Sometimes The Prince of Peace Stirs Up Trouble On Our Behalf

Just read this intro & ending to a horrific Old Testament story found in Judges 9:


"22 After Abimelech had ruled over Israel for three years,23 God sent a spirit that stirred up trouble between Abimelech and the leading citizens of Shechem, and they revolted.24 God was punishing Abimelech for murdering Gideon's seventy sons, and the citizens of Shechem for supporting him in this treachery of murdering his brothers...56 In this way, God punished Abimelech for the evil he had done against his father by murdering his seventy brothers.57 God also punished the men of Shechem for all their evil. So the curse of Jotham son of Gideon was fulfilled." [Judges 9:22-24,56-57 (NLT)]


Ouch and Dang!
This just reminded me of a powerful New Testament passage. In it, Paul reminds the Christ-followers in Rome of a passage that comes from Deuteronomy. The Christians in Rome were being highly persecuted and often had to make the life-or-death choice between following the emperor & Jesus. These next few words take on a completely new level when you are on the brunt end of such evil:


"Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, 'I will take revenge; I will pay them back,' says the LORD." [Romans 12:19 (NLT)]


So I can see why they had to be reminded to trust that God can & will take vengeance.
Because sometimes The Prince of Peace has got to stir up some trouble on our behalf.
And I would much rather have God fighting for me than me fighting for me.

The Absurdity of Christmas

Merry Christmas.
I hope you get to take some time to read the following and reflect on the wildly absurd action of Jesus actually leaving His place of glory and humbly coming to earth for our sake.

I love my family. I love my parents. I love my grandparents. I love my friends.
But most of all I love my Savior.

This passage will forever remind me of the true meaning of Christmas:

"You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
Though he was God,he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross.Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names,that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
(Philippians 2:5-11, NLT)

Let's be the Christ and act with the same absurd service to one another.

A Jewish Priest Touches An Outcast...That's Not Normal!

Jesus was Jewish. Not only Jewish, but a Jewish priest. And the norm for a Jewish priest was NOT to touch people with leprosy. Heck, they weren't even AROUND people with leprosy! Lepers were quarantined to live in their own sick towns as to not infect anybody else with their mutilating disease. So when a guy with leprosy comes running up to Jesus (a Jewish priest) you can bet people's heads turned & they were most likely expecting Jesus's head to turn too.
All eyes on Jesus.
What does he do?
How would He choose to handle & react to such an outcast, such an unclean person?


"Jesus reached out and touched him. "I am willing," he said."Be healed!" And instantly the leprosy disappeared." Luke 5:12 (NLT)

Jesus does the unthinkable. He touches the man THEN heals him with his words. Catch that. Jesus didn't heal the leper with His touch, yet He chose to touch the man while the leprosy was still there and THEN heal using His word.


I'm so glad Jesus chose to touch me, while I was still riddled with the infected sin throughout my body, and then heal me. He didn't expect me to come to Him already clean because He is the One who does the cleaning.

Analogy of the Day

Character is revealed by your fruit just as Faith is revealed by your storms.

(got some help from my Life Application New Testament Commentary on this one)

Analogy of the Day

Mac OS X is to a Lexus GS as Vista is to a Geo Prizm

Analogy of the Day

Texting while driving is to driving while drunk as putting on makeup while driving is to driving while on crack.

Current Caden Phrases

There's more to come, but here's a start:

• "Nooooo, dad!" (while angrily slamming hands on his legs)
  
• "Did you miss me?"
  
• "It's poop." (to anything that looks odd to him, including lobster tails and wet leaves)
  
• "...mama's bed." (often in a weird whisper-type voice)
• "I didn't do any-fing!" (he's not so good at his "th-" words yet)
• "I'mma make some-fin'." (he loves the kitchen)
• "Wrassle, dad?" (yep, just like a redneck would say.)
• "Poop it..." (still not sure about that one.)
• "Bigger, dad. Bigger." (if the music is too soft in the car)
• "I fik it." (with tools in hand)
• "Pees-ba spoon. Pees-ba spoon." (when he wants his peanut butter fix.)
• "Luvers." (When I leave for work.)
  

Most Clicked Tweets

Just in case you missed the opportunity but wanted to check out the links when you had some more time, here are my latest Top 5 Most Clicked Tweets:

1. I am loving our new church management system. It's web-based, secure, simple, cost-effective & empowering. Check them out! http://ow.ly/I41U (32 clicks)
2. If you're looking to ruin your marriage now or in the future don't read this from @perrynoble - http://ow.ly/J1Xj (22 clicks)
3. Want to know what the Jewish Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) is all about? Expiation - http://ow.ly/Ji07 (16 clicks)
4. his is for @zacjs8, I found my new favorite-better-than-El-Sabrosito-authentic-mexican-food-right-on-my-block taco stand! http://ow.ly/Jkbv (12 clicks)
5. Asking the wrong questions can lead you in the wrong direction, so, ask the right questions - http://ow.ly/J21h (11 clicks)

Twitter is more than just a place to reveal that "you're going to the bathroom and the cat is starring at me" throughout the day. It's about sharing great content too.

A Strong Rebuttal For Charges Against Your Lack of Age

"Don't let anyone think less of you because you are young. Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity."

-Timothy 4:12 (NLT)

Instead of getting a bad attitude when this happens (the getting-thought-less-of), get stronger in your example. Let your words, actions, motives, faith, and pure living be the rebuttal to the charges made against you and your lack of age.

