I was just on Facebook and my cousin had posted that she
Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!" The truth is, God is not the one that left the bitter taste in my mouth, but it was my conscious choice to blame Him for what had happened in my life. The fact of the matter is that the position, the youth group, even the office wasn't mine to get attached. In actuality, those things were becoming idols in my life and taking precedent over God and all He wanted was to have me put Him first. If we are not attached to things, we don't get a burnt taste in our mouths when things don't go the way that we think they should. The reason is because we know that we can taste and see that God is good. He provided and continues to provide through those situations.
When I think about the people that have hurt me and the people that I have hurt, only one thing comes to mind ... Forgiveness. Again, it comes down to making a choice to forgive, but also to ask forgiveness of those that you know that you have hurt. Colossians 3:13 states, "Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others." We need to continual forgive those that burn us and seek forgiveness for those that have 'burnt' us.
For those readers of this blog that I have burnt or hurt in some way, I humbly ask your forgiveness and know that I am well aware of my faults and failures, but request your grace as I strive to be more like the one who allows me to be forgiven.
So to my cousin who burnt her tongue, I am sorry that your tongue is suffering from this temporary pain, but thank you for the reminder that we need to forgive those who hurt us and seek forgiveness of those that we have hurt. I hope your tongue heals quickly.
Never Lose the Passion,
Dean
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Trials and Temper Tantrums
A couple of days ago I was having a little pity party for myself, by myself. I was going over the events of the past few weeks; few months; few years; few decades (can't believe I can even say that and remember that far back) but I was relishing.
In 1 Thessalonians, Paul, Silas and Timothy are writing to the church in Thessalonica and at one point Paul states this: "Be thankful in ALL circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus"(1 Thess 5:18, NLT). Be thankful in ALL circumstances? Really? So when things are going horribly in our lives, we are to give thanks for the crap that we go through? I always understood giving thanks for the good things that happen in our lives, but why would I want to give thanks for the troubles of life?
Some people would say, "Find things to be thankful for" or "At least you are breathing". True, we are to be thankful for these things, but these things happen each and every day and we should be thankful for those things all the time. But the more I think about this verse, the more I think I misunderstood what Paul was saying here. I truly believe that we are to be thankful for our hardships and difficulties that we face.
God never said that things would be easy in serving Him. Many have given their lives for the sake of sharing the Gospel. In one of Paul's other letters, he encourages Timothy to "endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus" (2 Tim 2:3, NLT). He knew that the road wasn't going to be easy, but he knew that God was always going to be with him. The author of Hebrews (who many believe to be Paul) reassures us of that when God promises that "[He] will never fail us. [He] will never abandon us"(Heb 13:5b, NLT). God is going with us in the good and in the bad.
Ultimately though, God controls it all. "I create the light and make the darkness. I send good times and bad times. I, the Lord, am the one who does these things"(Isa 45:7, NLT). If God sends the good times and the bad times should we not be like Job and ask the question, "Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?"(Job 2:10, NLT) or do we grumble, complain and throw a temper tantrum and be like Jonah and say, "Now, LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live"(Jonah 4:3, NIV)?
Let's return to my relishing for a minute. See, I wasn't relishing in the good things that God has done for me, I was relishing in the ways that I had felt that God had dealt me an injustice. I was having a bit of a temper tantrum of my own. I neglected to see the way that God has shaped and moulded me into His image through those times and I chose to focus on the negative circumstances that got me to where I am now. As I picked myself up off the floor and dusted myself off, I chose to give thanks for the trials that I face because I know that God is with me and that He will not leave me through this process called life. He knows what is best and He is allowing these situations in my life because He knows that I need to go through them to trust Him more. I pray that my attitude will always be that of the "good soldier" and that I am thankful that God is bringing me through for His purpose ... not mine.
Never Lose the Passion,
Dean
In 1 Thessalonians, Paul, Silas and Timothy are writing to the church in Thessalonica and at one point Paul states this: "Be thankful in ALL circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus"(1 Thess 5:18, NLT). Be thankful in ALL circumstances? Really? So when things are going horribly in our lives, we are to give thanks for the crap that we go through? I always understood giving thanks for the good things that happen in our lives, but why would I want to give thanks for the troubles of life?
