Moments

I was told I would have moments. You know - where everything is going well, then they sneak up on you and you're flooded with emotions and memories. Like missing a friend you haven't seen in a while, but worse.

This morning I had one of those moments . . .

When Karen was sick and new that her death was eminent she had here wedding dress cut up and made into handkerchiefs that she wanted neices, nephews, and friends who weren't married yet to have as something old on their wedding day. She wore her dress almost 21 years before, so guess the handkerchiefs would qualify as something old. They are so beautiful, if I do say so myself (yeah - I'm secure in my manhood!!). Karen had always intended on writing a note to go along with them, but she passed away before she could.

A dear friend of mine is getting marriend on Saturday. She has one of the handkerchiefs. Guess who wrote the note. Yeah, me. I tried to write it in a way I thought Karen would write it. It's probably more a mixture of Karen and me.

That's when the moment snuck up on me and beat me about the heart and head. I know now why I haven't written the note to go along with the handkerchiefs. It was super tough. Memories of our own wedding, the day she decided to cut up her wedding dress and have gifts made of it, her last days, the many ways she always was thinking of others and many more memories flooded my mind and my heart. I was overshelmed with emotions and they came rushing out like a river breaking through a levee.

So what do you do with times like this? The only thing I know to do is to cherish them. To hold onto them and don't allow life to steal them away.

Erica, wish I could be there. Sorry I can't. Please know how happy I am for you and Stephen. And even though I'm not there I will be celebrating in my heart for and with the two of you. May your God truly bless your life together.


Blindsided by moments,
Mike

Tuesday's Gone

This post is not deeply spiritual. As a matter of fact it probably doesn't have anything to do with God's presence in our lives while we are journeying through the valley. I do think it has potential in the realm of personal healing.

This morning I'm camped out at Mocha's. It's a local coffee shop across from the church. I grabbed a cup-o-joe (no flavored stuff here - Americano Bold - espresso with water added to make a coffee-like drink) cranked up the laptop, popped in earbuds from the iPod and got lost in the music. One of my fav-o-rite groups of all time is Lynard Synard. I love southern rock and they do both. . .well. . .really well.

A n y w a y. . .

So Lynard Skynard it is. Recently I downloaded Chronicles. It has all their stuff, including early demos of some of their songs. One of the songs that played was Tuesday's Gone. Probably doesn't mean much to most of you - unless you like Lynard Skynard. But the song is about saying good-bye to someone very dear.

Hearing this song brought back some recent memories. Recently I was working through some issues related to Karen's death with a friend of mine. One of the things we discussed was letting go of Karen emotionally. I had let go of her physically, even spiritually, but emotionally I was still hanging on. We agreed on an exercise that really, really helped - writing Karen an good-bye letter. So. . .I wrote Karen a good-bye letter. In the middle of writing the letter this song came on the ol' iPod. I had heard it before, but for the first time I felt I really understood it's meaning. I even told her about the song in the letter. Thought it was kind of ironic - don't you? I even laughed when I realized what was playing and what I was doing.

Heard it again this morning. Still kinda funny - strange funny, not haha funny. But it was also very therapeutic.

Ever wonder what lengths God will go to suprise us. . .to heal us. . .to make us stand up and pay attention? I do. Then, again, I'm funny - strange funny, not necessarily haha funny. Some of you will agree - all to readily I might add, so quit smiling and nodding your head. You know who you are!! :)

Again, not the most spiritual post, but WOW! Thanks God for the memories.

Love,
Mike

King of the Mountain

I remember when I was younger my brothers, my friends, and I would play king of the mountain. For those of you not in the know - king of the mountain is about claiming the mountain for your own while keeping all others off of it by whatever means necessary and tyring to keep from getting knocked off. The mountain could be anything - a mound of dirt (most preferred) or anything one would have to climb and stand atop of, alone, to claim victory (hope that makes sense). You are king of the mountain until someone else, by whatever means necessary, knocks you off of the mountain.

Got it!! Hope so.

So what does this have to do with being in the midst of the valley - EVERYTHING!!

I read Romans 8:37 this morning (I actually read all of Romans 8, but this verse stood out to me as if to say, "Ooo, Ooo, Ooo - look at me, look at me!). It says, "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us." As I read this verse and began writing in my journal a couple of points came to my mind.

1) So what are "all these things" Paul is talking about?

Verse 35 names several "things" - trouble, calamity, persecution, hunger, cold, danger, the threat of death. That's "these things." How many times have I struggled with trouble or calamity - bad things that happen to me or even stuff that doesn't go my way? How many times have I allowed them to bring me down - to defeat me? Honestly. . .too many times.

