 Photo credit: Pixabay “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” (Philippians 4:11,12) Those words were written by a man named Paul who was imprisoned in Rome—living in a house but not allowed to leave, chained to a guard 24/7. Content whatever the circumstances? How is that even a category? What was his secret? “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13) Imprisoned but free. Think about that. Paul was a man. A regular guy. If contentment and freedom like that were available to him, it’s available to us. I believe it’s not only through Christ’s Spirit that Paul was able to be free, but by Christ’s example. Who lived a life with more freedom than Jesus? He didn’t care what people thought of him, didn’t compare himself to anyone, wasn’t distracted by the massive number of people who came to him for healing, owned nothing and felt no need to. He took time off to rest even though he only had three years to train twelve guys to change the world. He succumbed to no pressure, and couldn’t be bought. No one could hold anything over him because he was free from everything that would trip the rest of us up. He focused only on the things that really mattered—his identity as the beloved son and being led by the Spirit, never taking his eyes off his mission. If you were free from, what would you be free to? You would be free to be the strongest, boldest, gentlest, kindest, most loving, present in the moment, most fearless, focused, truest version of yourself. Free to live with fearless liberty, free to pursue a life few ever find. Thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting. If you’d like to receive these posts and updates in your inbox, please head to the Contact Page to subscribe.
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 Photo Credit: Pixabay What if you could live your life and not care what anyone thinks? What if you weren’t distracted and discouraged by the drama, fear-mongering, societal pressure, and financial burdens that are so much a part of our lives? What if there wasn’t anything anyone could do that could ruin your mood or your day? If you could live your life this way, that would be freedom. Freedom is not “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” You may know your inalienable rights but the rights to truly being free may be alien to you. It’s not defined by external circumstances. Freedom is an internal condition. It’s not only freedom to, as in, do whatever you want, wherever, whenever, and however. It’s also freedom from. Freedom from is deeper and more powerful. It’s something no one can take from you. Not until you are free from can you be free to. Let’s say you win millions and millions of dollars in the lottery. Your first thought might be, “WHOO-HOO! I can quit my awful job, and have and do all the things I’ve always wanted to!” It’s true, you do have the financial freedom now to make those kinds of choices. But then, you have friends and family expecting you to cough up money for them and the government expecting you to fill their coffers. Your employer and co-workers expect your resignation, and society expects you to be resigned to volunteer for everything because they think Louie Armstrong is running “all the time in the world” in your head on a loop. Expectations. Responsibilities, real or imagined. Societal pressure. What if you lose it all? What if you lose your friends? What about maintaining, storing and insuring all the stuff you buy? You may end up more imprisoned in your life than you were before you won the lottery. But if you also have the ability to say “no” to all those requests, you would be freer. If you have the capacity to shut out the “shoulds” from your friends and family, that would be freeing. If you could take that great trip you always wanted to and not be distracted by what everyone thinks about you, what you might be missing or fearing that it could all be gone tomorrow, then you could be freer. Freedom is a state of mind. Come with me and we’ll find the road to that state. Thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting. If you’d like to receive these posts and updates in your inbox, please head to the Contact Page to subscribe.
 Photo credit: AnnaKovalchuk via Pixabay When our older son was learning Kung Fu San Soo we bought him the original 1984 Karate Kid movie. When the scene where all of Daniel’s “training” comes together came on, I pointed it out to him. We marveled at the revelation of the blocking movements he learned, but our son said there was a lesson in the scene far more important than those blocks. “Mr. Miyagi kepts saying, ’Look eye. Always look eye,’” he said. “One of the very first things they teach you is to look your opponent in the eye, never at his hands or feet. If you focus on his hands you’ll miss his feet, and vice versa. If you focus on his eyes, you will be able to see everything you need to in your peripheral vision.” That concept resonated with me. I struggle with focus. One theme, in this season of my life, is keeping all the plates spinning. Be sure everyone is where they need to be, when they need to be, with everything they need and are fed, clothed, clean, and as mentally and emotionally stable as possible. Distraction, or even choosing which plate to focus on, is a constant struggle. Imagine the number of plates Jesus had and how focused He had to be. Without money, power, status, a college degree, social media, and with no fixed address, He had three years to turn twelve knuckleheads (as John Eldredge fondly refers to the apostles) into world-changers. His focus had to be incredible. In John 5:19 He says, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. (NIV) Later in John 12:49 He says, I don't speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to say and how to say it. (NLT) Oh to be so in the moment, the flow, that you know second by second the best thing to do and say. I can picture Him walking the road from Galilee, stopping to heal blind eyes while blocking and throwing off Pharisees, raising His hands and calmly but firmly parting the angry crowd without even a roundhouse kick or a “hi-YA!” I wonder if Grand Master Jesus wore His tenth-degree black belt under His robes. With focus like that we could deeply and effectively love on those in front of us while pummeling fear, doubt, and worry. It’s certainly something to wax on. #focus #heisnotwhatyouthink #jesusninjathisiknow Thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting. If you’d like to receive these posts and updates in your inbox, please head to the Contact Page to subscribe.
