Author Archives: calledtogether

Encouragement, Small Groups

Remember

I love God’s word and the many principles we can derive from it.  I could not live life without this book, the Bible.  It is an amazing, wonderful, up to date and, as well, revealing the future kind of book.  There is no other earthly volume like it.  To have the privilege and freedom to take time with this book on a daily basis is so life-giving and life-altering.  Such was the case from a passage I read recently.  It was actually, of all things, Levitical guidelines that were so striking to me and answered a long-term question concerning enabling the poor among us.

God told Israel that when they were harvesting a field and they “overlook a sheaf,” they were not to go back to harvest it.  When they beat the olives from their trees, they were told to not go back over the tree a second time.  They were to do the same with the grape harvest. Why?  God said to, “…leave what remains for the alien, the fatherless and the widow.”  (Deuteronomy 24: 19-22)  Again, why?  Was it a welfare program?  Weren’t they enabling the poor and needy to continue to be poor and needy?  Actually, quite the opposite was true.  It was done as a reminder that they were once slaves in Egypt.

Why help the immigrant, the fatherless or the widow in your community?  Don’t some of them choose not to work?  God desires to remind us that we were once a “slave” to foreign beliefs and systems.  We once walked in darkness, were also poor and needy (at least spiritually) and resided as foreigners outside God’s kingdom.  As the Lord calls us to serve someone or give money to help them, remember this verse so that we are reminded of where we came from.

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Encouragement, Leadership, Singles, Small Groups

True Success

Some years ago I wrote the words “True success” in my Bible beside Jeremiah 9: 23 & 24 which reads, “Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight, declares the Lord.”  Does God give us wisdom, strength and riches?  Yes He does, but He does not delight in them and neither does He desires us to boast in them.  What then does our heavenly Father “delight” in?

He delights in the one who knows and understands Him.  He delights in the one who knows that their Father is the One who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on the earth today.  Success is not found in a higher degree of education, in business or profession, in money, in the number of Facebook friends we have amassed or in how we perceive others perceive us.  Success is knowing and obeying God.  Mother Teresa once commented to the American press that she was never trying to be successful by this worlds standards, only obedient to her Savior’s call.  Powerful words from someone who impacted thousands; someone who was truly “successful.”

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Encouragement

Thankful

Thankfulness is easily caught; it’s contagious. Spend a few minutes around someone who speaks from a thankful heart about what God is doing in their life and you’ll find yourself feeling thankful as well. Spend that same amount of time around someone caught up in themselves and speaking disappointment with what God hasn’t done and you’ll find feelings of disappointment and despair.

Thankfulness is less stressful. Having a thankful heart is experiencing a lighter heart. Being thankful resonates with our souls and brings relief to our physical beings. If laughter is a “good medicine” think about what medicine thankfulness provides to your spirit.

Thankfulness is an absence of contention. It’s hard to be angry and causing friction when you are practicing a spirit of thankfulness. Expressing thankfulness for the normal everyday things of life is seeing those things as important too. For those who are involved in generating those “normal, everyday and routine” acts of service that effect you, it is amazing what a word of thanks will do to encourage them. Who cleans your office at work? Thank them. Who does your wash each week? Thank them. Who washes and maintains your car? Thank them. Thankfulness is the spirit of Christ Himself. When we are thankful, we are actually worshipping God. “…Let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably…” (Hebrews 12: 28)

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace…his peace will guard your hearts and minds…” (Philippians 4:6)

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Premarital, Singles

Boy Meets Girl

In 1947, for every 100 female college students there were 245 male students on campus.  Now for every 100 women on college campuses there are 74 male students.  In the book, Premarital Sex in America authors Mark Regnerus and Jeremy Uecker found that three-fourths of 18 to 23 year-old women are in dating relationships and that 94% of those are sexually involved.  Girls who are involved with multiple sexual relationships through their dating years are 11 times more likely to have elevated depression symptoms than virgins.  Those involved in “one night stands” also feel disrespected.  Guys are in control of when the dating relationship begins and the girls are in control of when sex begins.  Regnerus and Uecker found that when women compete for men, men win and the price of sex goes down.  (World Magazine June 2011)