What about you? You. . .those in the midst of their own valley. . .how many times have you allowed Satan to use them to bring you down - to defeat you? Hhmmmm. . .

2) I AM VICTORIOUS!

Verse 37 tells me that in Christ Jesus I am victorious - a conqueror - one who stands as "KING OF THE MOUNTAIN!" In Christ I am King of the Mountain over everything that Satan would want to use to discredit me, to bring me down, and along with me my testimony of/to my God.

NOT TODAY SATAN!!

You will not knock me off of the mountain. In Christ, God placed me up here and I claim victory over . . .
my tiredness
my attitude
my heart
my thinking
my motives
my mouth
mw love for others
my compassion
my eyes
my emotions.

And anything else, you, Satan would like to attack. They are not yours. They belong to God who purchased them with the blood of his own Son on the cross and with power raised my Savior from the dead and gave HIM the keys to hell. It is the same power in which I claim victory and the spoils of victory!

NOW SATAN - DEAL WITH THAT! I AM THE KING OF THE MOUNTAIN!!


You can be the King of the Mountain today - even in the midst of your valley. For if you have accepted Christ as Savior and made Him Lord of your life then God says that you are a co-heir with Christ of all that God has given Him. In other words, today, you can claim the same victory God gave Christ when God raised Him from the dead.

CLAIM IT! LIVE IT!

Living like a King!
Mike

Come and Listen

I love music. Always have. Always will. My father is from Texas (Hook ‘em Horns) and my mother is from Alabama (Roll Tide). Not sure where my parents are from has to do with music, except the south has some really deep roots in the type of music I listened to. Their influence in music is unmistakable. I grew up listening to gospel, r&b, soul, blues, pop, rock, and instrumental (when you're ADD you can't listen to music with words and type a paper at the same time - it's funny how verses in a song end up in a research paper). I count my background and exposure to so many different types of music as a plus. It makes it so much easier to relate to others. Besides the exposure to so many different types of music I also learned to listen to the words - what are the songs saying?

Come and listen. What does that say to you? It may not say much - to you. To me it says a lot. It’s the title and theme of a David Crowder song on the band’s A Collision CD. It speaks of inviting people to come and listen…come and listen to what God has done in my life…and what He can do in their life.

Ran across an interesting passage the other day in Mark. Mark 5:1-20 tells of a man who had been healed by Jesus. Jesus had, literally, cast many demons out of this man. This man, free at last from the bondage of the demons wanted, pleaded, begged to go with Jesus. Jesus looked at him, as only a man with the character and compassion of Jesus could, and said, “No, go home to your friends, and tell them what wonderful things the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been.” In verse 20 we find the man went away and began to tell everyone about the great things Jesus had done for him.

Now that’s Come and Listen. Come and listen is about telling people the difference the presence of God makes in your life. As a valley experiencer I know for a fact that God’s presence has made a HUGE difference in my life. Some of what you read here is the difference He has made and is making in my life.

Valley experiencers – what difference is He making in your life? Has He made a difference? If so, then who are you telling? Are you shouting, “Come and listen! Come and listen to what God has done in my life!”. If you are not telling anyone about the difference, then is there a difference? If there is a difference then why aren’t you sharing with anyone. You can. You should. Maybe it’s through a blog like this one. It could be through a card, note, or email. It might be through the divine encounters God puts in your path today, tomorrow, the next…

Let’s Come and Listen and see the difference He makes in the lives of those around us.

Mike

Hold On!

I had a different beginning on this post, but after meeting Ron this morning I had to change it. Ron came into my office just needing someone to talk to, someone to listen and pray with him. I had never met Ron before today. He’s not a member of our church. He doesn’t even attend here, but God put him in my path this morning. Ron’s valley has to do with his relationship with his wife. Ron needs someone to tell him to “Hold On!”.

The other day I was listening to the ol’ iPod. Specifically, Shawn McDonald’s Hold On. I got to thinking about that phrase – Hold On. The more I thought about it, the more it began to sink in. “It”, what is “it?”

“It” is the deep desire for God to hold on to me. One of the lessons I have learned about being in the valley is that sometimes I begin to lose my grip on God. Sometimes, slowly, my hand begins to slip through his. Come to think about it…sometimes I don’t want to hold on. It’s too hard, and so, I want to let go. I want to let go and RUN – run away as fast as I can. I can’t explain it in words, but for some strange reason I want to release my grip and take off and looking over my shoulder shout, “Hasta la vista, baby!!”

So…I need God to Hold On.

