Weather and the Good News

    I know we've all done it. We checked the weather for a certain day wondering if our plans would change or be cancelled. Then, on the day of our plans, the weather changes and we blame the weather person for getting it wrong. 

   Well, what if we didn't have weather people or the ability to look at a weather forecast? How would we plan events then? How would we know what to wear? We would have to go outside to figure out what the weather is. We would have to prepare our everyday lives like rain, snow, or sun might happen. Would we still plan events not knowing what the weather will be like? We probably would. 

   New question: what if we didn't have the Bible? I know, that's a big jump but stay with me. The Bible gives us a forecast of events that will happen in the future. It tells us how to live our everyday lives. If we didn't have the Bible, we wouldn't know those things. We wouldn't know what was coming in the future. 

   Even if we didn't have the Bible, I believe God would make the good news of the gospel known. People cannot stop God's plans from happening. Sure, we have free will, but God is the author of everything (look at Jonah, he had free will and chose to disobey God then he got eaten by a fish and changed his mind). God is a good father and he would let us know that one way or another. 

   Thankfully, we do have the Bible. That's one tool we can use to get to know God. It also tells us the forecast of the future and how to deal with problems that come up in our lives. While the weather person may get their forecast wrong, the Bible tells us the truth. We should be grateful to God for the gift of the Bible. We should also be grateful that we don't have to pack a rain jacket, umbrella, snow pants, a winter jacket, sunscreen, etc. everyday because we do have weather people; even if they get the weather wrong sometimes. 

   So, are you grateful for the gift of the Bible? How can you spend time in God's word each day?

Staying Free: Independence Day

   On July 4th each year, America celebrates our independence from Great Britain. All those years ago people decided they didn't want to be under Britain's rule anymore and, because of that, we have freedom today. People celebrate this freedom in different ways. Some people get together with family. Others just stay home and rest. Some decorate their homes. No matter how we celebrate, we have the freedom to choose how we celebrate because of the country we live in.

   Yet, there are some who still live in the bondage of slavery. I'm not talking about other countries. I'm talking about some of us still living in the bondage of sin. While we are free in America, we are not free in our hearts. God wanted better for us and sent His Son to set us free from that bondage. Some of us accept this freedom and keep it, while others turn back to bondage. 

   It's like if we would have fought for our freedom from Britain and then decided, no we don't like our freedom. We would rather Britain come back and tax us. We want to be under someone else's rule. Would America look like it does today if we would have decided that? No, it would have looked very different. God gives us a choice. We can choose to follow our sinful desires and stay in bondage to sin and Satan; or we can choose to get freedom in Christ's sacrifice on the cross and stay free.

   Many people choose the freedom in Christ but they go back to sin. It happens to all of us probably where we sin even after choosing to accept Christ as our Savior. But the problem is some of us choose to continue to walk in that sin without repentance. That's not freedom. That's choosing to go back to bondage. Sin is bondage. God offers freedom.

   How do we get free and stay free then? We grow in God. We learn about him and how to follow him. We read his word so we know how to say, "no" when Satan comes knocking. We choose to follow Jesus' example and do our best to emulate him. That's freedom. Freedom is having the choice. We choose who we follow each day. We choose if we will sin and eventually go to Hell or if we will accept Christ as our Savior, follow him, and stay free from our sins by choosing to continually follow him. 

   So, are you in bondage or free from sin? How can you continue to stay free from sin?

Miracle Child

   About two weeks ago I woke up still pregnant but feeling different. I began to feel some cramps throughout the day but I wasn't sure if it was normal or something to do with my digestion. I continued on with my day. But I did tell my husband that we needed to get certain things done that day because I just had a gut feeling. 

   That night I went to bed later due to a world cup match being on. As I tried to go to sleep, I continued feeling cramps. These continued through the night. I had just downloaded a contraction app that night. Around 3:30 I began timing what was happening and the app said I should go to the hospital. I called my OBGYN and she recommended I come to the hospital as well. I woke my husband up and we left. 

   At the hospital they checked to see where I was at. I had made it to 6 cm before going to the hospital, which was part of my goal. I continued being in active labor for a few more hours. During that time, I had my husband play a playlist I had made for labor. I had purposely chosen Christian music to play because I knew I would need to focus on God during that time. Doctors and nurses would come in and say how they appreciated the music that was playing. It was nice to know that others were inspired by the music too.

