Commitment to Press On

My amazing 12-year old daughter, Shelby, has followed the TV show Jon and Kate Plus 8 since its inception. Our DVR is full of old episodes. For those of you that are not familiar with this show, it documents the day to day highlights and struggles of a family with two sets of multiple births--a set of twins, and a set of sextuplets. They have opened their lives like few people would want to.

Recently, she has been praying for the parents, Jon and Kate. Shelby's heart has been truly heavy since she heard that they were experiencing trials in their marriage. Now this week, they announced, on the show, that they are separating. Shelby was visibly upset about this. As a dad, I tried to console and comfort her. I hurt for her.

Daily, we hear of marriages that are falling or have fallen apart. But, it was truly sad to see such direct evidence of a marriage that is crumbling. I asked myself--why is it so easy today to just give up on a marriage. Why have we lost the desire to stand by the vows that were spoken at some earlier, happier point?

Call me old-fashioned, but I believe that marriage still matters. It is not something that you just through out when times get challenging. It is a commitment made to each other and before God that many find so easy to break. I ask you to not run from it. It is worth a fight to keep this commitment.

I love my wife. Next to my relationship with Jesus Christ, she is my priority. But, do we have challenging valleys in our marriage?--Yes, we do. We have found these challenging times make the sweet times that much sweeter. She is my best friend. The one I want to spend times with.

But, it does take work. Not our work, but the work of the Holy Spirit to guide our steps, our words, and our outlook. Our job is to allow Him to have center stage. And, really isn't that the spot reserved for God? How many times do we want center stage? But, that is not our spot! God cares deeply about your marriage. Why not give Him a shot to make your marriage what He intended it to be. What do you have to lose?

Your marriage is worth it. It is worth fighting for.

The Challenge of Credibility

How are you at keeping your word? Today, the man who truly keeps his word is rare. Failure to keep one's word puts a definite (and potentially permanent) strain on your capability of being believed or trusted. This capability is the true definition of credibility. When you make a promise to your wife, does she have to worry whether you will follow through? Do your kids trust you when you say you will meet them at such and such a time? When you reply to concern of someone with, "Yes, I'll pray for you"--do you? When you obligate yourself to pay a debt on time--do you? No one's perfect--but your consistent failure in this regard, puts a tarnish on your credibility.

God's guidance through the written word of Paul provides that "each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor." (Ephesians 4:25 NIV). Let me ask you this--what long-term gain do you see by not keeping your word. Maybe it will be less painful for you right now, but at what expense? And really, it's not all about you, is it?

So, when you mess up, what do you do? I encourage you to admit your failure to the person you promised something to and refuse to rationalize it away. You will be amazed at what you will gain by this.

Stay Strong.

The Sin of Pride

Think of the sin of all sins--it is the sin of pride. It was this sin that first transformed Lucifer into the father of lies, the deceiver, and for whom hell itself was created. This sin also tripped up Eve. And, who do you think it was that engineered Eve's deception? It was the devil.

Pride is the devil's number 1 means of bringing us down. "For all that is in the world--the lust of the flesh,the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life--is not of the Father, but is of the world." (1 John 2:16). Pride has a way of sneaking into our life and crippling us. So, how do you know if pride is sneaking into your life? The first step is to always look at your motives. Ask yourself questions like, "why am I doing this"; and "who am I trying to impress". If your true and heartfelt answers revolve around personal motivations, then you may be suffering under the sin of pride.

Please know you do not have to stay under this suffering. God offers a way out. To find this way, you have to believe in the truth of who and whose you are. Remember--He lives in you. You and He are one. God is working in each of us, teaching us to allow Him to meet life for us as He lives through us.

I encourage you to set aside your own agenda and allow God full reign in your life to live out His agenda through you. His peace, which is beyond our undertanding, will overtake your desire to focus on yourself. This is the beginning of living a life relying not upon your self-effort but upon His grace.

Praise You in This Storm

All dads want to be praised and respected by his child(ren). I try to make it easy for our kids to praise me. But there are times when I have to just say no--and most children don't like to hear no. In those times, it is tougher for them to give me their praise and respect.

In my relation with my heavenly Father, I realize I am a lot like that. It is easier for me to praise God when things are going "my"way. But try this one: what dad would not really appreciate it if his kids still praised, loved, and respected him even when given the "no" answer. Such praise is not based upon whether the child gets "his" way. This is the type of praise that our Abba Father wants from us.

This is called a "sacrifice of praise." Hebrews 13:15 says, "[t]hrough Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name." (emphasis mine). This sacrifice of praise illustrates our true desire to praise God in all circumstances.

No doubt, it is easy to praise Him when things are well within your life--you have a loving family, you have a comfortable home, you have a job. But, what happens if those things are taken away from you like they were for Job. Do you truly believe that God always acts for your best good?

By praising Him in and for all of your circumstances, you open up your mind for God's alternatives: (1) God could change the circumstance; or (2) He could give you so much grace that you'll actually have the strength to get through the challenging spot.

I know through all of this that God completely, unequivocally, and unconditionally loves you.

Stay Strong.

Today's "To-Do" List

Generally, I am a "to-do" list type of person. I like to lay out and plan my day to prepare for what's ahead. Sometimes, I get frustrated when the schedule of my day gets turned upside down. I bet many of you can relate to this frustration.