Some people would say, "Find things to be thankful for" or "At least you are breathing". True, we are to be thankful for these things, but these things happen each and every day and we should be thankful for those things all the time. But the more I think about this verse, the more I think I misunderstood what Paul was saying here. I truly believe that we are to be thankful for our hardships and difficulties that we face.
God never said that things would be easy in serving Him. Many have given their lives for the sake of sharing the Gospel. In one of Paul's other letters, he encourages Timothy to "endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus" (2 Tim 2:3, NLT). He knew that the road wasn't going to be easy, but he knew that God was always going to be with him. The author of Hebrews (who many believe to be Paul) reassures us of that when God promises that "[He] will never fail us. [He] will never abandon us"(Heb 13:5b, NLT). God is going with us in the good and in the bad.
Ultimately though, God controls it all. "I create the light and make the darkness. I send good times and bad times. I, the Lord, am the one who does these things"(Isa 45:7, NLT). If God sends the good times and the bad times should we not be like Job and ask the question, "Should we accept only good things from the hand of God and never anything bad?"(Job 2:10, NLT) or do we grumble, complain and throw a temper tantrum and be like Jonah and say, "Now, LORD, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live"(Jonah 4:3, NIV)?
Let's return to my relishing for a minute. See, I wasn't relishing in the good things that God has done for me, I was relishing in the ways that I had felt that God had dealt me an injustice. I was having a bit of a temper tantrum of my own. I neglected to see the way that God has shaped and moulded me into His image through those times and I chose to focus on the negative circumstances that got me to where I am now. As I picked myself up off the floor and dusted myself off, I chose to give thanks for the trials that I face because I know that God is with me and that He will not leave me through this process called life. He knows what is best and He is allowing these situations in my life because He knows that I need to go through them to trust Him more. I pray that my attitude will always be that of the "good soldier" and that I am thankful that God is bringing me through for His purpose ... not mine.
Never Lose the Passion,
Dean
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Complete Surrender
My girlfriend had given me a great book to read a few weeks ago and if you have the chance (if you haven't already), pick up a copy of "tuesdays with Morrie" by Mitch Albom. I want to quote a piece of the book for you:
Morrie lost his battle. Someone was now wiping his behind.As I read this portion of the book, I couldn't help but be reminded of how God wants us to be. In Matthew 18:1-4 Jesus was talking to his disciples about being the greatest:
He faced this with typically brave acceptance. No longer able to reach behind him when he used the commode, he informed Connie of his latest limitation.
"Would you be embarrassed to do it for me?"
She said no.
I found it typical that he asked her first.
It took some getting used to, Morrie admitted, because it was, in a way, complete surrender to the disease. The most personal and basic things had now been taken from him - going to the bathroom, wiping his nose, washing his private parts. With the exception of breathing and swallowing his food, he was dependent on others for nearly everything.
I asked Morrie how he managed to stay positive through that.
"Mitch, it's funny," he said. "I'm an independent person, so my inclination was to fight all of this - being helped from the car, having someone else dress me. I felt a little ashamed, because our culture tells us we should be ashamed if we can't wipe our own behind. But then I figured, Forget what the culture says, I have ignored the culture much of my life. I am not going to be ashamed. What's the big deal?
"And you know what? The strangest thing."
What's that?
"I began to enjoy my dependency. No I enjoy when they turn me over on my side and rub cream on my behind so I don't get sores. Or when they wipe my brow, or they massage my legs. I revel in it. I close my eyes and soak it up. And it seems very familiar to me.
"It's like going back to being a child again. Someone to bathe you. Someone to lift you. Someone to wipe you. We all know how to be a child. It's inside all of us. For me, it's just remembering how to enjoy it.
"The truth is when our mothers held us, rocked us, stroked our heads - none of us ever got enough of that. We all yearn in some way to return to those days when we were completely taken care of - unconditional love, unconditional attention. Most of us didn't get enough.