 Photo credit: Pixabay A carpenter built a grand and glorious house. Every element, from concrete and shingles, fixture and faucet, tongue and groove, was specifically chosen and masterfully worked.
He invited people to live in it with him. Some welcomed the carpenter and enjoyed their lives together while others completely ignored his existence. In some ways, the people took care of the house. In many other ways they did not, nor did they take care of each other. Trouble continued to escalate until, finally, someone took a match to one of the curtains. It smoldered at first, but quickly the fire spread until the couch, rug, the whole room was engulfed in flames. The fire began to march through the house, room by room. The people avoided the burning rooms but still remained inside the house. They felt protected in the other rooms, convinced the fire would never reach them. Until it did. Some believed there was nothing beyond the house and awaited their fate. Others argued that there had to be more than one way out. How could a loving carpenter design only one way out of the house? Amidst the molten metal and cracking beams the carpenter shouted, “I built this house with my own hands. I know every nail, screw, and sanded place. I designed it so we could live together. I am here in the house with you. I always have been. But now it’s burning down and you will only get out if you come with me. I am the way. All you have to do is acknowledge you need me and ask me to help you. I don’t want anyone lost in the flames, but I can’t lead those who won’t follow.” ---------- Did you catch it, my favorite word? It’s WITH. As in, accompanied by. The carpenter has a name – Emmanuel, which means God WITH Us. Always together. Never alone. Not God Far Off and Directing. Not God Standing Over and Barking Orders. But God In the Midst of Hell WITH YOU. God Who Will Never Abandon You. God As Close As You Will Let Him Be. God wants to be WITH us. It’s what The Father planned in the Garden of Eden. It’s what the New Heaven and New Earth are all about. It’s Jesus, God with skin, God with us, the perfect example, The Way. It’s the Holy Spirit INSIDE us. You can’t get any more WITH than that. Those who want more than one way out are missing the point. It’s not about how to get out of the house, it’s about how to get with the carpenter. Why? Because he loves you. He loves us all. #heisnotwhatyouthink #thepowerofwith #bethelove ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting. If you’d like to receive these posts and updates in your inbox, please head to the Contact Page to subscribe.  Photo credit: Pixabay Lord, I’ve been banging my head here for hours. I have nothing to say.
Talk about My love. My love for you. Ummm…can You be more specific? Talk about… How I’m always here for you even when you can’t hear me. Even when you can’t see or sense. Like right now. You may be blinded, unable to sense anything, but that doesn’t mean I’m not here. Bad things happen to you that if you could vote you’d have voted differently. You vote by the choices you make, but even if you choose perfectly, bad things do happen. Every person on the planet experiences this. Everyone has bad things. I’m with them in it all. And that’s the key word here: WITH. I’m not far away, yelling directions at you like a drill sergeant. I’m in the fray, the rat race, even the darkness, WITH you. You can’t perceive the air you breathe, the oxygen that fills your lungs, and it’s the same with Me. I’m as close as you want Me to be, as close as you will let Me be. I can fill your heart, mind, spirit. The oxygen of My Spirit flows and encompasses every cell you have. Tell them I love them. Tell them I’m not what they’ve been told. They believe lies about Me. I created everything good, and everything to be good. I gave My life to save them. My Spirit goes throughout the earth to encourage and communicate. Tell them I am Love. I am Truth. I am Comfort, Peace, Joy. I am the source of every good thing in their lives. I am the most solid and stable thing in the universe. If they would return to Me I would heal them. Tell them all of this. I’m going to lose at least part of my audience…and I know that sounds selfish and wimpy but I’m being honest and it’s what I’m thinking. They have the choice whether to listen or not. But you have to tell them in order for them to make the choice. Free will is the riskiest decision I made when I created mankind. But it’s not love if it’s not a choice. I want their love. But they have to choose Me. I’ve made it as obvious as possible. I made Nature beautiful and balanced. All of Nature reveals Me. I made salvation as easy as possible: Repent, be baptized, confess with your mouths Jesus is Lord and believe in your hearts I raised Him from the dead and you’ll be saved. That’s it. Open the door and I’ll come in. Life won’t be easier. It may even get harder, but it will be worth it. They need to know. They need to hear it from you. Because you know, better than many, how deep and wide and long and high My love is. Some will listen to you because you have demonstrated it. Some will not listen no matter what you do. But tell them anyway. It looks like You just did. #bethelove #heisnotwhatyouthink #Godlovesyou ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting. If you’d like to receive these posts and updates in your inbox, please head to the Contact Page to subscribe.  The branch under the left tree is what hit Rob. The missing railing is where Rachel broke it apart. Several tornadoes ripped through Lake of the Ozarks last Saturday, Memorial Day weekend. There was one reported injury.