But, let's think about this for a bit--what are we really trying to accomplish each and every day. Is it really about our agenda? If it is just about what YOU want to accomplish each day, I need to share with you a few words of caution. Be prepared for frustration.

Think about this--instead of MY agenda and what I want to accomplish--what if I considered each day an opportunity for me to allow Christ to manifest or live Himself through me. Isn't there freedom in this mindset? Under His guidance and control, we are freed from the burden of "thinking we are in control." And when the interruptions or burdens happen in our day, we can approach them with the confidence that we do not have to figure out what to do. We are continually seeking God's wisdom throughout our day. Really, isn't that where He wants us--dependent upon Him moment by moment.

Jesus, I do love you. Thank you that it is not about me--but that it is all about you. Father, please help me to set aside my desire to control things. I do want to just give up that desire to you. I want to step aside and allow you to just live your amazing life through me. I cannot do this in my own strength. And thank you that you do not leave me to fend in my own strength, but that I can rely truly upon Yours. Amen.

Stay Strong.

The Key to Great Wealth

Did that title catch your attention? I promise I am not offering secrets here to secure your financial future. Instead, I want to encourage you that the wealth that God offers is so much greater and more fulfilling than anything that we can "gather" on this earth.

The apostle Paul, in his encouragment to his spiritual son, Timothy, offers the following: "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it." (1 Timothy 6:6-7 NIV). Think about it, as a baby, we bring nothing with us into this world besides an umbilical cord--and that soon gets cut. And then, at your funeral, you don't take anything with you. Unfortunately, it is between these two points that we get focused on the stuff of life. At times, many of us get consumed with our circumstances and our stuff. The bible teaches us that we should learn to be content.

So, what is contentment? Contentment means my happiness in not dependent upon circumstances or the accumulation of stuff. Let me ask you this--do you ever find yourself getting caught up in "when" thinking? "When I graduate . . . when I get a new job . . . when I have a child . . . when the kids are out of the house . . . when I retire . . . then I'll be happy." As you are going through life and have met some (or all) of these particular "milestones", did they generate long-term happiness? I would guess they probably did not.

To be happy, I encourage you to allow God to teach you to be content. You know that God has provided for and will continue to provide for all of your needs. Just enjoy that state He has you in--and know that He has you there for His purpose. Enjoy Him.

Stay Strong.

Go and Do the Same

Recently, our local newspaper ran a story on a mother who was coming to Rapid City to speak at a rally for alternative lifestyles. This mother's son had been murdered while away at college. The story told that the son had been murdered because he was a homosexual.

The online version of this article contains a number of reader-submitted comments. Many of these comments condemn this lifestyle and demean this mom for having a son that engaged in this type of lifestyle. And I am sory to say that many of these comments came from people who claimed to follow Christ. Other comments on this article condemned Christians for being intolerant. Reading these comments opened my eyes a bit to the type of hatred that exists in our world. And at times, this hatred is directed towards Chrisitians. I realize sometimes we bring a bit of this hatred on ourselves.

As a believer in Jesus Christ, I do not agree with this type of lifestyle. But, is it my place to judge and condemn another person for the choices that they make? Please don't get me wrong--I am no condoning sinful behavior. And I do that these choices are wrong and may have consequences. It is one thing to disagree with a lifestyle choice, it is quite another thing to condemn the person making that choice.

Committed Christians always try to put into action God's command to "love your neighbor as yourself." (Leviticus 19:18). Jesus told His famous parable of the Good Samaritan to make it clear that "love your neighbor" means to love all persons, everywhere - not just our friends, and those we agree with.

One day an expert on Moses' laws came to test Jesus' orthodoxy by asking him this question: "Teacher, what does a man need to do to live forever in heaven?" Jesus replied, "What does Moses' law say about it?" "It says," he replied, "that you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind. And you must love your neighbor just as much as you love yourself." "Right!" Jesus told him. "Do this and you shall live!" The man wanted to justify (his lack of love for some kinds of people), so he asked, "Which neighbors?" Jesus replied with an illustration: "A Jew going on a trip from Jerusalem to Jericho was attacked by bandits. They stripped him of his clothes and money, and beat him up and left him lying half dead beside the road. "By chance a Jewish priest came along; and when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. A Jewish Temple-assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but then went on. "But a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw him, he felt deep pity. Kneeling beside him the Samaritan soothed his wounds with medicine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his donkey and walked along beside him till they came to an inn, where he nursed him through the night. The next day he handed the innkeeper two twenty-dollar bills and told him to take care of the man. 'If his bill runs higher than that,' he said, 'I'll pay the difference the next time I am here.' "Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the bandits' victim?" The man replied, "The one who showed him some pity." Then Jesus said, "Yes, now go and do the same." (Luke 10:25-37)(emphasis mine).

Can we really "go and do the same"? In our own strength, I do not see how we can. But we are not living in our own strength. We can do all things through the amazing strength of Jesus. (Phillipians 4:13). Though we may not agree with a person's choice, through His amazing strength, we can still love that person. I encourage you to allow Him to equip and prepare you to "go and do the same."