"I know I didn't."
I looked at Morrie and I suddenly knew why he so enjoyed my leaning over and adjusting his microphone, or fussing with the pillows, or wiping his eyes. Human touch. At seventy-eight, he was giving as an adult and taking as a child.
"At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said: “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."(NIV)
I don't know why I am so proud, but when I submitted myself to writing this blog, I promised that I would always be vulnerable in it for the sake of helping others. If I was going to do it, I was going to do it wide open. My life hasn't gone the way that I thought it would. I imagined myself married, with a family, in a nice quaint house living a comfortable life making a respectable living at a job that I thoroughly enjoyed. Looking at myself from the outside in, I see a guy that doesn't have any of that and my pride gets the best of me sometimes and I feel a sense of worthlessness. I don't have a wife or family, I don't have a house, I don't have a job, I don't have ... I don't have ... I don't have ... and in our culture, all that adds up to an unsuccessful life.
But how quickly am I reminded that the value of one's life is not based on what you don't have. In truth, I have more than one could ever dream of. I have a family, a girlfriend and friends that love me. I have a place to lay my head at night. I have food that I can eat and yes ... I even have the occasional Starbucks treat. But all of that still doesn't create the value of my life. Those are just blessings!
What truly gives my life value is the fact that I have a relationship with a Heavenly Father that loves me and wants me to be completely dependent on Him. My value is not in what I have but Who has me. That's where the success of my life lies. You see, I think Morrie was on to something when he realized that there was pleasure in complete dependency on someone. He was able to both give and receive. He had figured out the healthy balance and found contentment in that. Have we been able to find that balance of being able to receive from a father as a child, but to give as an adult?
But how quickly am I reminded that the value of one's life is not based on what you don't have. In truth, I have more than one could ever dream of. I have a family, a girlfriend and friends that love me. I have a place to lay my head at night. I have food that I can eat and yes ... I even have the occasional Starbucks treat. But all of that still doesn't create the value of my life. Those are just blessings!
What truly gives my life value is the fact that I have a relationship with a Heavenly Father that loves me and wants me to be completely dependent on Him. My value is not in what I have but Who has me. That's where the success of my life lies. You see, I think Morrie was on to something when he realized that there was pleasure in complete dependency on someone. He was able to both give and receive. He had figured out the healthy balance and found contentment in that. Have we been able to find that balance of being able to receive from a father as a child, but to give as an adult?
I don't know what tomorrow is going to hold or even if tomorrow may come. Life is fragile at best, but the life that I live, I hope that I always give with all I have and depend with all I am. May I understand what it means to be "like a child". Complete surrender ...
Never Lose the Passion,
Dean
Dean
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Spiritus Sanctus
This prayer comes out of a book that I am reading and really enjoy called "The Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions".
Spiritus Sanctus
O HOLY SPIRIT,
As the sun is full of light,
the ocean full of water,
Heaven full of glory,
so may my heart be full of thee.
Vain are all divine purposes of love
and the redemption wrought by Jesus
except thou work within,
regenerating by thou power,
giving me eyes to see Jesus,
showing me the realities of the unseen world.
Give me thyself without measure,
as an unimpaired fountain,
as inexhaustible riches.
I bewail my coldness, poverty, emptiness,
imperfect vision, lanquid service,
prayerless prayers, praiseless praises.
Suffer me not to grieve or resist thee.
Come as power,
to expel every rebel lust, to reign supreme and keep me thine;
Come as teacher,
leading me into all truth, filling me with all understanding;
Come as love,
that I may adore the Father, and love him as my all;
Come as joy,
to dwell in me, move in me, animate me;
Come as sanctifier;
body, soul and spirit wholly thine;
Come as helper,
with strength to bless and keep, directing my every step;
Come as beautifier,
bringing order out of confusion, loveliness out of chaos.
Magnify to me thy glory by being magnified in me,
and make me redolent of thy fragrance.
I hope I can continue to pray this with a pure heart and humble desire. If you haven't heard of this book before, I strongly suggest that you get it. It is a great inspiration and a great supplement to ANY devotional life.
