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Archive for the ‘Motivational’ Category

Serving Jesus By Adapting

Posted in Church, Community, Motivational on April 29, 2014| Leave a Comment »

There is so much going on at the church, it has been difficult for me to sit still long enough to devote much time to my ramblings here.  We celebrated a wonderful Easter season and then moved right into some much needed facility renovations that have consumed much of my time.  But progress is a wonderful thing and the changes that are coming about to our facility are going to make a huge difference for years and years to come.

Taking walls down and changing the look of the facility has caused me to pause and think about the last 60 or so years in the life of the church.  The facility looks much the same today as it did when it was constructed in the early 1950’s.  It has served our family and our community well.  Countless lives have been impacted by the ministry of our church and the facilities have played a major role in that impact.

But times change.  Culture changes.  What was relevant many years ago, does not carry the same weight today.  So things must change – ministry needs require adaptation.  We still have wonderful facilities but in order for them to be used effectively, we need to shift a bit and make a few changes here and there in order to utilize what God has given us to the best of our ability.

As I have thought about the renovations, I have thought about how each of us face decisions regarding adaptation.  We are called to make disciples.  But the tools we used 20 years ago, may not be effective today.  We have to be willing to strive to remain relevant – and that is a challenge.  We like things to stay the same.  We like to hold on to things.  We often resist change – particularly if it effects us personally.

Jesus did not die on the cross to save me for a life of comfort.  He died to call me out of my sin and into a life of service and devotion to him.  That service is a life of sharing the good news of his mercy and hope with others.  It is not a calling that we grow out of or that has a time limit.  If we are still drawing breath, we are still called to impact other for Christ.

Are there areas of your life that need to adapt in order to make a greater impact for Christ possible?

Think about it.

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Realizing Progress

Posted in Formation, Hope, Leadership, Motivational on March 10, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Path

Today, this post marks a milestone in my ramblings here at Clay In The Hands.  Next month, I will have been posting my thoughts and struggles, joys and heartaches here for five years.  Today is the 800th post.  So as I have thought about this post, what keeps coming to mind is the journey I have been on over these last 800 posts.

I have come to believe that we drastically overestimate the change that will come in a year, but just as drastically underestimate the change we will see in five.  As leaders, we see things that need to happen and we work toward those endeavors with passion believing we will see immediate results.  However, normally, as the days wear on, it seems nothing is happening.  We look toward the goal and feel we are making no ground at all.  It can be frustrating, draining and discouraging.

But then you hit a milestone and you turn around and look back and realize, it may not have come in a year but the distance covered in five years is astounding.  I look back on where I was five years ago and to be honest, I am not sure I could have ever seen then where God has me now.  God has led me these past five years – sometimes kicking and screaming – and sometimes letting me think it was my idea – but God has been with me every step of the way.

“So the point of all this is?” you may be asking.  The point is that we are in the midst of a journey on The Way that should be seen as a marathon and not a sprint.  Just look back at your own life.  It should not be hard to realize the progress you have made over an extended period of time.

Regardless of where you are on this path, God is at work.  As long as you are striving each day to be more like Jesus and to live for him, you are moving forward.  Even when it may not seem there is any progress at all, God is forming you.

Stay with it.

God is faithful.

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The Ink of Doctrine and the Blood of Life

Posted in Church, Formation, Hope, Motivational on February 20, 2014| Leave a Comment »

I have had the blessing of being able to attend a preaching conference at Truett Seminary on Baylor’s campus this week.  The environment of being back on a college campus is always refreshing but the conference was especially meaningful this year.  We had the privilege to sit and listen to one of the country’s premier orators – Dr. Robert Smith, preaching professor at Beason Divinity School in Alabama.   Each session I made my way out of the chapel inspired and depressed at the same time.

Inspired by his words and his passion for the Word.  I walked out of there with a renewed passion for speaking God’s truth.  But I also walked out a bit dejected in knowing I most likely will never be able to deliver a message with the excitement and eloquence of Dr. Smith.  He is a true communicator and I am glad I have had the privilege to sit at the feet of an artist that can paint with words.

But here is what I am thinking about this morning as a prepare for my long drive.  I am thinking about how Dr. Smith defined the goal of preaching.  He said the goal is to take the ink of doctrine and turn it into the blood of life.

