I’ll Be Changed

I’ll Be Changed


Those that wait on the Lord will find new strength. They will fly high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.
Isaiah 40:31 NEW LIVING TRANSLATION


My mother told me that when I was very young, I had appendicitis. The doctor told her if she had not brought me to the emergency room, I would not have made it to the next morning. Throughout my childhood, I had Osgood-Schlatter disease, (overactive knee syndrome), more than my fill of assorted colds, stomach flu and infections. I also used my cumbrous nature to cut and bruise myself regularly. Things have not changed. As an adult, I accidentally weed-whacked my own leg, broke my finger with a hammer, fell through a roof, sprained my wrist and shoulder, developed Asthma after pneumonia and now have an arthritic hip.

There are days when none of the pain and shortness of breath bothers me at all. Then, there are days that make me wonder why or if I should be alive? Though my physical sufferings are nothing like some others, I still feel crestfallen at the prospect of a continued life in this body of sin, of pain and deterioration.

The words from the prophet Isaiah offer hope for people that wait, (trust), on the Lord. If you continue to trust God as best you can, the day is coming when you won’t need pills for a chemical imbalance, or for pain. No more therapy or surgery required. We will be strong! Our minds and attitudes will no longer be affected by physical illness and pain. I think Isaiah used earthly examples to explain a heavenly promise. However it is now with this body; it will no longer be that way in the presence of the Father. I can’t wait!

Fight It Out

Fight It Out


“Come now, let us argue this out,” says the Lord. “No matter how deep the stain of your sins, I can remove it. I can make you as clean as freshly fallen snow…”
Isaiah 1:18 NEW LIVING TRANSLATION


I finished the last question on a computer test. The hard drive churned and the red line came up on-screen, I had failed. I studied hard, went to the classes and still failed. I was embarrassed and bewildered at how this could happen. Sure, it was difficult material, but I had prepared for the test. I did everything I was supposed to do and I still failed. I thought to myself, “What is the point of all that study and prayer? God didn’t help; study didn’t help. I must be doomed or created to fail.”

I came home after failing the test and refused to speak with my wife. I was embarrassed for her to see me. I bolted straight to the bedroom, closed the door and set my mind to know and understand that God did not exist. If He did, I would not have failed. In my head, I could hear those TV evangelists speaking so proudly about getting everything they wanted and more because they refused to let Satan in and how they demanded that they be blessed because of God’s word, blah, blah, blah. I concluded chance is what really happens to us, not some all knowing big God-dude that if he existed; he is primarily there to crush our dreams.

As I sat there brooding in my room, something happened. I swear I could feel “something” tugging at my shirt, like a small child pulling on mom’s clothes to get her attention. The “something” was saying, “Come on, and let’s work this thing out. Don’t be this way, I love you.” Who or what do you think that was?

What do you do when life starts hurting? How do you handle guilt, disappointment and anger? Do you let those things keep you from going to God? Have you ever seen God as broken, hurting and abandoned? “Let’s argue this out,” God says through the prophet Isaiah. God is not yet ready to let go. He wants you to fight it out with Him. The NEW LIVING TRANSLATION uses the word “reason” instead of argue. But I like the word “argue”. To me “reason” suggests a soft and civil discussion. “Argue” suggests extreme emotion. Sometimes, life does not leave us in a position to be calm and soft. Sometimes we need to fight for what is right and most important.

God is looking for you to struggle with Him and sometimes have a big-time brawl. That is how success works. If something were easy to do, then it would have little value. My relationship with God is a struggle at times. We fight, He always wins, but I come away with a lesson and a new respect for the Father. After we argued, spit and cursed, I retook the test. And I passed.

Have You Heard Him Speak?

Have You Heard Him Speak?


Happy are people of integrity, who follow the law of the Lord. Happy are those who obey his decrees and search for Him with all their hearts.
Psalm 119:1-2 NEW LIVING TRANSLATION


I was in a Bible study group once where one of the members suggested the Old Testament was no longer necessary to read, or live by because of Grace. - Do you agree?

Here is another scenario: I was speaking with another believer and asked if she had a favorite piece of scripture. She told me, “Oh, I don’t read the Bible. I follow God in my own way.” - Do you agree?

I am not questioning either person’s salvation, but don’t you think they are losing out? When they ignore the Old Testament and “follow God in their own way” they are missing out on one VERY important thing; What God wants to say! Think about being in a relationship where someone else does all the talking and asking for favors, but you never get to say anything. You never get to say the words, “I love you.” You never get to tell them your pet peeves. You never get to correct them when they are wrong or praise them for a job well done. Well, that is the sort of relationship the aforementioned have with God. How do you think God feels about that? When someone says they have their own way or God’s First Testament and revelation of himself is irrelevant; that’s like saying you know better than God, what God wants from us. Ignoring God’s First Testament of himself is certainly ignoring his promises, his heart and our own history.

I know the popular thing nowadays is to be a nonconformist. But, we believers do not live by the whims and trends of others, we live by faith, and faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is through the word of Christ (Romans 10:17).

