My desk is full of clutter (or stuff), but everything has a purpose and is arranged in a certain way.  Most of the stuff on my desk are notes and papers that need to be attended to soon.  They come and go each day or week.  Other things are decorations or office essentials, like my paper clip dispenser or my stapler. I don’t think much about those.  But there are some other things on my desk that do have special meaning.  It is these I want to talk about.

Starting to my right there is a picture frame that has four individual frames are various sizes connected together.  One picture is mine and Connie’s wedding picture.  It should be a no-brainer why I have that picture staring at me.  The next one is of me holding my niece Meara at her first Christmas (I need to update this as Meara is growing up very quickly).  The third picture is me holding Meara when I baptized her.  This was an awesome day for me that I felt honored to be part of.  And the last one is a family picture.  We take a new picture every Christmas.  A tradition I started a couple years ago.  This picture frame is an important piece on my desk; and reminds me of how important my family is to me.  I can’t imagine life without them.

As I pan to the left I see my computer monitor with pieces of paper taped to it.  But each piece of paper has an important purpose.  The one on my bottom left is the scripture verse from 1 Peter 5:6-8 where it talks about humility; casting our anxieties on Christ; and disciplining ourselves.  It reminds me to stay focused and grounded.  It’s not about me but about Christ.  To the right of this piece of paper is an excerpt from Martin Luther’s commentary on Hebrews.  This reminds me about the nature of my ministry where it says "…to follow the bare voice of God and to be led and driven rather than to drive."  God is in control, not me.  On the top right hand side is my personal mission statement.  It talks about the four "E’s" of ministry: Engage, Enlighten, Enable and Empower.  It is the mission I wrote in seminary and has guided me ever since.  And next to that is Salem’s mission statement.  This reminds me of what the church’s mission is and that we need to be outward focused and not inward focused.  All of these pieces of paper remind we of why I am here and what I am called to do.  They may look like junk to the naked eye, but to mine, they are little treasures.

Panning to the left a few more inches is my computer tower.  On the top is a picture that had a huge impact on my life and ministry 10 years ago.  It is a picture that my mom gave me when I was going through a rough time at Bible camp.  The summer was 1995 and it was my first summer as a program director.  There were only three returning staff members out of about 30.  You can about imagine that we had our challenges.  But to make a long story short, it was one long summer.  I am not sure  how I survived.  But despite not have any fond memories of that summer, I did learn and important message…thanks to my mom.

The picture my mom gave me is one of an eagle.  It looks like it is flying low over some water.  Coming from the tail end of the eagle it looks like water spraying so it must have been trying to scoop up a fish.  On the top of the picture in capital letters is the word "LEADERS".  But on the bottom in smaller type it says, "Leadership is action, not position".  That phrase hit me square in the eyes when I needed it the most.  I was trying to be a leader that summer through my position, not through my actions.  I am not saying all the failures that summer were my fault, but I certainly did not help matters.  My next two summers were awesome.  Thanks mom!

But that picture also reminds me of a scene in scripture.  In John chapter 13 Jesus is with his disciples shortly before he is to be arrested.  As the meal is being served Jesus does something strange.  Jesus gets a bowl of water, a towel and proceeds to wash the feet of the disciples.  Everyone is amazed.  But Jesus goes on to say that he has set an example for them to follow.  We are to "wash the feet" of others.  In other words, we are to serve others; lead/serve through actions.  Jesus knew that people were not going to follow him strictly based on his words or through his extraordinary claims.  Jesus knew he must serve others because that is how God’s love is truly shown.  People respond to actions because they are more real than words can be.  Actions show that your serious.

We are good at talking a good talk, but can we walk a good walk.  I can sit here and talk about how important my family is, but if I don’t show them, I am just blowing hot air.  I can talk about mission statements and powerful scripture verses, but if I don’t respond to their message, I am only speaking idle words.  Leadership is about action, not only words and definitely not about position.  Be an example to others.  Show love rather than just talk about it.

God did not just talk about love, God showed it through the cross.  God was and is serious about you.  God was/is not about lip service.  God is about action.  See the cross and be reminded of God’s love.  See your neighbor and be reminded to serve.  Praise be to God and Amen! -EDH-

Have you ever been dehydrated?  I have been a couple times.  The worst case I can remember happened last summer when I tried to prove something to myself.   And then again on vacation recently when I tried working too hard.