It's Been Some Time (My Poem)

A little bit because of vacation.
Away.
A little bit because of my schedule.
Hectic.
A little bit because I haven't been disciplined.
Lazy.
Mostly because of my own fault;
A Blogging-loser.

Yet I press on. Yet I press on.

PS. It's good to be back on track!

Being The Man of The House (Competing Desires)

"...And he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared."
[Luke 1:17 (ESV)]


I love that phrase and passage. It comes from an Old Testament passage from Malachi. It is describing the coming of John (The Baptizer) and his job description. Isn't it interesting that a father's heart aimed at his children is a major indicator that a man is living like He's ready for the coming of Jesus?


Here's a simple litmus test for us dads who want to live like we're living for Jesus:
"How much focused time & energy do I spend towards my kids in comparison to my other desires?"
It's not about bible studies, breakfasts, sermons, events, church volunteer work, sports, TV, Facebook, phonecalls, coaching, working, schooling, hobbies, etc. Grow up and realize that THAT STUFF SHOULD COME AFTER THE FAMILY!

"What am I leading better than my kid's?"
Love & lead your kids like nothing else because this will leave the greatest, longest, and largest impact and my guess is that it will bring the most rewarding life too. Trust God's Word enough to live it out.

Good Morning Class, Time For A Pop Quiz

If the aforementioned title scares you, continue reading for some help:

"22 I did this to test Israel—to see whether or not they would follow the ways of the Lord as their ancestors did."23 That is why the Lord left those nations in place. He did not quickly drive them out or allow Joshua to conquer them all...4 These people were left to test the Israelites—to see whether they would obey the commands the Lord had given to their ancestors through Moses." [Judges 2:22-23, 3:4 (NLT)]

I was reminded (again) of the importance of the little pop quizzes (aka. pivotal moments) that God allows/orchestrates in our lives. He's been doing it since the beginning, you know! The whole run-in with the fruit and Adam & Eve wasn't some sort of accident it was their pop-quiz; a pivotal moment that could only end in 1 of 2 ways:  pass or fail. They obviously failed. (And the funny thing is that it wasn't one of those "trick" quizzes that aren't even on the material covered in class, it was right out of the Teacher's mouth.) And, as I'm reading the book of Judges

The only people who don't like these "pop quizzes" are the people that don't understand that a pop quiz is the best way to see if we've got this whole free-will-love-and-trust-in-God-thing down. There is always a purpose behind it; if God has everything in control, then he is orchestrating the pivotal moment(s) that faces you right now.

It's time for a pop-quiz. Are you going to pass or fail?

Put Your iTunes Library Online

Thanks to Lala.com now you can put your entire music library online. You can also download your Lala library to your iTunes library. Now your music libraries will be sync'd...for FREE!

check out Lala for the details.
IMPORTANT UPDATE:  it's not a true backup, so don't get rid of your regular backups.

Repition Reinforces Learning, But It Also Ruins Things For Me

Caden, being a typical 2-year old, wants to watch the same show & listen to the same song over, and over, and over, and over, and over again. It helps him learn. Apparently.

The Little Einsteins DVDs and Hillsong United's "Freedom Is Here" have now been ruined for me.

What The Angels & Kyokushin Karate Masters Taught Me This Week

It's funny what can turn into a teachable moment for me. One minute I'm just sitting down watching a show and all of the sudden a huge life lesson is emerging. It's kind of scary actually. I think it upsets people too. I'll lay out the life-lesson I was just reminded of and the look on their face tells me they're saying, "Can't you just have fun & stop thinking for a even a moment?!" [ I think my wife does this sometimes =) ]

Well, here's two major life-lessons that I was reminded of while watching TV this weekend (I hope they encourage you as much as they encouraged me):

1. Even when things look hopeless, never, ever, ever quit playing the game. - When the Angels were down to their last 3 outs of the game, down by 2 runs, at Fenway Park, my faith in an Angels' win was gone. But the Angels didn't loose hope, didn't give in, and they made one of the most spectacular come-backs I've seen in years!
   
2. Real strength is only built through experiencing real pain. - I found myself obsessively watching "Fight Quest" when they were highlighting the fighting style of Kyokushin Karate in Japan. I nearly stopped breathing when the Karate Masters were training their students in the woods and having them punch trees! A Master can apparently use a tree as a punching bag and throw punches at full force. Incredible! That is just one highlight of showing their real strength, but to truly grasp how strong they can be they have had to endure extreme pain. This principle drives all their training; they have a purpose behind the pain. I cannot begin to know how strong a person I really am if I never experience some pain. Pain is what builds and proves real strength.

A Simple Picture (Quick Thought On Life)

Two things you've got to know about me:  I love simple and I do better with pictures.
With that said, maybe you do too. This is why I had to share this thought.

Life is a journey of choices. Today's journey always impacts tomorrow's.

Toddler Hard At Work

Mom (aka. my wife, Ashley) was away for an entire weekend in September at a women's retreat, so that meant The Boys (aka. Caden and me) got some "man-to-man" time. What better way to have some "man-fun" than to wash our cars.
I washed mine and showed him how to wash his. I've never had so much fun washing my car before.

Pure Luck Or Divine Intervention? You Tell Me

Here's a couple passages from the introduction of a book by C.S. Lewis titled Reflections On The Psalms that I thought is worth sharing. Read it then tell me your answer:

"The Psalms are poems, and poems intended to be sung:  not doctrinal treatises, nor even sermons...Their chief formal characteristic, the most obvious element of pattern, is fortunately one that survives in translation. Most readers will know that I mean what the scholars call "parallelism"; that is, the practice of saying the same thing twice in different words...

