You know, sometimes being a Christian can really stop me in my tracks. I was sitting in a Bible Study tonight (oh, wait - y'all reading this are in the study)...
Anyways, I'm sitting there not saying much. Not sure why, but there are many times when I am in church or in Bible Study and I am frozen. Not like that "frozen ice cube" I spoke about in my last post regarding Florida - just frozen in deep thought; total concentration; feeling like I am at work and being all analytical in the way I am taking in all the information that is being shared by Tom and the others at the study. My mind tended to wander to all the opportunities I have missed to spread the word of God and for some of the impatience I have been showing lately at work as the hours continue to pile up. As we were discussing "works", I knew my attitude at work wasn't all that great recently and if I am going to be a witness for God, why would anyone want to say "I want what he has" if I have a crappy attitude? I just happened to pull out one of Billy Graham's weekly email devotionals and (like Emeril Lagasse would say) BAM! ...
1 Peter 3:15-16 "In your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander."
So there you go - who is going to ask me where my hope comes from if I am being "weak". If I continue to give the most attention to satisfying my own appetite, I am going to become a person that no one really wants to "know". If nobody wants to know what makes me tick, I am losing those opportunities to talk about God. In this day and age, I can't really bring up God in the work place on my own. I CAN bring it up if someone asks me a question. So why haven't I been making people ask me the question?
I truly believe that all of this starts with the heart. Like we said at Bible Study (this is where people can verify if I was paying attention) anybody can ramble on in words, but if Christ really isn't in our hearts, we are not going to feel badly if we're not raising Him up, being kind to others, etc.
For me, I feel like my heart sometimes needs a jump start (perhaps that is why I get heart palpitations, or maybe it's too much caffeine)...but seriously, I've got room for improvement. I don't think it's the person preaching the words of God that are the most effective at times - it's a very important part of being a Christian - we need great preachers, but how are we acting when we're outside our 1-hour comfort zone (church). Are we as patient with the non-believers? Are we giving them a REASON to ask why we ARE so patient, or are we making those people think that we're no different from everybody else as believers?
Do you think God judges us on the good that we have left undone? Does this get compared to the evil that we have done?
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Feeling Selfish
I wake up every morning at 5:00am. I shower, iron, walk the dog and hit the road no later than 6:00am. I'm at my desk in Boston around 6:30 - 7:00am and it's non-stop from that point until about 6:00pm. I'm usually back home between 6:30 - 7:00pm.
For me, finding time to pray isn't easy. I don't have much discipline, and normally sneak my prayer time in when I have free time. For example: driving to the office in Boston or to the T Station in Quincy.
I find myself praying throughout the day, but I am never setting that "appointment" with God. Why is it that I am never late for work, can manage staff while attending meetings, but can not find the 1:1 time with God that I want?
Mark 1:35 says "The next morning Jesus awoke long before daybreak and went out alone into the wilderness to pray".
I'm not saying I need to wake up at 4:30am now, but maybe I should. If I know that prayer is the key that unlocks the faith in my life, why am I not setting aside quality time to invite God to fill me with faith and power?
Matthew 6:7 says "When you pray, don't babble on and on...only by repeating your words again and again".
OK, so while I am making scattered time to pray I am definitely being repetitive in my prayers. And on top of being repetitive, I feel like I am being selfish because I am always asking for something. I'm not giving anything, or asking God "what can I do for you?", it's always a prayer asking for a desired result.
Matthew 6:9-13 is the Lord's prayer. It teaches us how to pray. It isn't a "me" prayer by any means, it starts by praising God's name. It's a prayer that asks that God's perfect purpose will be accomplished in this world. It's a prayer that identifies God as a provider for our needs.
Here's my question: If we are not praying in the formation of the Lord's Prayer, which is specifically identified as "how we should pray", will God discount out prayers? I realize that there are times where we need to pray for something for OURSELVES. But if we are not praising God's name and continue to ask for things we want and are not disciplined enough to give God our undivided attention, why would He WANT to listen and answer my prayers like he would for someone else who is dedicated to spending undivided time with God and prays as we are taught to pray?
