Harmony

Retreat: Day 4 - Questions

1.  Does my hunger for God continue to grow?

2.  Am I more concerned with acting good or loving God?

3.  Am I more concerned about pleasing God or men?

4.  Am I more sensitive to God's mercy or his judgment?

5.  Am I more devoted to the organization called the church or a life with God?

6.  Am I more at peace with God than I was 30 years ago?

7.  Am I comfortable and accepting of my sin?

8.  Do I recognize the Spirit working in my life?

9.  If Jesus were to appear today, would I recognize him or fight him?

10.  How devoted am I to living truth and love?

11.  How willing am I to love others as Jesus did?

12.  Is there anything that would cause me to walk away from a life with God?

13.  How would you answer these questions or what questions would you pose to others?

Retreat: Day 3 - Solitude brings healing

I am a person who thrives on relationships. I enjoy being around people...well, most people.  To be alone is punishment.  As a child, being sent to my room was almost worse than being spanked.  There are times I've had enough of people and need to get away, but that is short lived.

Solitude is God's healing time.  Away from noise, distractions, to do lists, and projects, God has the opportunity to work on my soul.  In the middle of the night I woke to this reality.  God was working in his unknown ways to raise questions I did not want to answer.  He made me face challenges I had buried deep.  He asked me to work through moments I had tucked away.

I won't write about those questions and situations specifically, however they deal with people from my past who continue to haunt my present life.  As a relational person, people affect me more than situations.  People can bring hurts and frustrations as well as joy and energy. 

As I share this, I do not want sympathy.  Prayers are wonderful.  I simply am sharing God's healing process for me.

At times I have allowed people to cause me to erect walls and protective barriers to keep similar accidents from taking place in my soul.  At times I have allowed my heart to become hard to what God wants to teach me in those moments.  At times I have blamed Him for allowing such situations to be in my life.

Last night, God dealt with me in those areas.  Job said it best, "naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart.  The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised."  Job 1:21

God is still good regardless of whether I see it or acknowledge it.  It is healthier for me to praise God when those "taken away" moments happen, but it is my choice.  That is why solitude and rest are essential for healing and reflection.  But it is easier to keep running.  Oh, it is easier to keep running, but at some point it catches up.

So this process is healing.  May you find a time of solitude so God can bring healing to your soul.  Don't think you need it...go for a walk with God and let him show you the way.

Intentional Path...Grading my Life!

Today I planned on evaluating my life by examining 12 areas.  I gave myself a grade and set out an intentional plan to move forward.  Here are the 12 areas:

1.  Marriage - A:  My journey with my wife is one of pure joy.  We spend hours each week sharing our lives, struggles, dreams and plans.  We talk about our financial picture and spiritual paths.  My plan to improve in this area is to keep at least 3 nights a week free from other obligations so we can continue to build a godly marriage.

2.  Family - B+:  My relationship with my children, grand-children, mother, brother and other extended family is okay but could easily improve.  I will schedule at least a 1 hour time frame each week to be with my son who lives in the same city with me.  I will schedule a once a week time to call my grand-children, daughter and son-in-law. 

3.  Financial - B+:  This area of my life runs smoothly with few incidents as most is automated.  However, keeping more organized financial records is a must with receipts.  Right now they just get piled into a box until tax time.  Once a week I will enter into Quickbooks each receipt and categorize.  This will make tax time much easier.

4.  Spiritual Development - B+:  Being in God's Word has always been an easy part of life for me, however my prayer life could use a good tune-up.  I will keep a prayer list in a journal as new items require and pray through that list daily.

5.  Physical - B:  I began a few weeks ago to exercise at least 5 times a week by walking, running or exercising on a tread climber.  I will continue this effort to get in shape and maintain good health practices.  The older I become the more intentional I must be in this.

6.  Ministry - B-:  I love my job and am very effective in the various roles I play, however a place for growth is to train and develop other leaders to form teams in each ministry area. 

7.  Relational - C-:  I have not been spending the necessary time to keep relationships flourishing as I need...just having fun with others.  I will have to work on how to do this with other obligations already in place.

8.  Personal Development - B+:  I enjoy reading and spend time each day in this area.  To improve, I want to implement more of what I read into my writings and life.

9.  Office - A:  My work ethic has always been strong, perhaps almost too concerned with appearances, but I have spent much time in the business world where work hours and meeting of goals is essential.

10.  Attitude - A:  Keeping a godly positive attitude has not always been easy, but is necessary to be a leader in the church.  Living a life of faith, trusting in God to make things right, is key to the walk with Him.