It is (according to one's point of view) either a wonderful piece of luck or a wise provision of God's, that poetry which was to be turned into all languages should have as its chief formal characteristic one that does not disappear (as mere metre does) in translation...

By giving to truths which are infinitely worth remembering this rhythmic and incantatory expression, He made them almost impossible to forget."

 
Pure luck or divine intervention?
My verdict:  God knew what He was doing!

Hillsong Creative DVD - Musician Training

Came across this online today & had to share it.
I would highly recommend every band & worship team buy it. It will challenge, inspire, & aid your growth. I'm getting one for my team over at Calvary, guaranteed.
Here's a sample (& one of my favorite Hillsong tracks tracks by the way):

Hitting The Pause

Had to share this passage.
Take it. Use it. Put it on your desktop. Let it remind you to pause and refocus.

3 Ways To Slowly Kill Any Team

Teams are a funny thing.
Teams come in all different sizes and shapes. There's the husband & wife team, the pastor & his staff team, the sports team, the executive team, the band, and tons of other teams. The funny thing about teams is that they're the greatest thing ever invented and the worst thing all at the same time. King Solomon, the richest & wisest king in Israel's history, says a team can be the greatest invention we ever experience: "Two people can accomplish more than twice as much as one; they get a better return for their labor." (Ecclesiastes 4:9) Do you agree?
If you do, you have a somewhat healthy team. If you currently don't, your team is dying or already dead. As good as Ecclesiastes 4:9 sounds and as true as it is, I find it utterly disturbing that people in any team also experience some of the most difficult days of their lives. After much reading, studying, and personal experience, I've found the 3 diseases that slowly kill any team:

1. Create a lack of focus - as soon as you enter in more than one goal/vision for the team in any given day, things start getting muddy and the unity starts fading. It's as easy as loosing sight of your particular role. And another thing, as soon as you start to confuse the style with the vision, you're going to get frustrated when someone else's style is different than yours.
   
2. Take away the element of trust - if you start to think you can't trust this person or that person, you start to think the teamwork element can't do as good a job as you can on your own. That is deadly because you undervalue the other people/person on your team.
3. Don't have any fun together - this is a sure-fire way to ensure that your team becomes seen as a responsibility rather than an opportunity. You start dreaming of how much fun you could be having with other people or if you were on another team, because let's face it, relationships are meant to be fun so if yours is not you're going to look elsewhere.

Take an inventory of all the teams you're a part of or lead. Are you letting these 3 diseases slowly grow stronger & deeper or are you able to identify them when they hit and kill them on the spot? You're never NOT going to be part of a team (unless you live in a cave) so you'd better get yours right or else your work life, family life, friend life, church life, love life, and personal life are going to be miserable when they don't have to be.

Remember Today Forever!

I will always remember today, September 15, 2009.

Taken from www.hell0-righton.com (Zac Smith's blog):
"I found out today that I now have no metabolically active metastatic disease. The lesions in my liver and spleen have resolved. The lesions are still there, but there is no active cancer in them. The doctor told me that he has never seen anyone respond to the treatment like this. I will go to a specialist soon to have the lesions looked at. But I am cancer free at the moment and do not have to do any more chemo.

I thank God for the healing that occurred — medicinal and miraculous. I am so excited He allowed me to go through this. And thanks to the thousands who prayed for me. To God be the glory."

I can't hardly believe this news! Can you?!

Activating The Getting

I was just reminded of a difficult truth while I was reading more of Joshua.
It's a principle I actually don't like because it's not easy for me to accept.
And I'm guessing that you, just like me, need a reminder of this particular truth because somehow we tend to easily forget (very conveniently) the difficult truths.
Here's what I read:

"So the LORD gave to Israel all the land he had sworn to give their ancestors, and they conquered it and settled there." (Joshua 21:43, NLT)

Gave. That little word packs so much punch. It (the word gave) seems almost like an inappropriate word here because it's not like the Israelites just sat around and God just rained down a wrapped gift. Israel had to work their butts off in order to receive this gift. Just because God wants to offer something as a gift does not mean we don't have to do anything in order to receive that gift. We will often have to take the step of obedience in seemingly ridiculously overwhelming situations, much like the Israelites did (i.e. conquering Jericho was no normal situation) in order to activate God's gift. Afterall, God loves to stack up the odds against us so that He can receive more credit for the gift in the first place.

Stop sitting, wishing, waiting to receive God's blessings in your life. Go, get off your butt, trust God, and watch the miracle theater begin! He has specific blessings in store that He'd love to give to those of us who have enough trust, obedience, and character to receive it.

Strength of An 85 Year Old

Of course, not your typical 85 year old.
This passage has put a brand new spin on how I view 85 year old's:

[Caleb speaking] "I was forty years old when Moses, the servant of the Lord, sent me from Kadesh-barnea to explore the land of Canaan...Now, as you can see, the Lord has kept me alive and well as he promised for all these forty-five years since Moses made this promise. Today I am eighty-five years old. I am as strong now as I was when Moses sent me on that journey, and I can still travel and fight as well as I could then."
Joshua 14:7,10-11

Hope I can say the same thing when I'm in my prime of 85 years.
Only got 59 years to go until I can have the strength of an 85 year old.

PS. I don't want to hear anymore complaining from you "old" people anymore.

