Who do they see?

This week has been another busy week with many interesting and challenging times for me.  This blog really came to me this week multiple times and God has been leading me to write it which is the reason I am writing a day earlier than the normal.  Today I want to focus on what others see in you?

We are all our own unique individuals and it is such a blessing because that brings so many great times into our lives.  We have similarities and differences but it makes you you.  Have you ever asked yourself what do you want others to see in you?  Sometimes it is that you are a great athlete, successful businessman/woman, or helpful person.  Have you ever thought about or prayed that people see Jesus in You?  There is a great song out there right now called Let Them See You by JJ Weeks Band.  This is a prayer that he is singing asking people to see God in him.  Now why was this on my heart this week.  Many reasons.

This week unfortunately started very stressful for me.  A number of items went wrong starting Monday morning when I arrived at work and it seemed like nothing was going to get better.  It is one of those days you just kinda wish you didn't get out of bed.  I let my emotions get the most of me that day and let others see my sinful side.  By the way I talked, to the way I threw my computer mouse across the room I was not letting others see God in me.  During this time I did not lose my faith or not know the person I wanted to be I just let the devil get in the way of my Christian lifestyle.  I showed to others that I am sinful just like them but in turn caused others to look negatively on everything and not let them see the love of the Lord even in the tough situations.

That was followed by something not as frustrating, but a gut check for me.  Hanging out with some friends last night, I began to let myself slip into being relaxed and not living for God.  I was a lot more loose with my language, did not speak of my faith, or really show others God.  I did not think anything of it (except noticing I was looser with my language) until one of the other people in the group started talking to me about this blog and opened up about their faith.  Right there it was like getting hit by an Amtrak train then a Greyhound bus followed by having a ton of bricks dropped on me.  At that moment I realized that I wasn't showing others God or necessarily living for him in that moment. I quickly switched my approach and tried to show the others in the group my faith through my actions and my words.  

It is crucial for others to see God in you.  It comes back to the saying actions speak louder than words.  When you get ready for bed at the end of the day, can you say others saw Him in you.  Did that frustrating situation overtake who you were or the people you were around overstep you?  It is a challenge for each of us everyday but something that can be beat.  As you continue to grow your faith and dedication to the Lord others will see Him in you as He becomes a deeper part of you.  Say a prayer today or whenever you get in a tough situation asking for others to see Him.  Remember your actions and words can allow others to see His love and sacrifice He made for everyone of us.

Matthew 5:13-16

13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Reset

This week's blog is exactly what the title says.  A reset.  As I have spoken about over the past few weeks I have been traveling a fair amount lately which is where a number of my blogs stem from.  Well this week I was able to stay in East Michigan the entire week.  I got to enjoy some of the normal parts of my life.  I saw friends, got to work with Motown Soup, and enjoy time with my family.  I also got to get a lot done that has been skipped over the past few weeks.  Along with these benefits I got to attend the 2014 Winter Jam at Joe Louis Arena last night.  This is a concert of 10 Christian bands giving up their talents for the Lord.  A big topic during the time was Resetting your faith and it leads me to this blog today.

As I have had this past week in town I have been able to "reset".  I cleaned up on emails, saw some clients who are local that I have been unable to visit, and got a number of items done from my growing list.  This week here was not critical to me doing my job but it strongly helped me in continuing to accomplish my responsiblities in my position.  It helped me get a fresh view on everything for the coming weeks and allowed me to not feel so overwhelmed.

I see what happened with me this week at work is very similar to our walk in faith.  Sometimes we just need a "reset".  No matter if you are on a high or a low in your faith having that time, if it is a week or a day, to refocus and reset is critical.  So much happens in life on a daily basis that a number of items may come in the way and you start to push away your time with the Lord.  "Reseting" your faith allows you to focus back on this.  Just like for me with cleaning up emails now you can read the Bible which you set aside during your "travels".  I really believe that our faith is very similar to my work life right now.  I get so busy for a certain period of time that my priorities get thrown around and I just need to reset.  When you reset your faith you also allow your mind to be cleared.  Sitting down and having some quiet time to reset is important so you can sort your thoughts out.  Also reseting lets you  have a new sense of dedication to your faith.  As you get busy and stressed your body and mind starts to get exhausted.  Due to this you may not be giving your 100% because your body just can't do it.  By reseting your faith and refocusing on your life with the Lord it will allow you to rededicate yourself.  Now reseting does not mean you are losing everything you have worked on for the past months, or years but just refreshing it.