Wake up single men of God.  Your heavenly Father’s daughters do not desire sex outside of marriage, but what they do desire is your attention, your commitment, your care, your encouragement, your emotional and spiritual connection, your godly manhood and your pure love.  Take a lesson from an Old Testament saint who was tried and found righteous, “I made a covenant with my eyes to not look lustfully at a girl.”  (Job 31:1)  And from Paul, “For the grace of God…teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.” (Titus 2: 11, 12)

Wake up single women of God, you are worth the wait.  Do not lower yourselves to todays desperate standards and lack of boundaries.  You are far more attractive to a godly man when you walk in confidence, security, sexual purity, the fear of the Lord and maintain biblical boundaries for yourself.  “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.”  (Proverbs 31:30)

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Leadership, Marriage

Humility

Did you ever sing that chorus, It’s All About Me?  It goes something like this:  It’s all about me, Jesus, it’s not about You…  Joking of course, but there are times I feel as though I am singing it from my flesh – my need.  It is anything but a humble cry.  But it is a cry of the soul in our me centered world and it’s easy to get caught up in it myself.  Rick Warren said, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it’s thinking of yourself less.”  I like the balance of that statement.  Charles Spurgeon once said, “Humility is to make a right estimate of one’s self.”  So how do you balance those quotes with this one, “Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth?”  (Numbers 12:3)  Do you know who God used to write those words?  Moses himself.

Someone once said that humility is like underwear, essential, but indecent if it shows.  Benjamin Franklin  spoke about humility when he said, “A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small bundle.”  Jesus said, “For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”  (Matthew 23:12)  Humility does not come by taking a class on the subject or by listening to a sufficient number of sermons on the topic.  It does come, however, by difficult life experiences.  It comes when we are tempted to walk in selfish ambition or speak of ourselves in prideful ways.  It comes when someone reminds us of a fault and we have to take ownership for that fault, swallow our pride and ask for forgiveness.  Humility comes from wisdom Proverbs tells us (Proverbs 11:2), and wisdom comes from “the fear of the Lord.”  (Proverbs 15:33a)

Perhaps Benjamin Franklin was right when he said, “Humility makes great men twice honorable.”   (Proverbs 15:33b states, “…humility comes before honor.”)

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Leadership, Marriage, Singles

Jesus, a Man’s Man?

Twenty five men from Washington DC gathered together this past weekend at a retreat center in the mountains of Maryland.  Annually they separate from their jobs, their families, their local church and their everyday normal life to learn, to play, to stay up late watching college football, and to not shave.  One of the topics discussed was about Jesus, the Son of God, a man’s man.  This is what we discovered:

He is powerful – Mark 5:30; 11:12-14, 20-25

He commands respect – Mark 1:16-20. 27; 15:5

He’s in control – Mark 6:50

He stands up to and does not run from confrontation – Mark 2:23-28; 3:22-30; 11:27-33

He knows how to take a beating – Mark 15:19-20

He understands His mission and purpose and will not be sidetracked – Mark 8:31-34; 9:30-32; 10:33-34

He is compassionate – Mark 6:34; 10:15-16

Masculinity is under attack in our culture today.  John Piper calls masculinity a sense of “benevolent responsibility” to lead, protect and provide for women.  Author Stu Webber wrote, “The measure of a man is the spiritual and emotional health of his family…a vision for strong sons and confident daughters.  Without that vision and leadership, a family struggles, gropes and may lose its way.”

As a man, Jesus knew who He was and clearly stated, “This is who I am; this is where I came from; this is what I do; and this is where I am going.” (John 8: 12-18, 23-30) Jesus was an initiator because initiation is the bottom line of masculinity.  It means leading to provide, to mentor, to father, to befriend, to apologize, to develop, to invent, to love and to take responsibility with tender, but masculine authority.

We could hear Jesus asking, “Are you willing to follow the One who created the masculine soul?”

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Leadership, Mission Report

Hungry

As a child, when I showed up at the dinner table early my mother could be heard saying, “The hungry ones are at the table.”  She was right, I was hungry and ready to consume a wonderful home cooked meal.

