Let’s look at a few people in history that have overcome their failures. 

 Michael Jordan – Here is a video clip that Michael Jordan talks about his failures:

Michael Jordan “Failure”

 Here are some quotes from successful people who have failed, yet became successes:

 Benjamin Franklin

• “I didn’t fail the test, I just found 100 ways to do it wrong”
• “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

 Winston Churchill

• “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”

 Colin Powell

•  “There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.”

 Mahatma Gandhi

• “My imperfections and failures are as much a blessing from God as my successes and my talents and I lay them both at his feet.”

 As you can see from the video and all of these quotes, failure is definitely a fact of life, but is not the final stage of life.  The best is yet to come and we should expect a victory.

 One thing about failures in our lives; we use our own scale to measure what is a failure in our lives and what is just a season that we are going through.  I believe that God will redirect us to where should be in either case, but we have to be willing to hear from God and look for the directions to get back on track.  The other important thing is, we have to be willing to NEVER give up.

 Please read what Psalm 37:23-24 says:

 Here is the New King James Version:

²³The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way. ²⁴Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the Lord upholds him with His hand.

 Here is the Contemporary English Version:

²³If you do what the Lord wants, he will make certain each step you take is sure. ²⁴The Lord will hold your hand, and if you stumble, you still won’t fall.

 In closing, if there were any “failures” or setbacks in your life, please look back and see how God has turned them around for good.  We may not see it at first, but I can guarantee that if you followed a path strategically arranged by God, then it was turned around for good.  Do not get me wrong, if we chose a path not arranged by God, this may have caused other failures until we see where God is leading us.

 What are you lead by, when things seem to be slipping away?  Are you led by emotions and feelings, or are you led by the Holy Spirit who will ALWAYS point us in the right direction?

To God be ALL of the Glory!

Sin is not my fault, but that does not make it OK to do.

     Do you remember the first time you sinned?  How about a question we could answer a little easier; do you remember the last time you sinned?  Most of us could probably not answer both of these, because our definition of sin is different than God’s definition of sin.  Here are a few definitions of sin that I pulled off of the internet:

• Estrangement from God
• An act that is regarded by theologians as a transgression of God’s will
• Commit a sin; violate a law of God or a moral law
• Drop the ball: commit a faux pas or a fault or make a serious mistake; “I blundered during the job interview”
• Violent and excited activity; “they began to fight like sin”
• A transgression of a religious or moral law, especially when deliberate.
• Deliberate disobedience to the known will of God.
• A condition of estrangement from God resulting from such disobedience.
• Something regarded as being shameful, deplorable, or utterly wrong

     Anyone who has studied the Bible, knows that there is a definition of sin that we have heard many times; “to miss the mark”.  This comes from the Greek work hamartia; which also means ‘A tragic flaw’, ‘A localized disturbance of the normal arrangement, organization, or patterning of tissues during development’, ‘A developmental anomaly resulting in the formation of a mass composed of tissues normally present in the locality of the mass, but of improper proportion and distribution with dominance of one type of tissue.’   This comes from scripture; Romans 3:21-24; But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

     When did we first sin?  We were innocent in our mother’s womb.  When we were born, we were born pure, without sin, but into sin.  We go through life making choices right and wrong, even at a young age.  We begin right after birth to choose sin, even tough we do not recognize it as sin.   When we were infants, we recognized that we desired affection, love, attention and if we were not getting that, we were able to cry and cause disruption in order to get the things we want.  Isn’t that sin?  Isn’t that lying?  We are told when young, only cry if there is something hurting us, or in danger.  Wanting affection is not causing us pain and we are not in danger.

     We then learn right from wrong and still make choices, sometimes right, sometimes wrong.  We learn to test and to manipulate others to get what we want.  We learn to justify why we do things.  None of this is done by someone forcing us to, it is all our free will to choose.

     We then come to a time in our life when we choose to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior or not.  Some make the right choice, yet some do not.  Even after we choose Jesus, we do not stop choosing sin.  Sin takes on a whole new meaning to us at that point.  We are able to recognize sin for what it is, not just right or wrong.  When we see others sin, after we have chosen to accept Jesus, it causes us to reflect.  Sometimes it causes us to judge. Sometimes it causes us to pray. Sometimes it causes us to sin.  The question is, can their ever be a time in our lives, when we never, ever sin again?   Is it possible?  If it is possible, show me one time it has even been accomplished successfully, other than Jesus who walked this earth as 100% man plus 100% God.

     The Bible tells us that all things are possible with God (Matthew 19:26).  God assures us that when we are saved, we have the Holy Spirit alive in us and we are able to do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13).  If this is true, why do we continue to sin?  The answer is simple, we choose to.

