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I’ll never really know hunger

I am starving! I don’t think I will actually die or anything like that but it sure feels like it. As I was waiting in the parking lot for Jennifer and Adam a young man on a bicycle tapped on my car window and asked for $.50… $.50! I was tempted to tell him to “get a job!” or “get lost!” Instead, I was reminded of Proverbs 28:27 (TMB) when it instructs me to “Be generous to the poor – you’ll never go hungry; shut your eyes to their needs, and run a gauntlet of curses.”

I handed some money through the window and counted it as seed so that my family will never go hungry. Hey, this stuff either works or it doesn’t. There is no in between. It was a significant reminder to me and a perfect object lesson for Gabriel and Noah in the back seat.

Oh yeah, I’m hungry. Let’s go eat!

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I know someone famous!

My friend Paige Strackman from New York is coming this Friday to hang out with us for the weekend. She will be ministering in our morning service this Sunday. She sang on with the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir as a featured soloist for some of their productions, cd, etc. In fact, she sang on the most recent Grammy Award Winning CD Live This Is Your House. I know Paige from when I was a teenager living in Panama City, Florida. We were out of touch for a while and then reconnected this last year. She is now married to an awesome guy with two beautiful kids.

Paige and her husband Billy own a card making business called The Card Cottage. They make beautfiul handmade cards that they wholesale to Kate’s Papery in New York. Whatever you do, don’t look at either of their websites! You will spend all of your money…

Anyway, we are excited that Paige is coming… Woohoo!

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Children are a gift from Yahweh

Psalm 127 (TMB)
1If Yahweh doesn’t build the house,
the builders only build shacks.
If Yahweh doesn’t guard the city,
the night watchman might as well nap.
2It’s useless to rise early and go to bed late,
and work your worried fingers to the bone.
Don’t you know he enjoys
giving rest to those he loves?

3Don’t you see that children are Yahweh’s best gift?
the fruit of the womb his generous legacy?
4Like a warrior’s fistful of arrows
are the children of a vigorous youth.
5Oh, how blessed are you parents,
with your quivers full of children!
Your enemies don’t stand a chance against you;
you’ll sweep them right off your doorstep.

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I want to be great

At the urging of my good friend Ron Wood, I have been reading Good to Great by Jim Collins and Lasting Investments by Kent Humphreys recently. Joshua 1:8 (TMB) reads “And don’t for a minute let this Book of The Revelation be out of mind. Ponder and meditate on it day and night, making sure you practice everything written in it. Then you’ll get where you’re going; then you’ll succeed.”

Often , it is easy to equate money with success. Although money is good and necessary, it’s pursuit can become all-consuming. I Timothy 63-10 (TMB) instructs, “3If you have leaders there who teach otherwise, who refuse the solid words of our Master Jesus and this godly instruction, 4tag them for what they are: ignorant windbags who infect the air with germs of envy, controversy, bad-mouthing, suspicious rumors. 5Eventually there’s an epidemic of backstabbing, and truth is but a distant memory. They think religion is a way to make a fast buck.
6A devout life does bring wealth, but it’s the rich simplicity of being yourself before Yahweh. 7Since we entered the world penniless and will leave it penniless, 8if we have bread on the table and shoes on our feet, that’s enough.
9But if it’s only money these leaders are after, they’ll self-destruct in no time. 10Lust for money brings trouble and nothing but trouble. Going down that path, some lose their footing in the faith completely and live to regret it bitterly ever after.”

My desire is to live a life that honors my God and to teach others how to prosper by serving. Money should not rule our lives. On the contrary, our lives should dictate how our money is used. If money is used to serve us as we serve the Kingdom of Yahweh, we will always have enough.

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Gone Fishing

The guys from our SONS of THUNDER Men’s Ministry went fishing this last year with the folks from the Hurricane Fleet down in Calabash. I would show you the picture of us all. But, I treasured the ability to go fishing with my dad the most. With all of his limitations, he can still hang in there with the best of us on a deep sea fishing trip. I love you dad.

John 21:3-22 (TMB)
3Simon Peter announced, “I’m going fishing.”
The rest of them replied, “We’re going with you.” They went out and got in the boat. They caught nothing that night.
4When the sun came up, Jesus was standing on the beach, but they didn’t recognize him.
5Jesus spoke to them: “Good morning! Did you catch anything for breakfast?” They answered, “No.”
6He said, “Throw the net off the right side of the boat and see what happens.” They did what he said. All of a sudden there were so many fish in it, they weren’t strong enough to pull it in.
7Then the disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, “It’s the Master!” When Simon Peter realized that it was the Master, he threw on some clothes, for he was stripped for work, and dove into the sea.
8The other disciples came in by boat for they weren’t far from land, a hundred yards or so, pulling along the net full of fish.
9When they got out of the boat, they saw a fire laid, with fish and bread cooking on it.
10Jesus said, “Bring some of the fish you’ve just caught.”
11Simon Peter joined them and pulled the net to shore– big fish! And even with all those fish, the net didn’t rip.

We caught a lot of fish that day. A few of the guys got some big ones. When the day was done, we were tired, smelly and full of stories.

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