"What a crazy ride it has been!"
In these words I sum up twenty years of my Christina walk. I never dreamt that God would take me around the world preaching the gospel when I said yes to Jesus. I never dreamt that God would have me pioneer ministries, teach in a Bible College or pastor at one of the greatest churches on the planet (which I believe is the greatest but I am a little biased). I never dreamt that God would bless me to have the family that I do. I look at my wife and children in amazement.
All of this is not to brag. All the praise goes to God. I couldn't have done any of this by myself. At best I would have been playing guitar in a coffee shop somewhere hoping someone would like my version of an old song and they would give me a tip with paper money rather than coins. How miserable.
Every morning I wake up with the words 'thank you' on my lips. I think God smiles when we say thanks. He knows He is good but loves a grateful heart. The words 'be thankful' occur on several occasions in the New Testament. I guess we have to be reminded. If you look around you will see the hand of God on your life.
I could tell stories of how I should be dead. How people on my street pulled guns on me and my friends while we were playing basketball. I could talk about car accidents that never happened and I don't know how they were avoided. To be honest there was one time in San Timoteo canyon I closed my eyes when a truck crossed over the double yellow lines on to my side of the road and when I opened them again I was just fine. Or when I rolled my car in Reche Canyon and told God on the way over "Here I come!" (That accident did happen but I was fine. Maybe I should stay away from the canyons?!)
As I look forward to the next twenty years I wonder at what God will do. What victories are in store and what tragedies will be avoided or withstood with grace and joy? No matter what comes good or bad I do know that two words will be on my lips; "Thank you!"
What has God done in your life since you said yes to Jesus? How grateful are you?
Showing posts with label History. Show all posts
Showing posts with label History. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 23, 2016
Friday, February 12, 2016
Learning Forward
"This year was more organized and seemed to be better than last year. That is good that we are learning and moving forward."
I have read that in order for a blog, or any endeavor, to be successful that you have to know who you are and who your audience is. You have to know what makes you unique and what you are aiming to say. It has taken a year to get it out but I know that Thoughts From Last Year is a platform to share how we can grow forward from the lessons of our past.
We all want to be successful and get better at what we do. The amazing thing is that God has given us a tool to learn from called experience. Our failures are redeemable when we learn from them. Edison and many other inventors, leaders, entrepreneurs and others are proof of this. We all can be better today than yesterday.
It is amazing to me how we often miss this in the lessons of the Bible. Joshua heaped up 12 stones from the middle of the Jordan river to remember the miraculous crossing. No doubt the story of the disobedience 40 years earlier would be told as well. Jesus even taught his disciples lessons by having them remember the experiences of feeding thousands of people with loaves and fishes. (If you don't remember these stories go read your Bible!)
Today's tough times are teachers for tomorrow. Learn forward by being aware of your life. It is easy to miss out and float through life. This is especially true if your life is tough or painful. We like to numb pain and ignore problems with distractions like television and the Internet. It may be time to turn off the tv and put down the smart phone to focus on what you're facing. You should consider writing an account or journaling so that you can go back and remember the lessons you are learning today if you're not already.
We are all in this together. We have one life to live and God is showing us the lessons every day. History does repeat itself. It is our choice to do it better when it does.
What lessons have you learned and how did you handle the when they came up again?
I have read that in order for a blog, or any endeavor, to be successful that you have to know who you are and who your audience is. You have to know what makes you unique and what you are aiming to say. It has taken a year to get it out but I know that Thoughts From Last Year is a platform to share how we can grow forward from the lessons of our past.
We all want to be successful and get better at what we do. The amazing thing is that God has given us a tool to learn from called experience. Our failures are redeemable when we learn from them. Edison and many other inventors, leaders, entrepreneurs and others are proof of this. We all can be better today than yesterday.
It is amazing to me how we often miss this in the lessons of the Bible. Joshua heaped up 12 stones from the middle of the Jordan river to remember the miraculous crossing. No doubt the story of the disobedience 40 years earlier would be told as well. Jesus even taught his disciples lessons by having them remember the experiences of feeding thousands of people with loaves and fishes. (If you don't remember these stories go read your Bible!)
Today's tough times are teachers for tomorrow. Learn forward by being aware of your life. It is easy to miss out and float through life. This is especially true if your life is tough or painful. We like to numb pain and ignore problems with distractions like television and the Internet. It may be time to turn off the tv and put down the smart phone to focus on what you're facing. You should consider writing an account or journaling so that you can go back and remember the lessons you are learning today if you're not already.
We are all in this together. We have one life to live and God is showing us the lessons every day. History does repeat itself. It is our choice to do it better when it does.
What lessons have you learned and how did you handle the when they came up again?
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Day 260 - History is on Repeat
"The church service went well with a good message on where strength comes from and working with the strength of God in humility, holiness and happiness. Afterward we opened it up for the baptism of the Holy Spirit."