     Well, here is the question, can it be possible that people can choose to not sin for the rest of their lives?  Do they even want to?  Wouldn’t life be so much more rewarding, if this was to happen?  I conclude by saying, It is not my fault.  Choosing not to sin, is very difficult.  I do not want to sin, but sometimes it just happens, because it is in our nature, but I know that once I recognize it, I take the opportunity to repent immediately.  Thank you God for Grace.  Thank you Jesus for dying on the cross for my sins; past, present and future.  Thank you Holy Spirit for living inside of me and giving me the power over sin.

TO GOD BE ALL OF THE GLORY

We have all heard the traditional version of this Prayer in Matthew Chapter 6 in the King James Version of the Bible:

Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Have we every looked at this scripture and really saw how powerful it is if we were to pray this each and every day?  Let’s break the verse down, using a slightly different version of this scripture from the Contemporary English Version of the Bible;

Our Father in heaven, help us to honor Your name. Come and set up Your kingdom, so that everyone on earth will obey You, as You are obeyed in heaven. Give us our food for today.  Forgive us for doing wrong, as we forgive others. Keep us from being tempted and protect us from evil.

I would like to break this down, sentence by sentence….

• Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name.
• Our Father in heaven, help us to honor Your name. 
  • Without God in our lives and trying to do things on our own strength, we can not accomplish anything.  Why not rely on and ask God to help us out honoring His name.
• Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
• Come and set up Your kingdom, so that everyone on earth will obey You, as You are obeyed in heaven.
  • Just as the saints in Heaven, are worshiping God 24/7, we too must follow the will that God has in our lives, in order for us to accomplish the great things that God has for us in our lives.
• Give us this day our daily bread.
• Give us our food for today.
  • So many times, we feel the need to store up food for tomorrow, thinking it is what we are supposed to do.  But what happens if someone you come across, needs food and you have abundance.  Do you share your excess with them?
• And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
• Forgive us for doing wrong, as we forgive others.
  • If you have done wrong to someone and you are looking for forgiveness, you must first forgive those who have wronged you.  Someone has to take the first step, why can’t it be you?
• And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
• Keep us from being tempted and protect us from evil.
  • Temptation is a distraction to keep us from the perfect Will of God.  Giving into temptation is the true sin.  Asking God to not allowing us to be tempted is a very wise prayer request.

I concur with our Pastor’s challenge.  Are you ready to be changed?  Are you ready to see an amazing transformation in your life?  Set your alarm clock, one minute early, each morning, and take the time to say this prayer.  You can choose any version of the Bible you like, but make sure you just take the time to say it.

I am starting with myself and praying a similar prayer to this each morning:

Father in heaven, help me to honor Your name.

Come and set up Your kingdom, so that I will obey You, as You are obeyed in heaven.

Give me food for today.

Forgive me for doing wrong, as I forgive others.

Keep me from being tempted and protect me from evil.

To God be ALL of the Glory!!!

When your kids are driving you crazy and you just need to speak to someone to give you advise, who do you call first?  You mom?  Your spouse?  Your best friend (who does not even have kids)?  Who do you call?

When you are late for work, and know that if you are late one more time, this could be it, who do you call first for advise?  You fellow employee (who is at work already)?  Your mom?  Your spouse?  Unemployment, just in case?, Who do you call?

When your wife, or girlfriend wants nothing else to do with you, who do you call first?  Your divorced friend for advise?  Your mom?  Your boss?  Your ex-girlfriend to see what she is doing on Friday night? Who do you call?

I can go on and on.  Let’s think deeply about these questions.  I am not trying to get the “Super Spiritual” answers to these questions.  I am looking for you to personally answer these and so many similar questions honesty.  Then look back and see where that advise got you. 

Your kids probably still drove you crazy, you were still fired for being late for the 16th time this month, and your ex-girlfriend called you a DOGG and hung up on you.

If we prioritize the time we spend looking for “man’s” advise, and spend most of that time on our knees asking God for advise, I think those results could be different. 

The kids come around and apologize and clean the house without being asked and you are perplexed.  Your boss negotiated a later time for you to come to work because he saw the value of you as an employee.  Your wife calmed down, suggested Biblical counseling and your marriage has never been better.

Does the last three sentences seem like fantasy?  It is not.  It is us trusting God to do His job instead of us trying to fix it.

To God Be ALL of The Glory

We have heard this phrase so many times, “Man’s Best Friend.”  What could this possibly mean?