I should stop there and let you join me in meditating on that statement.  In fact, I do challenge you to meditate on that thought today.  But I challenge you to take it out of the context of preaching and think about our role as followers in the Way.

Shouldn’t that be our goal each and every day as we get out of bed and prepare for our hurried life?  Shouldn’t our goal be to take what we say we believe and put it to practice.  Shouldn’t the pages of our doctrine, our beliefs – the Bible – take on human form and action?

Our understanding of Jesus – as limited as it is – should course through our veins as the very blood that gives life.

Today, as you rush through your To Do list and responsibilities, how is your belief in Jesus going to affect what you do, what you say and with whom you interact?

Think about it.

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Bill Brooke – A Man Whose Impact Has Staying Power

Posted in Community, Leadership, Motivational on February 18, 2014| 2 Comments »

When we think of life, we have to come to terms with the fact that we have a very myopic view.  We can only see life from our own perspective.  As hard as we may try, we can never truly see life through another’s eyes.  So when people come in and out of our lives, we can only really feel the touch and the impact they have made on us personally.  We can try and determine the difference a person has made with their life, but the irrefutable evidence is limited to our own experience.  So some come into our lives and pass right through with little or no lasting effect on us.

But then – occasionally – there is that person who, regardless of the length they linger in your midst, they leave an indelible mark.  Your encounter with them leaves a permanent impression that neither time nor circumstance can erase.

This week, a saint passed this way.  He walked right through my life and stepped right out of it.

For the past three years, I have had the privilege to know and interact with a gentlemen (true to the word) who has left his mark on this world and particularly on my life.

He has been described as a “pillar” in our church family.

How does someone reach “pillar” status?  Is there something that has to happen?   Does the church have to vote?

I am not sure how one reaches this status but Bill Brooke was there.

I have an idea that it has something to do with his character, his experience – who he was.  It has something to do with the value of a man’s word.  Some men’s word is only as good as the distance you can throw them.  But Bill’s word was gold.

On more than one occasion I asked Bill if I could just record our conversations.  I did not want to miss anything that he said – and almost as important as what he said was the way he said it.  Bill had a knack for “home-spun” wisdom.  I only wish we had assigned a scribe to follow him around and write down everything he said!

I am a people person.  I love people.  I love connecting to people.  In my 40 plus years, I have not run across too many people I just couldn’t get along with.  But on the other hand, in that same time, I have not run across too many people who have made such a lasting impact on my life that I rank them in the top influencers of my life.  But Bill Brooke is on that list!

Bill – you are gentleman – a pillar – a true man of God.  You will be missed and your legacy will live on in my life – and so very many others!

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Stay Faithful

Posted in Community, Grace, Hope, Motivational on February 3, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Last year, our church began an effort to put adult believers in front of 2nd graders in our community.  We call it Reading Buddies.  Twice per month for an hour each time, an adult volunteer goes into the Primary School, signs in, and meets up with their assigned Reading Buddy in the computer lab.  For an hour or so, the two interact.  The basic activity normally focuses on reading.  But there is so much more that goes on.  Relationships are built – concerns are shared – the hope and love of Jesus are shared.

We now have 39 adults going into the school each month.  God has blessed this ministry.  I hear all kinds of stories about how these adults are impacting the kids (and visa versa).  I have to say, my experience has been a little different.

I began meeting with my buddy in September.  He is shy and doesn’t really say much.  In fact, I haven’t been certain that he even cared that I was there.  Now, I know that my feeling of satisfaction is not what this ministry is about, so I have stayed with it.

Last month was the first time I saw much interest in my being there.  But today, it was obvious.  I was already standing at the computer lab door when the class came around the corner.  Nearly the entire class was into the room before I heard the teacher say, “He’s here,” to two stragglers that had not rounded the corner of the hall yet.  When I heard her say that, I looked up and here he came bounding around the corner in a half run half skip with a huge smile on his face.

The look in his eye told me that he was glad to see me.

I tell this story not to brag but to confess.  This morning, I had thousands of things on my mind.  I had a list of things to do as long as my arm.  My attitude about going and spending an hour was not what it should have been.  But when I saw my little guy’s face, I knew that there was not much else more important for me to do today.