I encourage you to "reset" when you start feeling stressed.  This can be daily or weekly but it is essential for you to continue a strong relationship with the Lord.  Take a day or whatever time necessary to refresh your mind and refresh your heart.  When we are not giving God our 100% we are cheating him of what he deserves and commands of us.  Don't let your life overtake you.  Do not be afraid to take a step back take a deep breath and refocus.

Acts 2:25-28

25 David said about him:

“‘I saw the Lord always before me.
    Because he is at my right hand,
    I will not be shaken.
26 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
    my body also will rest in hope,
27 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
    you will not let your holy one see decay.
28 You have made known to me the paths of life;
    you will fill me with joy in your presence.’[e]

Light of Positive

Hello Everyone and I hope you are having a good week.  For me this week has been very challenging and caused me to really look at my faith in another light.  A quick synopsis is I flew to Mexico for work again and all 4 flights got delayed by at least 5 hours really putting a wrench in plans and causing some long days.  My family also faced the loss of a close family friend after a month long battle with cancer, a good friend of mine had her father suffer a stroke, and another friend is seeing their mom's fight with cancer slowly ending.  Let's just say it has been a week that can really make you reevaluate your faith.

With all this happening around me it has really made me look at my life and evaluate it.  I have had a song really stick in my head this week.  This song is by Matt Maher called "Hold us Together" and the below lyrics really stuck with me.

This is the first day of the rest of your life
This is the first day of the rest of your life'Cause even in the dark you can still see the lightIt's gonna be alright, it's gonna be alright


It is so easy for us to get caught up in the bad in life which seems to always happen at the same time.  These lyrics show that with a relationship with God you can still see that light.  Now it is very easy to go away from that light and find every way to block it out.  We focus on the bad parts of the day.  It is something that we all do without even noticing it.  We start to ask why and push back on the Lord.  We try to step out of the plane that the Lord is piloting and deal with it on our own.  The pastor at the funeral I was at on Saturday made the statement that He is the one that will lead you through this.  How true is that?  And when you allow him to be that pilot on your life flight we are able to have him help us.  Some people in hard times turn to alcohol, drugs, or maybe just shut everyone else out.  I encourage you in times of sorrow and hardship to look at him.  Make him your release.  Yell at him and let him know your frustration just like you would with your best friend.  I have had many talks with God throughout the week and they all haven't been peachy.  

Now with the different events that have taken place this week it has affected my outlook.  A movie I watched this past week on a flight really gave me a gut check on this.  It was called "About Time" and was a decent movie.  The message it portrayed was one that hit and stuck with me.  The movie allowed the main character to time travel.  He used this a lot to change different events in his life and by the end of the movie was using it very sparingly.  He used it every day to relive that day focusing on the positives.  Eventually he never needed to time travel as his outlook had changed.  As I cannot say for a fact but I am pretty sure that anyone reading this cannot time travel.  I challenge you and challenged myself to look at the positives.  Take a minute to list out the joys of the day.  Maybe it is a beautiful sunrise/sunset you see, maybe it was that accident you avoided, or an accomplishment at work or home.  Each one of those situations could cause you to look negatively.  Another sunrise means another day at work, that accident avoided was probably because someone else made a mistake when driving or a major accomplishment at home/work could mean more work that comes along with that.  Each situation in our life we can look at two ways: positive or negative.  When being able to take the positive view your day turns around.