In Psalm 119:1-2, the anonymous author suggests that there are a lot of depressed people walking around, but they just don’t know it. He or she says true happiness comes from being submerged in God’s word, God’s law and in God Himself. God speaks to us not only from the randomness of our minds and from the pulpit, but from His word of truth. Compassion is spoken in the word. Jesus speaks from the word; indeed, he is The Word (John 1:1).

How can you possibly know God, and you have yet to hear him speak?

Overcoming life's toughest problems (in review)

Overcoming life's toughest problems
By Ed Hindson

The back cover of this book says that, "you will learn to face a crisis with confidence, find clear direction, turn a problem to an opportunity and conquer depression, stress and feelings of failure." Sounds like a miracle book doesn't it?

I've read books that deal with pain. Some were better than others. And the thing that made one more interesting than the other was that the person was in pain while writing it. The author was honest, personal and he was angered by the superficial carbon-copy advice that many offer to others in pain. The author also came to the realization that one may not find help while in pain... because of their own misery. I felt the author's pain while reading and by the end, I was at the cusp of his hope as well. But Ed Hindson's book is not that kind of book. Don't go to this book expecting to connect to the author. This book is clinical. It seems more like a Christian-pop manual on the observation of life's troubles. And to that end, if you read this book, approach it as a text book on "the way we suffer" or "the process of suffering", it is nearly worth the read.

Again, it is squeaky clean, clinical and occasionally arrogant (or maybe challenging) in some of its proclamations. The example I'll give is, "If your marriage is falling apart because of your job, quit your job." The person the author was speaking to, of course, had reservations. But Ed's response was, "Do you trust God or don't you?" (Page 17). And to answer Ed's question, yes, I think I trust God. And maybe when I have become more mature, I might find that faith really is a matter of "just" trusting God. Though if you are honest, it is a lot harder to do than to say.

Should you read this book?: I would read this book for study. It serves as a good reminder that all pain and suffering aren't caused by external means. Sometimes, a poor attitude, lack of genuine prayer and self centeredness are the reasons we suffer. There are also lot's of good Bible verses to push your mind in the "God-direction" while in a tough situation.

The God Who Remembers

The God Who Remembers


The Lord remembers us, and He will surely bless us.
Psalm 115:12 NEW LIVING TRANSLATION


I took one of those “spiritual gift assessment” tests. I scored poorly as an evangelist. If the results of that test were accurate, it explains a lot. I recall two conversations of sharing what I thought was the good news that God is looking to forgive sins. In both cases, the conversation dulled down to irrelevant issues. It was a husband and wife. I spoke with them separately. The husband heard almost nothing I said. So, I figured I would listen, instead of talk. He spent most of his time telling me what was impossible for God to do. His biggest issue was he could not understand how God could bend man-made laws of physics and be everywhere at once.

Separately, his wife’s biggest stumbling block was that it was impossible for God to care about her because, as she put it, “I’m just little old me.” Both were willing to not trust and not believe God over an inability to accept that God is not bound by human laws and perceptions. I wonder what you haven’t trusted God with because you don’t think He can do it?

I can’t begin to stress the fact that God knows and remembers you. You are a specific design, how could He forget his creation? He even remembers us even when we don’t believe in him.

The Host (In Review)

Yep, I read the Host from Stephenie Meyer. The lady that wrote those vampire-human-werewolf love triangle books that have become a movie phenomenon. A co-worker thought that I would really like this book....

The plot: Think Invasion of the Body Snatchers - with a feminine love twist.

The book centers on a woman that seems to be awakening from some sort of coma. And she is trying to get a grasp of who she is, why she is in the condition she is in. She has been "inserted" to her host and should be able to playback of the memories of her host like watching movies. But something is dreadfully wrong, the host is still thinking, still living. So the two inhabit the same body. They end up being sort of a blend of each other like an alien with a schizophrenic disorder.

Over a lot of pages (and I mean a lot of pages - several hundred) we find out that Mel had a younger brother and loved another named Jared (another human they found while on the run while hiding from the "invaders") We also find that the human Mel leads the alien Mel (a.k.a. Wanda) to a cave full of human survivors. After that, the book turns into a shoe-in for a Lifetime tv movie. It has all of the stuff you might expect, a woman that is in love (and confused) but won't talk. A man that is more confused than she is. Add another man that is in love with Wanda. And imagine how interesting that can get when you consider that Wanda lives in Melanie's body... Mmmm... And by the time you find all of that out you realize you have actually fallen asleep.

Now I remember why I don't often read fiction. The ideas about the other alien inhabited worlds are silly at best. And though the plot was onotially interesting, the book bogs down with love squares (or octagons) and slows to an absolute crawl in the middle. To many "feelings" and not enough momentum of the plot. It gets way to sticky for way too long in my opinion. Rest assured that this very long story has about as much of a happy ending as it can. I think Stephenie is a good writer and she goes out of the way to prove it. She wants to prove it so bad that she tries for 619 pages. If this book was 300 pages I might have given it a B. But as bloated as it is, a D- is just my way of being kind.

Should you read this book?: Not unless you like Lifetime Network