Caden's Birthday Gift To Me (or The Accurate Speed of Time)

Today is Caden's 2nd birthday.
I can't believe how fast time flies.

It seems the older I get, the faster time goes, but time has been moving at the same speed since the beginning of time. So why do I, and you, claim that time is getting faster?
I believe it seems to be going faster the older I get because I see all the change around me.
This is one of the blessings of having kids, or being around kids if you don't have your own; they are constantly changing.
And 99% of the change is simple growth. Physical, Mental, and Emotional.
Caden is growing daily and therefore he is changing daily.
Therefore I can see the clear wake of time as it constantly moves along.

I love Caden and I love watching him grow.
And I love the fact that I now see time moving at it's accurate speed: very fast all of the time.

Watch Out For The Big Buts

(Warning: the word "but" and the word "butt" will be used.)

We've all heard about a city called Jericho. Many of us have even heard about the walls of Jericho falling down after the Israelite army marched around them for 7 days (that's a total of 42 laps!). If you don't know the details read the Biblical account here, then continue reading 'cause you'll miss the impact of the big but. Here's the beginning of the next day after the victory of Jericho:

"But Israel violated the instructions about the things set apart for the Lord. A man named Achan had stolen some of these dedicated things, so the Lord was very angry with the Israelites..."
(Joshua 7:1)

OUCH! Did you see that but? Now that has got to be one of biggest, stinkiest, dirtiest buts I have ever seen! Just when you thought the party was getting started, here comes a big but to ruin all the fun. Let me explain. You see, God gave Israel very detailed instructions of what to do once they attacked Jericho. He told them who to save, what to keep, what to destroy, and what to dedicate to him as a sacrifice. And 99.9% of all of Israel obeyed the details. However, one butt (yes, with two t's) named Achan ruined all the fun and now the great story of Israel's victory over Jericho is maimed forever with a big but because of a big butt named Achan.

There is so much to learn from this story of victory in Joshua 6 and defeat in Joshua 7 regardless of who you are AND regardless of if you believe the story to be true or not. (I personally believe it and so should you, by the way) Here's what this big but reveals to me: your decision to disobey God's instruction directly affects others in your life.

99.9% of Israel listened to God's instructions when they attacked and destroyed Jericho, but the .1% didn't. And the consequence? People died, Israel's army was crushed by a little army they should have annihilated in their sleep, they became fearful and all their courage melted away.

Think your decisions don't affect others?
Think again, before you make a big butt of yourself and maim your entire church, family, business, band, or team with a big, stinky, dirty but in the middle of people who are actually doing the right thing.

Let this be an encouragement to you to not be the but.

A Rant: Fascination & Questions & Scripture

(Listened to an interview with Rob Bell & it just ignited a flame inside of me. The guy overflows with fascination for all things Scripture. He asks questions. It inspired me.)

When you're in a class in school, don't you ask questions in order to learn more?
When you're in the presence of a professor or professional, don't you want to ask questions so you can try to get some insights that may help you on your journey?
When you're around kids, don't they just seem to explode with fascination & questions?
Isn't a kid who asks questions better than a kid who thinks she knows EVERYTHING?
If you sat down with Barrack Obama, don't you think you'd want to ask a few questions?

SO...

When's the last time you questioned The Scriptures while you had your "quiet time"?
Aren't we actually supposed to ask questions EVERY TIME we read it? If we don't, aren't we just reading for entertainment or out of legalism or habit. At the very least, shouldn't I ask at least one question? For CRYING OUT LOUD, isn't a "quiet time" a time when I, lowly student, sit at the feet of The Professor of The Universe?!!

I believe that when we stop asking questions we've lost our fascination with Scripture. I think MOST OF THE TIME when we read Scripture we miss out on SO MUCH because we're way to quick to skip over our questions. After all, WHO HAS TIME TO ACTUALLY ASK A QUESTION & SEARCH FOR AN ANSWER?!?!

For me, no questions = no humility & no desire to learn something new.
I was inspired to ask questions, I hope you're inspired to do the same.

There...rant is over.

The Words Every Leader Wants To Hear - 1

Setting:
Moses is dead and gone now, and Joshua has now been put in the place of leadership for the nation of Israel. The nation of Israel is on the east side of the Jordan and in 3 days they are going to have to cross the river and conquer the land.

...So Joshua is getting everyone ready; giving the instructions for the big move. Pretty scary stuff because they are literally on the brink of war! It's all or nothing now. Go big or go home stuff!

And here is the response from Joshua's "church":

16 They answered Joshua, "We will do whatever you command us, and we will go wherever you send us.17 We will obey you just as we obeyed Moses. And may the Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses.18 Anyone who rebels against your orders and does not obey your words and everything you command will be put to death. So be strong and courageous!"
(Joshua 1:16-18, NLT)

What an encouraging response to hear from your army if you're leading, huh?!
So, here's the question for all of us who are "church people":
Are you responding to your leaders the same way?
If you're not, you are not saying the words every leader wants to hear.

Stand Up, Be Strong!

I hope these words from The Word bring you as much encouragement as they bring to me. There is something powerful behind this command. Regardless of who you are, where you've been, or what you've done, this is God's desire for each of us:

"7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do.8 Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
-Joshua 1:7-9, NLT

Now go, be strong, and strengthen someone else.

Quick Highlight Reel

He...could...go...all...the...way!!!
It's going...going...gone! That ball is outta here!!!

