PHYSICAL REACTION

Today started off like any other.  I arrived at work at the appropriate time, clocked in, and started my preparations for heading down to Camp Atterbury.  For those of you who are unaware, Southport Road Chick-fil-A has a trailer that we keep on post (my understanding is that "on post" is the correct way to say it).  We prepare food at the store, load it up in warmers and coolers, and bring it down to Atterbury to sell to the soldiers.  This has been my routine now for the last couple of months.  Other than determining the number of sandwiches to bring, nothing really changes.  Everything usually goes as planned and rarely do we deviate from that plan.

That was the way it happened today...until we arrived at the trailer.  Waiting by the door of the trailer was the Health Inspector.  Now...let me say that I have worked for Chick-fil-A for over two years and I know the quality and care we put into our restaurant and our food.  We are meticulous when it comes to the standards set by the Board of Health.  There was absolutely NOTHING that I was worried about as far as the Health Inspector was concerned.

Yet, I found myself anxious and fearful because of the authority this man holds.  It was the same feeling you get when you drive past a police officer.  It does not matter whether you are speeding or driving under the speed limit.  When you see a police officer...you inevitably hit the brakes--it is unavoidable.  Sometimes we are even tricked to hit the brakes when we see a mall cop.  Our bodies have a physical reaction when it comes to the authority these people have in our lives.

And that got me thinking...do we give God the respect and authority He deserves?  Do we have a good "fear" of the Lord with the authority He has over our lives?  I'm not talking about a "scared" fear, but a fear of awe and respect.  God has so much more authority than these others that I have talked about.  Yet, how often to we acknowledge that authority.  We freak out when we see a police officer when we are speeding; do we freak out when we are sinning?  We may not see God, but He surely sees us.  And that should cause us to have some kind of a physical reaction.

GOD'S GOT IT

This morning I had a couple of early morning meetings.  My first meeting was awesome, but it also caused me to think about a few things--things with which I was struggling.  I really should say it this way: the flesh side of me was really struggling with the thoughts I was having; the spirit side of me was simply saying, "God's got it."  As much as I know of how good and faithful God is and as much as I have experienced His goodness and faithfulness, the flesh side of me was just rolling this around painfully in mind.


My second meeting was in Bargersville, so I had a little time on my hands to continue in this brain battle.  "I don't like this", "God's got it", "I don't like this", "God's got it", "I don't like this", "God's got it", "I don't like this", "God's got it".  It absolutely consumed my thoughts.  "God's got it" has been my mantra this year.  I've learned to trust in Him more over the last few years than I have over any other period of my life.  "God's got it" has been a nice reminder for me.  Now the spirit side of me was starting to win, so I cranked on some praise music.  I was really trying to give this over to the Lord.


But heading down my last stretch of highway 135, the thought came back of the "tragedy" that was possibly coming down the road for me (at least that was where my mind was taking me; for me, the homeland security threat level was at red with this situation).  But instead of my spirit side continuing the battle by saying, "God's got it", I heard, "I've got it".


And at that moment, the truck in front of me threw a rock. It wasn't huge, but it was large enough that I saw it coming the minute that truck tire launched it.  Now, I've been driving for 17 years and I have had many instances of using my windshield to play badminton with rocks.  I remember one time when my dad and I were on a trip and a truck threw a rock so large that it caused both of us to duck when we saw it coming and the sound of the impact actually caused our ears to pop.


So, here I am, bracing for impact--kind of squinting my eyes waiting for the horrible sound of granite on glass...


And what I got was a sound that would be comparable to someone rolling a pair of dice on a wooden table.  Not only was that unbelievable, but the rock--traveling who knows how fast hitting a car traveling 60 mph--barely bounced and nestled itself on my windshield wiper.  And there it sat, for the remainder of my drive...smiling at me (as some rocks do) and reminding me that God's got it.


And that got me thinking...we have an amazing God.  We believe in the God of the universe--the God who created everything.  God's got it.  I still may not like it, but God's got it.