At 260 days into this blog and after keeping a journal for 625 days I have noticed that History is indeed repeating itself. I used to think of it in terms of the same thing happening in a different time with different people and different circumstances. What is really tripping me out is that in my journal with the same people in the same places and roughly the same time, only one year apart, the same things are happening.
Case in point; last year's quote shows that on the Wednesday night this day a year ago the topic was "Strength" and we opened it up for the baptism of the Holy Spirit after church. I just got home from Wednesday night church a few hours ago where the topic tonight was "Strength" and at the end of the service we opened it up for the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
This isn't the only occurrence of this type of thing happening. I have seen through my journal that for the most part I have preached the same days, did activities on the same days and even fought with my wife on the same days. This is either a crazy coincidence or God is getting our attention in the details.
Moses prayed in Psalm 90 to the Lord to teach us to number our days that we might gain a heart of wisdom. This year I have seen that as I have numbered the days and stayed faithful to my commitment to journal and blog I have gained wisdom. I have seen the truth in the statement that hindsight is 20/20. I am also going into the future with greater confidence in the Divine Providence of God.
Our steps are ordered of the Lord. It is obvious when I see things like today's entry. God knows what He is doing and He will give us the wisdom we need each day.
How have you seen history repeat itself? What wisdom did you draw from it?
At 260 days into this blog and after keeping a journal for 625 days I have noticed that History is indeed repeating itself. I used to think of it in terms of the same thing happening in a different time with different people and different circumstances. What is really tripping me out is that in my journal with the same people in the same places and roughly the same time, only one year apart, the same things are happening.
Case in point; last year's quote shows that on the Wednesday night this day a year ago the topic was "Strength" and we opened it up for the baptism of the Holy Spirit after church. I just got home from Wednesday night church a few hours ago where the topic tonight was "Strength" and at the end of the service we opened it up for the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
This isn't the only occurrence of this type of thing happening. I have seen through my journal that for the most part I have preached the same days, did activities on the same days and even fought with my wife on the same days. This is either a crazy coincidence or God is getting our attention in the details.
Moses prayed in Psalm 90 to the Lord to teach us to number our days that we might gain a heart of wisdom. This year I have seen that as I have numbered the days and stayed faithful to my commitment to journal and blog I have gained wisdom. I have seen the truth in the statement that hindsight is 20/20. I am also going into the future with greater confidence in the Divine Providence of God.
Our steps are ordered of the Lord. It is obvious when I see things like today's entry. God knows what He is doing and He will give us the wisdom we need each day.
How have you seen history repeat itself? What wisdom did you draw from it?
Tuesday, May 12, 2015
Day 132 - On Repeat
"Very few people are interested in history any more."
Today's quote from last year actually comes from my dad. He is a very wise man with a great heart. We took him and my mom to experience Disneyland with their grandchildren to celebrate their fortieth wedding anniversary and Mother's Day for my mom. While we were there we went and saw Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. It is a patriotic inspiration with a godly attitude behind it.
As we were looking around the theater we noticed how few people were in there and my dad responded that very few people are interested in history any more. I understand that we were at Disneyland where people don't want to be educated they want to be entertained. Also I recognize that there is an upsurge or history related television but really that is a lot of entertainment as well.
The danger of writing off history is that we can miss the lessons and have to go through the same or similar things our ancestors did. Edmund Burke took it a step further when he said "Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it."
It is true. That is why there are 66 books of the Bible and millennia of history for us to learn from. God even commanded festivals and feasts for the Israelites to remember significant happenings from history. They would even set up large monuments to remember and they were instructed to teach their children the story when they would come across it.
For us it is no different. You don't have to be a history buff to learn the lessons from the past. Especially when we have such a diversity of books, Bible translations, and modern day story tellers. Guaranteed that whatever you are facing today someone has gone before you and can help you to make it through. There is nothing new under the sun!
What is your favorite time period from history? How has knowing the past helped you with the present?
Today's quote from last year actually comes from my dad. He is a very wise man with a great heart. We took him and my mom to experience Disneyland with their grandchildren to celebrate their fortieth wedding anniversary and Mother's Day for my mom. While we were there we went and saw Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln. It is a patriotic inspiration with a godly attitude behind it.
As we were looking around the theater we noticed how few people were in there and my dad responded that very few people are interested in history any more. I understand that we were at Disneyland where people don't want to be educated they want to be entertained. Also I recognize that there is an upsurge or history related television but really that is a lot of entertainment as well.
The danger of writing off history is that we can miss the lessons and have to go through the same or similar things our ancestors did. Edmund Burke took it a step further when he said "Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it."
It is true. That is why there are 66 books of the Bible and millennia of history for us to learn from. God even commanded festivals and feasts for the Israelites to remember significant happenings from history. They would even set up large monuments to remember and they were instructed to teach their children the story when they would come across it.
For us it is no different. You don't have to be a history buff to learn the lessons from the past. Especially when we have such a diversity of books, Bible translations, and modern day story tellers. Guaranteed that whatever you are facing today someone has gone before you and can help you to make it through. There is nothing new under the sun!
What is your favorite time period from history? How has knowing the past helped you with the present?
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