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.

LUNCH BREAK

Today was a busy day for me at Steve's.  I guess that I can figure that Saturdays in the summer months will usually be busy because of all the weddings.  We had six weddings today.  I really don’t have to worry about the weddings—I’m the new guy—but that does mean that more of the “regular” deliveries fall on me.

Don’t get me wrong, I love this job and I’m really not complaining.  I don’t mind working hard, particularly for Steve.  But, I was running all day long and wasn’t even able to take my lunch.  I could have stopped for the half-hour to eat my lunch, but that would have gotten me home thirty minutes later for supper.

As I said, I’m not complaining and it’s really not a big deal.  All I had to do was eat the lunch that I brought as I was driving to make my deliveries.  I didn’t need the “break” and I was able to eat what my body needed.

And that got me thinking…how often do we not take the break that we need to be with the Lord.  All too often we run around from here to there and back without even thinking about the Lord.  But the reality is that each and every day, we need to set aside time to sit in the presence of the Lord—speaking and listening; praying and reading the Word.

If you find yourself on occasion not being able to take the time, quickly read a Proverb or Psalm.  That is better than nothing, but it’s not going to give us the spiritual nutrition and sustenance that we need to make it for the long haul.  We need to have that break where we can be alone and commune with the Father and “be filled” with what we need.  To do this, some of us may have to get up a half-hour earlier; some may have to reschedule some things in their life.  Whatever it is that needs to be done…do it.

You cannot make it through this life with the “nutrition” you need by snacking on the way.  Take a break, sit down, and have lunch.

Check out one of my first posts for more information on this.

RESTED AND READY

I’m back!!  Not that I’ve really gone anywhere…but I’ve been away from my blog for quite some time.  Thank you to those of you who kept encouraging me to write again–that means a lot.

I missed writing these blogs but at the end of each day…I didn’t have it in me to write.  The Lord has been taking me on quite a journey over the last two months (that’s how long it’s been since I’ve written).

I’ve hopefully picked up my “survival job” to help us make it through financially, while starting the new church.  I’ve been working a couple of days a week for Steve's Flowers and Gifts.  Hopefully that will turn into something a little more as time goes on.  But it’s the perfect job.  They aren’t open on Sundays, I love driving (their van and their gas), I get to listen to my own music (I’m praising the Lord all day long), and I get to make people’s day by delivering some of the most beautiful arrangements and floral pieces I’ve ever seen (Steve and his designers do amazing work).  Not to mention, I used to write my best stories and sermons riding the lawn mower; I’m hoping that riding in the van will have the same benefits when I start preaching again.

I worked quite a bit on Resurrected Life and the process of getting started.  I am almost finished with the process of writing and will be soon announcing a meeting time for anyone interested in hearing who Resurrected Life Church will be.  As you can see, Jessica Mack did a phenomenal job with our logo.  Not only is she talented, but she put up with me and my “not-as-talented artistic” opinions.  Thank you Jessica!!

Here’s what I love about the logo:

• The logo simply emphasizes exactly who the church is.
• Right at the center is the cross of Christ, created by the tail of the dove crossing the “I” of LIFE.
• The dove, itself, is a sign of new life.  It was the dove that brought back the olive branch to Noah after the flood.
• The dove is soaring toward the sky in the logo.  After a “death” following my previous ministry, I am ready to come alive again in my new calling and ministry.  And we are all called to be resurrected to a new life after dying to self in order to follow Christ.
• The dove is the color of “new life”–very fresh and spring-like.

I am ready to fulfill the Lord’s calling in my life.  I pray each day for the ministry and people to whom I will be entrusted.  It’s a great calling and I am humbled by it.  I am in no way big enough to do it on my own.  I praise God for walking the journey with me.  I pray for those that the Lord will put in my path to help with the vision and mission of Resurrected Life.  The best part of all of this is that the Lord has it all figured out already…I simply need to follow through with His plan.

And that got me thinking…I am truly blessed.

WAKE THEM UP!