Well, as I have learned over the last 16 years, I had a dog named Precious.  I raised her since she was 6 weeks old.  She used to travel with me anywhere I traveled.  Not only did she go anywhere I traveled, she would get spoiled at the same time.  Precious as a young pup, loved McDonald’s Cheeseburgers (hold the condiments, just meat, cheese and bun).  Well I like McDonald’s food also.  We would go to McD’s at least 3 times a week and Precious would ride on my lap, going down the road and when we got to the drive thru, I would order her 1-2 cheeseburgers plain and a cup of water.  I would get whatever I was getting at the time.  I know you are all saying, that was not good for the dog, and definitely not good food for me.  I know that now, but I did not know, that because of the time that I was bonding with Precious, we developed a unique friendship, truly my best friend.

Now you are asking, “Your best friend, but this is a dog, what about the people you hung out with, worked with, and whatever with?”  Every single person that has come into my life in the last 44+ years, has either went their separate ways, we no longer communicate, or we have our differences and seem to be unable to come to an agreement about one thing or another.  Now do not get me wrong, I have friends, family and co-workers that I am close with today, but each and ever one of them has a life of their own and has other priorities in their lives.  For the last 16 years, I was the #1 priority to Precious.  I truly believed that she could not wait for me to come home, when out for whatever reason and no matter if it was 10 minutes or 10 hours.  I truly believe that she would give up her life for me, if my life was threatened.  I also know that no matter how difficult things got (no food, cold weather, hot weather, moving from place to place, other animals coming into her territory, or whatever it was), Precious never said, “Forget this, things are too tough, I am going to find somewhere better.” 

We may think this is silly.  How many dogs run away from homes each year, because of whatever reason?  How many owners of those dogs do not even care enough to find them?  Now do not get me wrong, Precious has run away a few times, but there was a boy dog that had her fancy.  Since moving from that area, she has never run away again.

I will stand on my convictions, Precious was truly my “Best Friend” for the last 16 years.  I had to make the hardest decision in my life on Saturday, March 27, 2010.  I had to let Precious go and put her to sleep.  This was a very difficult decision and I do not regret it.  Just like I feel Precious would have given up her life to save mine.  I had to let her go, she was suffering miserably and it was not fair to let her suffer any longer.

Thank you God for bringing Precious into my life.  For teaching me how to be a more caring person and to appreciate the little things in life.  Thank you God for giving me the strength to make this decision and not make a bad decision for my own selfish desires.

If you have ever had a pet, that you consider your best friend, feel free to tell the story in a comment.  I thank you for letting me share part of my story about Precious, I know that there are people out there, just like me that feel the same way about their pets, living or deceased.

To God be ALL of the Glory!

Has anyone ever said to you “TMI”? Well if you use any of these social networking services; Facebook, Twitter, Bebo, BuzzNet, Classmates.com, Flickr, Habbo, Linkedln, MyLife (formerly Reunion.com), or MySpace.  Maybe you possibly use one of these blogging services; Blog.com, Blogger.com, Blogr.com, Xanga.com, LiveJournal.com, and of course WordPress.com.  You are familiar with what I will be talking about.

Have you ever noticed that there are some people who tend to tell you every step they take, or they just want to tell you things that you wish you never knew?  Well that is what I am talking about today.

Now before I begin stating my case, you who do this are going to say; “Well why am I on some of these sites?” or maybe even, “If you do not like it, do not read them!” and I can imagine also “Well that is none of your business!”.

1.  Why am I on these sites? – Well I love to be social and it is a great way to connect with people I have not spoken to in a long time.

2.  Do not read them! - I can not help it, I get the alerts on my phone and it takes time to shuffle through the no-nonsense ones.  I have had to make the decision to cancel some of the alerts from some people because it became too many, but I feel bad if I miss something important like someone who needs prayer.

3.  It is none of my business! – As soon as you put something out there, you have made it everyone’s business and I do not think everyone wants to hear about your every trip to the bathroom or that you love you spouse – 17 times a day.  Tell your spouse to their face, make it personal, if you have to announce it, maybe they are the only ones not listening.

Let me get onto a more serious note.  Let’s say you tell everyone, “I’m going out for the night, or even worse, I have just left for a week-long vacation.  You just opened the door to anyone that wants to take advantage of you.  You can not be too careful these days. 

The internet is a wasteland for people looking to take advantage of everyone and these sites have taken over our lives and taken much too much of our time when we can be doing more productive things, like spending time with our loved ones and reading God’s Word.  I am speaking from experience.

Next time you have the urge to try something different, see if you can stay off ALL of these sites for one day and spend some productive time.  Do not worry, your Farmtown will not float away, your Twitter friends will not desert you, Your MySpace followers will not think your dropped off of the face of the earth and of course your Facebook friends will not turn their noses up at you.  What WILL happen is, you will learn how to communicate using your lips, eyes, ears and heart and not a screen and a keyboard.