I am blessed with the opportunity to speak and share God’s truth around the world.  I do find a difference in the one’s seated before me from place to place.  For some it’s just another meeting; for others it’s a “I’ll see if this speaker can impress me or teach me anything new.”  But for a few, the hungry ones, they are seated at the table early… anticipating.  Mary and I had the privilege of speaking at numerous events this past weekend on the west coast of the US.  People gathered early.  Excitement was in the air.  Anticipation lingered in the Spirit and prayerful hearts were seated with a passionate hunger for what God was about to speak to them.  God did not disappoint them; He delivered to the hungry ones.

For He satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. Psalm 107:9

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Leadership, NASCAR, Small Groups, Training

Satisfaction

Relax. Take it easy.  Consider all you have accomplished.  Take pride as you survey your surroundings of comfort.

I have been reading through the book of Deuteronomy of late and am seriously finding it full of life.  Yes, that same book of Deuteronomy found in the Old Testament, the fifth book of the law.  In chapter 8 there is this solemn warning  of having eaten and feeling satisfied.  It feels like Sunday afternoon after chowing down on a wonderful lunch and then lying on the couch preparing for the big game, or better yet, a NASCAR race.  It’s almost heavenly.  Somewhere in the back of your mind you’re thankful for it all, that is to say, your house, your food, your family, your job, your car, your…  Moses warns us as we consider all this (actually he says things like our flocks increasing along with our gold and silver) to be careful that we do not become proud and forget where we came from and Who it is that blesses us with these things.

I like the feeling of “satisfaction” as much as anyone.  It feels like we have accomplished something.  But, when pride becomes part of the equation it’s dangerous.  When we become proud we forget God.  Our focus creeps back to us.  I heard someone say this past week that, in a sense, that’s why we’re made to worship God.  If we do not worship Him, we will worship ourselves and our accomplishments and take satisfaction in what we have built.    There is no greater depth of satisfaction than to follow and obey God.  He keeps life exciting.

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Leadership, Prayer, Small Groups

Detachment

Imagine this picture with me if you will: “That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake.”  What was he doing there?  Well, we know He wasn’t checking His email or Facebook page; He wasn’t texting anyone or surfing the web, but I do believe He was conversing with Someone.   I see Him sitting by the lake, admiring His own handiwork as it must have brought back many enjoyable memories of when He was involved in creation with His Father.  He was there when that lake was made and He is now back enjoying the refreshing sights and sounds.  Personally, I don’t think He was “doing” anything; He was simply “being.”  He was detaching from all the business around Him.  The Son of God found renewal sitting by a body of water without a running “to do” list.

Do you take the necessary time to detach?  How often do you detach?  How do you like to detach? Can you stop “doing” long enough to enjoy “being?”  Can you stop comparing yourself long enough to enjoy a restful moment or two?  Do you realize that you cannot do it all?  Are you secure enough to say “no” sometimes?  Recorded in our Lord’s prayer Jesus said to His Father, “I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.”  (John 17:4)  Really?  Was everyone saved, healed, delivered?  I don’t think so, but He had completed that which the Father had asked of Him and now He would detach Himself from his earthly robe.

Detachment will help release you of the stressors of life, it’s why He gave us a Sabbath day.

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Small Groups, Training

Dys ease

Have you ever suffered from dys ease?  Today we spell this word disease and use it for almost any malady of sickness.  The original prefix of “dys,”  meaning “not,” simply meant “not at ease.”  Ever been not at ease?  Perhaps daily we encounter situations that bring us to this place we are all too often acquainted with.  Our bodies are like shock absorbers on a car.  Without them, we would feel each and every bump, but with them the ride is smooth.  Long-term stress will actually begin to break down the body, inhibit its ability to absorb the ongoing shocks.  My wife is a nurse and she reveals to me that most of her patients are experiencing some form of major stress in their life, consequently they manifest physical abnormalities with their bodies like migraines, digestive problems, muscle problems and of course nervous conditions.

The Bible agrees with this when it says, “An anxious heart weighs a man down.” Proverbs 12:25.  The Law of Attribution teaches that if we believe something to be stressful, it will be stressful.  How are you handling stress each day?  What do you practice so that your body does not break down under stress?  Have you ever stopped to listen to your self-talk in order to discover what you are thinking prior to feeling stress?  To feel stressed, we must be thinking stressful thoughts.  To think stressful thoughts we must believe that the situation is stress producing.  But Isaiah 26 verse 3 says, “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.”  Peace of mind through trust, now there’s a thought worth looking into next week.

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