God is in the Details

The weekend before last, I went on a Winter Retreat with the church to Tyler. It was a great time, and I really felt the Lord was answering many prayers I had prayed over the past few weeks in different situations and circumstances. That being said, after returning home, Leon and I decided to go grab a bite to eat. As we were conversing over the meal, and speaking about many of the things the Lord had shown us during the weekend, the waitress came to refill my water glass. After a pause in the conversation, I lifted it up to take a drink. When I looked back down in order to set my glass down, what did I find? You guessed it, A SMILE! (Can you see it?). I looked up and said, "Leon, look right there", he sat speechless, staring at the perfectly outlined smile. Then he says, "you should take a picture". Well, it just so happened, I had grabbed my jacket, from the truck before we left, (something I very rarely do), and had stuck my camera in the pocket from the trip to Tyler. So, I grabbed it, and took a few shots. We just kind of sat for a little bit, smiling to ourselves, as we saw God in the details that day.

Snow Day!

Well, to my surprise, I woke up this morning and snow was on the ground! To my greater surprise, everyone is really petrified of .00001 inch of snow. Schools are shutting down, people are boarding up their windows (okay not really), and there is absolutely no one on the roads!

I bet that people from Wisconsin laugh at us.

Faithful

Proverbs 20:6

"Many a man proclaims his own steadfast love, but a faithful man who can find?"

What is it to be faithful?

As a boy growing up, my father instructed me, "Boy, (he used this affectionately), there are three things you need to have as a man; honesty, integrity, and loyalty."

At the time, I didn't realize the truth and wisdom behind this simple statement, but as I walk through life, these three words form a triangle around the center of my heart, and I constantly weigh decisions by how close to the center of the triangle the choice will fall. I think that these three adjectives can be summed up in one word......faithful.

If I strive for faithfulness, the bi-product of decisions usually falls in the middle of the triangle.

To be faithful is to be honest......

It is to determine the ability to meet a commitment before agreeing to take it on. This requires honesty with yourself, and honesty to the person, or project you are committing to. At the same time, there has to be honesty to the one asking for the commitment. The person or project may seem like a perfect fit, but in the end, the choice to proceed with a commitment, may lead to pain and disappointment if the ability to follow through to the end is not accomplished. So, there is a responsibility to be honest to the one asking for the commitment, in order to prevent the hurt that is a repercussion of not finishing what is started.

To be faithful is to be loyal........

How many times have I been excited about a new opportunity or experience, and jumped in with both feet, only to realize that after the newness has worn off, that in the end the expectations I had placed on the experience were far greater than the experience itself. From that I am left facing the choice to remain loyal to the decision, even if there is not an emotional degree of satisfaction that results from continually standing in the place I agreed to stand. A soldier may sign up for the military with expectations of excitement, and tremendous adventure...if after boot camp, they are given an assignment to guard a road which noone ever travels down, they may soon find themselves in a place of discontent, with expectations not being met. But, their loyalty to their commitment is crucial! Leaving their post might result in tremendous consequences in the larger picture of a war which they play a part. The decision becomes a daily commitment to stay where they were placed, even in the cold, the heat, the boredom, the unmet expectations....so that, the war can be won, and those to which they have committed can depend on them to be there.

To be faithful is to be full of integrity.

What do you have if you don't have integrity? Suspicion and distrust. If a previous record of leaving before finishing proceeds you, then more than likely you are not going to be given many future opportunities, which otherwise you would have been given. When others look at you, what do they see? Is it someone they know they can count on, even when things are difficult, and hard? Is it a security that you will bring to a situation by a trust in your desire to fulfill the mission? Without integrity, there is no reason for anyone to trust you.

Many a man proclaims his own steadfast love, but a faithful man who can find?

Kirk Franklin

Yes, I am a white guy that listens to Kirk Franklin.....Who is this? My description is a contemporary gospel singer, but I don't know if that is actually a genre of music.

What's interesting to me is that worship music can come in so many forms, and in reality they all convey the same message: to glrofiy the Lord. What other type of music has such a common denominator? None. Christian music ranges everywhere from Contemporary to Christian Rock to Gospel to Bluegrass and even Christian Hip-Hop!

Even with different sounds and rhythms, under it all, the message is the same...exalting the Lord for His work in the lives of those singing, and encouraging the Saints through exaltation. So, yes, I listen to Kirk Franklin, Toby Mac, Newsboys, Flame, Michael W. Smith, Switchfoot, Prestonwood Choir, Jars of Clay, the Celtic Christian Radio station, and the list goes on and on and on.....

Like each of us are made to look different, have different talents and gifts, and are given a different path and cross to carry, in the end it's all about our heart, and love for Him. The same goes with the plethora of music out there. Is there a heart behind the music trying to poor out in praise to God, and exalt Him? Is there a testimony of encouragement about how the Lord has changed a life, or how he has been faithful through the darkest hour? If so, then our hearts can join in and worship, no matter the rhythm, or instruments, or sounds used.

My place serving the Lord looks different than other believers all around me, just as theirs looks different than mine. I don't perform the function as a missionary in Africa does. I may not ever be used as a missionary, or may never stand in front of 1000's to give a sermon like some of my brothers, but in the end my purpose is just as important to the Lord, just as every believers purpose is important. What is the common denominator amoung us all, no matter what our job is in the kingdom? Our heart for the Lord. When our hearts are all focused on glorifying Him, we make sweet harmony no matter what instrument, or type of singing voice we have. There is perfect outer harmony that flows out from the body of Christ, when the inner hearts of the individual genres get together and focus everything on the one thing which deserves all of our singing and praise...Jesus.