Every year the City of Jackson has a celebration called Race Days.  Jackson is very big into sprint car racing where it hosts the World of Outlaws sprint car races.  Rumor has it that Jeff Gordon (big shot NASCAR racer) raced sprinted cars in Jackson a while back.  But anyway…that is not what I want to write about.  I want to write about another race in Jackson that week last year.  That race was a 5K(3.2 miles) run.  In high school I was a cross country runner and running 3 miles plus was no problem.  Actually once each week during practice we would run about 10 miles.  I was not the best runner on the team but I was not the worst either.  I am not sure what it was, but I enjoyed running (and still do to some extent).  So when I heard about the 5K run I wanted to prove to myself that I could still do it. 

I started training.  Actually I was already running but I just stepped things up a bit.  I was no where near my running weight and shape from high school so I did not expect great things.  My goal for the 3.2 mile course was anything under 24 minutes.  In high school I could run 3 miles in around 19 – 20 minutes with my best time being 17 minutes and 48 seconds.  So twenty four minutes was a worthy goal. 

The day came and it was a hot one.  The temperature was somewhere in the 90s with a high humidity.  Not a good combination.  My wife got concerned and did not want me to run but I assured her that everything would be fine.  There would be watering stations along the way and I told her I would be careful.  The race got going and I started at a faster pace than I should have.  I guess I got a little excited.  At the one mile point I got to the first watering station so I grabbed a small glass on the run.  We turned around at the half way point and head back to town.  I got to the watering station again and grabbed more water (a small glass and I needed a lot more than that).  At this point my body was telling me to stop and walk for a bit but my pride told me to keep going.  So I listened to my pride.  Close to the finish line I saw two people ahead of me so I decided to make a run for them.  I kicked myself into a dead sprint (which was easy at this point since I could not feel my legs) and caught the first person.  The second person heard me coming and kicked it down as well.  I did not catch him but I came in under my goal…23 minutes and 58 seconds…under 24 minutes.  But it came at a price.

After I nearly collapsed at the finish line I went to the water cooler but they were out of water.  Not good.  I was feeling dizzy and light headed.  I was dehydrated and over heated.  I needed water and to cool down and to do so in a big hurry.  I managed to find my wife and grabbed her bottle of water and chugged that down.  She did not seem to mind.  I still needed more though.  Eventually I got some more water and cooled down but not before some scary moments for me and my wife.

I write about this because while on vacation last week I was reminded of this scary moment.  We were painting Connie’s grandparent’s house in temperatures in the upper 90s.  I was drinking water all day and taking frequent breaks.  At about 2pm I realized that I had been drinking a ton of water and I had not been to the bathroom all day.  Not good.  I was getting dehydrated again.  FLASHBACK.  So I drank more water and took more breaks. Finally around 4pm my body caught up.

Dehydration is a simple concept; you use/lose more water than you take in.  I definitely did that last year and again last week.  Dehydration is a dangerous inbalance that can cause serious injury or death.  But dehydration in our spiritual lives is just as dangerous and maybe even more.  I have been there too.  I think these past two weeks, when I got out of my routine, I was feeling some spiritual dehydration.  I was continuing my normal "ministry load" but was not refueling myself.  I was sucking myself dry.  Not good.

This is why a regular routine with God is so important.  Even if you are not a pastor or you don’t do ministry "for a living", you still need to refuel.  The every day grind of life can take a lot out of you and eventually dehydrate you spiritually.  We need fresh doses of God each and everyday.  We need to be reminded we are loved.  We need to hear that Jesus died and rose for us.  We need to hear that we are not alone.  The world does its best to help us forget these things ("dehydration").  So take frequent "water breaks" with God.  Refresh your soul.  Know that you are loved.  Because with a full tank of Christ’s love and the knowledge that God is on our side, there is nothing we cannot do.  Praise be to God and Amen! -EDH-

Hello?  I hope I am still writing for you out there and not just to cyber space.  I know it has been a while, but here I am.  The last week and a half has been a strange one; one where my routine has been thrown for a spin.  You don’t realize how much your routine defines you until you are out of it for a while.  I missed my routine.  I felt lost.  I felt like something was missing even though I was on vacation for a while.  I am not a work-a-holic, just a person who likes to know what is expected of me.  And many of those expectations are placed on me by me.  That is why my routine is so important.