Never Lose the Passion,
Dean
Spiritus Sanctus
O HOLY SPIRIT,
As the sun is full of light,
the ocean full of water,
Heaven full of glory,
so may my heart be full of thee.
Vain are all divine purposes of love
and the redemption wrought by Jesus
except thou work within,
regenerating by thou power,
giving me eyes to see Jesus,
showing me the realities of the unseen world.
Give me thyself without measure,
as an unimpaired fountain,
as inexhaustible riches.
I bewail my coldness, poverty, emptiness,
imperfect vision, lanquid service,
prayerless prayers, praiseless praises.
Suffer me not to grieve or resist thee.
Come as power,
to expel every rebel lust, to reign supreme and keep me thine;
Come as teacher,
leading me into all truth, filling me with all understanding;
Come as love,
that I may adore the Father, and love him as my all;
Come as joy,
to dwell in me, move in me, animate me;
Come as sanctifier;
body, soul and spirit wholly thine;
Come as helper,
with strength to bless and keep, directing my every step;
Come as beautifier,
bringing order out of confusion, loveliness out of chaos.
Magnify to me thy glory by being magnified in me,
and make me redolent of thy fragrance.
I hope I can continue to pray this with a pure heart and humble desire. If you haven't heard of this book before, I strongly suggest that you get it. It is a great inspiration and a great supplement to ANY devotional life.
Never Lose the Passion,
Dean
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
The What Could Have Been ...
I'm nestled peacefully in the corner of a Starbucks and I am reflecting on the past little while. There have been some major changes in my life that have made me question even if I should blog any more. More on that thought later.
Last week was the end of what was for me known as "The Associate Pastor". I have served at a church for the past year and a bit and now a new chapter of my life has opened up. As I have had a week to reflect on this transition, I have wondered, "what COULD have been", "what MIGHT have been" and "what PROBABLY WOULD have been" but the truth is WHAT WILL BE will not really be up to me. In all honesty, whatever could, might or probably would have been wouldn't have been up to me anyway as it wasn't mine to decide. It is up to God to do what He wants, when He wants how He wants and I am content with that. His ways and His thoughts are perfect because they are His and He is God. (Isaiah 55:8) I had to let go and let God do it the way that He has planned for that church. In my humanity, that is difficult. For me, who likes to "fix" or "control" things, my natural response is to try to make it the way that I think it should be and go the way that I think it should go. But I have taken things as far as I am supposed to and now it is on to something new for me.
I heard this quote recently by Marsha Petrie Sue and I think it sums it up really well:
As for the blog and whether to keep writing or not ... well ... I feel that God would want me to continue on sharing my thoughts and experiences. Because God is my lead, I am, and always will be, His associate so watch for more updates to come in the future.
Never Lose the Passion,
Dean
Last week was the end of what was for me known as "The Associate Pastor". I have served at a church for the past year and a bit and now a new chapter of my life has opened up. As I have had a week to reflect on this transition, I have wondered, "what COULD have been", "what MIGHT have been" and "what PROBABLY WOULD have been" but the truth is WHAT WILL BE will not really be up to me. In all honesty, whatever could, might or probably would have been wouldn't have been up to me anyway as it wasn't mine to decide. It is up to God to do what He wants, when He wants how He wants and I am content with that. His ways and His thoughts are perfect because they are His and He is God. (Isaiah 55:8) I had to let go and let God do it the way that He has planned for that church. In my humanity, that is difficult. For me, who likes to "fix" or "control" things, my natural response is to try to make it the way that I think it should be and go the way that I think it should go. But I have taken things as far as I am supposed to and now it is on to something new for me.
I heard this quote recently by Marsha Petrie Sue and I think it sums it up really well:
"Stay away from what might have been and look at what can be."I need to let go of the past and press on to the future. What the future holds, only God knows. He has been with me every step of the way and I know that He will go with me as I enter into this new leg of the journey. He has a plan for me! Jeremiah 29:11-13 reminds me of this with:
"For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me." (NLT)The only thing that God asks of me is that I seek Him wholeheartedly. The best part about that is if I seek Him, I will find Him. Now there is something that I can take to the bank! So I look to God as to what my future holds and trust Him to lead me. Where do I look? Well ... I look into His Word. Psalm 119:105 says. "Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path."(NLT) It doesn't say that God will light up the whole valley and show me the big picture, but it does say that He will show me the next steps to take as I trust Him to lead me.