11.  School - A+:  A little over a year ago I began the process of getting my Masters Degree in Management.  I enjoy the reading and school work even though it keeps much of my weekends and free time filled.  I have less than a year to go so this is a priority.

12.  Writing - A-:  I began a blog about 6 months ago and was told I would need to be a slave to updating the posts.  I have done well in maintaining the process, but want to improve my writing skills.

These are the top 12 areas of my life...vital to maintain.  What would your top areas be and how would you grade yourself?

Retreat: Day 2...Off the trail?

As a child, all I ever wanted to do was preach and serve God.  I have been told I would stand in the back yard and preach to the grass and trees.  I had other side dreams of baseball, basketball, hockey or football but teaching and preaching was all I ever truly wanted.  God had a message and I wanted to be part of the delivery system.

So that was the path I took.  I went to college to learn more of God's Word and how to best communicate.  I double majored in Bible and Speech.  The path began not as I expected, but was part of the journey to learn ministry.  I worked for 8 years in the role of Youth Minister being mentored by wiser men on how to be a good minister. 

Preaching and being a good minister are not necessarily the same thing.  That is why Paul writes to the young preacher, Timothy, to encourage him on how to be a good minister.  There are right and wrong ways to work with people...it is about how to communicate in such a fashion so that they will hear the message and the heart of the heavenly messenger.

The journey was not easy and still is not, however I would not have chosen a different path.  I do wish some of the events I had to endure were not part of my history, however those situations allowed me to become a more effective minister.  God's academy of growth and maturity is filled with boulders, potholes and other obstacles.  Those moments bring about toughness.

Not giving up is the key.  I love the book of Hebrews.  The message is one I have had to lean on often  "Strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees."  "Don't give up."  "Endure." 

In Dan Brown's newest novel there is a 30,000 sq. foot room that is completely dark.  There are 2 doors at each end and a long strip of carpet that runs from door to door.  As one approaches the door the carpet becomes much thicker to signal the door is near.  To stay on the carpet brings safety.  To wander off brings potential disaster.  Fear.  Anxiety.  Being Lost.

This retreat time provides the ability to refocus and evaluate if I am on the path to which God has called me.  Today will be that day to reflect and if necessary to get back on the path.

Retreat: Day One

This morning, the light broke through the blinds in Squaw Valley...a small ski community with multiple lifts and a village of stores and restaurants.  Squaw Valley was the host of the 1960 Winter Olympic games.  The temperature was in the 20's and the sun had not crest the mountain tops, so I bundled up in sweats and went out for a walk and run.  Exhilarating.  When I finished I found the Starbucks and read a couple of copies of ESPN Magazine while watching the sun rise into the valley.

I returned to my room grabbed breakfast and a book and enjoyed the hot tub on the 2nd level deck.  The sun was warm as was the water as the cool outside temperatures slowly rose.  The book is He has made me glad by Ben Patterson from Westmont College in Santa Barbara.  The message is refreshing to recall how God is to be my main source of joy...all other sources have one fatal flaw...all are temporary.  Only God is eternal and is the provider of all things to give life and develop godliness.

I enjoyed another reading time in the early afternoon by devouring Wayne Cordeiro's book Running on Empty.  There are some rich ideas I will utilize this week to evaluate my world.  One of his ideas is to list the top 12 areas of your life such as personal walk with God, family, marriage, finances, work life and so forth.  After listing the areas, grade yourself on how well you have done in the past 6 months and write down a plan on how to improve in each area with a deadline.  I will go through this process tomorrow.  Should be interesting.

I love this area and this process.  See if you can do something similar yourself.

Changed by the touch of the Master's hand!

The Touch of the Master's Hand

It was battered and scarred,
And the auctioneer thought it
hardly worth his while
To waste his time on the old violin,
but he held it up with a smile.

"What am I bid, good people", he cried,
"Who starts the bidding for me?"
"One dollar, one dollar, Do I hear two?"
"Two dollars, who makes it three?"
"Three dollars once, three dollars twice, going for three,"

But, No,
From the room far back a gray bearded man
Came forward and picked up the bow,
Then wiping the dust from the old violin
And tightening up the strings,
He played a melody, pure and sweet
As sweet as the angel sings.

The music ceased and the auctioneer
With a voice that was quiet and low,
Said "What now am I bid for this old violin?"
As he held it aloft with its' bow.

"One thousand, one thousand, Do I hear two?"
"Two thousand, Who makes it three?"
"Three thousand once, three thousand twice,
Going and gone", said he.