Routines are said to be bad when they inhibit creative thought.  Sometimes we can get so caught up in our routines we are not willing to try something new.  When that happens we are said to be in a rut.  Sometimes I find myself in a rut, but a simple comment and encouragement from my wife quickly gets me out.  If you don’t have someone close to encourage you, you need to find someone.  Being in a rut can and does prevent some amazing things from happen.  Being in a rut can prevent miracles from happening (for more on this, see my sermon from July 30.  My sermons link is on the left side bar).

But routines are also good.  They provide structure for people like me.  I like to know what is coming up each day and what needs to be done on a particular day.  Routines remind us what is important.  Maybe your routine is devotions and prayer in the morning.  This is a good thing but when you get out of your routine, maybe this gets missed.  This was the case for me and I know that was a big part of the reason why I felt lost the last week and a half.  I missed my time with God in the morning.  I missed logging on to my blog and writing.  I missed interacting with God and listening to what God has for me.  I was lost.  I missed my routine.

So we have a fine line; a grey area.  Routine or not to routine, that is the question.  For me the answer is to find and stay with a routine without forgetting my peripheral vision.  When we get in a routine we have a tendency focus on that routine and don’t see what else is possible around us.  I need to remember to look around and be willing to change when necessary.  Routines give structure but don’t let them be your only structure.  Be willing to adapt and go with the flow.  I need to be more flexible.  I need to be willing to adapt my routine to whatever situation presents itself.  And then hear the call to change if appropriate.  I need to be more responsive to what comes along in life.  My routine of spending time with God is important.  I can’t let that slip again.  I don’t like feeling lost.  I happen to like God (actually I love God a lot, I just wish I would show it more).  I guess I need a better routine.

Thank you for listening(reading) and for allowing me to get back to my routine.  I will try to do better in the future.  If I don’t, hold me accountable and slap me in the face (figuratively of course).  If you feel yourself getting out of a routine with God find someone who is willing to hold you accountable as well.  Feeling lost is not fun, so lets stay "found" with God.

Blessings to you in your routines.  May they serve to give glory to God and the world around you. Don’t find yourself lost again.  With God you will always have a place.  Praise be to God and Amen. -EDH-

I have been humbled these past couple days by being reminded that I take a lot of things for granted.  I threw my back out on Wednesday, July 19 and ended up at the chiropractor on the 20^th.  Things got worse Friday night and by Saturday I was in a lot of pain.  Back to the chiropractor I went (excuse my pun).  Putting my shoes and socks on turned out to be a difficult ordeal.  Everything I did last weekend required a lot of effort.  The day when I can bend down and tie my shoes again will be a joyous day.  Until then I will be wearing sandals.

Putting shoes and socks on with ease is something I have taken for granted.  What else do we take for granted?  Imagine not having something that you use or do everyday.  Imagine not having a car.  How would that change your life?  Would you still be able to keep your current job? Imagine not having a loving family.  How would that change your outlook?  Imagine not having a home.  How would you live and where?  There are many things we take for granted and we can’t imagine how we would survive without them.

Our Gospel text for Sunday July 23 came from Mark 6 and talked about Jesus out with the disciples trying to take some time off.  They crossed the lake and there they saw a large group of people waiting for them.  The text says that Jesus had compassion for them because they were, “like sheep without a shepherd.”  Imagine not having or not knowing Jesus Christ as your Good Shepherd.  What would your life be like?  That is a scary thought, but there are people out there who for them this is their reality.  We take Jesus for granted.  We sit back and enjoy the salvation we have in Christ.  We bask in the freedom and hope that we have.  Everything is great, but everything is not great for everyone.  Not everyone knows Jesus as their Good Shepherd.  What can we do about that?  Well it’s easy…tell them about your Shepherd through words, deeds and actions.  Show people the hope that you have.  Display the love of Christ through serving and helping each other.  Invite someone out for coffee.  Bring them to worship.  Pray for them.  Be a friend.

