So, yesterday morning, I got to Converse and got out of my car to find that I had a flat tire. It wasn't flat when I left home, and I didn't hear or feel anything on the drive to Spartanburg that would make me think I had a flat tire, but, BEHOLD, it was flat as could be.
Well, to make a long story short, we got the tire taken care of, and everything is fine (even though I didn't get my afternoon off to relax like I had planned).
As I was leaving Home Depot today after work, my friend Casey told me to go look at her right rear tire because it was flat. She just got her tires recently, and just got her car back a couple weeks ago from a body shop after a wreck she had. Anyway, I asked if she wanted me to change it, and she said no because her dad was heading down from Easley to take care of it. I said okay and started to leave. Well, as I got to my car, I thought to myself, "Michaelangelo (that's what I call myself), how can you let her dad drive down from Easley to take care of this when you're there and are perfectly capable of changing the tire." Again, to make a long story short, I got Casey's keys and changed the tire for her. It's no big deal; it's just a tire change. I didn't have anything spiritual in mind while doing the work, but I figured it made more sense that way.
So, fast forward 15 minutes to me leaving to head to Crossroads to doublecheck some things before Sunday morning: the Holy Spirit brings some Scripture to mind (funny how that happens when we don't expect it). 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 says, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God." Now, I know that a flat tire isn't a massive affliction that burdens our hearts and minds, but it's a little thing that kind of irritates you simply because it doesn't fit into your schedule. But maybe, just maybe, God gave me a flat tire yesterday so that I would be not only willing to change someone else's today, but that I would be compelled to do it, since I know that it sucks to have a flat tire and have to change your schedule for it.
What's the point? you may be asking. The point is simply that sometimes God brings us through things, however large or small, that may be intentional on His part so that we, in turn, can be intentional in helping others. Ever thought of it that way? The next time something unexpected comes your way, even if it is something that is in your opinion bad, stop and pray about it and ask God how he wants to use this affliction for His glory through your life.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
By This All Men Will Know
So, this blog is inspired by a friend of mine, who I'll call Raphael (his name is NOT Raphael, but how cool would it be if it was!). Raphael lives in TN and seeks the Lord with all his heart. Recently, that heart has been broken. I don't get to see or talk to him very often, but he and I have a unique connection and are still very close. Over the last week, my heart has been burdened for Raphael because of the pain he's been dealing with. Now, as most of you know, a broken heart is a pain common to most people, and yet everyone who is in his position feels as though they are all alone and that no one has ever been there before. Of course, that's not true, but just how often does how we feel reflect things we know to be true?
Anyway, I've been longing to find a way to help Raphael carry his burden. It breaks my heart to know that a Brother in Christ is struggling with pain in his heart and spirit. Isn't that what we're commanded to do? Didn't Paul write that we should "Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the Law of Christ" (Gal. 6:2)? As the Body of Christ, I think we've lost track of that somehow. Of course, when some members or a local church go through something tragic, people are there to help them, but what about the day-to-day burdens that really eat away at our strength and confidence and sometimes even our faith? Why don't we make it a point to bear those burdens for each other? I don't know if Raphael has other Believers in TN with him who are intentionally seeking him out and bearing his burdens with him, but I do know that he needs that, just like all of us do.
Where is the love that claim to express? Not in times of extreme hardship, but in daily actions. It's just my opinion, but I think if we abandoned seeking new ways to reach the lost in our community, quit trying to have bigger and better worship concerts, and stopped being more concerned about people's opinions than we are about their hearts, and then put all of that energy into loving each other wholeheartedly, unconditionally, God would do a mightier work than any we've ever imagined (He said He'd do it, ya know).
By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." -John 13:35
Anyway, I've been longing to find a way to help Raphael carry his burden. It breaks my heart to know that a Brother in Christ is struggling with pain in his heart and spirit. Isn't that what we're commanded to do? Didn't Paul write that we should "Bear one another's burdens, and thereby fulfill the Law of Christ" (Gal. 6:2)? As the Body of Christ, I think we've lost track of that somehow. Of course, when some members or a local church go through something tragic, people are there to help them, but what about the day-to-day burdens that really eat away at our strength and confidence and sometimes even our faith? Why don't we make it a point to bear those burdens for each other? I don't know if Raphael has other Believers in TN with him who are intentionally seeking him out and bearing his burdens with him, but I do know that he needs that, just like all of us do.
