The forgotten holiday...That's what my dad mentioned on Saturday when we were discussing plans around Thanksgiving. Is that what Thanksgiving has become? The holiday sandwiched between Halloween and Christmas? I understand why it happens. Halloween is a multibillion dollar holiday and Christmas is a multibillion dollar holiday. Thanksgiving isn't nearly the money maker so the consumer driven society tends to push it aside. But the Friday after is certainly a holiday! Just ask my wife! I think we need to be careful ourselves to make sure we don't forget Thanksgiving, and more importantly the spirit of the holiday. I know we've heard it so much, but we need to pause and truly give thanks for how lucky we have it.
As I was lying in bed this morning wondering if Alex(my 3 month old) was going to get up or not and I tried to name all the stuff I was thankful for. Lately I've just had this gnawing sense that I need to be more mindful of how good I truly have it. To that end, I thought I would earnestly try to name all the things I'm thankful for. As I was going along I found that I take a lot of things for granted...A LOT! For instance I woke up, which is a good start to any day, I was in a nice comfortable, warm bed. I had warm water instantly, I flipped on the TV to catch game highlights. Heck, when my first concern is who won the football game last night I know I have a lot to be thankful for. I had whatever I wanted for breakfast at hand and I had a job to go to. These are things to be thankful for and I haven't even left the house yet. Oh yeah I have a roof over my head. I have a great family, both immediate and far away. The list could literally go on and on...but how often do we actually feel thankful and grateful for all we have. Compared to much of the world I'm living as royalty and I hardly ever think of that thought when I'm complaining that my coffee is cold or not sweetened right! We truly have no idea how good we have it, and the one day we should truly try to be grateful is in danger of becoming Black Friday Eve and Thanksgiving will be forgotten.
I know I can never be grateful enough for what I have and what I've been given. The only way I can even try is to attempt to live the best life I can. Giving as much of myself as I can to help others. Trying to live the example that Jesus Christ gave us. Trying to be the best human being that I can. I know I'll fall short, but if I put for the honest effort and try to be better each time I fail then I'll truly be doing all I can to be say thanks for everything. Think of the difference in the world if we all tried to live like that. Will you try with me?
Monday, November 23, 2009
Monday, November 9, 2009
God's Energy
I have a confession to make. This past Sunday I had zero energy to do church when I got up in the morning. Do you ever have one of those mornings when you get up and all you want to do is go back to bed? You don't have the gumption to face the day and a few more hours spent under the covers would be perfect. Well that was me on Sunday. I can't even blame Alex for keeping us up because he slept pretty good. I don't know what it was. I didn't feel very perky. I asked Tracy if she wanted to preach for me and she politely declined. So I got up and went about my day. Amazingly the Spirit met me at the church doors and I was given the shot in the arm that I needed. Those that were at the worship service on Sunday can be the judge if that shot did any good, but it sure helped me out mentally and spiritually. Now if that dumb computer would only get that shot!
I'm amazed at how many times I have found myself grumpy or low on energy or feeling sorry for myself and had the Spirit come and lift me up. Sometimes I ask for it and sometimes I don't, but each time I certainly needed it and knew I was in the presence of something greater than myself. Ever have those experiences? I hope so. Isn't it wonderful that we have a God that loves us enough, and knows us well enough, that he enters our lives and gives us a boost when we need it most? The creator of the universe has the time to interject in our lives. Truly amazing when you think about it.
The question then moves to how do we thank God for all God has done for us? Do we say a little prayer of thanksgiving? A prayer would be a good start. Do we reflect that grace and mercy shown to us in our own lives? I think living a life that is Spirit filled would be the best way to show God our gratitude for all that has been done for us. During adult Sunday school we discussed what the difference was between being religious and having a relationship with Jesus. One main difference we all agreed on was that having a relationship means our lives have to reflect what we believe and profess. One can be religious...say and do all the right things, but still have no relationship and no evidence of God in the lives. It is impossible to have a true relationship with Jesus, God and/or the Spirit and not have that evidenced in your life.
I left the Sunday school with a question, and I'm going to close with this same question: "If someone who didn't know you at all looked at your life, would they be able to tell you have a relationship with Jesus, God and/or the Spirit?" Take a good look at the life you're living. Could a neutral observer tell you are a Christian? Look beyond church attendance and see if the life you live reflects the words you read in Scripture. I'll admit that I don't always like the answer when I ask myself that question. I try to ask it often and it serves as a reminder that a true relationship has to be reflected in my life. What's reflected in yours?
I'm amazed at how many times I have found myself grumpy or low on energy or feeling sorry for myself and had the Spirit come and lift me up. Sometimes I ask for it and sometimes I don't, but each time I certainly needed it and knew I was in the presence of something greater than myself. Ever have those experiences? I hope so. Isn't it wonderful that we have a God that loves us enough, and knows us well enough, that he enters our lives and gives us a boost when we need it most? The creator of the universe has the time to interject in our lives. Truly amazing when you think about it.
The question then moves to how do we thank God for all God has done for us? Do we say a little prayer of thanksgiving? A prayer would be a good start. Do we reflect that grace and mercy shown to us in our own lives? I think living a life that is Spirit filled would be the best way to show God our gratitude for all that has been done for us. During adult Sunday school we discussed what the difference was between being religious and having a relationship with Jesus. One main difference we all agreed on was that having a relationship means our lives have to reflect what we believe and profess. One can be religious...say and do all the right things, but still have no relationship and no evidence of God in the lives. It is impossible to have a true relationship with Jesus, God and/or the Spirit and not have that evidenced in your life.
