Nothing to prove...

I had the privilege of being with a group of pastors earlier this week in a meeting with Larry Osborne-Teaching Pastor at North Coast Church. He shared a statement that had been passed on to him.

"You have NOTHING to prove and NO ONE to Impress."

This is something that I know but often forget. As a pastor and a person, I often struggle with living this out. I can get caught up in the following...

• Trying to prove my value and worth by what I do.
• Believing that the bigger the numbers we have the better pastor I am
• Trying to impress people with my speaking skills
• Wanting everyone to be okay with every decision we make
• Letting some criticism wreck me

This truth is something that I need to be remember all of the time. My value comes from who I am a God's child. He loves me and I don't have to try to prove anything to Him or impress Him with my great abilities. I belong to Him and that is something that no one or nothing can ever take away.

So. today I can relax because "I have nothing to prove and no one to impress." By the way neither do you...

What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31-32)

Money, Money , Money... Whose Is It?

I began a new series yesterday called "Money Matters". I am trying to address some of the basic issues about money that we all face and the truth is that Money Matters to all of us. Money plays such a huge role in our lives and we need to figure out how to handle this issue well.

The most basic issue that we need to answer is the ownership issue. Whose money is it? Who owns it? I work hard for it, I sacrifice a lot of time energy and effort for it. It's mine and I should be able to do with it what I want to. Isn't that the way we normally? I know it is for me. I have struggled a lot with this issue in my life and I've made some bad financial decisions because of it.

King David understood who owned it:

O Lord our God, as for all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name, it comes from your hand, and all of it belongs to you. (1 Chronicles 29:16)

Two things to remember:

1. It all comes from God.

2. It all belongs to God.

One of the things that helps me remember this is to constantly ask God how I am to use the resources that He has given to me. I also seek to constantly focus on what I DO have and not on what I DON'T have. So, this week I will take a few moments each day to write down the things that I have that I get to use and enjoy and THANK God for His amazing provision in my life.

What will you do to remember that it is His? I would love to hear from you.

Personal Confession...

I have a personal confession to make today. I've been doing a series on the Bible the past couple of weeks. One of the great things about teaching is that not only do you learn more that you teach but you are also reminded of the areas where you need to grow. I have been challenging our people to read the Bible for their own personal growth and relationship with God.

My personal confession is that I find it easy to read the Bible so that I can have something to teach and not necessarily for myself. I can sometimes go for days doing this and I find my personal walk suffering when i do. Can anyone relate to what I'm talking about????

Over the past few weeks as I have been preparing for this series God has helped change that focus. I have made some changes in my schedule and in my attitude to get back on track and this verse is helping to guide me.

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Mark 1:35

I am taking the first part of my day to get alone with God and spend time in His presence and in His word for me-not for teaching. It's making a difference in my life and I'm loving it. So, the next time you see me ask me how's my personal time with God going? I will do the same with you.

Do it now...

Over the last several day on three different occasions a person or couple has came to mind that I had not seen or thought about for some time. My initial thought was maybe I should stop and contact them now. But I was so focused on my agenda that I just keep plowing ahead. I told myself that I would do it later....

The first time that it happened, I did nothing and forgot about it. But, later, I found out that this person was going through a very difficult time and was feeling very alone. I believe that God was trying to get my attention and wanted me to reach out.

The second time it happened, I told myself that I would deal with it later-but forgot it again.. But this time, my wife brought up the person and so we made contact. I was so glad that we did. This person was a dear friend that we had not talked to for several weeks. We were able to go see her and her husband. She had been battling a long term health issue and it was much worse. Turns out that this was the last time we would get to see her. She has since passed. I was so grateful that my wife was more sensitive than me.

Today, I had the same impression and stopped everything to contact the person. I was able to do so and had a chance to encourage someone who is going through a tough time. I was encouraged by our time together.

Is there someone on your mind right now? Someone you have been thinking about? Maybe you need to stop what you are doing and contact them. My advice is to DO IT NOW-don't wait.

Taking Charge of Me...

I have been doing some reading today and came across a great line from author/speaker Jim Collins that has given me much to think about. He said,

"Whether you prevail or fail, endure or die, depends more on what you do to your self than on what the world does to you."

This reminds me of the fact that I must take care of myself. I am responsible for what I do with my life. I can't blame others or the circumstances that I face or the world that I'm in if I don't move forward in my walk with Christ and keep growing in my relationship with Him and in my role as a leader. I must take charge of me-no one else can. You must take charge of you-no one else can.

So, these are questions I must ask myself every day, several times a day is this:

What am I doing to take care of myself and keep moving forward? How am i changing both personally and professionally to make a difference? What am I doing to change the world instead of allowing the world to change me?

So, today, I take charge of my time. I take charge of my walk with Christ. I will take charge of my health and exercise. I take charge of my responsibility to keep growing in my life.

What will you do to take charge of You???