Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Fishing

Well, I was on vacation last week and went fishing at a "secret" pond built by some in-laws of mine two years ago. It is a large horseshoe shaped pond with trees sticking up on both ends of the horseshoe and 25 feet deep at it deepest point.
Anyway, my dad and I went fishing there last Thursday morning and caught 193 fish in about six hours and that's no fish tale. We were using a bate that attracts all kinds of fish. We caught perch bigger than my hand (and my hands are pretty big), crappie and bass. These weren't just any fish either. It has been stocked with hybrid perch that can get up to three pounds, while the bass are also Florida strain. None of the fish we caught are full grown yet, but it was a lot of fun catching them on ultra-lite reels. We put them all back to caught another day, but I'm not sure I will ever catch that many fish in such a short amount of time again.

How To Be Wise (Part 18)

(Written Tues. June 10)
Today I'm sitting with my smokin-hot-wife on an overstuffed leather couch peering out a wall of windows from an amazing log cabin overlooking a small lake. It is located just outside of Chandler, OK and is the future campground of the Oklahoma District of the Assemblies of God. It will be awesome when it is finished. The cabin we're staying in is free to ministers; they just ask that you leave it clean. It is such a blessing to be able to stay at a nice place and get away from all the stresses of life.
My family is on vacation this week so Malinda and I decided to drop of James at the grandparents and come here for a couple of days. It's been nice to just sit and talk about life and our relationship, as well as, church and youth ministry without having to stop every two or three minutes to tell James to "get down," or "put that back."
So, here we sit in the peace and quiet of the morning reading. Mo's reading Gone With The Wind and I'm reading the Bible. As I read chapter 18, sitting here, once again, with my smokin-hot-wife, a couple of verses really jump out at me.

  • Verse 22 "He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD." I have to give a shout out to my wife here. I have definitely found a good thing. Even though she is about to turn "25+" she gets more and more beautiful every day. She is the best mom to our son James and I'm glad we're doing life together.

  • Verse 21 "The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." This verse has realms of meaning far beyond my comprehension or understanding. The proverbs are packed with wise sayings about how we use our words, none more prominent than this. "The power of life and death," what a thought provoking statement. The idea that I can bring life to a person who is dying spiritually or emotionally distraught by what this fallen world has brought into their life. The concept that I can kill a person's hopes and dreams by mere words makes me look back at the words I've used; moreover, it makes me want to choose my future words carefully. Verse 10 of this same chapter states, "the name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." Names are meant to be spoken. It's in the spoken name of Jesus that Peter and Paul healed the sick, opened blind eyes, and raised the dead. Jesus himself said, "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father." (Jn. 14:13) Revelation 19:13 proclaims, "...his name is the Word of God." The Word, Jesus, was with God in the beginning and by the Word the worlds were formed. Life came into existence. It wasn't until man messed it up that death began. God's Word brings life!

May God's Word bring life to you. May God, through your words, bring life to those around you.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

How To Be Wise (Part 17)


I'll get to the Proverb in a minute, but I have to share this with you first. The last couple of weeks I've been reading Why Revival Tarries by Leonard Ravenhill. I can't say that I've enjoyed it, but I can say that I've been convicted deep in my soul. It was written in 1959, however, it is as relevant today as it was then. The entire book is centered around prayer and the desire to see souls saved. Ravenhill states one of the reasons revival tarries is because we lack urgency in prayer. "We have not yet resisted unto blood in prayer; nay, we 'do not even get a sweat on our souls,' as Luther put it. We pray with a 'take-it-or-leave-it' attitude; we pray chance prayers; we offer that which costs us nothing! We have not even 'strong desire.' The only power that God yields to is that of prayer. We will write about prayer-power, but not fight while in prayer. A title, undeniably true of the Church today, would be 'We Wrestle Not!'" He goes on to ask, "Who will storm hell's stronghold?...Who will deny himself...that hell may gaze upon him wrestling, embarrassing demons, liberating captives, depopulating hell, and leaving, in answer to his travail, a stream of blood-washed souls?" CONVICTED YET??? That's just a small portion of what I've been dealing with as I read it. If you prefer the status quo or life as usual, don't read this book, but if you are hungry for something more, I encourage you to read this entire book and let it prick your heart to prayer and a freshly broken heart for people dying without God.

Okay, so enough of that for now, I may do a set of blogs on each chapter of that book in the future, but for now, on to Proverb 17. What I would like to do with this chapter is quote John Maxwell's comentary on verse 2 from The Maxwell Leadership Bible:

Our influence has less to do with our position or title that it does with the life we live. It's not about position, but production. It is not the education we get, but the empowerment we give, that makes a difference to others.

The key word is credibility. We gain credibility when our life matches our talk and when both add value to others. In the words of Proverbs 17:2, It's better to be a wise slave than a foolish son. Answer the following questions:
  1. Consistency: Are you the same person no matter who's with you?

  2. Choices: Do you make decisions based on how they benefit you or others?

  3. Credit: Are you quick to recognize others for their efforts when you succeed?

  4. Character: Do you work harder at your image or your integrity?

  5. Credibility: Have you recognized that credibility is a victory, not a gift?
We all influence the people we're around every day, whether for the good or for the bad. May you be a positive influence that people may see Jesus through you.