Rachel and Robert Jenkins had gone to Laurie, Missouri, to visit friends Clint and Kim Gawart and enjoy a weekend on the lake. They tracked the storm system even as the skies darkened, and grew more concerned as they were unexpectedly delayed returning to the dock. After they docked the boat in the blinding rain, Kim and the boys went to the house, Clint finished up, Rachel gathered a few last things, and Rob tried to grab a deck chair that had blown across the yard. Rob never made it. From the deck of the Gawart’s house, Rob’s 15 year old son, Ethan, and 13 year old son, Benjamin, could see the trees bending. A limb broke off and crashed down five feet from Rob. He knew he was in trouble. Scared, the boys watched as another tree broke completely in half and they yelled for their father to stop. Struggling to climb the hill in flip flops, the rain beating him up, he didn’t hear them. Suddenly, Rob felt something shove him face down onto his right side, facing up the steep hill. He saw trees smash onto a nearby dock. He looked around to grab his flip flops but was facing the wrong direction. He then felt a thud on his right leg. He started to drag himself to his feet, leaving his flip flops pinned underneath a tree. He couldn’t seem to bear any weight on his right leg. He looked down and saw a nasty, baseball-sized gaping wound on his right shin, with blood streaming down his leg. Rachel dropped everything she was holding and sprinted from the dock to Rob. Before she got there he yelled to her to call 911. She ran to the house and yelled to Ethan to call 911. Ethan and Kim ducked inside and began dialing. Rachel jumped over the railing and ran up to the next door neighbors’, but got no answer. She hustled back down to Rob, then realized she couldn’t get him over the railing. Breaking spindles in two with her bare hands, a rain-drenched Rachel finally reached Rob. Bracing him on her small frame, she continued yelling for help as they struggled to reach the top of the stairs. The next door neighbors had been hiding in an inside room. Their grown son had come out to get an old mattress to shield them when he heard Rachel yelling. They got Rob into their own house, soaking wet and bleeding. They made a makeshift tourniquet with a belt and sweatshirt. Ever level-headed, Rob said, “Honey, if I have internal bleeding, I’m not going to make it.” Rob noticed his toes were turning blue. The pain from the tourniquet was excruciating. Kim was frantically going door to door, trying to find chainsaws and trucks to remove the downed trees so the ambulance could get through. Unknown people began showing up at the neighbors’ house to help. One was a hospital volunteer. He replaced the makeshift tourniquet with a gauze one, and after a while said he thought the bleeding had stopped, so they loosened the tourniquet. “My pain level went from a 10 to a 4 at that point,” Rob remembers. It took more than thirty minutes for the ambulance to get to Rob, and it was another half an hour to the hospital. The ER doctor asked Rob what happened. “A tree pushed me up the hill before another tree hit my leg,” he replied. The doctor looked confused and said, “You don’t have any abrasions or bruises on your shoulder, and your shirt is clean.” Whatever knocked Rob out of the way, it WASN’T a tree. Surgery took ninety minutes. Torn muscle and the severed tendons to his toes were repaired. Despite embedded tree bark, the wound wasn’t terribly dirty. The only fracture Rob had was to his fibula, and it was a clean break. They didn’t even need to cast it. He will need some therapy but should make a full recovery. Some of you might wonder, where God was in all of this? God’s fingerprints are everywhere. God was there protecting Clint at the dock, who didn’t even know anything was happening. God was there when a tree limb fell within a few feet of Rob but didn’t hurt him. He was there pushing Rob up the hill instead of down, preventing him from reaching for his flip flops. Had he reached them his head would have been crushed by the tree. He was with petite Rachel, helping and protecting her as she got help, busted through wooden rail, and got her husband up the stairs. He was with the next door neighbors, who were home at the time and whose son heard her cries for help. He was with the hospital volunteer who helped save Rob’s leg, and life. He was with Kim and Ethan as