Good Luck…!!!

To God be ALL of the Glory!

When you are holding on to an object; it could be a coin collection, lucky antique baseball glove, your grandmother’s old sewing machine (and you never learned how to sew or have any desire to start), or anything of value, and yet you are not able to do the basic things in life such as pay your bills, put food on the table, tithe, then tell me, are those things now keepsakes or idols?

How about that brand new television you just bought 6 months ago, of course on credit?  How about that car that you knew up front, you would have to struggle to make the payments?  What about those $90 sneakers you just bought your son, because he wanted them?  And yet you are still trying to figure out, how am I going to pay that electric bill that is about to be shut off…

I am not speaking here from other people’s thoughts.  I am speaking on behalf of my own experiences.  Where do we draw the line?  When do we just let go of things, in order to survive?  When is it OK to hold on to such things?

I would like to know your thought, please send me your thoughts, and hopefully some specific examples.

God Bless you all, know that God wants to help us in ALL of our life’s experiences.  In order for Him to do so, we need to give Him EVERYTHING.

Are you ready?

To God be ALL of the Glory!!!

     Did you hear what Pastor Ken did the other day? You will not believe your ears when I tell you.  Keep him in prayer, he really needs it…

      I really had you thinking. You were really looking to get to the juicy stuff quickly, weren’t you?  Well tough luck, you are not going to get nonsense like that from this Blog, or even these lips.

      I am wondering, why if we get an email or hear a story from someone that is of a humorous, scandalous, degrading, controversial, or just down right disgusting, we have no problem telling everyone about it, or sending it on to everyone we can think of without remorse…   

      I look at the flip side of that coin, why is it when you get an email or hear a story that speaks about God’s Word or His Great Commission, we tend to sensor it and only speak about it when and we feel it is ok. If we even say anything at all.

      As we know the GREAT COMMISSION teaches us;

Matthew 28:16-20 (NLT) – ¹⁶Then the eleven disciples left for Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷When they saw him, they worshiped him—but some of them doubted!  ¹⁸Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. ²⁰Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

      Jesus lets us all know that He has all of the authority, and He has given us the authority to go and make disciples of ALL nations.  Also, we are to teach these new disciples to obey ALL the commands He has given us.  There is nothing here that says “go forth and spread rumors about anyone or make them feel inferior.”

      Well if you did not know, the Bible also speaks of those who do not take God’s Great Commission and choose to do their own thing.

 Proverbs 11:9-14 (NLT)

 ⁹With their words, the godless destroy their friends, but knowledge will rescue the righteous.  ¹⁰The whole city celebrates when the godly succeed; they shout for joy when the wicked die.  ¹¹Upright citizens are good for a city and make it prosper, but the talk of the wicked tears it apart.  ¹²It is foolish to belittle one’s neighbor; a sensible person keeps quiet.  ¹³A gossip goes around telling secrets, but those who are trustworthy can keep a confidence.

      Jesus spoke specifically about these things in Leviticus Chapter 19 when he was speaking to Moses, you can click here to read the chapter but here is verse 16; “Do not spread slanderous gossip among your people. Do not stand idly by when your neighbor’s life is threatened. I am the Lord.”

      I know that you have heard these things many times. I mention them because it is time to change.  Forgive me, I am not without error in these things, I have done these things and I have to change my way of thinking also.  Let’s look at some modern day examples where this could make a real difference;

      Have you ever heard something at church that could bless someone else, you then think about it and talk yourself out of calling that person?  What did that do for that person?  How would you feel if that person did the same thing to you, and you found out about it, how would you feel?  How much does a phone call really cost?  How much could it cost, if the Holy Spirit placed in your heart to speak to that person?

      What if you heard that a person you know, they do not even have to be a friend, truly has a need and you know about it, and you could help?  What would happen if you STEP OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE and just help?  Doesn’t the Bible say if you sow a seed you will reap what you sow?

Galatians 6:7-8 (CEV)

⁷You cannot fool God, so don’t make a fool of yourself! You will harvest what you plant. ⁸If you follow your selfish desires, you will harvest destruction, but if you follow the Spirit, you will harvest eternal life.

     I am challenging each of you to step out of your comfort zone and invest some time in people.  You did not hear me say invest money. You did not hear me say give away the ranch. I asked that you invest time into people.  The Bible does not say you have to sow money, as far as God is concerned, whatever you invest, as long as it is for the betterment of His Kingdom, it is worthy of sowing. 