In case you didn't get it, those are highlight-reel quotes.
Here are some Highlight Reel worthy verses I just read:

• "The Lord our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions." (Deut.29:29)
  
• "The Lord your God will delight in you if you obey his voice and keep the commands and decrees written in this Book of Instruction, and if you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and soul." (Deut.30:10)
• "This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand, and it is not beyond your reach." (Deut.30:11) (by the way, so cool that God makes things easy for us and not over our heads!)
• "Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!" (Deut.30:19)
  
• "So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you." (Deut.31:6)

If those aren't highlights, I don't know what a highlight is!

The Purpose of Punishment

I'm still reading in the book of Deuteronomy. Here is my latest "God-thought" as I was reading chapter 29 this morning:

Through this seemingly "mean" passage on what will happen to Israel if they break the covenant with God, I was reminded of God's good intentions behind the "curses" (or punishment). You see, there are some people that believe God will just punish people because he can when we mess up; almost as if there is no real good reason for the punishment other than because that's the way God plays. But this is so far from the truth!

If you look at the covenant God has set up (in short, "If you do this, I'll do this; but if you do that, I'll do that"), it is a covenant firmly founded on God's desire to bring blessings into his children's lives. God wants to bless those who listen to His way because His way is the good way; why would we not want to pick the path that ends in goodness?! But it doesn't stop here. God wants his children to experience His goodness so deeply that He will bring punishment to them to warn them that they are on the wrong path. The purpose of punishment is to stop bad behavior before it leads you into complete destruction.

I was simply reminded that, for those who choose to enter into God's family, God is a good Father who is not afraid to punish His children because of his great love. The purpose of His punishment is to save us from destroying ourselves. What a good Father!

More Questions Than Answers

That is my conclusion.
Five minutes ago I just read Deuteronomy 17 thru 25.
If you want to read about specific Jewish laws, then read what I just mentioned.
If that doesn't sound life-altering, then don't. (hint: it wasn't life-altering for me)
But here's my take away:

Although these passages raise about 10 times as many questions about the details of God's ways than giving me solid answers , I cannot deny, and nobody else who reads the Scriptures can deny, the answers that prevail:

The God of the Scriptures demands justice for everyone, mercy to everyone, holiness of His people, forgiveness for each other, and kindness towards everyone.

P.S. Just because I have more questions than answers doesn't mean that the answers I have been given are to be crowded out and counted as loss.

Late Night Thought: Master The Art of Great Decision Making

I've been somewhat amazed (really amazed lately) at how many good things aren't really good things at all when they keep you from actually doing the great things. Let me explain.

I love to play & practice the guitar and drums. These are really good things that I'm able to do. Spending time practicing is a good thing because it helps me get better. And when I'm better I can serve others better by offering up much better sounding music all the while spending less "mind energy" on what I'm currently playing & more "mind energy" on who I'm playing for. Get it? But what if this good thing keeps me from spending more time in my relationships? Surely spending time in my relationships (like with my wife or son or unsaved neighbor) is of a higher priority than practicing guitar, isn't it?

Now think of all the seemingly good things we all do daily.

It seems that good things aren't really good things at all when they keep us from the great things. Now, I'm not saying I give up on practicing guitar & drums, but what I am saying is that I've got to learn to pick the greater thing when faced with two seemingly good things. I'm not saying "balance" and "proper scheduling" are the answers either (although they can help) because if you look at the life of Jesus those two words (balance & scheduling) don't exactly come to mind.

So, try to balance all the good things you want and try to schedule your life away, but in the end all the good things you're trying to balance and schedule that keep you from the great things aren't doing you any good in the first place.

We've all got to master the art of great decision making. Who was the expert great decision maker? Obviously, it was Jesus. Study his life and you'll quickly see that most everything he did was based on the decision to do the greater thing rather than the good thing. Just think about how many "good things" He could have done while on earth. And yet He stuck to a few great things.

There are things in life that are more important than others and we've got to learn what those things are and stick to them like Jesus did.

Yet another reason to study the life of Jesus and study Scripture, especially if you label yourself a follower of Christ.

From Whiner To Winner: The First Step

If you're like me, you tend to complain. Maybe not out loud, but just because you keep it to yourself doesn't turn it into less of a problem. Whining is a major problem for us because it reveals a lack of trust in Jesus & His work in our lives and a lack of thankfulness for what we have already been blessed with because of Jesus. We think we have so much to whine about when, in reality, we have nothing to whine about. Whiners are losers in my book, but, if you're like me, the "whine flu" tends to creep in all to often. I know that I sound a little harsh, but that stems from you misunderstanding what a "Whiner" is. It is NOT being a person like Job who cries out to God in the midst of life's deepest pains and simply wonders what God is doing (that's called being human!). A Whiner is someone who seems to always talk negatively of their life and/or other's lives REGARDLESS of how good their life might seem to an outsider. We all know a Whiner when we see one. They suck the life out of even the coolest of parties.

We can also spot the Winners around us. They add to life; they seem to enjoy life because they enjoy the little things of life; they use "I'm just so thankful for..." A LOT; they live in the present and not in the past or future; they seem to have friends and their circle of friends grows. Need I go on? We all know a Winner.

If you want to move from Whiner to Winner, I believe one of the first steps in the process in memorizing this passage and meditating on it hourly:

"Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people." (Philippians 2:14-15, NLT)

It really needs no explanation or further instruction. You'd be surprised what saying this throughout the day can do to a person's mind and attitude. People like Winners; most people don't like Whiners. Be a Winner.