God calls us to be faithful – even when we don’t feel like it.

I find it amazing how God can use faithfulness to make a difference.

Stay faithful today!

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Seeing the Invisible

Posted in Formation, Humor, Motivational on January 27, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Have you ever had the blessing of watching God move?  I have to admit, the visible evidence of the invisible occurs all too rarely in my life.  And while I am confessing, I know that the rarity of its occurrence is not an absence of God moving but rather an absence of presence on my part.  God is at work all around us every minute of every day – we just rarely slow down and pay attention.

I am working through a book right now entitled, When It’s Rush Hour All Day Long, by John Tadlock.  In the book, the author refers to the reason we live at such break-neck speed as “hurry sickness.”  He even offers a quiz to see if the reader suffers from hurry sickness.  Unfortunately, he does not offer a scale of determining just how deeply the reader suffers from the ailment.  I am afraid if he did, he would have to re-calibrate it after I took the quiz.  One of the questions in the quiz is something like – do you count the people in each line at the check out and estimate how many items they have in their carts in order to gauge the speed of the process and then choose the line based on your best estimate?  As I read that question, I found myself wondering – “Who doesn’t do that?”  But then the next question hit a little closer to home – do you keep tabs of the other lines as you are waiting to determine who is winning?

Guilty.

Now I will say, not once in my life have I finished before the other lines and walked by them and yelled – “LOOSER!!”  Alright, maybe I have thought it – but I have never said it out loud.

We all suffer from hurry sickness in our culture.  In fact, if it were really a disease, I believe it would be considered a national epidemic.

What has become normal pace for us leaves little time to see God at work.  We don’t even take time to process the things we realize are occurring around us.  We just shrug things off and move on with little thought.  How will we ever see the movement of the invisible?

The first step is to realize you must slow down.  God did not create us to live at such a pace.  In fact, Genesis records that when God was in the process of creating the world, the seventh day was set aside for rest.  Did God get tired creating the world?  No – I don’t believe that was the reason God rested.  God set a precedent.  God created us to need rest so God created Sabbath – rest – cessation from work.

This seems like an odd topic to discuss on a Monday.  We are just getting started on a new week in which we have a full schedule and plenty to do.  But God created us for relationship.  When we get so wrapped up in our schedule – our To Do list – our world – we forget to look for God.  We fail to see God at work all around us.  We miss the blessing.  We miss the fulfillment we are seeking desperately.

Stop!

Slow down!

God is at work!

Just look!

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Who Is Thankful For You?

Posted in Community, Formation, Motivational on January 22, 2014| Leave a Comment »

We are beginning to work through the book of Colossians on Wednesday nights.  In the first chapter, Paul opens his letter to the believers by telling them that he always gives thanks for them.  Here is what he says in verses 3 and 4 of chapter 1:

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people.

What a great witness to the faithfulness of the people in Colossae!  The believers there were so in-tune with God and living to follow Jesus that Paul felt compelled to offer thanks for them every time he prayed for them.

As I read what Paul wrote I have to ask myself this question:  Am I living in such a way that others are thankful for me?  Or maybe a more pointed question would be:  Who is thankful for the way I live and represent Jesus?

Does your faith in Jesus and your commitment to live by his example positively influence others you meet each day?  Will others be drawn to God because they encounter you today?

Who is thankful for you and the way you live out your faith?

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Time for Reflection

Posted in Formation, Hope, Motivational on January 6, 2014| 1 Comment »

Calendar

Here we are at the beginning of the new year.  2014 brings opportunities and challenges – some, a carry over from 2013, but some will be new and fresh.  I always love this time of year.  I guess it is because I am wired to be a planner and think through strategies. I love to dream about what could be and often should be.  This time of year lends itself to that kind of thinking.

So what about you?  What will you do to make 2014 a year to remember?  Have you even thought about it?  Last night, I asked some of our folks to think about what God has done in their lives this past year.  So often, we make a somewhat mindless statement when we are asked how God is at work – “I have been blessed.”  For some, there is real meaning in that statement.  But I fear that all too often, it is just a casual phrase, thrown around with little thought.  So I challenged some folks last night to be specific and list the top 3 things God has done in their lives in 2013.