Where is the love that claim to express? Not in times of extreme hardship, but in daily actions. It's just my opinion, but I think if we abandoned seeking new ways to reach the lost in our community, quit trying to have bigger and better worship concerts, and stopped being more concerned about people's opinions than we are about their hearts, and then put all of that energy into loving each other wholeheartedly, unconditionally, God would do a mightier work than any we've ever imagined (He said He'd do it, ya know).
By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." -John 13:35
Friday, June 29, 2007
First Words from the Eudoxus
Well, this is my first regular blog, and it won't be very interesting. Basically, I'm going to repost some of my old blogs from MySpace, so feel free to check them out! That way, for those of you who haven't seen them before, you can see what's up inside my head.
The Glorious Truth of the Gospel
Reposted from Tuesday, March 7, 2006
God doesn't need you. That's right. He doesn't need you. I believe this is the glorious truth of the Gospel of Christ. God existed forever without us, so why do we think we are crucial to His existence. However, even though He doesn't need us, God WANTS and LOVES us. Isn't it so much more special to be wanted than needed. Christ didn't die because it was necessary for Him to live, but because it was necessary for us to live WITH Him.
God doesn't need you.
Vision Vs. Provision
Reposted from Monday, August 7, 2006
Well, the past week or so God has really laid on my heart the fact that so many times we think He isn't working in something or doesn't want us to pursue something because He hasn't already provided the means to do whatever it is we're considering. I know that's how I've done things so many times..."the money wasn't there so it must not have been His will" or "if this is what God wants He'll make it obvious to me." I was reading in 1 Samuel 14 about Jonathan's victory over the Philistines. Have you ever read it? He tells his armour bearer, "Come and let us cross over to the garrison of these uncircumsised; PERHAPS the Lord will work for us..." (NASB, italics mine). Jonathan and his servant went to the enemies camp by themselves (and by the way, the armour bearer wouldn't have his own armour) and Jonathan basically said, "Maybe God will show up." He didn't wait for the provision from God before he went. He didn't receive a vision from the Lord and then go...he just went. God did provide a victory for the two of them, but Jonathan didn't know if He would or not.
Basically, I just want to encourage my fellow followers of The Way to just step out and do something for the cause of Christ. Maybe God will bless your efforts; maybe He won't and you'll fail, but at least you'll fail attempting to further the greatest cause ever known--"...the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:25b). Stop waiting for the Provision. God has given you a vision...act on it.
Amen and Amen.
Well, the past week or so God has really laid on my heart the fact that so many times we think He isn't working in something or doesn't want us to pursue something because He hasn't already provided the means to do whatever it is we're considering. I know that's how I've done things so many times..."the money wasn't there so it must not have been His will" or "if this is what God wants He'll make it obvious to me." I was reading in 1 Samuel 14 about Jonathan's victory over the Philistines. Have you ever read it? He tells his armour bearer, "Come and let us cross over to the garrison of these uncircumsised; PERHAPS the Lord will work for us..." (NASB, italics mine). Jonathan and his servant went to the enemies camp by themselves (and by the way, the armour bearer wouldn't have his own armour) and Jonathan basically said, "Maybe God will show up." He didn't wait for the provision from God before he went. He didn't receive a vision from the Lord and then go...he just went. God did provide a victory for the two of them, but Jonathan didn't know if He would or not.
Basically, I just want to encourage my fellow followers of The Way to just step out and do something for the cause of Christ. Maybe God will bless your efforts; maybe He won't and you'll fail, but at least you'll fail attempting to further the greatest cause ever known--"...the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:25b). Stop waiting for the Provision. God has given you a vision...act on it.
Amen and Amen.
Encouragement for the Brethren and Sistren
Reposted from Saturday, August 12, 2006
When you can't figure out what "God's will" is for you, keep a few things in mind:
The great tragedy is not the sins that we commit, but the life that we fail to live.
Paul said that if it is in our power to do good, we MUST do it.
In the Garden of Eden, God gave Adam and Eve an endless number of yes's and only one no. Why should we think that he gives us an endless number of no's and only one yes?
Sometimes, (this is my belief) God gives us the choice between multiple good choices, and He wants us to make the decision. If God hasn't said no, it's always a possibility, even if He hasn't outright said yes.
Not having the resources yet is never a reason to think God isn't in what you are trying to do. (See my provision vs. vision blog)
It's better to try to tame a wild stallion than to ride a dead horse. Attempt something for God, and even if you fail (or die), it's better than being complacent.
Just do something. Doing something for God is better than doing nothing.