IT'S WORTH IT

Well, I'm back...in Indiana and the Blog World.  I am sure a lot of you were thinking that my blog was a sparkle-and-fade thing that only lasted a week.  I hope that you stuck with me in my absence and were checking in.  My family was blessed with a vacation to Disney World (thanks Mom and Dad).  I didn't mention that we would be away because I completely anticipated writing my blog while on vacation.  Yes, I brought my computer to Disney World.


It would have been fantastic.  I had so many "And that got me thinking..." stories that it blew my mind (if you were in church on Sunday, you heard only 15 of them--and that was from a six-day trip).  I don't know if it was because I was relaxing more (if you can do that at Disney), or if it was because I was away from my normal; I don't know what it was...but I was getting all kinds of ideas for blog entries everywhere I went.


However, it did not happen.  I didn't write any of them.  I could say that I was exhausted every night when we got back to the hotel, but I think I would have been able to push through to get something written for you.  I could also say that I was on vacation and I wanted to spend time only with my family (very valid), but I usually write my blogs after everyone is already in bed anyway.  The main reason for not writing my blog while at Disney World was the fact that it cost $10 A DAY to have internet capabilities.  I love you all and I love writing my blog...but I'm not throwing down that kind of cash to write a few stories.


And that got me thinking...what are we willing to throw down for the Lord?  Are we willing to pay the price to be a follower of Jesus?  As ridiculous as $10 a day sounded to me, the price to follow the Lord is even more so--we have to throw down our very lives.  We have to give up our wants, our desires, our very selves to be a disciple.


Does that mean that our lives will be miserable?  Absolutely not.  Our wants and our desires will be replaced with the Lord's wants and the Lord's desires.  We will WANT to do the things that bring us closer to Him; we will WANT to give up the things that don't please Him.  So does this mean that it's going to be easy and great?  Not all the time.  But unlike the $10 a day...it's worth it.




P.S.  On a side-note, we met a wonderful, like-minded family while at Disney.  Check out their family blog in my Blogroll to the right--My Blessed Home.  Michelle has all kinds of great ideas and information about family life.  And she obviously knows what she is talking about because her seven kids were the best-behaved at Disney World.

STOP WEAVING

Have you ever seen this in your rearview mirror?  For me, way too many times.  People are in such a hurry today on the roads.  They drive at speeds that are unsafe; they make gutsy cuts and weaves; they put others in danger because of their selfishness.  They are everywhere.

Today I got to go to Camp Atterbury with Heather to serve sandwiches to the troops there.  I love working at Atterbury.  And I think one of the reasons is the half-hour drive each way.  I love driving.  But with that, I also have to endure many of the people I just described above.

The one today that got me thinking was a guy on a motorcycle.  He flew by us like we were standing still...but he didn't get too far.  Up ahead were two semis that were not going fast enough for his liking.  He weaved back and forth, back and forth between the two lanes trying to figure out which was faster.  I was honestly waiting for him to zip right between both of them in his impatience.

And that got me thinking...this is not just a phenomenon on the roads; this happens in almost every area of our lives, every minute.  We are an impatient people.  How often do we take the time to stop complaining while stuck in traffic to enjoy God's creation around us?  How often to we pull over at a scenic point to take a breath and enjoy the view?

And as I said, we are less than patient in other areas of our lives.  How frustrated do we get when God does not answer our prayers in our timing?  God always answers our prayers--it's either "yes", "no", or "wait".  And I believe that God's favorite answer (our least favorite) is "wait".  But I believe that God is teaching us something in those waiting times.

Because the Lord is teaching you something, whether it is on the road or in other areas of life, enjoy the times of waiting.  Stop weaving from lane to lane and enjoy the journey He has planned for you.

CHECKING EVERY SEAM

Today I had to return an item that I had picked up from Target yesterday.  I have no issue with returning things if something is not right.  That goes from clothing items that are not the right size, from damaged items, all the way to restaurant food that does not meet my expectations.  So it is not the fact that I hate returning items in general.  However, today I hated returning this item because it was my fault that I had to return it.