I left the Sunday school with a question, and I'm going to close with this same question: "If someone who didn't know you at all looked at your life, would they be able to tell you have a relationship with Jesus, God and/or the Spirit?" Take a good look at the life you're living. Could a neutral observer tell you are a Christian? Look beyond church attendance and see if the life you live reflects the words you read in Scripture. I'll admit that I don't always like the answer when I ask myself that question. I try to ask it often and it serves as a reminder that a true relationship has to be reflected in my life. What's reflected in yours?
Monday, November 2, 2009
Great Day!
I apologize that I haven't updated the blog for awhile. I was on vacation and then the week after vacation just got away from me. I hope that you were able to control the craving for my postings during that 2 week absence. I imagine it was tough for many of you! Not sure I should mention this our not, since it is salary discussion time around here, but I just spent the better part of this morning with the family at the Omaha Zoo. It was a gorgeous day, the kids and Tracy behaved themselves and we had a great time. We could have spent the entire day watching a baby gorilla and the baby orangutans playing with burlap sacks. It was also funny to watch a couple gorillas eat. Both were in the same cage and there was two of everything for them but they would hold as much as the could and eat as fast as they could for fear the other might get something of theirs. Good times.
We decided to go to the zoo with the kids because Tracy is going back to work on Wednesday so our amount of free time will be cut and we won't be able to just pack up and go as easily. We wanted to spend one last day at the zoo just strolling around before the hectic schedule of the holidays picks up and life begins to whiz by. I spent the entire day just relishing the time and laughing at Isaac and the stuff he comes up with. What I wouldn't give for the ability to know what a 3 year old is thinking.
I'm sure in the years to come we'll look back on times like these and wish for them again. When the pressures of school and sports and all that comes with growing up makes us wish for the "good ole" days when our biggest worries were colds, keeping sight of the kids, and hoping they learn to share. I find myself torn between the excitement of wanting the kids to grow and watching them learn and mature and the sadness knowing that we can never get these days back again.
You really do have to stop and smell the roses if you will. As life continues to flash by at light speed I wonder if we need to slow down and enjoy our relationship with the Spirit more too. I've spoken and written a lot about our need to make sure we have devotional time with God. I also think we need to make sure we enjoy the relationship with have with God. What I mean by enjoy is that we need to stop comparing our spiritual journey and life with others and be thankful with what we have. Of course our relationship could be better, and we need to be diligent in strengthening the relationship, but we also need to learn that our relationship is ours and not to be compared with others. When life is going good and cruising along we need to recognize that and be thankful and just soak it up. Because, we know that eventually life will turn and we'll be longing for the "good ole" days. I also believe that if we take the time to acknowledge and enjoy our relationship with God, when we can, then when the tough times come we'll have memories of the better times and be reassured that they will come again. Just like we can miss great chances to experience wonderful things with our family if we get lost in the busyness, we can miss chances to strengthen and enjoy more fully our relationship with the Spirit if we only acknowledge it and use it when times are tough. So I urge you to spend some quality time with loved ones, and to spend some quality time with God. Both are wonderful chances to recharge and get us ready for the daily grind that is ahead.
We decided to go to the zoo with the kids because Tracy is going back to work on Wednesday so our amount of free time will be cut and we won't be able to just pack up and go as easily. We wanted to spend one last day at the zoo just strolling around before the hectic schedule of the holidays picks up and life begins to whiz by. I spent the entire day just relishing the time and laughing at Isaac and the stuff he comes up with. What I wouldn't give for the ability to know what a 3 year old is thinking.
I'm sure in the years to come we'll look back on times like these and wish for them again. When the pressures of school and sports and all that comes with growing up makes us wish for the "good ole" days when our biggest worries were colds, keeping sight of the kids, and hoping they learn to share. I find myself torn between the excitement of wanting the kids to grow and watching them learn and mature and the sadness knowing that we can never get these days back again.
You really do have to stop and smell the roses if you will. As life continues to flash by at light speed I wonder if we need to slow down and enjoy our relationship with the Spirit more too. I've spoken and written a lot about our need to make sure we have devotional time with God. I also think we need to make sure we enjoy the relationship with have with God. What I mean by enjoy is that we need to stop comparing our spiritual journey and life with others and be thankful with what we have. Of course our relationship could be better, and we need to be diligent in strengthening the relationship, but we also need to learn that our relationship is ours and not to be compared with others. When life is going good and cruising along we need to recognize that and be thankful and just soak it up. Because, we know that eventually life will turn and we'll be longing for the "good ole" days. I also believe that if we take the time to acknowledge and enjoy our relationship with God, when we can, then when the tough times come we'll have memories of the better times and be reassured that they will come again. Just like we can miss great chances to experience wonderful things with our family if we get lost in the busyness, we can miss chances to strengthen and enjoy more fully our relationship with the Spirit if we only acknowledge it and use it when times are tough. So I urge you to spend some quality time with loved ones, and to spend some quality time with God. Both are wonderful chances to recharge and get us ready for the daily grind that is ahead.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)