Survey the world around you and notice those who do not know Christ as their Good Shepherd.  Not sure who they are or if they know?  Assume they don’t.  Don’t take it for granted.  Show them Christ anyway because what will it hurt?  We take a lot of things in life for granted but let’s not take Jesus for granted.  Your neighbor can not afford that.  Let’s not leave people as “sheep without a shepherd.”  Let’s announce to the world (around you) that Jesus Christ is Lord of all.  Praise be to God and Amen! -EDH-

Good morning and God blessings to you!

I want to draw your attention to the link on the right hand side of this page — "Prayer Requests".  One of the things that gives me great comfort is the knowledge that other people are remembering me in prayer.  The power of prayer is amazing.  Below is a story that I have received through email a couple times.  Maybe you have seen it before as well, but it is definitely worth reading again:

A missionary on furlough told this true story while visiting his home church in Michigan…..
"While serving at a small field hospital in Africa, every two weeks I traveled by bicycle through the jungle to a nearby city for supplies. This was a journey of two days and required camping overnight at the halfway point. On one of these journeys, I arrived in the city where I planned to collect money from a bank, purchase medicine and supplies, and then begin my two-day journey back to the field hospital.  Upon arrival in the city, I observed two men fighting, one of whom had been seriously injured. I treated him for his injuries and at the same time talked to him about the Lord I then traveled two days, camping overnight, and arrived home without incident. Two weeks later I repeated my journey.  Upon arriving in the city, I was approached by the young man I had treated. He told me that he had known I carried money and medicines. He said, ‘Some friends and I followed you into the jungle, knowing you would camp overnight.  We planned to kill you and take your money and drugs. But just as we were about to move into your camp, we saw that you were surrounded by 26 armed guards.  At this I laughed and said that I was certainly all alone in that jungle campsite.  The young man pressed the point, however, and said,  ‘No sir, I was not the only person to see the guards. My five friends also saw them, and we all counted them. It was because of those guards that we were afraid and left you alone.’"

At this point in the sermon (that I was delivering in Michigan), one of the men in the congregation jumped to his feet and interrupted the missionary and asked if he could tell him the exact day this happened. The missionary told the congregation the date, and the man who interrupted told him this story:  "On the night of your incident in Africa, it was morning here and I was preparing to go play golf. I was about to putt when I felt the urge to pray for you. In fact, the urging of the Lord was so strong, I called men in this church to meet with me here in the sanctuary to pray for you.  Would all of those men who met with me on that day stand up?"  The men who had met together to pray that day stood up.  The missionary wasn’t concerned with who they were, he was too busy counting how many men he saw.  There were 26.

That story gives me goosebumps every time I read it.  I present this story to you because I would like to encourage you to offer your prayer requests to this community.  Click on the link to your right and submit a prayer request for others to read and pray for.  If you don’t have a prayer request click on the link and read the requests and pray for someone else.  Come back and leave a comment about your experiences of answered prayer.  My faith is strengthened and I am encouraged when I hear stories about answered prayer.  And I know you will be to.  You can still leave confidential requests if you would like.

Let’s start a huge prayer chain.  We are not only members of a local church but members of the Christian church (The Body of Christ) that extends all over the world.  Offer up your requests and allow the Body of Christ hold you up in prayer knowing that our heavenly Father will hear us and answer us.  What an awesome God we have.  Praise be to God and Amen! -EDH-

A few days ago I posted a devotion called What does Jesus mean TO YOU?  At the very end I mentioned that I would return to tell you what Jesus means to me.  Well…here I am and here is my answer:

Growing up I was a fairly well behaved kid (my mom might have a different idea than that).  I don’t think I did anything out of the ordinary.  I got into trouble like any boy growing up.  I was mean to my sister.  I was late for curfew.  I would forget to take out the garbage when I was asked (told) to.  I was your typical, everyday kid.

When I got my driver’s license I got a little more daring.  I think that was due to the fact that I got my license before a lot of people in my class and that my dad was a car dealer.  This meant I got to drive some pretty nice cars.  So I needed to impress people in order to keep my "friends".  But it did not take me long to figure out that there was very little I could do in a small town (population 1,500) without my parents finding out.  My parents seemed to have eyes everywhere.