Just like in the movie he would have to relive his days.  This week evaluate your day every night and "relive" it.  Evaluate the good and positive moments that you may have overlooked.  Then try to focus on those positives in your daily activities.  Soon you will be at the point where your mind goes to the positives instead of the negatives.  Your attitude will change and your day will become a blessing and not a punishment.  This week make it a positive week.  Even with all the negatives around you be the light that those who do not have Christ can see.  In the lyrics above, he states that even in the dark you can see the light.  For some they do not have that light of Christ in their heart and you may need to be the light that leads them.  Take that responsibility serious as your light can lead them to the eternal light of our Lord Jesus Christ.

John 8:12
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Patience

Hello again everyone with the Olympics just starting I am sure you are struggling with most Americans staying up late to see who won (if you didn't just watch any news station all day and already seen it).  This week has been a busy week for me but has been very encouraging.  Last week I discussed God being the pilot and having full trust in him.  I wanted to incorporate that blog with this one as God showed me how patience is key in letting him be your pilot.

God showed me patience in a very cool and exciting way this week.  As many of you know my family and I work with a non-profit called "Motown Soup".  A quick background on this is it is a non profit organization run by the social outreach director at Trinity in his spare time.  Numerous volunteers, including some of you, assemble soup, dessert, and dip mixes which are then sold in a number of different ways.  All the profits are given back to the communities that it is sold in to help support the homeless and feed the hungry.  This organization has really touched my life and is very close to my heart along with most of the volunteers.  The group has grown tremendously in the past few years with $65,000 being donated this year alone to go over $350,000 over the past 9 years.  Now with this group we have grown from selling at a limited number of craft shows to online sales and just recently to a store in numerous malls in Metro Detroit.  Now I promise this isn't just an infomercial for Motown Soup but it does all tie in.

With the growth of the business a number of new opportunities have come across our table.  Opportunities to partner with different organizations, opportunities to sell at different stores, and numerous other business opportunities.  I personally will get very frustrated sometimes with this as I view things a bit differently because of my age and I see the growth this ministry can achieve.  My patience for growth has let's just say been limited.  I want to grow fast and push every opportunity.  Now the Lord has had a different plan.  He has definitely helped the group grow but sometimes not as fast as myself or the group would like.  The Lord has let us grow at a steady pace and always provided the volunteers to support the growth in business.

This really goes back to my life.  I am a goal oriented person and it is hard for me to be patient.  I have my professional and personal goals in front of me and most of the time look past possible downfalls because I want to check that item off my list.  The Lord has really shown me that I need to live for the day and slow down.  Be Patient and focus on him.  I notice when I start to focus on my goals so much that I push him to the side.  He becomes an after thought instead of the reason for that goal.  It goes right back into letting him be your pilot and being on his flight.  That airplane is not going to get there any faster because I want it to.  So we may hit a good tailwind and things move faster but at the same time we may hit a large headwind slowing us down.  Just like in life we have to take these speed ups and slow downs and be patient with the Lord's plan.  Let him control your life and don't try to overtake the reins for yourself.  I will continue to push to grow but I want to try to focus on him in it all.

I challenge you this week to not have your own agenda out there but have Christ's agenda.  Put together your plans if you want but make sure you don't lose focus on him.  Be patient with His plan and look at the big picture.  Just as if Motown Soup would of grown with some of these partnerships maybe we would of not been able to keep up or possibly we would of made some bad business choices moving away from the goal of the group.  So be patient with his plan and he will bring it all together.  The Lord showed this plan this week with Motown Soup as we will be featured on Fox 2 News on February 20th at 8:30 am to share our story.  This is something we have been pushing for years and it is finally a reality.  Being patient with his plan shows trust in Him that He knows when you are ready for these changes.

God's "Flight"

Happy Super Bowl Sunday everyone.  I hope you are all going to enjoy some time with family and friends today to watch the big game or maybe just the commercials.  I wanted to talk today about faith in God.  Let's start with a story.

This past week I was traveling for work down to Mexico.  On this journey I have 4 flights for the entire trip.  Now I am not sure if all of you have flown or not but obviously there are times when you are cutting through the air and you hit some turbulence and the plane drops a bit.  You get that gut check real quick and realization that you aren't just floating through the air.  Well throughout the years I have always been startled by the turbulence and as I get more flights under my belt it gets a bit easier to take.  I started thinking relating this situation back to my faith in a few different ways.

