I have some major life altering things going on in my life right now. At first glance these things would seem to be curses and not blessings. So as I sat here and contemplated my situation, am I blessed or cursed? Do I consider being blessed when all is going "Right" in my life and I face no challenges? Or do I consider it blessed to have to face challenges and still have the courage and strength to hang in there and keep pressing on?
I think maybe both are true. Being blessed is a matter of perspective. If I look at things like "Why me" then it most likely feel like I'm being cursed. But if I "Choose" to see things from the perspective of "Thank you Father for choosing me to use as a source to show your power and might, your grace and mercy, and your unconditional love" then I will view them as blessings.
It's really easy to say things like this when you're not facing any major challenges. But can you say it and truly mean it in the midst of your storms? Praise God I can answer yes to that question. Can you?
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Friday, July 22, 2011
The fight to do what's right
As I approach each day, I go forward as a soldier in a world war preparing for battle. Each day brings yet another encounter, one more conflict, a skirmish where there is certain to be collateral damage. The bloodiest battle I've ever fought is with my flesh. Like the mountaineer trying to reach the top of Mount Everest I'm striving for new heights. As a geologists discovering untapped resources. As soon as my eyes open I know the enemy is lurking. My adrenaline starts to flow through my body. I'm alert to each and every sound.
The battle I speak of is the battle with myself. The book of James speaks of this battle.
James 1:14
So for me the key to victory is knowing that I have within me the capacity and the desire to do the wrong thing from birth without any external influence. I must guard what I feed my mind, what I allow to sit there, and use this verse to subdue these thoughts.
2 Corinthians 10:5
5We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.
Now how is this done in practical application? Everyday life? When I have the thought I bring Jesus into the picture and start to meditate on some scripture.
I don't claim to be any religious scholar nor profess to be a pastor, preacher, or minister. These are just things that I have learned and am still learning about me and what has worked and is working for me when I choose to use the tools. (It is a choice). So if you get something from it, Praise God. If not, Praise God.
Here's the next scripture the previous comment brings to mind.
Philippians 1:15-18
The Message (MSG) version
15-17It's true that some here preach Christ because with me out of the way, they think they'll step right into the spotlight. But the others do it with the best heart in the world. One group is motivated by pure love, knowing that I am here defending the Message, wanting to help. The others, now that I'm out of the picture, are merely greedy, hoping to get something out of it for themselves. Their motives are bad. They see me as their competition, and so the worse it goes for me, the better—they think—for them.
18-21So how am I to respond? I've decided that I really don't care about their motives, whether mixed, bad, or indifferent. Every time one of them opens his mouth, Christ is proclaimed, so I just cheer them on!
Amen!! God bless you all and make it a good day
Now on your journey, well before you begin. Always remember that out is in.
The battle I speak of is the battle with myself. The book of James speaks of this battle.
James 1:14
The Message (MSG) version
13-15Don't let anyone under pressure to give in to evil say, "God is trying to trip me up." God is impervious to evil, and puts evil in no one's way. The temptation to give in to evil comes from us and only us. We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust. Lust gets pregnant, and has a baby: sin! Sin grows up to adulthood, and becomes a real killer.
Many people speak of the enemy as the Devil, Satan, The Adversary or Iblis depending on what culture or religion they belong to. But rarely, if ever, do you hear of people speaking of themselves as the enemy. It's so much easier to assign responsibility for our misbehavior onto some evil unseen thing or entity. James says "We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust". Is there a spiritual being that influences us to do wrong things by planting thoughts into our minds? Maybe. According to the Bible there is. But what's the difference when someone asks you to cheat on your wife at a bachelor party? Or someone offers you a line of coke? Let's make it even more enticing. Someone tells you they can make you rich if you will just sign your name on this line.
Now in this face of these examples most of us would recoil as if we were touching the heating element of a hot stove. So why do we not display the same level of fear or wisdom when it comes to thoughts being planted in our heads? Because it's already in us! We are born into sin and we have innate desires to do wrong from the time of our birth. And truth be told, if we didn't think people would find out we would probably do a lot more.
There are those of us that refrain from doing certain things, not because we don't have the desire to. But the fear of being caught or the thought that someone would know that we are this way is enough to make us say "NO". Then there are those people that refrain because they don't want the consequences that will surely accompany them being caught, such as jail, or physical injury.
What James is speaking of is how we allow our minds to entertain things that we know are not good for us and will lead to trouble. We pass these things off as harmless fantasies. There are even fantasy clubs where you can go live out your sexual fantasies for a nominal fee.
