Running on Empty

I think it is pretty safe to say that you are like me. No, I'm not saying that you are bald and growing a beard. What I am assuming is that you are like me because you are busy. Life gets pretty crazy with all of the stuff that we are doing, especially this time of the year as we celebrate the holidays by doing even more than we usually do. We don't have to work very hard at filling up our calendar, often times it fills itself up with all sorts of activities, games, meetings, events, gatherings, projects, etc. On the rare day/night that we don't have anything going on, we tend to either fill it up with things we have been meaning to do but haven't gotten around to or perhaps we plop down and veg out. At least that's what I do, between all of the things filling up my schedule, I tend to do a lot of nothing.

With all of that, I have come to realize that lately I have had to make time for God. I am doing it backwards! I shouldn't be making time for God, I should be taking time with God. It sounds pretty similar but really is quite different.

Remember when you were a teenager and the last thing you wanted to spend money on was gas for your car or you simply just didn't have very much money for gas? So what happened? If you were like me, you would put $5 - $10 in the tank (back when that would get you close to 5-10 gallons) and that would last you a few days. The problem was, you would be back at the gas station every couple of days getting gas again. As a teenager you didn't really think about or even care that you would also get less mileage out of the gas you were buying. A car gets better mileage when the gas tank is full.

We often have the same mentality with our spiritual life. We get just enough of God to get us through the next thing. But, I don't want to get just little bits of God that get me through the next thing, instead I want to be filled up. Like my gas mileage, my heart improves when I am filled up. Going through life with the needle constantly hovering around "E" is not what God wants or offers. He offers so much more. If you had the opportunity to have a gas card that had never ending money on it, wouldn't you fill up every time you went to the gas station? You also probably wouldn't wait until you were empty to get more. We have that opportunity with God but we have to stop making time for God and instead, take time with God.

We're #107

Can't you just hear the chants now? "We're number one hundred and seven, we're number one hundred and seven". Ok, so it doesn't really flow all that well and isn't what we typically strive for but that is where we find ourselves. No, I'm not talking about my favorite college football team's defensive ranking, I'm talking about where my wife and I find ourselves on the adoption waiting list with our agency.

Last week we officially finished the paperwork phase of the process when our Dossier was reviewed and deemed to be complete. That act placed us on the waiting list for a boy between 0 and 12 months from Ethiopia. Even though the process of getting to this point wasn't exactly easy (or cheap) it was easy compared to what lies ahead....waiting. We now are faced with the long process of watching our number decrease over the next months and potentially years.

Neither my wife nor I are very patient with waiting, once we know we want or need something, we tend to go for it. So we know that God will use this as a teaching moment for us and we will look to grow through this process. We also know that God already knows the little boy that he has for us and He will bring Him to us in His time. Please join us in praying for this little boy (we are naming him Malachi) as well as for his parents and for us. Even though he probably hasn't been born yet, we love him and are excited to add him to our family.

Help a Brother Out

Have you ever held your arms up for an extended period of time? What if you had to hold your arms up as long as you could, how long would that be? The first few minutes are pretty easy but what about five minutes or ten minutes? Maybe if it was really important you could muster enough strength and determination to do fifteen minutes. Most of us couldn't do more than that without some help.

A few thousand years ago, Moses (you know, the guy who as a baby was placed in a basket and found by the Pharaoh's daughter) was given just such a challenge. Joshua was leading the Israelites to war against the Amalekites and as long as Moses kept his arms up, the Israelites were winning. When he dropped his arms, the Amalekites would start to take control. Fortunately for Moses and the Israelites, he had his brother and another guy there to help keep his arms up and the Israelites ended up winning the war.

Moses needed help if the Israelites were going to be victorious and we need help too. My tendency is do things on my own, depend on myself, not ask for help even when I need it. That mindset leads to fatigue, isolation, and mistakes. It is also poor leadership and a poor example. I don't think I am alone in this tendency however.

What about you, do you allow people to help you? Let me put it this way, who knows when you are struggling? Or how about this, are you someone that other people seek help from? God did not design us to be alone. First and foremost He wants us to have relationship with Him and next he wants us to be in relationship with others. If nobody knows when you are struggling and/or you don't know when others are struggling, there is a problem.

Stop holding your arms up by yourself, get support from others and be a support to others, we can only hold our arms up for a few minutes without help.