     I am sure you have either seen or heard of the movie; Pay it Forward.  It, sort of, works like the movie.  Look beyond your own desires.  Look beyond your own problems.  Look at the needs of someone else, and bless them with time.  It may be time praying for them, it may be time finding the right people to help them, it may be taking the time to driving them around to wherever they need to go. Whatever it is, INVEST THE TIME.

     You are probably asking, why I am challenging you to Invest the Time!  The answer is simple.  First of all, as God’s Word says, you will reap what you sow.  As a matter of fact, you will reap more than you sow.  The second reason I am challenging you, is because if the person you invest in does not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, they will see Jesus in you and be encouraged to do the same (Pay it Forward).  They also may be encouraged to ask you questions like; “Hey, why are you doing this?”  This is an open door to share your faith with this person.  Maybe even encourage them to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

     OK enough for now. Who is on board?  Who is up for the challenge?  Who is the first person you are going to invest time in?  I look forward to many comments of people telling their testimonies.  Feel free to share, and encourage others to join in…

 God Bless and to God be ALL of the Glory!!!

Watch the video, check out the words below and share with someone else…

Feel free to join the cause…

BORN AGAIN AMERICAN
By Keith Carradine

Just a workin’ man without a job
It got shipped off to China via Washington, D.C.
And I know I’m nothin’ special, there are plenty more like me
Just the same
I thought I knew the rules of the game
I stood up for this country that I love
I came back from the desert to a wife and kids to feed
I’m not sayin’ Uncle Sam should give me what I need
My offer stands
I’ll pull my weight you give me half a chance

I went up to a congressman and said to him “you know
Our government is letting people down”
He said he’d need a lot of help to buck the status-quo
I said there was a bunch of us around

I’m a Born Again American, conceived in Liberty
My Bible and the Bill of Rights, my creed’s equality
I’m a Born Again American, my country ‘tis of me
And everyone who shares the dream from sea to shining sea

My brother’s welding chassis at the plant
He’s earning what our granddad did in 1948
While CEOs count bonuses behind the castle gates
How can they see
When all they care about’s the do re mi

It’s getting where there’s nowhere left to turn
Not since the crash of twenty-nine have things been so unfair
So many of our citizens are living in despair
The time has come
To reaffirm that hope’s not just for some

The promise of America’s surrendering to greed
The rule is just look out for number one
But brace yourself ‘cause some of us have sown a different seed
A harvest of the spirit has begun

I’m a Born Again American conceived in liberty
My Bible and The Bill Of Rights
My creed’s equality
A Born Again American, my country ‘tis of me
And everyone who shares the dream from sea to shining sea

It’s clear my country’s soul is on the line
She’s hungering for something that she lost along the way
The principle the framers called upon us to obey
That in this land
The people’s will must have the upper hand

I felt the calling once before and took a sacred vow
And faithful to that vow I have remained
I hear the calling once again, my country needs me now
And to her cause I have been re-ordained

I’m a Born Again American conceived in liberty
My Bible and the Bill Of Rights, all people living free
A Born Again American, my country ‘tis of me
And everyone who shares the dream
From sea to shining sea
And everyone who shares the dream
From sea to shining sea
A M E R I C A

I am asking a simple question, with an even easier answer it may seem, if I am asking Christians.  We all should be answering; “My trust is my Lord, Jesus Christ.  After all, the Bible says in John 14:6 (CEV); “I am the way, the truth, and the life!” Jesus answered. “Without me, no one can go to the Father.”

Now you may say that this verse says that to get to heaven we need to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior.  You are correct, but look at the part that says “Without me”.

Just because you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, does not mean that you can just forget Him.

What does the Bible say in:

-  Psalms 37:5; “Commit everything you do to the Lord.  Trust Him, and He will help you.” 

The Bible does not say to commit

some things, it says commit everything,

Trust Him and He will help you.

-  Psalms 62:7-8 (CEV); “God saves me and honors me.  He is that mighty rock where I find safety.  Trust God, my friends, and always tell him each one of your concerns.  God is our place of safety.”

God is your rock, by trusting God,

He can be your place of Safety…

- Colossians 1:11 (NCV); “God will strengthen you with his own great power so that you will not give up when troubles come, but you will be patient.”

Trust in God and experience His Power… 

When your troubles do come, you will learn

to be patient in God’s ability

to take care of it…

 - 2 Corinthians 12:9 (NIV); ‘But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.’

When you are weakest, by trusting Him,

He can be most helpful in blessing you. 

Are you ready to Trust God? 

Get ready to give your problems to God

and His power will rest in you…

Please enjoy this amazing video,

listen to the words, and

embrace what God can do for you. 

It is not ours to keep,

God wants us to Trust in Him, try it!!!