Here's one scenario. This was one was used because it's pretty common and I am a man so I'm speaking from a man's perspective and from experience. All the things I will be writing about "I" have done, or thought about doing but either the opportunity didn't present itself or I was afraid.
You are at work, There is this woman that you find attractive. You exchange pleasantries as you pass one another in the hall, but when you do you put that extra little perk into your tone to signal (Whether subconsciously or not) that you think they are cute.
A week later you find yourself in the elevator with "Ms. Cutie" and you exchange small talk and in the process you both discover that each is married and has children.
No big deal. So you think. Fast forward two weeks and you are at work and someone gives you a sandwich for lunch, but you don't eat Pastrami so who is the first person you think of to give it to? You guessed it! "Ms. Cutie". Anything to get into her space because the attraction is there. As she takes the sandwich from you she touches your hand, in no certain sexual or erotic way but contact is made. Now with each passing day at work and at home you find yourself thinking of her more and more. Until one particular night you and your spouse get into an argument, things get a little heated, and some harsh words are exchanged. No different than the last 15 years. But alas! You have a new interest so that typically routine argument is unbearable and grounds for contemplating divorce now.
So you're at work the next day and you decide to take your break in the employee lounge rather than take your usual walk outside because you just want to sit and think. Who comes walking in 15 minutes after you sit down? Yep! "Ms. Cutie". She detects the look of distress on your face and asks you"Are you okay"? You reply "I'm fine. Just got a lot on my mind". She asks "Do you wanna talk about it". Then the flood gates open. It starts flowing out of your mouth like Niagara Falls how you are fed up and tired of being treated this way, She doesn't appreciate you, she's always nagging, she doesn't like to do anything anymore and ..... (You know the drill) Now the boundaries have been crossed. This leads to daily conversations with you two discussing things that should be reserved for a therapist but you want her inside your head because you like the feeling of being vulnerable, the attention, the hand touching saying it will be alright, and having someone care. People confuse this with being vulnerable. I beg to differ. I call it methodical!
Now instead of going home at night after work you go play pool, golf, or use some other distraction. And while you're there guess who just happens to call just to check on you and make sure you're okay? Need I say more?
Anyone reading this that's over 25 probably knows the rest of this story.Or maybe you air your dirty laundry on Facebook or twitter which is worse in my opinion because it's a permanent record of your foolishness in cyberspace. The essence of it is not about infidelity, fighting, nor how to ruin a marriage in 3 easy steps. The essence and moral of the story is to point out how we "Allow" our minds to wreak havoc on our lives and act as if we have no control. You can plug any scenario into this story along this same line of thinking, but I hope you get the point. Which leads me to another scripture
1 Peter 5:8
The Message (MSG) version
Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up.Many people speak of the enemy as the Devil, Satan, The Adversary or Iblis depending on what culture or religion they belong to. But rarely, if ever, do you hear of people speaking of themselves as the enemy. It's so much easier to assign responsibility for our misbehavior onto some evil unseen thing or entity. James says "We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust". Is there a spiritual being that influences us to do wrong things by planting thoughts into our minds? Maybe. According to the Bible there is. But what's the difference when someone asks you to cheat on your wife at a bachelor party? Or someone offers you a line of coke? Let's make it even more enticing. Someone tells you they can make you rich if you will just sign your name on this line.
Now in this face of these examples most of us would recoil as if we were touching the heating element of a hot stove. So why do we not display the same level of fear or wisdom when it comes to thoughts being planted in our heads? Because it's already in us! We are born into sin and we have innate desires to do wrong from the time of our birth. And truth be told, if we didn't think people would find out we would probably do a lot more.
There are those of us that refrain from doing certain things, not because we don't have the desire to. But the fear of being caught or the thought that someone would know that we are this way is enough to make us say "NO". Then there are those people that refrain because they don't want the consequences that will surely accompany them being caught, such as jail, or physical injury.
What James is speaking of is how we allow our minds to entertain things that we know are not good for us and will lead to trouble. We pass these things off as harmless fantasies. There are even fantasy clubs where you can go live out your sexual fantasies for a nominal fee.
Here's one scenario. This was one was used because it's pretty common and I am a man so I'm speaking from a man's perspective and from experience. All the things I will be writing about "I" have done, or thought about doing but either the opportunity didn't present itself or I was afraid.
You are at work, There is this woman that you find attractive. You exchange pleasantries as you pass one another in the hall, but when you do you put that extra little perk into your tone to signal (Whether subconsciously or not) that you think they are cute.