they called 911. He was with Kim as she thought to get help to remove trees. He was with every volunteer who got the debris removed, in the rain, for a guy they didn’t even know. He was there when the main power line to the area was knocked out, making any local downed power lines a non-issue. He was with the ambulance and hospital crews. He was with the easily-repaired tendons. He was in the perfect placement of the clean fracture of the fibula, the non-balancing bone. He was in the fact that the break was the fibula and not the tibia, which could have ruptured an artery. With a clean fibula fracture there was no need to set it, so no need for a cast. A cast would have made wound care impossible. God is there in the hearts of all the people who have committed to bringing meals to the family for several weeks, and who continue to pray. God was there over the previous several weeks when Rob has prayed to be a servant who brings God glory. God is with Rob’s sister-in-law, yours truly, who has the privilege of bringing you this story. And He is with you now, as you read this. #heisnotwhatyouthink #amazinggrace To see the damage created by this storm system, click here. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting. If you’d like to receive these posts and updates in your inbox, please head to the Contact page to subscribe.  Photo Credit: Freeimages.com He could feel them following him.
He stopped walking and bent over to tie his sandal. Out of the corner of his eye he saw them pause, whistling and looking around at the sky. He chuckled softly to himself. They’d never be good private investigators. He walked on, stopping to take in the view, check the position of the sun, clearly enjoying playing with them. Finally he decided to put them out of their misery. He turned directly to face them. Cocking his head to the side and smiling, he asked, “What do you want?” The two were gobsmacked. One’s face grew red and the other stammered a bit before spitting out, “Teacher, where are you staying?” The red-faced one smacked his companion’s arm. “Where are you staying? Seriously? THAT’S what you open with?” “Well, YOU weren’t saying anything. You left me there to…” “Fellas,” the teacher interrupted, laughing. “Come and see.” Honestly, if I were following someone and they caught me, I can’t say I’d have come up with any better response than they did. When I’m in awe of or intimidated by someone and get to speak to them face to face, I can barely remember my own name. And it’s really nice when that someone is gracious and kind to me, as Jesus was with these two. Even if they are the most gracious and most kind of all someones, I can’t imagine they would EVER up and invite me to come along. Can you think of anything more unwise, or unsafe, than telling someone you don’t know AT ALL, who is really kind of stalking you, who could potentially be a crazed axe-wielding groupie, to COME WITH YOU AND SEE WHERE YOU ARE STAYING? Wiser and safer responses could include, “Nope, that’s top secret info,” and “I’ll have my people email your people.” Another option would be to give them an address, part ways, then follow them for a while to see if one of them had an axe in his robe. But Jesus? He invited them to come with him directly to where he was staying. Jesus is fearless. He laughs in the face of danger. He is love in action. He knows that if he is going to be God With Us, then arm’s length isn’t going to cut it. He’s about people. He’s about connection. He’s about turning hearts back to the Father. He came to gather up everyone he can, lead them to his Dad, and rejoice as they are adopted as his brothers and sisters. “Come and see,” he says. And the guys do. They spend the rest of the day with him. One of those two was Andrew. Do you know what Andrew did first thing after leaving Jesus? He went and found his brother, Simon Peter, and brought him to God With Us. Except this time, instead of hanging back, Andrew ran back. I’ll bet Peter’s arm was sore from being dragged. Meeting Jesus can make you want to run back, too. Not sure? Come and see. #bethelove #heisnotwhatyouthink #loveinaction #stalkersurprise ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting. If you’d like to receive these posts and updates in your inbox, please subscribe.  Photo credit: Richard Revel via pexels.com I need to warn you, we use a lot of ’blue language’ on set.”