When you can't figure out what "God's will" is for you, keep a few things in mind:
The great tragedy is not the sins that we commit, but the life that we fail to live.
Paul said that if it is in our power to do good, we MUST do it.
In the Garden of Eden, God gave Adam and Eve an endless number of yes's and only one no. Why should we think that he gives us an endless number of no's and only one yes?
Sometimes, (this is my belief) God gives us the choice between multiple good choices, and He wants us to make the decision. If God hasn't said no, it's always a possibility, even if He hasn't outright said yes.
Not having the resources yet is never a reason to think God isn't in what you are trying to do. (See my provision vs. vision blog)
It's better to try to tame a wild stallion than to ride a dead horse. Attempt something for God, and even if you fail (or die), it's better than being complacent.
Just do something. Doing something for God is better than doing nothing.
The Model of Christianity
Reposted from Thursday, October 19, 2006
If I were the model of Christianity that everyone had to look at, would anyone want to be a Christian? Would anyone want what I have? Thank God I'm not the model of Christianity!
If I were the model of Christianity that everyone had to look at, would anyone want to be a Christian? Would anyone want what I have? Thank God I'm not the model of Christianity!
Christmas EARLY Morning - not your normal Christmas Blog
Reposted from Monday, December 25, 2006
Okay, well, it's 4:21 on Christmas morning. I haven't gone to sleep yet because I am, you guessed it, sick. That's okay, though. It's giving me a chance to blog something.
For those of you who weren't there at Nexus at Crossroads Wednesday night, I talked about God as Creator. I just figured I would blog part of that message, not because it's such a great message, but because I think it's important to know that God is our Creator and to know why He created all of us. Next time you feel yourself getting upset or frustrated with your fellow man or woman, reread this and think about how we are God's lovegift to His Son, and that is what makes us special. Here is part of my message:
Genesis 1:1-3 says, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. Then God said, 'Let there be light'; and there was light."
God spoke, and it was. God's voice created light. Seven more times God spoke the words "Let there be," and something was created. In this way, God created day and night, sky and sea, land and oceans, vegetation, stars, fish, animals, and finally, the crowning glory of His creation, man.
God wasn't the only part of the Trinity that had a part in creation. God spoke, and it was, but John 1:1,3 says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being." Who is the Word? John 1:14 says, "The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us." The Word is Jesus.
The Holy Spirit also played its own role in creation. God chose to make man differently than He made any other part of creation. God spoke everything into existence, but He chose not to speak man to life. Genesis 2:7 says "Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being." The Hebrew word for breath is ruach, and it can also be translated "Spirit." In other words, it was the Holy Spirit which was breathed into man, and it was the Holy Spirit which actually gave man life. God spoke the world into creation, through Jesus all things came into being, and it was the Spirit that was breathed into the first man to bring him to life.
Now, let me ask a simple rhetorical question. That means you don't answer. If God is all-powerful, all-knowing, self-sufficient perfect God, meaning He can do anything, knows everything, and doesn't need anyone else, why would He create a limited, imperfect man to live in a limited, imperfect world? It is obvious that God doesn't need us. He existed for eternity past without us, so it isn't our existence that made Him God. I've said it before and I'll keep saying it. The glorious truth of the Gospel is that God doesn't need us, but that GOD WANTS US AND LOVES US!!!
The answer to this question is oddly enough bound up in the question of who God really is. The question of God's perfect love answers the question of why He created us. I've talked before about the Trinity of God, and Dustin spoke in September about how God is named Elohim, which is plural, but here's a brief summary of the Three-In-One.
God the Father has existed since before the beginning of what we call time. Before anything was created, God was there, and it's incredibly hard for us to understand this because we are bound by space and time, but trust me that God has always been.
God is perfect, and therefore the best thing God can do is to love and glorify Himself. In fact, God loves Himself so much that there has to be a separate personality of God to love. This is God the Son—Jesus. Jesus is not a separate being, he is simply a second personality of God to whom God the Father can express His love.
God the Father loves Jesus so much, and Jesus loves God the Father so much, that their love is so powerful it becomes a third personality—the Holy Spirit.
At some point in "non-time," God the Father chose to give a gift to God the Son. This gift is what we call "a redeemed humanity," and it means that God the Father was going to give Jesus a group of men and women who, although they x`disobey, would turn their hearts toward God and choose to love Him and glorify Him. If you are a Christian, if you have chosen to devote your life to loving Jesus and following him, then you are a part of this redeemed humanity.