As for the blog and whether to keep writing or not ... well ... I feel that God would want me to continue on sharing my thoughts and experiences. Because God is my lead, I am, and always will be, His associate so watch for more updates to come in the future.
Never Lose the Passion,
Dean
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
No Restrictions
Every Tuesday night I stay in town after work for our weekly prayer meeting. For those that don't know, I live about 25 minutes from work. Tonight is definitely no exception. It often gives me time to think and just reflect about what is happening in my life.
For the past few years, I have made "New Year's Restrictions" for myself. In 2007, I decided that I wasn't going to drink anything but water. Surprisingly, I accomplished this and was better for doing it. In 2008, it was no fast food. Again, I managed to work it out throughout the year. In 2009, it was no desserts. This one didn't fair as well. I did okay until I was invited over for a birthday celebration and someone handed me a piece of cake. I think it was all downhill from there. However, I did keep with the no pop rule. In 2010, I chose not to drink pop for yet another year and was again successful at my task. This year, however, I have decided that my restrictions would be no restrictions.
Often in the past, I have treated my Christian walk much like my 'New Year's Restrictions'. I won't do this, or I won't do that. Often, I managed to do it for a while but then I would fail and the guilt that flooded over me was overwhelming. I started to see my walk as a failure. Ultimately, guilt was keeping me from obtaining all that God had intended me for because "I wasn't worthy" of being a Christian. I was living in bondage because I thought I was abusing God's grace. My understanding of grace was skewed.
The truth is, that God's grace is not about how bad we are, but rather, that no matter how good we can be it wouldn't be good enough. We can try and be the perfect Christian and always do it right, but in our humanity, we always come up short. Sure, no matter how bad we have been, "nothing can separate us from the love of God" (Romans 8:39), but we have to remember that "no one is righteous--not even one" (Romans 3:10). We all are in need of God's grace no matter how good we are or how bad we are. No one is restricted from God's grace.
So this year ... no restrictions. Let go of past failures; let go of the past accomplishments; be free. I've quoted it before, but I think it is worth stating again ... "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13b-14)
For the past few years, I have made "New Year's Restrictions" for myself. In 2007, I decided that I wasn't going to drink anything but water. Surprisingly, I accomplished this and was better for doing it. In 2008, it was no fast food. Again, I managed to work it out throughout the year. In 2009, it was no desserts. This one didn't fair as well. I did okay until I was invited over for a birthday celebration and someone handed me a piece of cake. I think it was all downhill from there. However, I did keep with the no pop rule. In 2010, I chose not to drink pop for yet another year and was again successful at my task. This year, however, I have decided that my restrictions would be no restrictions.
Often in the past, I have treated my Christian walk much like my 'New Year's Restrictions'. I won't do this, or I won't do that. Often, I managed to do it for a while but then I would fail and the guilt that flooded over me was overwhelming. I started to see my walk as a failure. Ultimately, guilt was keeping me from obtaining all that God had intended me for because "I wasn't worthy" of being a Christian. I was living in bondage because I thought I was abusing God's grace. My understanding of grace was skewed.
The truth is, that God's grace is not about how bad we are, but rather, that no matter how good we can be it wouldn't be good enough. We can try and be the perfect Christian and always do it right, but in our humanity, we always come up short. Sure, no matter how bad we have been, "nothing can separate us from the love of God" (Romans 8:39), but we have to remember that "no one is righteous--not even one" (Romans 3:10). We all are in need of God's grace no matter how good we are or how bad we are. No one is restricted from God's grace.
So this year ... no restrictions. Let go of past failures; let go of the past accomplishments; be free. I've quoted it before, but I think it is worth stating again ... "Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13b-14)
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