Trust Me

It had been a long week and my kids have been real troopers as we work ravenously on our house to make it into move-in condition. The kids have been great helpers, tearing up carpeting, hauling bricks, painting, making supper, cleaning, ripping off wall paper, and mowing the lawn. I’m sure they could come up with quite a few more tasks I’ve asked them to complete.

Well, Thursday night this past week, pretty much every kid fell asleep in the car on the way back to our apartment after another late night. Now James, one of our 5-yr-old boys, has had a habit of crying and getting angry if you wake him up from a deep sleep. I can’t blame him. I was the same way. But I don’t tolerate his rude reaction. This Thursday night, again, I wanted to help him get to bed with minimal fuss. But I also prayed that God would give me patience and love.

James was in a deep sleep as usual. As I tried coaxing him out of the car, I though about the dialog we were having. Between the words God gave me and James' sleep-talk responses, I can see God doing this for us…

“James. Buddy. We’re home. Can you get up and turn towards me? I can carry you all the way to your bed.”

James gives an animal-like cry somewhere between the sound of a loud morning stretch and a groan.

“Hey Bud, turn towards me so I can lift you out.” (He was sitting in the middle seat)

Clutching the blanket that was wrapped around him, he shouts, “I can do it! I can turn it!”

I can tell he is not awake. His eyes are still shut. “Trust me, son. It’s Daddy. Trust me. I’ll take care of it. Let go. I can carry you.”

He clutched the blanket more firmly, trying to “turn it” himself, misunderstanding my request. “I can do it!” he yells again in his sleep.

“It’s OK. Daddy’s here. Let it go. Trust me. It’s going to be OK. I’ve got it. Trust me.”

And with that he relaxed and let himself fall towards me. I lifted him out and he snuggled into my shoulder the whole way to his bed.

Thank you, Lord, for being my Daddy. Help me let go of my pretend struggles, trust you, and let you carry me home.

Because you are his sons and daughters, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” – Galations 4:6

Who do you take your advice from?

I started listening to music at work to help drown out some of the background conversations. Searching through my music library, I realized again the influence that I place over myself with the music choices I make. I like listening to some of the same songs I liked in high shool and college. They remind me of some good times (like being with my wife). But I was also thinking, "Boy, I had a lot to learn. Would I take advice from myself in high school? Yikes!" And listening again to some of the songs that I used to like shows some of the false mentalities that raged against God's truth. Many in my music library were not Christian song writers, and I wonder now where their life has led them.

There are lots of suttle influences in our lives, and I think they influence us more than we think. I want you to remember that we also have more control over these influences than we think. God gives us this power to resist the World and seek the light of life, "for what do darkness and light have in common?"

One great question for figuring out if you are going along with the world or taking advice from the world:
"Does it give God glory?"

If not, don't do it.

So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. 
- First Corinthians 10:31

Extreme. Some might say. But Christianity is extremely opposite of the World. We like to label ourselves Christian, but then the definition slides to whatever our preferences are at the time. God's word keeps us on track.

Here are some of my thoughts on different things that do or could influence our lives:

Music - Has your preference changed since high school? Would you take advice from yourself in high school? Music connects to our soul. Use your intelligence to filter what goes to your soul. I now really appreciate the music of Koine and Branches Band. Now days there seems to be so many more options for different genres of Christian music. When I was growing up, it seemed like there were a couple groups that were kind-of-Christian that fit my music preference like DC Talk, Creed, and Jars of Clay. I still like Jesus Freak by DC Talk, but my kids were not impressed.

TV - #1 way to cut down on your intake of bad advice: Stop watching TV. If you watch, you are being influenced. For me, the only way I've found to regulate this negative influence is to not watch. It's addictive and I get sucked in, and the slide into poor programming is almost designed. You could DVR educational shows and fast forward through commercials, but that gets expensive. I just look up stuff on the internet instead (you also have to be careful there).

Internet - Tunnel vision is key. No side ad distraction. Write down what you went to your computer/phone for, then do it and get off. Our devices now days do more to distract us from reality than they do to improve our efficiency.