I shrugged. “I won’t judge you for using it if you won’t judge me for not.” The director smiled. Thus was the acknowledgment of mutual respect and freedom that launched me into the world of independent film. For my Christian friends, I feel I must clarify, this was a “secular” independent film. There are Christian films being made in the area, that’s just not the plot God dropped me in. It’s been a fun, life-giving, mind-expanding few years, and I’ve loved every minute. It’s put me in touch with a wide variety of fun, interesting, intelligent, passionate, hard-working, gifted people…the majority of which do not share my faith. It’s a fine line to walk and one that, sadly, I’ve had far too little practice in and haven’t always done well. My guiding principle has been that I’m here to love the people God puts in front of me, and let God do the rest. Have I loved these new friends well? Could I love better? And most importantly, are they seeing Jesus in me or just seeing me? Which got me to wondering, if Jesus worked on a small, independent film, how would He love people? What would He do? And what would He not do? Here’s my storyboard: He would arrive early. He would do what he was asked to do, without complaining or arguing or even so much as an eye-roll. He would smile and laugh. A lot. And they wouldn’t be patronizing smirks, but would reach clear into his eyes. He would be sure everyone else got lunch before he did. He might even bring lunch to a few who couldn’t get a break to eat. He would go out of his way to help anyone who needed it, even looking for ways to help. He would make a meaningful connection, however brief, with each person he came across. Most would then want to have him over for a fish fry (he might even bring two fish or some bread…). He would answer any religious questions he was asked in a gentle, honest way. He would not spark religious debate by turning every conversation into a religious one out of nowhere. He would not cower, but when yelled at, ignored, dismissed, even abused, he would continue to work hard, forgive, and move on. And I’m pretty sure “blue language” wouldn’t bother him one little bit. #loveinaction #heisnotwhatyouthink #bethelove --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting. If you’d like to receive these posts and updates in your inbox, please subscribe. Before you read this you have to watch the video.
It’s only 28 seconds. Go on. I’ll wait…. *Whistles a happy little Foo Fighters tune* You’re back? Great! Here’s what you saw: Dave Grohl. Drummer for Nirvana. Founder of the Foo Fighters. Nicest guy in Rock. Not God. Except maybe in this video. Here is an important and influential rock star and his crew, hard at work creating a masterpiece that millions of people will hear. Concentrating. In the groove. His little daughter, who clearly has the run of the place (hello, she IS his daughter) interrupts. Big time. The hard work stops. Concentration is shattered, not only for him but the whole team. What could be so important that she could not wait for the session to be over? Was she bleeding or otherwise traumatized? Had he won yet another award? Was the president calling? Nope. She reminds him that he said they were going to go swimming. Hardly life or death, and certainly not worthy of interrupting the artist at work. What? You don’t see God in there? I do. Check out Dave’s reaction. Does he scowl? Give a stern correction? Offer a teachable moment about respecting other peoples’ time? Not even a little. His beloved child has come to him and he is delighted. The smile. The look in his eyes. The playfulness. Everything stops and he doesn’t even care. I’ll bet that, had he not been holding a guitar, he would have drawn her up and set her on his lap. What about her? She doesn’t sneak into the room. She doesn’t gingerly approach her dad, afraid he might be angry with the interruption. She pokes him in the back, even grabs his face, looking into his eyes. She knows she is welcomed, valued, and delighted in. She enters the room confidently, boldly. And that is exactly how God wants us to approach Him. Let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most. Hebrews 4:16 NLT He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs. Zephaniah 3:17b NLT The one the LORD loves rests between his shoulders. Deuteronomy 33:12 NIV Just as with Dave and his daughter, Father God delights in you, loves you, calms you, sings over you, holds you. He wants to hear all you have to say, smiling as you grab His face and look Him in the eyes. Wait. God smiles? He's playful? He even...dare I say...snuggles? Did you see Dave’s eyes and smile? Father God looks at you with the same expression. Even with a guitar in His hands. #Heisnotwhatyouthink #davegrohl #Godlovesyou |
Applying nature's principles and systems to personal and cultural development.About CommentsI love to read comments and know how my work is helping you. Please respond with your first AND last names. Anonymous comments will not be read and may be deleted.
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