Don't Forget The Sauce & Cheese

Sometimes life's fast. And sometimes we get caught up in it's wirlwind and we become fast. A little too fast. You might need to slow down just a little. Or you're going to miss the most essential parts of life.

What are the most essential parts of a pizza from your local delivery place? Well, after the dough, it's got to be the sauce and cheese. What's a pizza without some sauce?! (pause for reflection) But as you can see from above some pizzas accidentally get cooked, boxed, tagged, and delivered without 2 of the most essential parts. That's right, this is a pizza that some of my friends and I were delivered (they paid though)!

My guess is the thing that actually caused the under trained cook to forget the sauce & cheese was most likely that they were going too fast to even realize the pie in front of them was missing something.

Parents, friends, pastors, politicians, students, teachers......SLOW DOWN.
Or you might forget the sauce & cheese of life.

So, what are the most essential parts to your life?
Does your schedule match up with your essentials?

A Great & Challenging Question

A well know leader, author, and down-right good guy, by the name of Tony Morgan has one of the best blogs on the planet. He's a guy I'd love to have lunch or dinner with on a frequent basis (unfortunately, he has actually turned a real lunch offer down that I proposed, but that's a whole notha' story.)

If you are a person in any church in America, I highly recommend you read this post by Tony.
It is so challenging and such a great question to ask that I will be conversing with many people about it.

(By the way, the link is the word "this post" in the above semi-paragraph if you're not familiar with the way we savi-bloggers do things.)

The Presence of God

You often hear people say "We just want your presence God". Have you heard that? I have. But after reading a bit of Old Testament you soon quickly learn that having the presence of God isn't always a good thing.

Numerous times it says "...and the presence of the LORD came down.." and then something happens. And so far, in my reading, the stuff that follows isn't usually butterflies & lemonade. Fires, plagues, earth opening up and swallowing people, leprosy, those are just some of the after-effects from the presence of God.

So, the next time you hear the person next to you in church pray, "I just want your presence God," you might want to back away...

I'm just telling it like I read it.

=)

PS. I realize this post is nonsense.

Complaining Reveals Something Much Deeper

Complaining about circumstances really has no place in the life of a Christian. But if you're like me, complaining is sometimes a daily habit. We've got no right to complain because complaining reveals something much deeper.

I'm reading in Numbers still and am at the point where the Israelites are complaining about their food & travel arrangements. Just a couple of years ago they were working their fingers to the bone as slaves in Egypt; they were nothing. Egypt owned them and could do anything it wanted with them. They hated being slaves!

But now, a couple of years later, the Israelites are complaining about the current food and travel as free men! How utterly evil and thankless they were! No wonder God killed some of them with fire! I find that the complaining isn't the cause of God's anger (Moses was complaining to God about the people complaining, yet God was not angered at Moses). The complaints are a symptom of a deeper problem and this deep problem can find it's way into everybody's life if we're not careful:

Complaining about current discomforts reveals the fact that you have forgotten what God has already done for you. And when you forget God's faithfulness & goodness, you cannot possibly live a life of thankfulness, obedience and trust.

The next time complaints start to creep in, remember that complaining reveals something much deeper.

Is It Time For You To Move? Probably.

How many of us like to move? (Let me chime in: I don't!)

I'm currently reading through the book of Numbers (the one in the Bible...you know, the one we never use in church) and I've got to say that this time around I'm seeing some good stuff.

In about the middle of chapter 9 the famous "cloud by day, pillar of fire by night" story is touched on. I've got to admit, I wish it was as clear as it was back then, but it's not. But honestly, just because it was clear didn't make it any easier. When God moved, the people had to move. Maybe they stayed in their spot for a week; maybe a month; sometimes a couple of days.

What I'm getting at is this: moving, adjusting, making some changes, etc is a core characteristic of following Jesus. If you don't like "moving" then you've picked the wrong person to follow for the rest of your life. Whether it's the big moves in life or the minor steps, we've got to keep moving.

So, when's the last time you moved? We've got to keep moving.

His Point Is Good, But His Theology Is Bad

President Obama recently used a portion of The Sermon On The Mount by Jesus in one of his speeches.

Check out a portion of the transcript here.

Good point, no theology, but good point that excites me.

That's My King!

Easter Sunday was off the chain yesterday.
God literally did an amazing work within the walls of our worship center.
And it all got kicked off by a "That's My King" video of Dr. S.M. Lockridge.

SM Lockridge (by the way: "S" is for Shadrach & "M" is for Meschach...that's cool) is one of my preacher heroes. I don't know much about him but I do know that he pastored faithfully in Texas & down in San Diego, CA for a while at a Calvary Baptist.

If anybody could sum up Jesus (which nobody can) it would be SM Lockridge's "My King" sermon.

PS. go here to view it.

I Read The You Version Translation

If you are interested in reading the Bible and you have a computer (or an iPhone), I highly suggest you ditch your leather-bound for this online Bible @ YouVersion.com. I love it. Multiple translations available, a built-in private journal where you can journal private prayers, and a public content portion where you can add your thoughts about specific passages and also see what others have to say about those passages.

One of my favorite features (there are about 5 favorites actually) is how you can "follow" other users (maybe your favorite pastor or friend) and see what they are reading and what they say about passages.

It has revolutionized (I know, that's a strong word) the way I interact with Scripture on a daily basis. It has enabled me to journal more and actively participate with Scripture.