A week later you find yourself in the elevator with "Ms. Cutie" and you exchange small talk and in the process you both discover that each is married and has children.
No big deal. So you think. Fast forward two weeks and you are at work and someone gives you a sandwich for lunch, but you don't eat Pastrami so who is the first person you think of to give it to? You guessed it! "Ms. Cutie". Anything to get into her space because the attraction is there. As she takes the sandwich from you she touches your hand, in no certain sexual or erotic way but contact is made. Now with each passing day at work and at home you find yourself thinking of her more and more. Until one particular night you and your spouse get into an argument, things get a little heated, and some harsh words are exchanged. No different than the last 15 years. But alas! You have a new interest so that typically routine argument is unbearable and grounds for contemplating divorce now.
So you're at work the next day and you decide to take your break in the employee lounge rather than take your usual walk outside because you just want to sit and think. Who comes walking in 15 minutes after you sit down? Yep! "Ms. Cutie". She detects the look of distress on your face and asks you"Are you okay"? You reply "I'm fine. Just got a lot on my mind". She asks "Do you wanna talk about it". Then the flood gates open. It starts flowing out of your mouth like Niagara Falls how you are fed up and tired of being treated this way, She doesn't appreciate you, she's always nagging, she doesn't like to do anything anymore and ..... (You know the drill) Now the boundaries have been crossed. This leads to daily conversations with you two discussing things that should be reserved for a therapist but you want her inside your head because you like the feeling of being vulnerable, the attention, the hand touching saying it will be alright, and having someone care. People confuse this with being vulnerable. I beg to differ. I call it methodical!
Now instead of going home at night after work you go play pool, golf, or use some other distraction. And while you're there guess who just happens to call just to check on you and make sure you're okay? Need I say more?
Anyone reading this that's over 25 probably knows the rest of this story.Or maybe you air your dirty laundry on Facebook or twitter which is worse in my opinion because it's a permanent record of your foolishness in cyberspace. The essence of it is not about infidelity, fighting, nor how to ruin a marriage in 3 easy steps. The essence and moral of the story is to point out how we "Allow" our minds to wreak havoc on our lives and act as if we have no control. You can plug any scenario into this story along this same line of thinking, but I hope you get the point. Which leads me to another scripture
1 Peter 5:8
The Message (MSG) version
So for me the key to victory is knowing that I have within me the capacity and the desire to do the wrong thing from birth without any external influence. I must guard what I feed my mind, what I allow to sit there, and use this verse to subdue these thoughts.
2 Corinthians 10:5
English Standard Version (ESV)
Now how is this done in practical application? Everyday life? When I have the thought I bring Jesus into the picture and start to meditate on some scripture.
I don't claim to be any religious scholar nor profess to be a pastor, preacher, or minister. These are just things that I have learned and am still learning about me and what has worked and is working for me when I choose to use the tools. (It is a choice). So if you get something from it, Praise God. If not, Praise God.
Here's the next scripture the previous comment brings to mind.
Philippians 1:15-18
The Message (MSG) version
15-17It's true that some here preach Christ because with me out of the way, they think they'll step right into the spotlight. But the others do it with the best heart in the world. One group is motivated by pure love, knowing that I am here defending the Message, wanting to help. The others, now that I'm out of the picture, are merely greedy, hoping to get something out of it for themselves. Their motives are bad. They see me as their competition, and so the worse it goes for me, the better—they think—for them.
18-21So how am I to respond? I've decided that I really don't care about their motives, whether mixed, bad, or indifferent. Every time one of them opens his mouth, Christ is proclaimed, so I just cheer them on!
Amen!! God bless you all and make it a good day
Now on your journey, well before you begin. Always remember that out is in.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
The New Face of Homelessness
Due to the fact that the increased amount of people becoming homeless no longer fit what used to be the "typical" homeless person, we feel that a certain creativity needs to be provided in order to assist this unusual classification of people. What I mean is that now, many of the homeless are working class people or they have been professionals within a certain industry, but with the recession that has affected the entire United States, these people are finding themselves homeless. So we want to provide a clean and safe environment that they were once used to and give them a chance to get back out there in the workforce while not worrying daily about whether they will be in safe shelter. Our mission is to restore homeless people with their dignity, self-respect, and self-worth. We do this by providing them with housing and employment. We use a housing first model. There’s an old proverb that says: “Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he can eat for a lifetime” We at the Stones That the Builders Rejected Street Project embrace this philosophy wholeheartedly. Instead of a hand out, we give them a hand up! Thus providing people with the tools necessary to sustain housing and employment. We are supported by private, corporate, government and individual donations.
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