“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.” 2 Corinthians 4:7

I felt stupid. Having just been given a brand new fishing rod and reel from Clint, I fell and broke it. Within 2 weeks he gave me a new one. Last weekend, I clumsily stepped on the reel and bent the handle. I put it in his vice and straightened it out, but that wasn’t good enough for Clint. As I left, he handed me my rod with his nice reel on it! I was blown away!

Over the years I have acquired about a dozen fishing poles. I’ve NEVER fallen or broken one… EVER. Neither have I accidentally stepped on a reel and bent it. It just seemed that some kind of bad luck was following me. I was irritated at myself for being such an oaf with MUCH nicer equipment. And a GIFT after all! But it made me appreciate my son even more!

I was thinking about him this morning as I was reading about God in 2 Corinthians. For the first several chapters, Paul makes it a point to tell me of all the gifts I have which have come from God. That I don’t deserve them is the point! It shows HIS generosity, providing me a model to follow in my own giving. It made me appreciate God and HIS Son too!

So Thank you Clint for the GREAT gift of a GREAT fishing rod and reel. I certainly don’t deserve them. But I commit to being more careful and appreciative of BOTH gifts… from both you AND God! It shows that you both want me to be a good fisherman… one for fish.. and the other for Men! Are YOU genuinely appreciative of all you’ve received?

“In his defense Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.” John 5:17

“I just LOVE your SON!” If I heard it once I heard it over a dozen times. And it wasn’t about just ONE of my sons. Both were mentioned by people I didn’t even know. It was an annual maritime shindig, and because I’m dad, I got invited. It is ALWAYS fun to go and meet people who work with and know my offspring. I feel like royalty… because I AM!

Growing up a Preacher’s kid is kind of a tough gig. Expectations ya know!? I was always either living up to them, or falling far from them. But they were ALWAYS THERE. It came with the genes. I didn’t ask for, or volunteer for it. But dad did. And his boss was always Jesus. He made that perfectly clear. Living under HIS roof, his expectations of me were the same.

I guess it just rubbed off. I was tough on my kids as they grew up. Having been continually reminded of my special relationship with God and HIS Son, I was always looked at like my attitude and actions should mimic Theirs. It just kind of became the main goal in every situation. So it wasn’t a surprise to hear that my offspring were great examples as leaders.

The goal was always to encourage my kids to grow up to be better than me. That’s how my dad saw it too. I expect MY kids will continue to hold that very tough measuring tape for my grand-kids. It’s just how it’s done. Not because of who ‘I’ am.. but because of ‘WHOSE’ I am. I am not Ken’s kid. I am GOD’S Prince! And the world is supposed to see that naturally.

Who do YOU represent and how do others see you? Are YOU working with the Father to become like His child?? The crown can get pretty painful at times. That’s the nature of Thorns.

“We who are Jews by birth and not sinful Gentiles know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ.” Galatians 2:15-16a

Signs are meant to get attention… to sell something… to satisfy a need or desire. The sign at the fast food restaurant said, “try our strawberry pie!” For some reason it triggered a memory of their apple pie I used to enjoy. In my head I was eating one. So I turned into the drive thru and ordered an apple pie. The place was busy, but with every inch, I anticipated.

It took about ten minutes to get to the pickup line, but when I got there, the lady inside the building spoke in broken English, “we no have apple pie!” My reply was direct and to the point… “HUH? Why didn’t you tell me that when I ordered one?” Yes, I was upset. I had built up expectation and anticipation that was not going to be achieved. She didn’t understand!

Jerry Reed said it in a song long ago. “He who expects nothin’, ain’t gonna be deceived!” But what would Earth be like if I didn’t know and have the expectation of Jesus and Heaven? In talking to some people this week, I was again surprised at the lack of expectations for life after death. When I asked them what they thought happened after death, they had no idea!

Maybe I need a better sign! Or a bolder move? I KNOW what will happen when I die. I will go to Heaven to see Jesus. That expectation met will only be followed by a greater and glorious life than I have here. With THAT kind of knowledge, maybe I can help improve people’s expectations of a better life here… AND there. What expectations are YOU living with?

“For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God.” Galatians 2:19

Like Elvis, I was ‘caught in a trap!’ The fancy term is ‘agathokakological!’ And I was living it to the maximum! The word simply means “consisting of both good and evil.” And while I could easily have made the excuse that “Everybody does it,” the truth of the matter is that God doesn’t care what everybody else does. He cares about ME and what ‘I’ do! I was blowing it.

My intention was good. At least it started off that way. Something that I did as a good gesture of faith actually started to turn out to be much more than I had bargained for. It was supposed to be simple. But ‘IT’ turned complicated and costly. The joy I had at the first quickly dispersed into something completely the opposite! God was showing me something!

Starting off the cleaning of the pool area to make my bride happy, turned into a much bigger job than initially thought. Soon I realized that the work I had figured on putting in at the start… tripled. I wasn’t happy about it! I’d been confident and joyful at the beginning. But soon, in light of the real amount of work, I got grumpy and could FEEL the change!

It’s easy to label myself a loser or bad guy based upon how I feel. The standard of excellence can easily reveal the fact that I am NOT perfect. But this verse today gives me a new vision. God does NOT see me as a bad guy with potential. He sees me as PERFECT… ALL THE TIME! The OLD imperfect me died when I became HIS. Now all I need to do is remember that!