It's free. It's simple. It adds value to my life. It's the perfect product! Check it out and follow me too. (youversion.com & I'm "bgoodban")

PS. I don't have an iPhone...hint, hint =)

Jesus Is In Leviticus

I've got to be honest, most of Leviticus is not fun to read. But if you keep with it, you'll come to this passage near the last couple of pages:

"24 With every sale of land there must be a stipulation that the land can be redeemed at any time. 25 If any of your Israelite relatives go bankrupt and are forced to sell some inherited land, then a close relative, a kinsman redeemer, may buy it back for them. 26 If there is no one to redeem the land but the person who sold it manages to get enough money to buy it back, 27 then that person has the right to redeem it from the one who bought it." (Lev. 25:24-27, NLT)

That's a pretty cool law for dealing with property, but if you read it in light of the New Testament you get a glimpse of so much more than land.

With our sin, we sold ourselves over to Satan; we left God and turned everything over to The Deceiver. And there was no way we could ever buy back our way to God; the price was too high. But then a close relative, our "kinsman redeemer", showed up while we were bankrupt & without anywhere to go and he bought us back with his own body and blood!

Even in Leviticus you can experience the grace and mercy of God. I guess Leviticus isn't so bad.

The Natural

Almost every weekend, after the band has packed up and the auditorium is empty, I let Caden play the drum kit. It's one of his favorite things because every time he sets foot on our church's patio he starts moving his arms and making beat-box noises.

Here he is back in January/February (by the way, his technique is right on and I think his inner clock is like a metronome already). Careful, it might be loud:


Drum Career Begins at 1.5 Years Old from Brian Goodban on Vimeo.

I've Never Seen This Before...

I guess you know you're in the "south" (the real south) when you see this:

















Vacation in South Carolina was fun. Visiting the "Jockey Lot" was fun, but this was just plain creepy. Dear South Carolina, you should probably do something about that!

I've never seen that before in my life, and I probably won't ever again.

Unleashed in South Carolina

Last week I was on vacation and I strategically picked this vacation time to be when the NewSpring Unleash conference happened so I could go. I went. It was very amazing. I was unleashed to say the least! I took extensive notes during the first main session and would love to share them, but I know shorter is better, so...
Here are 3 quotes from my notes that rocked my world:

1. If you're uncomfortable with change, you're always gonna have a hard time hearing & following the Word of God in your life.
2. how many of you [grandparents] would be willing to die for your grandchildren's salvation? [hands went up all over the room!] Now, how many of you would be willing to give up your musical style for your grandchildren's salvation?
3. Stop seeking permission and start placing yourself in submission to what God is doing

Honestly, I love Pastor Perry Noble's passion, his lack of politically-correctness, and his love for Jesus.

Visit Newspring.cc/unleash to watch the whole thing (including 2007's & 2008's)

Why You'll Regret Not Blogging

As much as we all hate those old childhood home videos because they showcase that funky '80s hair style or that goofy life stage you were in, the older you get the more your hate turns into a love. It's actually pretty cool watching stuff that actually happened. It's like re-living the moment again! See, I think looking at your past is healthy. When we look at our past we see just how good God is and we can learn what mistakes to never do again. (so long knee-high-socks-with-the-colored-stripe-at-the-top!)

Blogging, or journaling, helps me remember, reflect, and rejoice. I think those are worthy things to put some effort towards. Yes, it takes discipline, but it also takes a change of mind first. So...

Here's my list (in no particular order) of reasons why you'll regret not blogging:

1. You'll have missed out on the opportunity to journal with a built-in archiving system.
2. You'll have missed out on the opportunity to capture a specific experience because now you can't remember the details a week later.
3. Your good friend across the country couldn't get a glimpse into your life even though they would have loved to on a consistent basis.
4. You ended up with 6 blank fancy journals that ended up on a bookshelf.
5. You can add real video (can't do that on paper!)
6. You'll end up forgetting that great thought you just had to share with everyone
7. It could have helped you work through a particular thought
8. It would have helped your writing/communicating skills
9. Your thought/prayer/idea could have connected with and encouraged someone
10. The entire rest of your life is digital now (music, movies, mail, etc.) and you just now figured out that's why a journal never stuck.

I'm sure I could go on, but I won't. I hope I've changed your mind.
And now 10 months later when I start to doubt the benefits of this whole thing, I can come back to this post and remember!

Make Diciples Like Rick Warren Does

If you don't know who Rick Warren is please come back to planet Earth.
If you're sick of hearing about Rick Warren please leave planet Earth.
I've learned to take very seriously anything Rick says; he oozes out wisdom in the simplest of terms. He is on my "have dinner with before dying" list. Check this out.
Your church, your ministry, your family, can boost it's disciple-making impact Rick Warren style. Everything he, and his church, does tries to answer these next questions:

*1. Are people learning the content and meaning of the Bible?
*2. Are people seeing themselves, life, and other people more clearly from God's perspective?
*3. Are people's values becoming more aligned with God's values?
*4. Are people becoming more skilled in serving God?
*5. Are people becoming more like Christ?

That's it. Now you, and your team/family, can make disciples like Rick, and Jesus.
It's that simple. Not that easy, but that simple.

*from "Help People Develop Spiritual Growth Habits" by Pastor Rick Warren)

Becoming Obsessed

Regardless of your ability to define it, we are all obsessed with something or someone. It's my belief that a large majority of people are unable to articulate what they are obsessed with; and the other majority are afraid to discover what their life obsession is. An obsession drives everything; it's what pushes you, keeps you going, and it might even be the kind of obsession that runs your life.