You have probably heard the analogies before about God being the pilot of an airplane we are on.  I completely agree when you step onto a plane you put full trust in that pilot.  If something happens to him or his co pilot most likely you are not trained to bring that plane safely to the ground.  Just like in the airplane God is the only one that can successfully carry you from place to place, journey to journey.  Yes we can go out on our own and try to fly our own plane but it can be very rough.  God is the one who when we put our full trust in Him he finds the right route and guides you.  When we step away from him it is very easy for the plane to slightly drop or even start moving quickly towards the ground.  Keeping our faith in him and trust in his plan we can sit in the back of the plane and have no worries.

Another item that I realized from this trip is looking outside at the world that you travel over during your trip.  The higher you are up in the sky the smaller the buildings below you look.  These can be buildings that would take you hours to walk around due to their size but from the sky they look like a spec of dirt and even disappear as you go farther up.  This made me think of our ride with God and the highs and lows in our relationship.  Think about it this way.  Each one of those buildings below is distractions, sins, or problems we see on earth.  Some are bigger than others but they are everywhere.  As you get closer with God and continue to climb those distractions, sins, or problems beginning to become smaller.  Every step closer in your relationship with God let's the plane go higher.  When you are on a spiritual high these worldly temptations are very small and some might even disappear but as you go through a valley they become easier to see.  It is hard as we all will go through ups and downs in our relationship with God just as we do in any relationship we have.  Working to grow that relationship with him will make the times you fly low not as bad as you are flying higher with God.

The last item that I wanted to talk about today was the turbulence.  If you know me I hate roller coasters and I used to hate flying.  Now with my current position I can hate flying all I want but I don't have a choice.  Therefore as you can imagine some turbulence on the flight or when a wind gust grabs the plane really freaks me out.  Like I said earlier though as I fly more and more it has gotten easier.  Do I still get a bit unsettled, of course, but do I feel like the plane is about to crash now, not usually.  This past trip made me really think about that with God.  During our "flight" with God we will hit turbulence and some is worse than others but it will not crash your plane.  As you grow with the Lord and continue to dedicate your life to him that turbulence will not be so unsettling.  Just like I have gotten more at ease with the turbulence I hit with flying so will you and I feel more at ease the closer we get to God.

I hope that the next time you see a plane in the air or you set foot on an airplane you think about your walk with God.  Think about the faith you are putting in that pilot to get you to your destination safely, think about the buildings below disappearing, and think about how the turbulence you hit is just a bump in the road.  Then turn those thoughts towards your faith life.  Think about your faith in God to get you to your next destination Heaven, think about your worries and distractions disappearing the closer you get to God, and remember that the closer you get to Him the easier the turbulence will be.  The turbulence you hit in life will not crash your plane but just test your trust in Him.  God loves each and everyone of you.  Let him be your pilot everyday of your life.

Lane Jumper

Well patience has been my biggest lesson this week.  Let's start with a quick story.  This week I had to travel to Peoria, Illinois to visit one of my customer's.  I left normal time on Tuesday and looked at the weather before leaving as there is a stretch which can be pretty treacherous.  Everything was clear and I was making good time,  looking forward to getting into the hotel a bit early and getting a nice workout in and catching up on some homework. Well just over half way there and 10 miles from Chicago the traffic sign says 10 miles 156 minutes.  Must be a misprint right.  Yeah I wish.  I was stuck in a huge snow storm and it took me over 4 hours to go 10 miles in complete whiteout conditions.  This trip did not end there as on my way home I hit white out conditions throughout my entire trip and had some of the worst roads I had ever driven on.  I thank the Lord for the safe travel as for others this trip caused many issues.