I'm Pretty Much a Communication Expert

If you are married, you will probably relate to what happened with my wife and me today. We had to drive about 45 miles (one way) during rush hour traffic to an appointment to get our fingerprints taken for our adoption. Without traffic, this drive would have taken approximately 50 minutes but since we were supposed to be there at 8:00am, we anticipated the drive to be about 1 hour and 20 minutes, which it was but as we were sitting in traffic, we were certain that we were going to be late. We ended up getting to the facility about 8 minutes early only to discover that we needed $7 cash to park. Unfortunately neither of us had any cash, nor was there anywhere else obvious to park. My thought was that we should look for somewhere to get cash, her thought was that we should look for somewhere else to park. The problem was that neither of us really communicated what we were thinking yet we were each trying to solve the problem. As you can imagine, this led to some frustration and bickering (as well as a half mile jog/walk once we finally parked).

I don't really have any profound point to make other than the obvious comment that communication is important in pretty much anything we do. So with that amazing nugget, I encourage you to follow the advice of Jesus' brother James who said in James 1:19 "...Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry..." Being quick to offer grace and forgiveness is probably a good idea in these situations as well.

My wife and I quickly got over the situation but it is quite safe to say that we won't be competing on "The Amazing Race" together, though we probably would be entertaining to watch.

Life Lessons From a Sandwich Shop II: When is More Enough?

Awhile ago I did a blog post on a sign that I saw at Jimmy Johns (Jimmy Johns is a really good sandwich shop) and when I was there again recently, I saw the sign above and thought that it warranted a post. So, it looks like we have a series now; Lessons From a Sandwich Shop. Here is part 2.

It is human nature to want more than we have or at least different than we have. In America, that mindset really fuels the economy. Madison Avenue works diligently to convince us that what we have is not enough, that we must have the next, the bigger, the better. I am no different than most people. I have an iPod Touch and an iPhone, yet, I would really like an iPad2. I have a 42" HDTV but a bigger TV would be really cool. The possibilities for how this plays out are pretty much endless and unfortunately for many people includes spouses/families, don't like the one you've got, just get a new one.

That's where the wisdom of a sign at a sandwich shop comes in. When do we stop wanting more? When is the more that we already have enough? As the sign in the picture says; "the gap...never closes." If our focus is on stuff or money, we will never be satisfied because we can always have more than what we currently have.

Matthew 6:19-21 says this "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Store up things that matter, "treasures in heaven", and stop buying in to the lies that Madison Avenue tells us. Let God be enough and instead of striving for latest and greatest maybe you can help the millions for people around the world who don't even have food or water.

Isn't it amazing what you can get with a sandwich?

Steppin' Up

Well in just a few more days I will officially be the T.H.M.I.C. (Temporary Head Man In Charge) at Crosswater (under Jesus of course) as our lead pastor Aaron Day goes on a three month sabbatical.  As the day gets closer, I feel the potential burden more and more.  While I am a little freaked out about all this 3-month period will bring, I am also excited to see what God will do in Aaron, in me and in His church, Crosswater.

One of my many issues, is the tendency to rely on my own abilities to get the job done.  Fortunately, I am being made more aware of that tendency heading in to this period where that tendency could be even more detrimental than usual.  Please be praying for me to rely on God first and foremost and to put aside my efforts because it will take God to come out of this having grown and led well.

Please also be praying for Aaron as he spends time with God and his family.  Pray for wisdom and discernment as he seeks God's will for himself, his family and for Crosswater.

Finally, please pray that this would be a time of spiritual growth for the people of Crosswater.

In Awe of God

Have you ever just sat and marveled at the power and majesty of God?  Last week I was able to have a few days with my wife's family on the Oregon Coast.  The house we stayed in was a block or two away from the beach, yet, we were able to hear the waves from the house.  Of course as we got closer to the beach and then on the beach, the sound of the waves was even louder.  One morning I just sat on the beach and listened to the waves and looked out at the Pacific Ocean and was in awe of God.  There is such power in those waves and the Pacific Ocean is so huge, that you can't help but notice how big God is.

All around us, we can see the hand of God in His creation.  Sure, many people have come up with other thoughts and theories on how we all got here but make no mistake, God is revealed by His creation.  Far too often, I just do my thing, live my life and I don't recognize or acknowledge the hand of God all around me.  If you haven't taken time to marvel at the power and majesty of God lately (or ever), I encourage you to take time this week to find a place where you can just sit and see God's creation around you.  We are fortunate in Washington to have beautiful mountains, lakes, waterfalls, beaches, forests, rivers, etc. that all point to God.  Wherever you are, take a look around you at what God has done and know that the God who created all of these amazing and beautiful things, loves you and sent His son to die for you!  For that, I am truly in awe of God.