Overcoming Disappointments

Everyone knows disappointment sooner or later. Friends break their word, marriages end in divorce, our children move away, colleagues betray us, the company lays us off, doctors, can’t cure us, our investments disappear, our dreams are shattered, the best-laid plans go astray, other Christians disappoint us, and very often, we disappoint ourselves. We live in a world of disappointment, and if we don’t come to grips with this truth, we are doomed to be unhappier tomorrow than we are today. John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the U.S. wrote in his diary: “My life has been spent in vain and idle aspirations”. We all want to do something, we all make certain assumptions and have expectations about life. But if those expectations are not met, we are disappointed. There is a strong correlation between good mental health and having assumptions that match reality. And there is a high correlation between misplaced assumptions and having a variety of emotional problems, including depression. Put simply, we are disappointed when things don’t go the way we thought they were going to go. Wrong expectations lead to disappointment, and disappointment leads to despair.

Now, with all that said. Don’t let your discouragement keep you from doing what you know you have to do in life. If you can’t follow the big plan, follow the small one. If you can’t see ten steps into the future, then take two or three steps. Or just take the next step in front of you. I posted on facebook last week this quote from John Maxwell. “The smallest act of obedience is better than the greatest intention” You know, he is right. Better to do a little than sit around dreaming about doing a lot. If you cannot obey God in some grand gesture, then obey Him in the small things of life. Do what you know needs to be done and do it for the glory of God.

God's Will

God’s will usually guides us into areas of life where we are gifted, have strengths, passions, and desires. If you are trying to figure God’s will out, start with these questions:

What am I gifted to do? What am I passionate about? What stresses me out? What breaks my heart? What motivates me to action? Where do I fit in? Where do I excel? What doesn’t feel like work to me? What does feel like work to me? What brings me peace? What do others see in me (strengths/weaknesses)? What do I think needs to be changed?

Imitators of God

God has blessed me with 5 grandchildren. I love watching them grow up and learn new things even if it is at times from afar. And the more I watch them I realize they are becoming more like their parents. I see little things they do that is just like their mother and father. The more they grow, the more they will imitate them  – as my children did with me and I with my parents.

Now my prayer as a Grandfather is that my sons and daughter and their spouses will live in such a way that my grandchildren will want to imitate those God like things they see in them. And, I might add, the godly qualities they see in their grandparents as well.

It has been said that people become like the people whom they admirer and spend time with. So if we are spending time with our children and they admire us, then they will become like us…so that means we better be spending time with the Lord and becoming more like Him-so that they ultimately become like Jesus.

One of the ways we can become imitators of God is to let the Lord Jesus live His life through us in the power of His Spirit. And, when you live by the power of the Holy Spirit He will open your eyes so that you can see yourself more clearly. The more your eyes are opened to yourself, you will become aware of the things in your life that are so not like Him.

Have you ever looked at a pond out in a field? You walk by it one day and the water seems clear, you walk by a day or so later and the pond is muddied or filled with debris. What happened? Well it started months before when leaves and twigs fell to the surface, floated for awhile then sank to the bottom and out of sight. Then something stirred the waters and all the debris rose to the surface once again reminding you just how unclean the pond really was. Well this is what happens in our life. We allow things to fall in on our life, hang around for awhile then settle to the bottom. Then we wonder what is wrong with us, why are we acting like we do? Well if we will allow the Holy Spirit to do His work, He will stir our hearts and brings to the surface of our life those areas that should not be there. We may not like what comes up and what we see. But if we will deal with them by confessing, repenting and turning from those things, we will begin to walk in such away where we ourselves are becoming imitators of God.

Because of Jesus

The Bible says that because Jesus Christ came at Christmas time, three things can be true in your life.  I want you to remember this as we enter 2011.  Because Jesus came at Christmas: First, my past can be forgiven.  Second, my present can be managed – why? because I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Third, my future can be guaranteed.  When I put my faith and trust in Jesus Christ it secures my eternity with Him. 