   Fast forward to after I finished pushing for thirty minutes and the baby had arrived. He was crying immediately. I said to my husband, "well at least I know he didn't come out blue like I did when I was born." See, I wasn't breathing when I came out so it was a relief to hear him crying. 

   After they had put him on me, and worked on me, one of the doctors came over to me. She said, "based on the music you were listening to, I'm going to assume you believe in miracles." Then she showed us the umbilical cord. There was a knot in it. The doctor said, "there was a knot in your umbilical cord. Your child is a miracle child as he could have had more complications because of this knot but he didn't." 

   I looked at my husband and smiled as much as I could with how tired I was. Since finding out we were pregnant, we had prayed for a few specific things. We prayed the baby would be healthy, that I would be safe during labor, that it wouldn't be too painful, and that we would be home when I went into labor so I wouldn't need to be picked up from work. All of those things were answered. God protected our child from any complications he could have had. He protects us all as well because he cares for all of us. 

   So, are you praying continually for what you want/need within God's will? Are you trusting in God's plan for your life?

Father's Day: Written by My Husband

This post is something I've never done before. It is written by my husband as he just recently became a father.

   I was initially supposed to have this written before I was a father.  But things have changed and our son arrived a week early, just in time for me to have my first Father's day.  

   A Father's job is to provide, protect, support, encourage, discipline, push, fix, lead, teach, and love.  I didn't always know this was the case.  The more my faith grew, the more I understood what a father was.  It's one thing to understand, and another to experience.  

   I look at my newborn son and I am overwhelmed with emotion and a weight of responsibility.  I have been made a steward of this spirit transmuted from my and my wife's flesh.  All I want is for my son to be healthy, happy, and to learn to love the Lord.  Can I do this?  Can I be the bad guy when it's justified?  Can I make the hard choices?  Can I do it all?

   Luckily God has provided earthly examples for me.  And ultimately provided Himself as the perfect example.  God was there for me through it all.  He feverishly pursued me with ferocious and unconditional love.  When I pushed Him away, He was never more than an arms length away.  When I disobeyed, He crushed me and built me back up in the same stroke.  

   He was patience through my stubbornness.  He ran to embrace me when I turned back to Him.  He is never afraid to do for me what is needed.  He only ever continues to mold me into who I was born to be.  He truly knows me.

   If I could just scratch the surface of that, it would be enough for my son.  And ultimately  if I can just be enough of a light to steer him to his true Father, then I will have peace.  

   So happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there who try to carry the world for their families.  If they are too stubborn to let God spot them or carry the burden, at least give them the day off to rest their shoulders.  Let them know how much you respect their work ethic. Let them know that you see them.  And stroke their ego just a bit and tell them that they can do it all, but that doesn't mean they should.  

Hard Work Vs. Hustle

    As we prepare for the new addition to our family a lot has happened. I've had lots of different symptoms. One major one is fatigue. It happened a lot in the first trimester and now it's happening again. Either that, or I'm just working myself too hard.

   What I mean is our last month was very busy. It was filled with events with family and friends, with appointments, and other general times of being busy. There were weeks I felt like I didn't get any rest. To top it off, we are also preparing our home for the baby. I've been working on building items for the baby and figuring out what else we need.

   After a month of all this I was exhausted and becoming overwhelmed. There were times I felt like I was doing it all on my own. At times I felt like no matter how much I got done it was never enough because the list keeps growing. The list still isn't done and I just keep adding things. I became discouraged and emotional because I felt tired and like no matter what I did it wasn't good enough.

   Then, one night after working most of the day, I went to JA to serve at our church. I was quiet on the ride there because I was tired and overwhelmed. My husband asked me if I was okay. I began to tear up as I said, "it's just so much work." Then I pulled myself together and ran the sound system at church for JA. 

   After JA was over, my husband went out with friends. I went to the grocery store. When I got home I put the items away and went to read a book I had just begun. God must have known what I needed because the chapter I read in the book talked about who we are doing things for. It talked about hard work vs hustle. Hustle means you get things done and stay busy. So busy that you wear yourself thin. I felt like that's where I was at. Hard work means you give your best in each thing you do. Remember the verse that says "work as if you were working for the Lord and not man (Colossians 3:23 paraphrased)?" That's what hard work is. 