The audience cheered,
But some of them cried,
"We just don't understand."
"What changed its' worth?"
Swift came the reply.
"The Touch of the Masters Hand."

And many a man with life out of tune
All battered with bourbon and gin
Is auctioned cheap to a thoughtless crowd
Much like that old violin

A mess of pottage, a glass of wine,
A game and he travels on.
He is going once, he is going twice,
He is going and almost gone.

But the Master comes,
And the foolish crowd never can quite understand,
The worth of a soul and the change that is wrought
By the Touch of the Masters' Hand.

By Myra Brooks Welch

Restorative Rest

Sunday morning after the 3rd service I am taking off by myself to Lake Tahoe...Squaw Valley resort at Olympic Valley to be exact.  Linda will join me on Friday, but according to her, I need several days of alone time.  And she is right (as usual).  She hopes that in those alone moments I will find the needed rest to restore my mind, body and soul.  It will be a time to reflect on many things. No Yoga...but somehow relaxing!

If you had time alone like this what would you do?  On what would you reflect?  What would you read?  How would you find restoration?

Restorative rest!  All of us need time to restore who we are...the real us that God made us to be.  We become so busy that confusion takes place...we often become lost in the what and forget who we are.  It is easy to put on hold the truly important things.  I feel like I do a pretty good job feeding my mind, body and soul, but the silence and quietness are not a normal practice.

Several years ago in my first ministerial career, I would take a week long study break every 6 months by myself to rest and read.  It was refreshing.  It gave me the boost needed to make it the next 6 months.  We all need quiet and rest.

The sabbath was made to be a complete day where nothing was done...no work...no cooking...no cleaning.  Rest brings restoration.

Find your own time to find a restorative rest.  You probably need it more than you realize.

MRI Test Results

All is fine!  I do have a brain.  I do not have a tumor.  I do not have any blocked arteries.  I do not have any abnormalities...at least nothing the MRI can detect.  

The Neurologist took me into a room where he showed me the various scans of my brain.  The MRI takes photographic slices of my brain from bottom of my neck to the top of my head.  He showed me all of them.  The process also takes photographic slices from the middle of my skull towards each ear.  Fascinating!

What a relief!  The docs still have no idea why the "event" occurred only that it did.  Blood pressure is normal and so it is up to me to continue towards a path of better health.

Thank you for the prayers and kind questions.  Blessed be the name of the Lord.

Crunching numbers

This time of the year is budget time at North County.  We receive from each staff member and ministry leader their dreams with dollar amounts attached.  The dreams are typically filled with wonderful plans to help guide people into a greater relationship with God.  No one tries to just spend money needlessly or frivolously...there is a great intention for a holy purpose.

On the other side is the giving situation of church members.  Many tithe.  Others give what they are able and others find themselves in their own financial realities.  We have to look at past giving patterns yet also be in the place to dream of what God might do in the next year...hopeful reality.  I hate that role, but know it is important.

The dream will be cast and vision will be shared by the Senior Minister and we expectantly move forward with God to a higher hill...letting the Father lead us.  I know some will become excited and rise to the occasion in participation with action and dollars.  I know the staff and ministry leaders will continue to plan and work diligently to encourage people to a deeper connection with God...regardless of the dollars.

I wish dollars were plentiful so that all dreams might become reality.  I long for the day when church members hear the vision and keep bringing gifts, and like Moses, we have to ask them to stop...we have too much!

Until then we balance the budget!  May God be glorified in these efforts.  May the dollars never drive the church.  And may I step up to the plate and be a part of the greatest game of this life...winning souls and encouraging the community.  Nothing is more important.

"I still haven't found what I'm looking for"

U2 sings a song called "I still haven't found what I'm looking for."  It was meant to be a gospel song.  Watch this video of U2 singing with a church choir in New York.  Below are the lyrics to the song.

 

I have climbed highest mountains
I have run through the fields
Only to be with you
Only to be with you
I have run
I have crawled
I have scaled these city walls
These city walls
Only to be with you

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for

I have kissed honey lips
Felt the healing in her fingertips
It burned like a fire
(I was) burning inside her

I have spoke with the tongue of angels
I have held the hand of a devil
It was warm in the night
I was cold as a stone

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for

I believe in the Kingdom Come
Then all the colors will bleed into one
Bleed into one
But yes I'm still running

You broke the bonds
And you loosed the chains
Carried the cross
Of my shame
Oh my shame
You know I believe it

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for
But I still haven't found what I'm looking for