Today was my last day at my current survival job.  I knew that this job would be ending because it was only a temporary thing, helping out in the front office of the company.  Being that I was at the front desk, I needed to dress professionally—luckily, it only required business casual.  But even though today was my very last day, it was also my first Friday working there.  So…I didn’t realize that we could dress down and wear jeans on Friday.

When I got in the car this morning with my driving partner, she said, “Today is “jean day”…you can go back in and change if you want.”  She went on to explain that she didn’t want to call and wake the boys up since we leave so early in the morning.

And that got me thinking…do we not tell people about Jesus and the salvation He brings because we’re afraid that we will wake someone up?  If so, we have to change our thinking.  We NEED to wake some people up.  This news is too important to worry about how others “feel”; this news is too important to worry about offending someone.  Tell them about the love of Jesus whether they like it or not…because there will come a time when it’s too late.  When I stepped out that door this morning, it was too late—there was no turning back to change for “jean day”. 

As great of a day as it would have been wearing jeans…it wouldn’t have even come close to what it will be like on the Day of the Lord.  As saddened as I was to not get the news early enough for “jean day”, it pales in comparison to how those who don’t know Jesus will feel when He returns.

Don’t be afraid…wake them up!

STAY CONNECTED

I spent most of the day at Panera Bread working on church stuff.  I like working there because I can really concentrate for some reason.  It doesn’t matter how many people are there or how loud it gets…I can concentrate.  It also helps that they have free Wi-Fi; I can stay connected to people and am able to do research on the internet.  Not to mention that I can buy a cup of coffee and get refills all day long.

The only problem that I’ve found is that I get booted off the Wi-Fi about once an hour.  I don’t know if they do that on purpose with their system, or if it’s just a glitch.  Either way…it was frustrating.  I’d go to send an email—no connection.  I’d try to look up something for research—no connection.  I started listening to music online and after awhile, the music would shut off—no connection.

And that got me thinking…how often do we lose our connection with the Lord?  How often does the Lord try to give us instruction, wisdom for a situation, or an answer to a prayer…but we’re not connected?  We’re too busy; we’re not focused; we’re simply not listening.

I have no doubt that if God really wanted to, he would be able to get the message across…and sometimes he does, and it feels like a 2 x 4 across the side of the head.  But for the most part, God wants us to be open and receptive to His instruction.  God is a gentleman and doesn’t force Himself on us.  We need to be connected.

And so, in my cheesiest thoughts…we need to forget Wi-Fi connections and focus on our Thy-Guy Connection.  Stay Connected.

SLIPPING BETWEEN THE PLANKS

This morning, before the temperature dropped 30 degrees and the weather got all nasty, I decided to work out in the garage. Being that we moved from 2800 square feet into 900 square feet, we have “a few” boxes out in the garage. We have sold a bunch of stuff, yet, we still have some more to sell. But for the most part it’s starting to take shape and work. Heidi’s brother came down a couple of weeks ago and took a truckload back with him to store at the in-laws’ house. And I’ve been organizing and repacking boxes to make them better for storage in the garage along with starting to hang things to free up floorspace (if you’ve never seen a full-size mattress and box-spring hanging on a garage ceiling, you should come over sometime). Ultimately, the goal is to be able to pull the van into the garage.

The other task that I have been trying to accomplish to free up that floorspace is to store things up in the attic above the garage. There were some nice planks left up there so that I could store quite a bit of our belongings up there. Obviously, I’ve been storing only those things that we rarely use or are seasonal. For instance, there is a tote of baby clothes; there is a tote of maternity clothes; I have the fans stored up there…I think you get the picture.

But today, I decided that I was going to try to put the jumper up there. We have this amazing jumper from when the boys were younger. They used to jump in that thing forever. Both Braden and Caleb loved it. I remember watching both of them jump and jump and jump. I remember Braden actually falling asleep in it because he was so exhausted from jumping. There are some good memories with that jumper.

However, it is horribly awkward and large. It doesn’t really fold down into a nice pocket-sized piece; it just basically stays as it is. So, due to the fact that both of the boys are too big for it now, and due to the fact that I need as much floorspace as possible, I decided to put it in the attic.