Heidi is really good at checking things over before we buy them.  When we buy clothing, she spends a good amount of time checking every seam to make sure there are no loose threads.  Most of the time when I buy goods, I give them a quick look over to make sure there is nothing obvious.  This time...I did not look.


Heidi had found coupon caddies at Target for 50 cents.  And the way we go through coupon caddies, this was a great deal.  She bought a couple of them and then asked if I could pick up a few more after work yesterday.  Not a problem...with picking them up.  What was the problem was how I picked them up.  I found the bin where they were, reached in, grabbed a bunch of them, and marched off to the checkout lanes.  I never once looked at them, checked them out, or investigated as to whether they were up to par.  Today, I returned one of them because the closing strap latch was not there...it was broken.


And that got me thinking...how often do we pick a church without investigating its beliefs and doctrine?  How often do we accept a pastor's word on what a Scripture means without looking into other Scriptures to verify it?  How often to we just reach in and grab a bunch of theology without checking it out to make sure some of it is not junk?


Now...what I do NOT want you to hear is that you can dishonor or disrespect your pastor.  They are in a place of honor and authority--Romans 13:1.  But I am one of them and I realize that I am not perfect; I am human.  I have told many of my church members, "Don't take my word on it.  Go and search the Scriptures yourself."


What I am saying, is that we should not blindly run in our Christian lives.  We need to ask questions; we need to study the Bible ourselves.  We need to check every seam to make sure it's not going to unravel.

A NEW ROUTINE

Today was my first day back to work after our trip to Wisconsin for Heidi's grandparents' 65th wedding anniversary.  So that meant that I had not been to work for nine days.  Nine days of not having to get up early to shower, get ready, drive to work, be on any kind of schedule is long enough to make it into a new routine.  Let me tell you how hard it was this morning to get up and get ready for work.


Having any kind of alarm was annoying, having to drag myself out of bed was a chore, getting ready was torture, and driving to work felt like the end of the world.  Now, before my boss reads this and fires me, let me say that I truly appreciate my job; I have a great time while I am there.  So why was it so difficult to go this morning?  I had a new routine.


And that got me thinking...it is the same way with our relationship with the Lord.  Take a couple of Sundays off from going to worship; neglect to read the Bible for a week; get out of your routine of spending time in prayer and you will find that it is difficult to get back to where you were.  You have a new routine.


So how do we get back?  We drudge through it.  Pick up that Bible, spend time in prayer, wake up for worship.  We just have to push through and eventually it will not feel like a task.  What starts out as a discipline will become a delight...and you will enjoy your new routine.

LEARNED MY LESSON

I had breakfast this morning with a couple of my friends.  It was at a restaurant that I don't frequent often.  However, I knew exactly what I was going to get.  The last time I ate there, I found a Mediterranean Breakfast Wrap--delicious!  It was like a breakfast gyro with all kinds of other good ingredients.  One of those ingredients was feta cheese.  I love feta cheese.


Well, last time I ate there, I was not all that hungry so I decided to save half of the wrap for a little later.  And please hear me that I did not leave this thing sitting out for hours on end (I'm not in college anymore).  I don't remember how long now, but I don't think it was much over an hour, but...it was sitting in a warm car.


It was still good...in flavor.  But that is when I learned that feta cheese is more of a "fragile" cheese.  You cannot leave it sitting out in a warm car.  Let's just say that I did not feel all that well later that day--for most of the day--in fact, I felt like I was dying.


So...this time, I ate the whole thing.  I learned my lesson.


And that got me thinking...why don't we learn our lesson when it comes to sinning?  Why do we continue to do the same sin over and over again?  I would say most of us feel conviction from the Holy Spirit and we feel bad about our sin.  But then come Thursday, we are right back there doing it again (make that Thursday, Friday, Saturday...or so it seems).


We need to learn our lesson; we need to feel like we are dying.  God wants us to live with Him, but there needs to be change within us.  Salvation is more than just saying a prayer--it's about life-change and looking like Jesus.  We can say all we want about what we believe, but if there is no life-change we don't really believe.  A change in belief HAS to be followed by a change in behavior...otherwise you don't really believe it.