In the valley it is so easy to lose sight of the purpose of the valley – spiritual growth, healing, rest, helping/serving others - progress. I know, because I have lost sight of each of these while on my journey. I lose sight because I let go of God. So it is during my journey that I have come to say to the God of hope, “Hold On!” Hold on to me as though my life depends on his grip. And it does. Without God I stand a good chance, actually – every chance – of loosing my way, of getting lost, of losing sight of the purpose of the valley.

I am learning to say, “Hold On!” every day. Don’t do it every day, but I’m learning to ask God to hang on to me. Why? My life depends on His grip, because I still struggle to hang on to God.

As a valley experiencer you may feel as I do. I want to invite you say to God, “Hold On!” Maybe you need to do it with what feels like your last available breath. Maybe you need to scream it at the top of your lungs. Maybe it’s just a whisper. However you need to declare it, simply say, “Hold On!” and God’s grip will clamp down.

Here’s the good stuff – He tell us that He will always be there for us and He will never abandon us. Don’t know about you, but YEEEAAA GOD!! Everything and everyone in our lives will let us down (or has the potential to let us down), but not God. He will always be there. He will not give up on you.

So…today, in the midst of your valley maybe you need God to Hold On. Don’t be afraid to ask Him to squeeze a little tighter. Rest assured, He will.

Hangin’ On,
Mike

Trust and Believe

This morning I read John 4:46-53. The thing that really hit me was this man's faith.

How often do you and I take Jesus at His word? Great question if you think about it. The reason it’s a great question is due to the realization that I often question God’s answers and promises. I spend countless hours and wasted energy putting God to the test rather than simply believing. Why? Well. . .I always want to make sure it’s not me - my thoughts, my wants, my desires, my feelings. I want it to be God! I often find that if I step back and check one thing I will know if it’s God or me – am I trying to make happen? If so, then I know it’s of Mike, not God.

But to know something is of God means to trust and believe. I am to trust God and believe him. In John 4 we find a guy – a community leader – who is about to lose his son to the darkness of death. He literally begs Jesus to come to his son - to heal him. Jesus tells the man to go home, his son had been healed. What does the guy do after hearing Jesus’ words in the face of his son’s imminent death? He believes Jesus!! He takes Jesus at His word and starts home. When he arrives he finds his son well. The key? He believes Jesus!

How many times do you, and I, for that matter, really believe Jesus? How many times do we put His promises to the test? How many times do we ask God to re-affirm His answers to prayer?

Maybe, valley experiencers, it’s time you and I began believing God for healing, for direction, for resolution to stressed relationships, to provide our needs – physical, financial, emotional, relational, and all the other “als.”

Has God given you an answer to a prayer or provided for a need? If He has, trust Him to fulfill it. Believe God will keep his word. Stop wasting time, effort, and energy on things and situations God has already told you He will take care of.

Take it from me, a fellow experiencer, trusting and believing, while difficult at times, provides more peace than anything you can do to make it happen.

Peace Out,
Mike

It's About the Pace

This morning as I was reading L.B. Cowman's Streams In the Desert, it occurred to me that we can't push the pace. Valley experiencers cannot, must not, force the pace. For me, that can become a huge issue. I like to finish, to hurry up. I want to get it done and move on to the next thing. For this valley journey, that's difficult. In the first place, I don't want to be here and in the second place, I want to get it over with and move on! You may be able to relate to my natural tendencies. Allow me to caution us - don't rush!

I'm learning that this is not a race I'm trying to win. It's a journey. Sometimes it's a difficult one. Sometimes it's an unpleasant one. Sometimes it's a hurtful one. Yet with all its ups and downs, it's still a journey. That doesn't mean I always like it. If you're a valley experiencer you probably don't like it much, either. And, if you're like me you want it done. . .over. . .kaput. . .FINISHED!!

I often yearn to stand on the mountain top with my arms raised in victory (think Rocky I). I want to do a steroid-induced version of the kitchen dance!!

(I used to do the kitchen dance after opening and seeing my grades from college and seminary. I opened them in the kitchen and if they were at or better than what I was expecting I would begin the kitchen dance. And being the baptist that I am - dancing not being my forte - I would dance around the kitchen where no one could/would see me and praise God - Now that that's out - be nice, OK?)

Alas, the finish with all its celebration and joy is but a small part of the valley experience. It is within the walls of the valley that we experience the greatest potential for spirituall growth. This being true then we must endure the valley - the journey. We must move at God's pace. . .the Shepherd's pace. Somedays we rest, somedays we travel, but always at the pace best for us. . .for me!

Valley experiencers - don't rush it. Don't get ahead of the pace God intends for you.

Flock - don't push 'em. Pray for them. Come alongside them. Love them. Encourage them. But don't push them.

Pacing with the Padre,
Mike