Missed

I've been wondering lately how often I miss the present because I'm so focused on what's next. I don't know about you, but I have a tendency to live in the future. But when I do that I miss out on the present.


God made me to live in the present. If I'm living in the future then I'll miss what he has for me today.


I guess what got me thinking about this is the death of a friend. I didn't even know he was sick, but I found out via Facebook that he died on Tuesday. 


It got me thinking that I don't want to get to that day and realize I missed all the days leading up to it. I don't want to miss out on my kids, my wife or all that's going on around me. 


In fact, I think if we all started living this way we might actually do a better job of being who God wants us to be right now and doing what it is that he wants us to do. It makes me think of Ephesians 3:10.


Live in today. That's what I'm trying to do, at least until my mind, once again, wanders to the future.

Herald Journal article

Here's my article that was in today's Herald-Journal. And this could be my plea for an exterminator as well.

How I handle depression

Do you struggle with depression?

I do. I feel like my life is a roller-coaster of emotions. I'm a Katy Perry song. I get down. Then I'm up. Then I'm down again.

You probably experience the same thing, so I thought I'd share what I do that helps me crawl out of my depression. I hope it helps you. Here's what I do:

I say out-loud every Bible verse that I have memorized. And if I'm still down then I do it again.

Now, if I'm really depressed I usually put this off. But it's not until I discipline my mind to do this, quote Bible verses out loud, that I'm able to stabilize my emotions. And it works.

I think it works for a number of reasons:

• God's Word is living and active.
• Our emotions follow our thoughts, so that when we change what we are thinking about our emotions follow.
• Quoting Bible verses out-loud is a way to invite Jesus into our situation.

I hope this helps you. It helps me and I didn't want to keep it to myself.

I'm depressed

So I came up with something to write about. I'm depressed.

Last night we had a bit of frost and it looks like most of the plants I planted in my garden have been severely handicapped and quite possibly ruined. I even did my part and covered them in a blanket. But did it help? No.

I know, they are just baby plants. I can replace them. But it was like mother-nature slapped me across the face and walked away laughing.

I'm not laughing. I'm mourning. (Yes, I believe I do have issues and may need to go back to a counselor).

OK, I feel better getting that out of my system.

Blocked

I don't know what the deal is, but I've been having a sort-of writers block since I got back from Haiti. I don't have anything worthwhile to say. Or maybe I'm not taking the time to come up with anything worthwhile to say.

Maybe I should just do what "writers" always recommend and just write something. That's what I'm doing now. And I would love some help.

I have to write an article for the paper next week. I'm open to suggestions/ideas. I may not use your idea, but it might spark another idea and my head and help me crawl out of this writers block.

Thanks for playing along.

Faith of a little child

Jesus was known to say multiple times throughout his ministry to let the little children come to him. Jesus has a special place in his heart for kids. I think that's why he said that we need to have the faith of a little child.


What's so incredible to me about a child's faith is their simple and innocent obedience and trust. 


Levi showed that yesterday by choosing, on his own, because God said to, to be baptized. It was a cool moment for me as his dad. It was a great example of childlike faith and obedience for all of us at Hub City. 


Thanks to Brett for filming it for us to remember.

Good Friday

What are you going to be thinking about today? I pray that at some point today you take some time to think about and reflect on what Jesus went through on Good Friday almost 2000 years ago. He was beaten, bruised, ridiculed and crucified to pay the price for your sin and mine. He willingly allowed himself to be brutally executed so that the sin barrier that existed between us and God could be forever destroyed. I think it would be good to spend some time meditating on that today.

Here are some passages that you can read to focus your heart and mind on Jesus' sacrifice:

• Matthew 27
• Mark 15
• Luke 23
• John 19

Someone needs this today

I know I needed to be reminded of this today. I think some of you need this too:

The Definition of Joy by Kay Warren

“We're depending on God; he's everything we need. What's more, our hearts brim with joy since we've taken for our own his holy name. Love us, God, with all you've got — that's what we're depending on.” (Psalm 33:20-22 MSG) This devotional is based on Kay Warren’s new book, “Choose Joy: Because Happiness Isn’t Enough.” Finding joy is a challenge for me. I’m not naturally an upbeat person; I’m more of a melancholy. When I talk about joy, I’m not doing so from the perspective of a generally peppy person who never has a bad day. In fact, it’s because of my own inability to live with joy that led me to explore why my experiences didn’t line up with Scripture. My problem was my definition of joy. I thought joy meant feeling good all the time. That’s impossible! Even for those who are naturally upbeat and optimistic, that’s impossible. We have to start somewhere more realistic — and close to Scripture. So here’s the definition I’ve come up with from studying Scripture: Joy is the settled assurance that God is in control of all the details of my life, the quiet confidence that ultimately everything is going to be alright, and the determined choice to praise God in every situation. You’ll find nothing in that definition about happy feelings, because, as we all know, happiness is fleeting and temporary. We tend to think that life comes in hills and valleys. In reality, it’s much more like train tracks. Every day of your life, wonderful, good things happen that bring pleasure and contentment and beauty to you. At the exact same time, painful things happen to you or those you love that disappoint you, hurt you, and fill you with sorrow. These two tracks — both joy and sorrow — run parallel to each other every single moment of your life. That’s why, when you’re in the midst of an amazing experience, you have a nagging realization that it’s not perfect. And while you’re experiencing something painful, there’s the glorious realization that there is still beauty and loveliness to be found. They’re inseparable. If you look down train tracks into the brightness of the horizon, the tracks become one. You can’t distinguish them as two separate tracks. That’s how it will be for us, too. One day, our parallel tracks of joy and sorrow will merge into one. The day we meet Jesus Christ in person and see the brightness of who he is, it will all come together for us. Then it will all make complete sense.