Can you do it?  Can you think of the top 3 things God has done in your life this past year?  I extend the same challenge to you – to set aside some time this week to reflect on just what God has done.  Then celebrate those things.  Psalm 145 tells us we should remember God’s mighty deeds and offer praise.  And not only offer praise, but share with others what God has done.

Don’t start another year without reflection.  God truly blesses us but we need to train ourselves to see God at work.

Let me know how God has worked this past year.

Be blessed today!

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What An Adventure!

Posted in Church, Community, Formation, Hope, Motivational on October 15, 2013| 2 Comments »

In preparing for this coming Sunday, I pulled a little book off the shelf that I read years ago and have re-read a time or two.  The book is by Erwin McManus and is entitled, The Barbarian Way.  It is a quick read and is one of those books that should be used as a reminder from time to time.

All of us need to remember what this following in The Way is all about.  So many people look at Christianity and say, “Why would I want to be involved in a system of rules that leads to a boring life of restriction from the things I enjoy doing and that bring excitement?  No thanks, you can have it.”

But I am reminded that Jesus did not call us to a boring life.  In fact, following Christ is the most exciting, fulfilling adventure offered to mankind.  When we approach our faith completely surrendered to Jesus, we realize that we are living right on the edge.  The X-Games have nothing on following Jesus!

McManus reminds us that there is a difference between what religion has become and the way Jesus calls us to live.  Here is what he says:

When Christianity becomes just another religion, it focuses on requirements.  Just to keep people in line, we build our own Christian civilization and then demand that everyone who believes in Jesus become a good citizen.  

It’s hard to imagine that Jesus would endure the agony of the Cross just to keep us in line.  Jesus began a revolution to secure our freedom.

Following The Way is more than living by a set of rules.  In fact, it is not about conforming but rather being transformed.  Jesus did not call us to conform to a system, he called us to join the battle for the hearts of humanity.  This calling is far from boring.  It is a call to live outside our comfort zone every day.  It is a call to give everything we have to the movement of God.  And this movement is bigger than we are and greater than anything we can even imagine.

Will you join the adventure?

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Inspired By a 2nd Grader

Posted in Hope, Missions, Motivational on October 8, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Last week I was inspired.  We can often see how God’s hand has moved in the past if we slow down and look.  But it is far more difficult to see God moving in the here and now.  There are just too many distractions.  We are focused on making it through the day in one piece.  We are striving to live in a manner worthy of the name Christian.  And so we get wrapped up in doing good and we fail to see God working all around us.

So when we actually see God at work right before our eyes, it takes our breath away – or at least that is my experience.

Last week, I received an email from a young lady telling me that her 2nd grade daughter had been moved to come up with a way to help those less fortunate than herself.  She decided that she could make bracelets and sell them for $2 and give the money to help provide food for those who might otherwise not have enough to eat.  For the past few months, she has been making bracelets and selling them.  She now had enough money that she wanted to get my opinion on how best to put that money to work to help with the hunger relief ministry in our church.

This little 2nd grader wanted to give the money to help with our Snack Pack ministry – a ministry that provides a bag of healthy snacks to kids who need it in our school system.  The bags are secretly placed in the child’s backpack each Friday so that he or she will have something to eat over the weekend.

I suggested to the young mom that this money could go to buy special treats that would be out of the ordinary for what typically goes into the bags – something special provided by her daughter.  She loved the idea.

So when she picked up her daughter from school, they came straight to the church.  I was standing in the hall when the front door flew open and this saintly little blonde 2nd grader marched in and right up to me.  She thrust her hand straight out holding a roll of cash – smiling from ear to ear.  Her mother explained that she had told her daughter she could hold some money back to buy herself a little something as a reward for a job well done (a suggestion that made sense to me).  But the little girl decided that the kids receiving the bags needed it more than she did – so she gave it all – $55.00.

As I took the money from her hand and looked at the smile on her face I thought to myself, “If only others could ‘get it’ like she does!”  I was inspired to do more – to love more fully – to give more earnestly – to offer myself more sacrificially.  And it was the heart of a 2nd grader that moved me.

God calls each of us to do what we can to be true to our faith and live in a manner worthy of our calling.

What will you do today to live for Jesus?

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