Well, let’s just say that I was glad to see that the builder of the house used this jumper as the measuring rod when cutting the attic opening. It barely fit through (and by barely, I mean pushing on it while squeezing some of it together to try to spring it through). But the problem really came when I realized that I only had a couple of options as to where I could put it—I have used the attic space well with all of our other stuff. Unfortunately, the roof-line was completely in the wrong place and kept me from putting it the way I wanted it in the place I wanted it. So, I decided to try to turn it; I decided to flip it; I tried everything and it wouldn’t fit properly.

But then it got worse. The top of the jumper legs on the one side decided to slip in between the planks. It was the leg on the far side and I couldn’t get it to budge due to the position of the jumper, the awkwardness of the size , and the fact that I was standing on the top of my ladder.

And that got me thinking…we need to be careful in our daily walks because we all have those little areas of sin where we fall straight in. It doesn’t matter who you are, or how long you’ve been a Christian, or even if your walk is mostly aligned with the life of Christ—there’s that one area that grabs you every time. And it always seems that those certain areas are the hardest to get out of–they just really get a hold of you.

We need to be on guard as we go through life in our Christian walks—we are not immune to sinning. Don’t even go near those areas that cause you trouble. Stay far away from them and turn yourself toward Jesus.

Eventually, I was able to get it out…but it wasn’t because I was able to force it by pulling hard. I was only able to get it out by turning it in order to release some of the resistance that was holding it so tightly.

Turn yourself toward Jesus so much that you’re not even capable of slipping between the planks.

YOUR PLACE

Today was a very frustrating day for me. I felt like I worked all day—and I did…but I got nothing accomplished. It was one of those days that seemed to rush by and I was busy with all kinds of tasks, but didn’t get to what I really needed to do today.

Today was a day for sending out resumes for my “survival job” and to work on my sermon for Sunday. (Shameless plug: I’m preaching at Indianapolis Christian Fellowship on Sunday if any of you want to come for worship.) What makes it worse is that Heidi has been great during this time of working on the new church. She has been trying to get out of the house with the boys so that I can have a quiet house for concentration. So, she was gone for most of the morning with the boys for a play date and the early afternoon was quiet with the boys napping and Heidi running errands…yet nothing of what I wanted to do today got done. My mind just kept wandering. I kept thinking about what else I could have been doing around the house and then actually doing those things around the house. Yet now, I can’t even think about what I did do.

The problem with today was that I wasn’t focused. When I used to write my sermons I would go to certain places to write them. These weren’t necessarily quiet places, but places that I used mainly for crafting my sermons. When I walked in and sat down (usually in the same seat), I became focused on the task at hand. I had quiet today…but no focus.

And that got me thinking…how often are we focused when we have our quiet times with the Lord. So often in our busy, rushed lives (see yesterday’s blog) we have our “quiet time” in the not-so-quiet…if we get to it at all. Think about the last time that you were focused and quiet in the presence of God. (Insert Jeopardy’s Theme Music here). And I don’t mean that to be insulting or disrespectful, for I know this doesn’t apply to everyone. But my guess is, for the most part, that people are too busy to quiet themselves enough to truly sit in the presence of the Lord and listen.

We need to focus; we need to take the time; we need to have a place where we can go and be in the throne room of God. A place that is protected for that purpose—your place. Now, I’m not saying that nothing else can be done there; but for you…you should keep that place for your time with the Lord. Don’t do homework there; don’t do work there. It is reserved for God. By just sitting in your place, it becomes a preparation to be with the Lord.

Some of us don’t have those capabilities because of limited space (we’re in that situation now); you may need to go somewhere to have that place. Jesus was constantly removing himself from the people to be with the Father. Time and time again we read about how Jesus went somewhere to pray. He needed to get away and focus.

I don’t know what will work for you. What I do know is that we need to be focused in order to make our time with the Lord worthy of Him.

Find a place…your place.