So, I guess my prayer for tomorrow is this: when I sin Lord, make me feel like I am dying.  We need to learn our lesson.

STRIVING TO PLEASE THE FATHER

Today was the day that I have been dreading for six months...Braden and Caleb's second trip to the dentist.  I probably do not need to tell you why I was dreading it because I'm sure you figured out by my opening sentence that their first visit was not the most enjoyable.  And if clarification is needed, by me saying that "their first visit was not the most enjoyable" I mean to say that I would have rather brushed my own teeth with a broom used to pick up trash at an amusement park.


We have been building them up for this day for a few weeks now: having them practice opening their mouths really wide; closing their mouths to "bite" for the dentist; telling them that the dentist would be proud of how well they have been brushing their teeth.  You name it, we probably did it.


So, we drive to the appointment, we build them up some more with the promise of good things to come after they do so well, they march in to the office ahead of Heidi and me with a look of determination on their faces.  And I knew without a shadow of doubt that things would absolutely fall apart the minute we walked inside.


And that got me thinking...our Heavenly Father knows us that well, and knows how we are going to fail Him each and every day.  Yet He keeps encouraging us to do better.  He keeps pushing us to do better, to be better, to be more and more like His Son.  No matter where you are in your walk with the Lord, it can be better.  You could spend more time in prayer, more time in the Word, less time thinking about or doing the things that you know do not please Him.


You know what?  My boys surprised me with how they did at the dentist...Caleb in particular.  He did not want anything to do with the tooth tools at first, but after that he was doing it just like we had practiced at home.  He did great.  I was surprised and very pleased.


I know we cannot surprise our Heavenly Father with His whole omniscient thing, but we certainly can please Him.  Matthew 5:48 tells us that God wants us to be perfect like He is perfect.  "Whoa!  That's a tall order.  Can we even get there?"  I don't know...but that is something for which we should strive.

CAN'T WAIT TO RECONNECT

We just got back this evening from visiting family in Wisconsin.  It was a wonderful trip.  The weather was GORGEOUS (Let's just say that I'm still a Wisconsin boy when it comes to weather.  When we left Indy on Tuesday morning at 9:00a it was already 79 degrees; when we pulled into my hometown, it was peaking at 61 degrees.);  the visiting with family was great; the 65th wedding anniversary celebration was very nice.  All in all, it was a great trip.

The last time I was back home was in January when my grandmother turned 100 years old, but before that it had been over two years since my last visit.  There were a lot of people and relatives to see, things to do, and favorite foods to eat.  A lot of good things happened.  However, something also happened that was not-so-good (Heidi may disagree with this because of my slight addiction to technology).  I had no connection to the internet!  (Click here to see how I felt about that.)  My parents had a weak connection on their computer but that was not what I was used to and it really frustrated me when I would constantly be kicked off.  I couldn't even "borrow" someone else's wireless--there was nothing out there and that was how it was at both sets of parents' homes.

And that got me thinking...how often do we lose our connection with God?  And when we lose that connection, do we get upset about it?  Do we continuously try over and over again to find a way to get connected?  Or do we simply move on to other things like it's not a big deal?

All too often in this world of technology, we spend too much time in communication with people who really have no impact on our lives and spend absolutely no time with our God who has impacted us so greatly.  We haven't talked to them since graduation, but we spend hours asking old friends from high school to help build our farms in Farmvile but spend no time asking our Savior to build our character and lives into one that resembles His.

I was able to send and receive a few emails through my phone, but even that connection was bad.  I was able transfer a few of my old blogs to this new one.  I was able to make a few phone calls and read some text messages.  But overall, my communication with the outside world was very poor.  I couldn't wait to get back home so that I could get reconnected.

For those of you waiting for replies, my apologies for not getting back to you; they will be coming in the near future.  In the meantime, while you wait for me to reconnect with you, spend some time with the Lord...He can't wait to reconnect.