While sitting in the huge traffic jam and storm on Tuesday my blog for this week came to me.  No one was moving, the semis were putting their trucks in park and walking around.  4 lanes of traffic were completely stopped with no route around.  You just had to wait it out, you had no choice.  Well one lady was not so patient.  She constantly jumped lane to lane for the next 4 hours.  I never changed lanes and she was always within two cars of me even though she was determined to get out.  This really got me thinking about each one of us in our lives.  How we get caught up in moving quickly and not sitting down and being patient.  When we get stuck in a traffic jam are we the first person to jump from lane to lane to find a way out.  Have you ever thought that God may be slowing you down for a reason?  It is very easy to get impatient and keep moving as their is so much going on in life and most of the time we all feel we don't have enough time in a day to get everything done.

Patience is a virtue and it is not easy to always be patient.  Our society teaches us not to be patient.  When you go to a fast food place and you don't have your food almost instantly you are taught to be upset.  It is so easy to not sit back and take the time to relax.  Life puts road blocks in front of us daily with some being bigger than others. Have you ever thought to take that time and instead of getting upset and pushy to sit back and look at the blessings you have?  This time can easily be spent freaking out on a situation you cannot control or it can be a time to reflect on your relationship with God.  Did you ever think maybe God wanted you to slow down?

I can tell you I am normally the person who is mad at the fast food people or trying every way around that road block but this week I realized that I couldn't change my situation.  I was still antsy to get moving and get to my destination but was able to relax and focus on my relationship with God.  I want to challenge each one of you this week to slow down when a "traffic jam" is put in your life and look towards him.  Don't be the one who is moving lane to lane to gain nothing but use this time to gain a deeper relationship with him.  Relax and have some time with God.  We have a hard time getting a break from everything that is going on so when you get a break that wasn't expected use it for the best.  Strengthen that relationship with your Father.

Colossians 3:12

New International Version (NIV)

12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

Treating others with respect

In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the prophets.

—Matthew 7:12

I hope everyone has been having a good week.  So much has happened for me this past week and the one item that really stuck with me is something that I experienced just the other day.  Have you ever thought about how you treat others?  Do you treat your friends, co workers, family, or significant other with respect?  Is this respect at all times or only in particular situations?  

Trust me I understand it is hard sometimes to treat other's with respect.  It is hard to go against the grain with the way that the world says you should treat others.  Unfortunately, I am seeing this more often than not.  That disrespect pushes people to that edge where they may turn to drinking, drugs, or slip into a depression.  People turn around and start to beat themselves up for the mistakes they have made in their life.  They get upset at the weight they are or the situation they may be in.  Have you ever turned this around and thought about how you would feel if people were treating you the way you treated others?  This is very difficult to do as you get caught in the moment of people laughing a lot of the time because they don't know what else to do.  Is that the person you want to be remembered as?  Think about the way the world starts to view Christians.  I just got done reading the new book by Kirk Cousins the quarterback of the Washington Redskins and he said it in a way that I never thought of.  Here is a paraphrase of the words that he wrote.  When you are a Christian you are putting on the jersey of God.  Just like any sports team this jersey has the team name (Jesus, Christian, God) on the front and your last name on the back.  When you look back at your day are your actions representing that name on the front in the best way possible?  What about the name on the back?  Are you leaving the legacy that you want?  

Each one of us no matter our education, physical attributes, or family history can leave a lasting impression on thousands of people during our life.  Think about the amount of people you come in contact with in one day.  Do you smile at them, say hello, hold a door for them, or encourage them?  Having a positive attitude and representing that name on the front could change someone's day.  Maybe your smile to one person will turn into a smile for another and everything begins to multiply.  It doesn't have to be anything crazy but showing others you respect them and that they are special.  

I struggle with these items each and every day.  I have noticed by starting my day in God and listening to Christian music throughout the day allow me to be more positive and build others up.  That necessarily won't work for you but I challenge you to go out and find what will get you focused on God and respecting others.  I want to challenge you this week and think about putting the jersey of Christianity on each day.  Remember the name that you have on your chest with your actions throughout the day and the way to talk to others.  If you see someone disrespecting another stand up and put an end to it.  If we show respect to all those we meet in our lives we can make a change in this nation and truly show that Christianity is more than what people see from the outside.

1 Timothy 4:12

New International Version (NIV)

12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.