Last night life slowed down long enough for me to put together the new piano that I was blessed with last month. It had been camping out in its box since its arrival here. During the piano stand assembly process (with screws all over the place, styrofoam flying, plastic parts rolling, and two very interested children "helping"), I was down on the floor in an awkward position, lying on my back and screwing the anti-tip bracket in place. I asked my daughter to get my phone. I needed to use the flashlight app to see what I was doing. She asked me, "Daddy why do you need more light? The lights are already on." I told her that I needed focused light to see where the screws went past the bracket and into their correct positions. Her question struck me though. Why do we need more light, when the lights are already on? Because even with the light we have, the enemy tries to hide things with subtle shadows of darkness. When we bring things into the light, we can see them for what they are. Psalms 119:105 tells us "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." We need the LAMP, and we need the LIGHT. The light of God's Word is to see a general picture of what's ahead. The light shines a broad illumination. The lamp of God's Word is more focused so we can see the steps that we must take on the path. Why do we go to church? To get FOCUSED light. Revelation. Understanding. We have Pastors and the five fold ministry gifts that focus the light of God's truth into our lives, helping us to see what darkness has been hiding in our lives. In the end, I was able to see clearly, and assemble the piano for us to enjoy. What is God trying to assemble in your life today?
Until next time... Adam
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What kind of wake do you make?The above photo shows the wake from the fishing boat I was on recently. I was blessed with the ocean fishing trip on my birthday week here in Maui, and we caught some delicious fish to eat!
What is a wake? Wikipedia defines it as,
Let's break it down and we'll use the boat for our example. As the boat moves forward and cuts through the water surface, it leaves a trail or a wake, behind itself in the water where it's been. The size of the wake can be determined by the speed that the boat is traveling and the water conditions. Did you know that we all create a wake in life? We cause ripples, or a wake, in people's lives, as we pass through their lives both positively and negatively. Proverbs 18:21 from the Young's Literal Translation, tells us that "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those loving it eat its fruit." Words are containers of either LIFE or DEATH. Words contain great power! Hebrews 11:3 tells us that God created everything we see with His Words. New Living Translation "By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God's command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen." If you want to study this out here are some corresponding verses that cross reference this. (Genesis 1:1, Psalm 33:6, Psalm 33:9, John 1:3, Romans 4:17, 1 Corinthians 2:7, 1 Timothy 4:5, Hebrews 1:2, Hebrews 6:5, 2 Peter 3:5) Did you notice that a wake is both ABOVE and BELOW the surface of the water? Many things we experience in life leave a wake on us emotionally. Emotions could be considered below the surface. Many of us hide our true emotions. Emotions definitely affect things above the surface! Our face, tear ducts, breathing, which are all "ABOVE" the surface show what's going on below the surface. Our emotions are great to experience when they're working for us and not against us. We should evaluate our emotions and see what they're pointing to. When we're angry, we should ask the question, Why am I angry? Have I been wronged? Has someone sinned against me? Jesus said to be angry and sin not. That means that anger is not evil in itself, but if we let it have it's way, we can enter into sin through full blown rage. The Bible tells us to guard our heart with all diligence. (Proverbs 4:23) Why? Because it's a matter of life and death. Words penetrate and affect us in our spirit, soul, and body. We can be negatively affected by the words and actions of others. Some people leave a negative wake wherever they go. You can tell that certain negative people have been through an area because the people that got hit by their "waves" are still left in the aftershock. Yikes! I don't want to be like that. On the positive side of things, we can leave an uplifting and encouraging wake in people's lives. (I want to be like that!) Don't we all know someone who can encourage us even when we'd like to choose to camp out in the depression blues? We feel better just being around them! Their smile brightens a room. Their laugh encourages others to laugh again. We can leave a good "wake" wherever we go.. if we will learn to be led by the Holy Spirit and yield to the love of God that's been shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. We should endeavor to give people the gifts of support, grace, mercy, love and forgiveness that we have received from Jesus Christ. Prayer for today... "Heavenly Father, please help me to leave a positive wake in other people's lives. Help me to love others like you have loved me. Forgive others as you have forgiven me. To truly show mercy as you have shown mercy to me. I choose life. I choose love. In Jesus' name, Amen." Until next time... Adam |
AuthorLiving life as a .... Servant of Jesus Christ, Husband, Father, Son, Brother, Uncle, Friend, Pastor, Missionary, Worshiper, Musician, Vocalist, Encourager. Archives
January 2017
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