Don’t be two faced

“What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ.” Philippians 3:8

The ice-maker in my refrigerator quit working! It was fine… then just stopped. Too many times I went to get ice, only to have nothing go into the glass. UGH! This was not the first time the problem had come up. The problem was, the last time was several years ago, and I don’t remember what I did to fix it then. So I ran to the store, bought ice, then dumped it in.

The method worked! For a while. Until it ran out of ice again and I had to run to the store and buy ice again! Finally I’d had enough. I was going to have to go in and tear it apart to find out what was wrong. Maybe I would get lucky! Finding instructions online, I began troubleshooting item by item. When all was done and I could do no more. I shut the door.

It was later in the evening when I heard the sound of ICE being dumped into the bin! “OH MY!”I thought! “Could it BE?” When I awoke the next morning, the ice bin was full! It was all fixed! And the crazy part was, I have no idea what I did to fix it! Except give it all my attention! It had to be in the programming somewhere, but I had no idea where!

“Jesus Works” is a favorite saying of mine. It helps to know that when things in my life… don’t! Sometimes all it takes is to stop trying to fix things myself, and give it over to ‘The Master’ to handle. After all, I can be rather complicated in my self-programming. Are there things in YOUR life that aren’t working? I’m going to focus only on Knowing Jesus! You?  It’s something to consider!

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6

“Spring Break” was last week, which meant that kids, and Katie, were out of school. I took a break myself in some areas. Last Friday, my youngest daughter, the Parker Family, came for a couple days visit. When they arrived, the kids did what they always do… they went to the toy closet, opened the door and pulled out toys. This game was among them.

I must confess I have never played this game, But soon, dad was reading the instructions as they dove into the pretend world of unlocking a safe. The difference in this game? There was a real electric timer! All the moves they made were actually under the added pressure of a clock. Soon, the boys acted as if it was real! To them, fantasy had become reality!

Reading this verse this morning out of an old Bible my dad had given me, helped me appreciate ‘The Faith’ he had led me to have. Because of His instructions, I know God IS real. I have come to appreciate the rewarded life as I have placed my trust in Him in many areas over the years. I know that God is not a fantasy, and that He really DOES what He says!

As I look out over the world I see tension and stress. News stories are filled with desperate people doing desperate things that, if they believed and trusted in God, they would have no reason for fear or worry. What a difference God and Faith can make!

When the kids left, I gave them the game to take home. After all, they had learned how to play and enjoy it. Now, it would be wasted in my closet. How about YOU? Are YOU facing today’s game of life with earnest faith and trust in The Savior? Based upon today’s verse, you will surely enjoy it more… with Him. 

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you.” 1 Peter 1:3-4

Recently, after a rainstorm, I raised my eyes to see the horizon and was treated to the most beautiful full rainbow I have ever seen. I watched it with Katie, then after about 15 minutes… it faded away. May today’s verse from God’s Living Word be seen as a promise that His love and care will NEVER fade from my life. I am more blessed than I know and need no pot of gold. What about you?  

“continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good purpose.” Philippians 2:12b-13

My legs hurt! It’s all my fault… but it’s not! Yesterday was gym day… so we went to the gym. I hate the gym. Not raised with athletic parents, I wasn’t encouraged to work on my body or engage in any physical sports or activities. So consequently… I didn’t. Realizing that was a mistake, we pressed our kids to become physically minded as well as spiritual. They did.

It wasn’t until about 5 years ago that I met a gym instructor that drove home the importance of exercise. Usually that kind of talk turned me off, but he moved me forward in time to a point in time where I would be old. Would I be able to walk around, feed and take care of myself? Or would I have to depend on my kids to wheel me around and nurse me?

My legs hurt because I worked out yesterday. Now they ache. A gym rat would be happy about that. Me? Not so much. But like it or not, I am spending effort and time to strengthen my walk. Which is what God is calling me to do today in the verse above. It states that God is working INSIDE of me, in order to work OUTSIDE of me. I am called to cooperate!

Is God calling YOU to spend time with Him? Is He trying to encourage you to put effort into your relationship with Him and to grow stronger every day? Are you cooperating with His call to you? Yes… it could be a strain, even a little uncomfortable at times. But God promises to work in, and through you, for your own strength. How about it? 

“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18

It was study on Ephesians, but it was really a look at our ‘focus.’ Our FLAP Bible Study was taking a look at all the doctrines of what we believe just from Ephesians 1 alone. Things like Grace, Peace, being chosen or predestined, given All Spiritual Blessings in Christ… NOW! It made me realize how much time I focus on the past and present, instead of the Eternal.

This morning I read a paraphrase of C.S. Lewis that said, “When we get to heaven, it’s not that we look back and see the reasons bad things happen and say, ‘Oh, that’s why that happened!’ Rather, we will say, ‘What bad things?’ In that moment we will be so consumed with God’s finished product we will scarcely remember the process he used!” WOW!

Working on my taxes yesterday, I had an underlying worry that I might do something wrong or miss something. Even in preparing for Bible Study, I subconsciously was concerned I might miss something or not make something interesting or clear. When I read an article about what life will be like in Eternity, and that it is FOREVER… I had to smile. What real worries?

J.D. Greear said, “For the believer, the brief pain of this world is the closest to hell they will ever come; for the unbeliever, the brief pleasure of this world is the closest to heaven they will ever come. And it is just seconds away!” How profound. And it puts into perspective where and how I should look at my life today. What about YOU? Where is YOUR focus?