As a Christian, the only obsession I'm to have is an obsession for following Jesus. Period. I need to become obsessed with following Jesus so closely that I become covered with the dust from his sandals if he were to be walking in front of me. I need to learn to love the things he loves, say the things he said, be in the places he would go, look at the things he would look at, invest in the things he invested in, and do the things he tells me to do.

Honestly, sometimes I'm obsessed with Jesus and sometimes I'm not.
Here's a short test that I use to see what is currently my obsession:

1. What do I think about as I lay in bed about to go to sleep?
2. What do I think about when I wake up?
3. Where are large of amounts of money going?
4. Where are large amounts of my time going?
5. Who am I currently trying to make happy?

Those five simple questions make me refocus and help me to identify my obsession.

It's In The Genes

I'm just not sure if they're mine or Ashley's.
Check out Caden the other night when he put on a watch; I guess the "bling" brought out his inner gansta:

Magic Dance Watch from Brian Goodban on Vimeo.

I Worried, Therefore I Doubted

It's hard living off of one income. In Southern California. With a child. I complain all the time actually; way more than I should because I'm actually so blessed. But honestly, it's hard to keep perspective when everyone I surround myself with has more material blessings than me. So...I worry. And when I worry I'm revealing the seed of doubt that has taken root. Maybe the only way to get rid of it is a little at a time, but I wish it was quicker.

I've been worrying lately about money, but when I do God gives me His Word:

"No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are?" (Matt. 6:24-26, NLT)
God will provide. Stop comparing yourself with others; you're looking in the wrong direction! Start living for the right Master and you don't actually need to worry about anything! And here's two blessings that God used within the past two days to actually show me I don't need to worry:

• My uncle gave me a random small "cash" gift
• Our tax return is more than enough to pay off a debt that I've been thinking about for months!

The Master is good...who else is like Him?! Nobody!

Check This Book out!

I've made up my mind: if you only read 3 books this year (by the way, 3 is NOT a lot), 1 should be The Relationship Principles of Jesus by Tom Holladay (the Bible should be another one & I'm still out-to-lunch on the third). And when I say "you" I mean you. Here's just a sample of it's profound simplicity and potent power from my first day notes:

Day #1 - Nothing Is More Important

• “Relationships are painful. Relationships are wonderful. We all live in the drama that plays out between these two truths.”
• “Relationships are filled with both wonder and pain.”
• “When Jesus came to this earth, he demonstrated that he understands both [wonder and pain]...Jesus came to show you how to enjoy a new way of relating to God and to others.”
• “...How easy it is to value things over people.”
• “Priorities become most important when we must make choices. If we had enough time to do everything, everything could be a priority. But we don’t…”
• “If we had the power to do every good thing we wanted to do, our choices wouldn’t be so important. But we can’t…”
• “When Jesus spoke about the priority of relationships, he could not have been clearer. He taught that relationships must be given the highest of values…”
• “He values our relationship with God, and he values our relationships with each other.
  “Your relationships with God and others will last all the way into eternity.”
• “A life without relationships may well be a simpler life, but it is also an empty life.”
• “The path to the greatest life possible and the greatest joy possible is found in the priority that Jesus taught us to keep at the top of the list: place the highest value on relationships.”

That is only the beginning! Personally, I believe that people all around me (including myself) that are in my age-group need to get the whole relationship-thing down because if we don't our lives will end up wasting so many opportunities and so much time in areas that are not as important.

Prayer for Today

To have silence.

I know that is a gift, but sometimes it feels like a curse; like something isn't right if I get too much of it. I feel awkward, like I'm not progressing, like I'm wasting precious time that has been given to me so I can accomplish the tasks of the day. Email, voicemail, snail-mail, texting, meetings, internet, TV, CDs, iPods, mp3's, car stereo, even reading. God, my prayer today is that I would grab the opportunities of silence because it is in those moments that I get a chance to hear your voice and drink your cup and feel your reality. To be still with you even but for a minute is a priceless gift worth opening.

For how can I move properly if I haven't stayed still long enough for you to move me. May I not be moved by anything other than your voice today.

Thank you for the silence.

Act, Learn, Refine...repeat

A big focus that I have this year is to learn more about who I really am; what God-given talents I have & what talents I don't have so I don't waste life and so I can surround myself with people who fill my gaps. I'm taking the wise approach and looking into many different areas for counsel (obviously Scripture as my top priority) and a huge help on the area of talent feedback is currently Now, Discover Your Strengths. Buy it. Read the 1st half, take the assessment, then read the rest.

Here's a great quote from the book:
"Building a strong life means that you allow performance to be the final judge of your strengths. Performance, properly measured, is implacable and unforgiving, and without doubt there will be times when your claims of strength are judged favorably." (p.127)

What are things I'm actually good at time after time? That's a great question to ask others to answer about yourself.

Mental Pause

I figured it out: how to turn my Bible memorizing up a notch.
This is an area where I'm actually ashamed to admit my current state, but give me a few weeks and that should be remedied. Thought I'd share my strategy. Here it is:
a. Read a Bible passage daily
b. Focus on a portion that "spoke" to me
c. Type that portion in a document template I made
d. Save that document as my desktop
My entire life is digital, why not have a digital way to get more of God's Word in front of my face all day. I call it my Pause Button. Learned that method while at Biola

PS. Read Wasting Time With God for further greatness