We are Family

I am so thankful for my family. I love my wife, my kids, their mates and of course my grandchildren. And as a parent, we do everything we can to protect them and watch out for their ‘blindside’. I thought about this when I was working on Eph 2:19 while preparing for my Sunday School class. In vs 19 Paul says we are now members of the household of God. Which means we are members of Gods family and as believers we are brothers and sisters in Christ. We are ‘family’ and as a family we should watch out for each other and protect each other

The movie ‘Blindside’ is a true story of Michael Oher an adopted son of the Tuohy family. At one point in the movie Michael an offensive left tackle is at High School football practice and is not doing a good job of blocking and protecting the QB. His mother (played by Sandra Bullock) comes down from the stands in the middle of practice, walks up to him, takes him by the shirt and says “would you let anything happen to me? The answer is No. “Would you let anything happen to your little brother?” Again the answer is No. She then says, “this QB is me, your brother, this QB is family. You protect him, you protect his blindside, you don’t let anyone touch him. Do you understand Michael?” Michael responds with a “yes ma’am”. He then proceeds to block like he never did before and ends up playing for Ole Miss and now the Baltimore Ravens. What was it that made a difference in him? It was the word ‘family’ ---he needed to protect the blindside of family..

So it is with us. We are part of God’s family. In the church we are brothers and sisters in Christ and we are family. So instead of gossiping about someone, kicking them while they are down, talking about them, and mistreating them, we should have a desire to protect them. Protect their blindside. Isn’t that what it means when scripture says they (the world) will know we are Christians by our love for oneanother.

Who are you influencing today

Today my heart is full and full of praise for the Lord. Yesterday my daughterNlaw wrote on her blog about our granddaughter who is part of their church’s kids praise and worship team. Marty wrote about how she was so thrilled that Peyton loved Jesus and wanted to be part of something that gave worship to the Lord. Then a couple of weeks ago I read on Scotty’s facebook page about his desire to raise his children for the Lord. He stated how important it was not to be so concerned about their financial future, but their spiritual future. Then there is my daughter Kari who is just now beginning her parental experience in raising Addison and I know her and TJ will have the same spiritual desires for their children. Well, on this week approaching Fathers Day, my buttons are popping with pride for my three children and the impact they are making on their families and children. And while I know very well that the spiritual influences in my grandchildren’s life comes from many areas (which include both parents, both sets of grandparents, and their church) I still take spiritual pride in the direction my children are giving them as fathers and as a mother.

Now, as I was thinking about all this, my wife handed me a prayer letter from our missionary Dan Freeman. In his news letter he brought a very interesting fact about the influences in his life and that got me thinking about the influences of my life, my children and now my grandchildren.

In Dan Freemans newsletter he writes this:

“Many years ago, there was an unknown pastor that lead a young man to Christ. The young man’s name was Kimball and he became a Sunday school teacher. His walk with the Lord took him to a shoe store one day and he witnessed to a shoe salesman named Dwight L Moody and lead him to Christ. Moody became an evangelist that was used by God to influence a young man named Frederick Meyer. Meyer began preaching on college campuses and lead Wilbur Chapman to Christ. Chapman in turn influenced another young man Mordecai Hamm who became a great evangelist in his own right. Hamm would later lead Billy Graham to the Lord along with a young man named GB Vick who would be influenced by Hamm to go into the ministry. Vick became the Pastor of Temple Baptist Church in Detroit and later was the first president of Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Missouri (where I attended, along with Scotty for 2 years and Kari graduated from there). While in Detroit, Vick led a young man named Richard Freeman (Dan’s father) to the Lord and Freeman later became pastor of Ryan Road Baptist Church. “

And this is where I insert my story. Because years later Freeman would influence a young man who would get saved during his ministry, and surrender to full time ministry. That young man was me. I was saved and surrendered to the ministry under Richard Freeman.

So, I now have 3 children and 5 grandchildren that are being influenced for the cause of Christ from many directions and other family members. But it’s interesting to know as well that part of their lives have been directly affected by a spiritual family tree that goes back to a shoe salesman.  I doubt he had any idea of the impact he would make for Jesus Christ way back then.

You never know who you will impact for Jesus Christ…..so..what kind of influence and impact are you and I making today?

Love part 2

We live in an age that honors personal feelings above almost everything. We do what we want when we want because we feel like it. And if we don’t feel like it we don’t. But as I survey I Cor 13 of Gods Word I am struck by the complete absence of any stress on personal feelings. The kind of love spoken of there is seen, experienced and demonstrated. While it may start in a feeling of compassion or pity - it never ends there.

Gods Word gives us several elements of a love that should be evident in our lives. The first one is Patience - The Bible says ‘Love is patient’ and its not dealing with patience in difficult circumstances but rather patience with difficult people and that can be tough at times can't it?  But It also carries with it the idea of one who has the power to get even but chooses not to use that power.

As we think of ways to be patient, let me suggest that you start with someone you love.