chapters 58-59. God has communicated beautiful truth to us through this beautiful piece of work. I ran into a professor of mine (from Southwestern) this morning at America's Best Coffee and through our conversation he reminded me of how important the medium is by which a message is communicated. Some times, it seems, the message shouts just as loud through the form of it than through the truth that's in it. Certainly the truth that is Isaiah 59 can never be topped in beauty and significance, but the way that it is communicated is almost as beautiful. I love this passage. It, in every way, brings me hope. I know it will do the same for you.

I don't like them.

Pats. Rats.
Rodney Harrison. Snotty fairy's son.
Tom Brady. Throws like a lady.
Bill Belichik. Stupid glue stick.
Pats. Rats. Fats.
I don't like them.

Halloween is SO SCARY

I am afraid my earlier post might be misconstrued, so I have decided to change it to better communicate my thoughts. I felt a little unsettled after I hit "Publish." My attempt to be dry-funny turned out to appear haughty and mocking. Not my intention.
Here are a few of my thoughts about tonight. I am excited about tonight, but I am also a little embarrassed about it. The reason is that I have been far too distant from our neighbors and I only wish that tonight would be more than just a re-introduction to one another. The sad thing is that the Scariest thing to me about tonight is facing our neighbors when I know that I have not been as loving to them as I should have been.

Tonight really is going to be a great night to meet our neighbors- again. We will get to re-introduce ourselves to them and show them that they are always welcome at our house. We are going to open our arms and our hearts wide, gush over the kids, and care for our neighbors. It is, after all, one of the only times that neighbors will come to us! I hope they see Christ in us tonight. It's the perfect opportunity to kind of start over with our neighbors and extend the hand of friendship that has all too often stayed in our pockets as we have walked our neighborhood. Lights will definitely be ON at our house.
And it's really not so scary. The One who is in us is greater than he who is in the world. Jesus said, "Take heart, I have overcome the world!" No amount of darkness can distinguish the smallest flame.
It is strange how on Halloween all the barriers that we set up throughout the year between ourselves and our neighbors seem to come down. I know that Halloween is pretty complicated for parents. I think I am probably too dogmatic about it. I honestly don't think it's a black and white issue. Jess and I have a conviction that one of the most unloving things we could do for our neighbors tonight is to sit in a dark house and turn our back on the people that God has deliberately placed us in the same neighborhood as. We haven't always been good at loving our neighbors, but tonight is a chance to start over. I love our neighbors. I am afraid that they just don't know it yet. That's what is truly scary.

Choosing my world wisely

As I was rummaging through my garage, pulling out camping and fishing gear for my trip last weekend, I ran across a book that has been very influential in my walk with Jesus. It's called "The Pursuit of God" by A.W. Tozer. I opened it up and briefly skimmed through it, looking at the things that I thought were worthy of highlighting years ago. It brought back great memories of when I was in college. I used to live and breathe the Word of God. I would sit in the University Center at UTA and read and meditate on scripture for hours. I would read books like "The Pursuit of God" and I would talk to God throughout the day. Every day.
One of the things that was so real to me when I was in college was the reality that there were 2 worlds in life. There is the spiritual realm, and then there is the physical realm. Life was incredibly exciting to me because I thought about, searched for, and anticipated things that God was doing in the spiritual realm. It changed the way I saw my interaction with my professors, my new friends that were completely lost, the freak with the bullhorn shouting at people as they walked by going to class, and those who worked on campus. I knew: "There is much more going on here than I can see with my eyes." Spiritual warfare had become so real and so... thick. And anytime I talk about this reality, I think I sound like a madman. I sound crazy.
And I can see why people thought Jesus was crazy. He said strange things all the time. He knew the reality of both worlds- the spiritual and the physical. "In my Father's house there are many rooms; if it weren't so, I wouldn't have told you." "I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me..." "In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." Had Jesus overcome anything? It appeared that he was in a battle with the authorities and that he was on the losing end.
And the parables that Jesus told- they were always somewhat veiled so only those who were thinking on the proper realm would understand them.
And the things Jesus did. His miracles served as a way to draw people to see the reality of the spiritual realm. The Kingdom of God had come to earth!
Okay, back to that book. The one in my garage. Here are a few things that I highlighted or circled and I wanted to share:
"Every man must choose his world."
"A spiritual kingdom lies all about us, enclosing us, embracing us, altogether within reach of our inner selves, waiting for us to recognize it. God Himself is here waiting our response to His presence. This eternal world will come alive to us the moment we begin to beckon upon its reality."
"At the root of the Christian life lies belief in the invisible. The object of the Christian's faith is unseen reality."
"The soul has eyes with which to see and ears with which to hear. Feeble they may be from long disuse, but by the life-giving touch of Christ they are now alive and capable of sharpest sight and most sensitive hearing."
"As we begin to focus upon God, the things of the Spirit will take shape before our inner eyes. A new God-consciousness will seize upon us and we shall begin to taste and hear and inwardly feel God, who is our life and our all. There will be seen the constant shining of "the True Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world" (John 1:9) More and more, as our faculties grow sharper and more sure, God will become to us the great All, and His presence the glory and wonder of our lives."
At the close of chapter 4 in his book, Tozer closes with this prayer, beautifully scripted:
"O God, quicken to life every power within me,
that I may lay hold of eternal things.
Open my eyes that I may see;
give me acute spiritual perception;
enable me to taste Thee and
know that Thou art good.
Make heaven more rela to me
than earthly thing has ever been. Amen."

It all presses me to wonder- which world am I choosing to live in today? I hope I choose wisely.