Burning Bridges

At some point in our lives, we all come to a place where we need to "burn a bridge." We should eliminate those things in our lives which are detrimental to our success and victory. Toxic relationships, people who pull us down, should be distanced from us so that we can pursue our destiny. We are told in the bible to lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily besets us.

However, something we should be careful about burning a bridge to people who have hurt us. In the time of adversity, it is tempting to slam the door to the ones who have caused us pain. And although we may need to go a separate path, we should be careful about burning a bridge.

People can let us down and fail us. We can do the same to them. And there are people in our lives for only a season. But we should allow God to heal us, and them. There are people who may need us in the future. They may need the God in our lives. And our hearts must always be tender and ready.

I have been hurt. There are things it has taken a while to heal. There are some relationships in my life that will never be the same. I have moved on. But the bridge is still there. It is the bridge of God's love, forgiveness, and grace.

Someone may need to cross it.

Thankful for things I've never been thankful for before

As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, I am thankful. But my thankful list goes this year beyond things I have ever considered. They probably make no sense at all to most. But here goes my "thankful for things I've never been thankful for before" list:

1. I'm thankful for a persistent headache that wouldn't go away- No, I don't enjoy headaches. But this headache led me to a doctor's visit. I had ran out of blood pressure pills. Not only that, but the blood pressure medication I was on wasn't controlling my bp. The doctor wanted me to come in. While there he insisted I have blood work. Previous blood work had indicated high PSA count, and he wanted follow up on that. The blood work came back that the PSA had increased since the last tests.
2. Further testing by a specialist revealed Prostate Cancer. I am thankful for a good God in the time of bad news. Yes, I have been thankful for that before. What I haven't been thankful for is a bad report. And I'm not actually thankful for the report. But I am thankful for the ability of medical doctors and the tests to confirm a need that should have attention.
3. I am thankful for the skill of the surgeon.
4. I am thankful for the care of a hospital and their staff.
5. I am thankful for medication that helps control and alleviate pain.
6. I am thankful for stitches and staples. I detested my staples, but I know they were serving a purpose to hold in place until my body was doing the healing that was needed.
7. I am thankful for a catheter. From day one, it bothered me. I was annoyed by it. I wanted it out. But I am thankful for the purpose it served.
8. I hate the C word. But I am thankful that teams are constantly working, exploring, trying to develop cures for each variety. I am thankful for fundraising groups which raise funds for research. Our church has raised funds for the relay for life cancer drive before. But I don't know that I've ever appreciated as much as I do now those who are behind the scenes at work in the hope that one day this disease wont take innocent lives from us.

I may think of other things I am thankful for that I've not been thankful for before. But this is it for now. I know I did not make my list of other things, such as God, my family, my church, etc that I am thankful for. That is for another writing, another list... Today I am thankful for the "unthanked" things!

Missing Church

Not quite a couple of weeks since I had surgery. I missed last week at church. It seems like it has been forever since I was last there. I don't know how people make it without going, or who rarely go. I miss the fellowship of the saints, the stirring that comes when we collectively gather, and all the things that go with church life.

I had my wife in place to preach tomorrow's service. I am thinking about preaching, if I am able to attend. She is ready, but more than willing for me to take it, if able.

God bless you. I hope each of you have a great day in the house of the Lord!

Sweet

Today's service was sweet! The presence of the Lord was strong. The praise and worship was great, and I enjoyed preaching and ministering to people. I love those times when you get in the flow of the Holy Spirit. Yes, we have had larger crowds, and greater stirrings. But I have no complaints. God is good!

I'll have surgery in the morning. It has consumed my thoughts lately. It was good to get in the presence of God today and get refreshed!

Rescued from the pit

Many of us watched, at least some portion, of the miners being rescued from the pit. They had been held as unwilling captives in the mine for over two months. What seemed at first as an impossible situation became a beautiful story of rescue.

There is another rescue operation that is going on. God cares enough to come down into your pit, pull you out, restore you, and make you whole!! And we get to be a part of the process!

How's your serving?

My wife and I just returned from a 3 day trip to the mountains. We took our grandson with us, and had a great time. While there, I was reminded of a valuable truth that applies in pretty much every area of life. It deals with serving, or being served.

On Thursday, we had lunch in a well known franchise establishment. It wasn't high end, but it is a place we enjoy eating. The food is pretty good, and priced modestly. We had no complaints regarding the food. But the service was terrible. My tea glass sat empty for about 15 minutes. The waitress brought my soup out, and my wife's soup out, but never brought out my grandson's salad, until about 30 minutes (after I finally asked for it). My wife never got a refill of her diet coke. And when I asked for a "to go" box, it never came. Guess who didn't get a tip? The poor service negated the good food.

The next day we went into another place for lunch. The food was great, and so was the service. The waiter did not wait for our glasses to get empty, he brought refills. He brought more bread. He was on top of the game, before we asked for something. Not only was the food great, but so was the service.

The two days got me to thinking about how people come to our church. They may enjoy the music and singing, the preaching. But how are we coming across in the serving department? Do we help them find the restrooms? Are we friendly? I believe it is our responsibility to serve well, both in the world, and in the church. People need Jesus. Let's make sure it is an enjoyable experience!

This Day I will Pray

It should be a regular part of our day, shouldn't it? This thing called prayer. As a Christian, we know that prayer is important. It's just that sometimes we forget. We get so busy. We get caught up in other things. And if we're not careful, we don't pray.

The old hymn says "Oh what peace we often forfeit, Oh what needless pain we bare, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer." I want to carry everything to the ONE who can take my cares, my burdens, and my life in His hands, and make my life complete.

I am praying today. Praying for you, and for myself. I hope you'll pray as well!