Parents - Have you really dived into the knowledge base that your parents have accumulated? What have they already done that you are now attempting to do? They did so much before you even existed. What were their experiences?

Siblings - Have you lost touch? Are you all busy with your own things? What are you both going through right now that is similar? Has an older sibling led the way with new experiences that you can learn from?

Mentors - Well, yeah, sure, but where do you find a mentor? Do you have to pay? Hard to find? Meet people, learn people. Find people that have what you want and just ask them for advice. Then do it! Take a moment and think about it. Write down a list of areas of your life that you find important. Then think of people you already know that have success in that particular area. Talk with them. Dig deep. Verify that they do indeed share your same values and goals. Then COPY! We don't have to figure out everything on our own. Be humble. Be willing.

Yourself - When I say, "I'm going to get a lot of stuff done at the house tonight." I put everything else under that task. I would much rather tell myself, "I'm going to be a great dad tonight, while I work on the house." That better matches up with my values, and puts the focus on the right task. Why hinder our eternal work with temporal work? How can I use my earthly work to help others (give them paid work or experience), to strengthen relationships (bonding time), to show the peace that God gives (maybe I should get that peace first). It's tough when you're hard up against a deadline, but if we seek these eternal things first, everything else may or may not work out, but at least we did the most important things first. God also promises that he will give us everything we need when we go to work, so don't worry. My experience has been that God delivers in remarkable ways when I set out to do a thing, but keep my priorities straight. Trust God and he will not let you down. He is good, all the time.

And that leads me to my last and most important item...

God - Take his advice. Read his word. He will speak with you. He will guide you in ways unseen. Your story is yours alone, and God knows it best. He will lead you to green pastures. To peace and security beyond your current understanding. All other advice pales in comparison.  

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

    neither are your ways my ways,”

declares the Lord.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth,

    so are my ways higher than your ways

    and my thoughts than your thoughts."

-Isaiah 55:8-9

God's Word is Comforting

I just wasted 2.5 hours of my life, tossing and turning in bed, worrying about how I am going to fix our house. Leaking sink, ruined floors, ductwork, electrical…I couldn’t get it out of my head. I knew I needed to be sleeping. I had stayed up much later than is good for me. I need to get a lot done at work as well and I can’t function on 4 hours of sleep. I knew I needed to refocus on God. I started about 7 prayers during that 2.5 hours, and they all found their end in a wondering mind delved in house fixes. Finally, I asked forgiveness for my lack of focus, lack of trust, and asked God, “How can I not get distracted?” He answered pretty quick, “Read my Word.”

So at 5:30am, I got up, grabbed my Bible and a pen, and went to eat some breakfast.

There is something truly remarkable about the power of God’s word. It focused me immediately on God’s promises, Christ’s work, and how it applies to my life. I turned to Mark and just started looking over the headings, all stories I’ve read before, but it was powerful to see them written down. God recorded these events to help me, right now. I read the heading: The Request of James and John, and I think, “Wow. Those guys were pretty audacious, and way off base.” Then I turn to eat a spoon full of cereal, and I realize that I am not worthy to receive this food from God. I’m hungry, He feeds me, and I usually take it for granted. But now I see God, my loving Father, handing me, his audacious child, some food, because He knows I need it and He cares for me.

I read through that section again, and was struck again at how Jesus was a servant to all. And Jesus says it so clearly, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” - Mark 10:45 

I knew the section about Do Not Worry. I was trying to tell myself the gist of it as I was tossing and turning in bed. But now I was equipped with God’s Word and His Spirit, so I turned to Matthew 6:25. It’s blatantly obvious to me now, after rereading this section, that God’s kingdom is what’s important and the work God gives us is to be done faithfully, to the best of our ability, and he will make sure we have all the tools we need. (we usually call them blessings) But more importantly, I have peace. My God gives me what I need.

My children have a pillow from a VBS years ago that reads, “God’s Word is Comforting”. Isn’t that the truth!

When the world distracts you, run to God’s Word.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” - John 14:27