   I knew this but I had forgotten. I think we have a tendency to do that. We know the answers to the Christian questions but forget or don't apply them the right way to our lives. At that moment, after reading, I felt peace. I was reminded that I wasn't doing any of this work for my husband, me, or even our baby. I was doing all of it for God. He sees the work I do each day and, as long as I do my best, he is proud. Everything that needs to get done for the baby to come will get done. I don't have to hustle. I need to work hard but remember to slow down and rest in his presence each day. That's how we become filled again. We become full by spending time with God. He gives us what we need.

   So are you more of a hustler or a hard worker? How can you spend time with God each day?

Pop That Bubble

   You know what is a really fun sensory toy and experience? Bubble wrap (not the kind you can't pop). It is something you can push on to pop or just push with enough pressure to make the bubble move back and forth. I'm not just saying that because I work with children. I'm saying it can be a great fidget or sensory experience for everyone. 

   When you think of bubble wrap, you may not think of the sensory experience. Perhaps you think more practically. You think of how bubble wrap is used in packaging things to keep them safe. It's true that keeping things safe is the main function of bubble wrap. But what would happen if we all walked around with bubble wrap on? That's a strange picture, right? But I think some of us already do that.

   I'm not talking literally here, otherwise those people would get strange looks. But figuratively some people have their comfort zone/safety area of bubble wrap on. We crave comfort and ease. We take the path of least resistance and do only what we need to do each day. I'm not saying that's a bad thing to do sometimes; but we are also called to do more. We are called to step up to who God has called us to be. We are called to step out of our comfort zones and help others.

   I mean, look at the people in the Bible. How many of them were called to go outside their comfort zones? I'd say most of them were. And, if they wouldn't have gone outside their comfort zones, they wouldn't have made a difference in the kingdom of God. They may not have even been in the Bible! They for sure would not have grown in God and had an amazing testimony for us to look up to.

   While bubble wrap, I mean comfort zones, is nice and safe we need to heed God's call when it comes. When God tells us to build a boat, even though people think we are crazy, we do it. When God calls us to go to the king to save our people, even though the king could kill us, we do it. When God calls us to lay down our lives for others, whether literally or in service, we do it. We do it because God has a plan for each of our lives. He is a good father who cares for us and loves us. He wants us to grow in him. One major way we do that is by trusting him and stepping out of the bubble wrap when he asks us to.

   So, are you in an area of bubble wrap that God is calling you to step out of? How can you share the good news of the Gospel with others today?

Soul Ties and Trauma

    There's a shirt that our church has sold in the past. The shirt says, "Your trauma is not my drama." When I first began going to that church and saw the shirt I thought, "that's a bit harsh." Perhaps you thought that as well. Then I began getting to know why the shirt says that and it makes complete sense.

   In the past, I've talked about caring and yet not caring about people. While here on earth, we have a mission to share the good news of the gospel and love God and love others. We love others by acting like Christ and helping them. Sometimes, in helping people, we become attached to them. These are called soul ties.

   Soul ties are attachments to the things of this world. These can be people, places, or things. Some soul ties are good. Most of the time, the ties I have to my husband, family, and friends are good. They lift me up, we point one another to Christ, and we love one another. But there are times where these ties are not good. If a family member got hurt by someone or a situation and I begin to let that bleed into my life where it impacts my feelings and my day so much that I'm not reflecting Christ, that's not a good soul tie. 

   This is what I mean by trauma and soul ties being connected. Traumas are events or experiences that paralyze us emotionally and can also affect us physically (ex. PTSD). Most of us have probably experienced trauma at some point in our lives. This trauma can be carried with us for a long time. I've had friends and family who have gone through unthinkable things, most of the time it was not their choice. I've seen both sides where some people let that trauma impact their lives to the point that they are not living anymore or they try to numb themselves in some way. There's also been people who overcome these traumas because they trust in God. 

   Let's say I had a friend who had something traumatic happen. They tell me about it and I begin to see it impact their daily living. This impacts how I feel and I begin to feel the same way they do. This is why the shirt says, "your trauma is not my drama." It doesn't mean we don't care. It just means that we are going to cut that negative soul tie and not let your event, horrible as it may be, impact our own lives. We will love you and pray for you, but we cannot let your situation bleed into our lives and emotions lest we take on that trauma as well. When we pray, we will ask God to help you. We will ask that you give whatever happened to him and trust that he's taken it from you. This will help you out of the trauma hole and cut the soul tie with what happened so you can move on with your life. That's what God wants for us. He wants to take our burdens and for us to trust in him.

   So, do you have any trauma or soul ties that need to be dealt with? How can you give those to God today?