Jesus readily accepted this gift and decided that, since God the Father is so glorious and majestic, that at the end of time, Jesus would take this love gift and lay it down at the feet of God the Father and worship Him, along with all of creation.
But there was a catch for accepting this gift. Jesus would have to join creation, become a man, live a life like men live, but suffer unlike any other person has ever suffered. Jesus would not only have to live as a human being, but He would also have to be separated from God the Father for a time, in order for humanity to be redeemed and rejoined with God.
And Jesus did it. The Word of God, by whom all things were created, became a part of his very own creation. God the Son stepped out of eternity and into time.
For thousands of years, many people have believed that he would come in all of his splendor and glory, but Jesus chose to come in his humility and meekness. Only a very few people realized that the coming of their Savior had taken place. The shepherds were told by an angel; the same is true for Mary and Joseph. Only a man named Simeon, who knew he would see the Christ before he died, and a prophetess named Anna, who was 84 years old and served in the
So Jesus was born. He was born to a young woman named Mary. She was just a teenager, and wasn't even married, and it happened in a town called
Joy and Sorrow
Reposted from Tuesday, January 16, 2007
For those of you who aren't already aware, yesterday Sarah and I found out that we were pregnant, and that this past weekend Sarah miscarriaged. I know that there is no way the hurt I feel even begins to compare to that of my wife, but I don't even the words to describe my heart right now. The joy of finding out that Sarah and I were, I believe, parents, even though that baby was not even three weeks along, and the sorrow of knowing that that was not meant to be the case for us for now war within my soul. I am not angry with God, by any means, but I am so confused. I ask that, as Brothers in Sisters in the Faith, you, my friends, would lift Sarah and I up to our Heavenly Father in your thoughts and prayers. The pain has not passed, and it may continue for a while. We thank you for your love.
For those of you who aren't already aware, yesterday Sarah and I found out that we were pregnant, and that this past weekend Sarah miscarriaged. I know that there is no way the hurt I feel even begins to compare to that of my wife, but I don't even the words to describe my heart right now. The joy of finding out that Sarah and I were, I believe, parents, even though that baby was not even three weeks along, and the sorrow of knowing that that was not meant to be the case for us for now war within my soul. I am not angry with God, by any means, but I am so confused. I ask that, as Brothers in Sisters in the Faith, you, my friends, would lift Sarah and I up to our Heavenly Father in your thoughts and prayers. The pain has not passed, and it may continue for a while. We thank you for your love.
Lord, I am OVERWHELMED by You
Reposted from Monday, March 26, 2007
Okay, well, as some of you know, and those of you who don't are about to find out, last Thursday Sarah was diagnosed as having a fatty tumor in her back. It's a benign tumor and it is non-cancerous at this time. The doctor said that if it was not removed, then it could, in time, become cancerous and it would be very hard to deal with because it would weave itself into the muscles in Sarah's back. So, obviously, we decided to have it removed as soon as we could afford to do so.
Here's the overwhelming part. I only told ONE person all about this. Just one. And I told this one person because I knew she would pray for us. Well, on the way home from church yesterday, her husband called and they offered to pay for Sarah's surgery to have the tumor removed. HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD!!! Every time I even think about the fact that someone was willing to do this for us, I tear up and cry. You cannot tell me that I do not serve a God who is good, and a Father who loves His children. Not only does He work for us, but He chooses to work through us. Thank you, DW and LW, not just for helping us out when we needed it, but for being submissive to our AWESOME God, and for being willing to do what He has pressed on your hearts to do.
Okay, well, as some of you know, and those of you who don't are about to find out, last Thursday Sarah was diagnosed as having a fatty tumor in her back. It's a benign tumor and it is non-cancerous at this time. The doctor said that if it was not removed, then it could, in time, become cancerous and it would be very hard to deal with because it would weave itself into the muscles in Sarah's back. So, obviously, we decided to have it removed as soon as we could afford to do so.
Here's the overwhelming part. I only told ONE person all about this. Just one. And I told this one person because I knew she would pray for us. Well, on the way home from church yesterday, her husband called and they offered to pay for Sarah's surgery to have the tumor removed. HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD!!! Every time I even think about the fact that someone was willing to do this for us, I tear up and cry. You cannot tell me that I do not serve a God who is good, and a Father who loves His children. Not only does He work for us, but He chooses to work through us. Thank you, DW and LW, not just for helping us out when we needed it, but for being submissive to our AWESOME God, and for being willing to do what He has pressed on your hearts to do.
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