Making Me Look Good

Did you know that it is Administrative Professionals Week this week? I like to make sure that people are appreciated for what they do but I don't always do a good job of remember to show appreciation myself, that's why I am thankful that my trusty UW calendar informed me that Wednesday was Administrative Professionals Day. I then heard that we are supposed to celebrate and appreciate Administrative Professionals for the entire week (which I am sure is an attempt by card and candy companies to increase sales).

The truth is though, that these administrative professionals have a hard job and they deserve to be appreciated all the time and not just for one day or one week in April. That's why, I have decided to use my blog this week to express my thanks to those people around me that make me look a lot better than I possibly could on my own. So here we go.

Karen is my assistant as well as the Financial Director at Crosswater and while I may be more administratively minded than a certain other Pastor at Crosswater, Karen is instrumental in making sure I have the information that I need in order to track where Crosswater is at and to plan where we are able to go in the future. Karen, thank you for all of your hard work.

Amy is technically Aaron's assistant but she is also the Office Manager, tech guru and graphic designer for Crosswater. As such she and I work together a lot. Without Amy thinking about how, when and why we do things, I have no doubt I would forget many things and/or think about them too late. Thank you Amy for your support.

Crosswater is also blessed to have 3 amazing ladies that volunteer to greet and serve people that come in to our office. Denise, Jane and Emma do an amazing job of loving people and taking care of people, including those of us in the office. Thank you ladies for giving up your time to come in and serve and allowing us to serve.

Finally the hardest working person at making me look better is my wife. While it would be an insult to call her my assistant or my administrative professional, she is my helper and my rock. I received advice from my favorite candy store owner recently saying that every day is wife appreciation day and it certainly should be. Kristina, I am sorry that I don't show my appreciation as much as I should (if I even do at all). I love you very much and appreciate all that you do for me and our family.

If you have people in your life that help you look good, whether they are paid to do so or do it because they love you, let them know that you appreciate them this week. Don't wait until it is too late.

Paid in Full

Today is one of the most dreaded days of the year here in the U.S., Tax Day. If you were "owed" a refund then you probably filed your tax return weeks ago so you could get your money sooner. However, if you owe money you probably waited until just recently (maybe even today) to file your taxes, after all you don't want to give your money any sooner than you have to, right? That's my philosophy anyway.

Something you may not associate with Tax Day is that our debt has already been paid. Not our tax debt mind you, but rather something even more important. Almost 2000 years ago, Jesus died on the cross in our place. He didn't do anything to deserve death and he certainly didn't do anything to deserve having to take on God's wrath. He chose to do both.

We have racked up quite a bit of debt with our sin. But, unlike our tax debt, someone has paid off our sin debt because we never could by ourselves. There is no amount of extensions or deductions that could eliminate what we have earned from God and that is eternal separation from Him. Similarly, there is no amount of work or effort that allows us to earn Jesus' sacrifice for us.

While it would be nice to only have to pay taxes once and never have to again, that isn't our reality. Fortunately enough for us though, our sin debt has already been paid once and for all, all we need to do is accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior and Follow Him!

What's the Difference?

"it's abundantly clear in the so-called Christian nations of the Western world that professing belief in God and allowing that belief to make any discernible difference in your life are two entirely different things."
- Jan Hettinga, "Follow Me"

Like me, you've probably heard the statistics that say as many as 75-80% of Americans are Christians. Most of America claims belief in Jesus Christ and this weekend millions of people in this country will attend church services celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ (Easter Sunday). Hopefully you will be one of those millions in church this week.

There are moments in my life where the truth of Jesus Christ makes significant difference in my life. Unfortunately there are many moments where it doesn't. I too frequently get so involved in living my life that I take for granted what Jesus did for me, or even worse I completely disregard it. I get easily frustrated and/or angered and I snap at people. I lose my patience and let my attitude take over. I try to do things on my own instead of relying on the strength of Jesus. I lose sight of Jesus. I believe in Him but I don't always follow Him.

Easter is a celebration! Jesus didn't stay in the grave, he rose, he defeated death. Easter is also a reminder for me to put my focus back on Jesus and to allow the truth of the gospel to make a discernible difference in my life.