I was outside a neighboring town and got pulled over by a cop.  I guess he did not like the fact that I passed him doing just over 60 mph.  Luckily I did not get a ticket; the cop just chewed me out for about 15 minutes.  The next day my mom said something about that incident.  I sat there stunned wondering how she found out.  It did not take me long to figure out that one of the people in the car was the daughter of my mom’s best friend (no need to say anything more).

From that point on I needed to be careful, but it was never good enough.  Mom and Dad always seemed to find out (and to this day they still won’t tell me their secret.  Maybe after I have a kid of my own they might open their vault).  But here is the kicker, my parents still let me go out on the weekends and my dad still gave me nice cars to drive (except when I ran into a pole at the gas station and my dad demoted me from a mint condition 1986 Monte Carlo to a piece of crap 1974 Ford Zephyr with a radio worth more than the car.  I guess I deserved it.).  My parents gave me chance after chance even though I did not deserve any one of them (I eventually moved up from the Ford Zephyr).  I took advantage of my parent’s forgiveness, but they still loved me.  I never understood that.  I thought they were being foolish and naive.  Little did I know.

Why does Jesus mean so much to me?  It is pretty simple…I am still that kid who takes advantage of his Father’s love.  I need Jesus because without Him I am lost.  I don’t like sinning like I do.  Like Paul tells us in Romans I do the things I do not want to do and don’t do the things I want to do.  Jesus gives me a second chance and a third and a fourth and so on and on and on…  Jesus loves me beyond measure.  Jesus forgives me beyond any end. Like my parents, Jesus is NOT foolish and naive.  Jesus just loves me a whole lot so much so that He went to the cross FOR ME/US.  That is hard to understand and I don’t need to understand.

That is why Jesus matters to me so much.  His amazing grace and love makes me want to work hard to do want I should, not to earn Jesus love, but because Jesus deserves my best.  I regret a lot of things I did growing up but thank God for forgiveness, because without it I can’t imagine the kind of world we would have. 

Thank you God for putting up with me.  Thank you God for sending your one and only Son to die for me.  Thank you God for loving me.  Thank you God!  Amen! -EDH-

"The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not be in want.  He makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside still waters.  He revives my soul and guides me along right pathways for his name’s sake.  Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.  You spread a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you have anointed my head with oil, and my cup runs over.  Surely your goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." (Psalm 23)

This is the Psalm for this coming Sunday.  It is probably the most well known and beloved Psalm.  Even people who do not attend worship probably know this Psalm from a Celebration of New Life service (funeral) they have attended.  We hear this Psalm often, but do we really hear it.  Read it again and this time read it very slowly; digesting every word and every image. 

<Pause to read Psalm 23 again>

What did you hear?  What did you notice? Here is what I notice:  There are a lot of phrases describing what our Good Shepherd will do…not what we need to do.  He makes us lie down (to rest our weary souls); He leads us; He revives our souls; He guides us.  Even though danger surrounds us we shall not fear (because our God kicks butt).  Our Shepherd feeds and nourishes us in the midst of those who would harm us.  But here is the best part…I/We shall dwell in God’s house forever.  Our place has been reserved through Jesus Christ.

Now…read the Psalm again.  This time I want you to see it.  Place yourself in the midst of these green pastures and see our God loving you.  If you can…close your eyes.

<Pause to read Psalm 23…again>

Now…what did you hear and see?  I saw a peaceful field of green grass and flowers.  I saw a gentle stream with fish jumping all around.  I saw mountains surrounding me.  I also saw dark clouds and danger surrounding me.  And just when I started getting a little nervous, my Shepherd put his arm around me and said, "Do not fear my child.  I am here."  Suddenly a sense of peace came over me.

It is amazing isn’t?  We can soon forget about our Shepherd in times of trouble, but our Shepherd is never far.  Actually He is right next to you.  Read this Psalm again and again.  Take comfort in the promises therein.  Hear the voice of the Lord.  Be joyful in the fact that we are part of God’s flock through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Praise be to God, our Shepherd…Amen! -EDH-