I know God answers all prayers, and by no means am I trying to validate my prayer time and prayer "outline", but I feel selfish and realize I need to pray differently.
For me, finding time to pray isn't easy. I don't have much discipline, and normally sneak my prayer time in when I have free time. For example: driving to the office in Boston or to the T Station in Quincy.
I find myself praying throughout the day, but I am never setting that "appointment" with God. Why is it that I am never late for work, can manage staff while attending meetings, but can not find the 1:1 time with God that I want?
Mark 1:35 says "The next morning Jesus awoke long before daybreak and went out alone into the wilderness to pray".
I'm not saying I need to wake up at 4:30am now, but maybe I should. If I know that prayer is the key that unlocks the faith in my life, why am I not setting aside quality time to invite God to fill me with faith and power?
Matthew 6:7 says "When you pray, don't babble on and on...only by repeating your words again and again".
OK, so while I am making scattered time to pray I am definitely being repetitive in my prayers. And on top of being repetitive, I feel like I am being selfish because I am always asking for something. I'm not giving anything, or asking God "what can I do for you?", it's always a prayer asking for a desired result.
Matthew 6:9-13 is the Lord's prayer. It teaches us how to pray. It isn't a "me" prayer by any means, it starts by praising God's name. It's a prayer that asks that God's perfect purpose will be accomplished in this world. It's a prayer that identifies God as a provider for our needs.
Here's my question: If we are not praying in the formation of the Lord's Prayer, which is specifically identified as "how we should pray", will God discount out prayers? I realize that there are times where we need to pray for something for OURSELVES. But if we are not praising God's name and continue to ask for things we want and are not disciplined enough to give God our undivided attention, why would He WANT to listen and answer my prayers like he would for someone else who is dedicated to spending undivided time with God and prays as we are taught to pray?
I know God answers all prayers, and by no means am I trying to validate my prayer time and prayer "outline", but I feel selfish and realize I need to pray differently.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
The Green Flag
Welcome!
So here it is – my long anticipated “blog”. To be honest, up until a few months ago, I didn’t even know what a blog was. I remember in the Presidential debates that there was mention of “John Kerry’s Blog”. I figured it was another word for a commercial, or some sort of advertisement. Not being a fan of Mr. Kerry’s, I never looked into it. So then I’m sitting in church a few months ago and there’s mention of the church’s blog. I thought, “why are we running ads on tv?”. Of course I was then distracted for the remainder of the service thinking of Pastor Tom on television asking people to “Come on down!”. Just what we need, another Ernie Boch.
So that’s how I got here. Church. I’m hoping I can spend a lot of time providing new posts (or blogs, if that’s what they call it) to inspire additional discussions and conversations. I normally have a lot to say, so my problem may be that I write too much and people don’t have time to keep up. And, although I am not a shallow man, I don't know how deep I can go here...but we'll see. One thing is for certain, racing will always get some sort of support in my commentary!
The question I keep asking myself: Will my wonderful wife, Jen, accept a response of “sorry, hunny, I can’t do the dishes tonight because I’m working on church stuff” as an excuse?
More to come soon!
So here it is – my long anticipated “blog”. To be honest, up until a few months ago, I didn’t even know what a blog was. I remember in the Presidential debates that there was mention of “John Kerry’s Blog”. I figured it was another word for a commercial, or some sort of advertisement. Not being a fan of Mr. Kerry’s, I never looked into it. So then I’m sitting in church a few months ago and there’s mention of the church’s blog. I thought, “why are we running ads on tv?”. Of course I was then distracted for the remainder of the service thinking of Pastor Tom on television asking people to “Come on down!”. Just what we need, another Ernie Boch.
So that’s how I got here. Church. I’m hoping I can spend a lot of time providing new posts (or blogs, if that’s what they call it) to inspire additional discussions and conversations. I normally have a lot to say, so my problem may be that I write too much and people don’t have time to keep up. And, although I am not a shallow man, I don't know how deep I can go here...but we'll see. One thing is for certain, racing will always get some sort of support in my commentary!
The question I keep asking myself: Will my wonderful wife, Jen, accept a response of “sorry, hunny, I can’t do the dishes tonight because I’m working on church stuff” as an excuse?
More to come soon!
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