Holding my little girl and saying a prayer…sharing Jesus with her every day through prayer.

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My daughter Ella has had a rough couple of months as we have transitioned to a new place. She has struggled in our new place.  No it isn’t anything anyone has done. No I am not going into the second grade and having to beat up some boys and girls for not making her feel welcome.  She is just having a hard time not seeing her Mom and Dad as much every day.  Transitions can be difficult.  Childhood can be difficult.

For the first two months at St. John I had a kid who just cried and cried every time I dropped her off.  So about two weeks ago I tried a different tactic. I said Ella if we are going to cry every day I am not going to walk you to class.  I also said when we go down to her class I would pray for her right at the door and send her into class if she promised to be brave.  It is now the best part of my day.  I get down on my knees, hold her forehead to forehead and look her right in the eyes and pray for her out loud. My prayer normally goes like this, “Dear, Jesus help Ella to have a great day.  Help Ella to not be scared.  Help Ella to not get crushed by a boulder…(She smiles about that one) Help Ella to see Jesus. Amen!” I then give her a kiss, a high five and send her off to class. It has totally changed the daily routine.

It really made me think these last few weeks about praying for my kids. I do it every day.  Recently I have seen the power in letting them see me pray for them. It is not for show it is so they know God is watching over them.  It is a way for me to speak Jesus into there lives.

As a parent, grandparent, brother or sister I would encourage you to pray for your family. From time to time pray out loud in their presence.  It is another way to share Jesus in their lives.  It may be one of the most powerful ways to show Jesus and His love to those around you. God bless you as your walk with Jesus this week.

What does the text say? Growing in faith by reading the Word.

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20150813_212401This weekend I got to do one of my favorite things in the world. I got to teach the scriptures to a bunch of 7-8 graders. They are squirmy, they are awkward, they are weird.  I love them. I love the reactions I love the laughs. I love the fun. I love how you can open the word to them and make them laugh and think all at the same time. Sometimes it is painful trying to get them to think(Ok sometimes we smell fire) it is so much work, but sometimes God blesses us to see the little light bulb in their heads go off.

I love teaching confirmation. I love teaching the scriptures period.  Actually one of my goal main goals for all Christians I come in contact with is to teach them a truth that was hammered home by the previous Pastor I served with.  He taught everyone he knew to look in the book and tell him what the text says. It is so simple yet such a profound part of teaching the faith to young people. It is profound for all of use to remember when teaching the faith to our families.

You see I believe that many of us know the answer is supposed to be Jesus, or faith, or love, or whatever.  We often miss the real answer because we aren’t looking in the book we are just giving the answer we were given as a kid. So when we are teaching our children about Jesus, or teaching ourselves about Jesus, don’t forget to look in the book.  You can find the real answers about Jesus there. You can hear God speak about himself and show you his amazing love in the book.

This week as you look in the book remember it is God speaking to you there.  Listen to what he is saying you might just learn something and grow in your faith.

Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. Acts 17:11 NIV

Rest is so hard…teaching our kids to rest in Jesus.

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I have Mondays off. It is the one day a week I get to have off and I try to guard it like crazy.  Well mostly that is true. Honestly my wife is the one who guards it best because she knows if I didn’t get my rest I will be cranky and out of control20151006_064921.

When I was in High school I spent three weeks of my summer in Puerto Rico for a mission trip.  I spent that amazing time getting to know some of the people there and would love to go back just to experience that place again.  They taught me a whole host of things but the thing I remember taking away from my time with them was how important rest was to their culture.  You see every day they had a siesta.  It was a time when the whole country shut down for the most part and people were expected to rest.  I remember being told by one of the people there that we Americans didn’t enjoy life because we didn’t rest enough. We ran from thing to thing never enjoying the times God gave us to rest.

My life seems to moving faster and faster.  I feel more tired and enjoy my life in Christ less and less.  My kids feel it too.  I am afraid we as a family are too busy with life to enjoy our time in rest in Jesus.  We as the family of God need to slow down and rest.  We need to spend time in resting in Jesus.

So how are you resting?  Are you resting?  I know I am not resting nearly long enough.  I am running too fast and ultimately teaching my kids to run to fast.  Let us all find those times to slow down and rest. Let us teach our kids to rest.  The laundry will be there tomorrow, the school work will be there tomorrow, the office work will be there tomorrow.  Let us rest in Jesus. Let us teach our kids to rest in Jesus.  To focus our time on rest.

28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)

My kids are liars and cheats…being a parent to sinners.

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20150928_201911I had a bad day.  I am going to bed angry with my children for their attitudes, and their mood swings.  I am angry because today one of them lied to my face and she is the young one.  She is supposed to be my innocent one. She is supposed to be the one we did this parenting thing correctly. For a moment I thought I need to just pull out my Thor hammer and play whack kid. I was reminded today that I am raising sinners.  I was reminded I am the chief of them.

Every parent if we are honest holds to proverb 22:6

 “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.”

We think if we just teach them correctly they will be perfect little angels. Today is another reminder that my kids aren’t perfect and that they resemble more closely this verse:

10 “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Acts 13:10

Here is the rub, on most days I epitomize this verse also.  You see every day I know I should have more patient. I know I should have more kind words.  I know I should be praying for them and with them.  I should be reminding them I am not perfect (although they know it, they need to hear it as well).  They need to know the only remedy is Jesus.  Jesus’ forgiveness for us brings a new day.  It brings healing to these broken relationships.  It brings peace to situations that are in chaos.

I think often as parents we are afraid to say this.  That we all have days, weeks, months even years where we are chief of sinners.   We fail to point our kids to Jesus. Being a parent is hard.  We are all sinners in need of Jesus.

So tonight I am on my knees in prayer.  I am praying for my kids, I am praying for my wife, and I am praying for me. I am praying  we would experience Christ’s forgiveness.  Lets join together in prayer as we walk with Jesus.

3 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13-14 NIV

I make mistakes…God works through our mistakes

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11885785_830146970434472_3138855651551647161_oI make mistakes.  I know this is a news flash for most of you.  I say the wrong things. I do the wrong things. Often they lead to big messes, but mostly God uses my mess ups for His purposes.

I messed up last Sunday.  It wasn’t big but it was a mess up. During worship I was leading the end of the service and I was supposed to say the prayers,then go into the creed, followed by a song.  I finished the prayers of the people and then sat down for the song.  I missed the creed all together.  The pastor told me lead them in the creed after the prayers, and I missed it.  It was a total mess up  hopefully no one but the person running slides and the music team noticed. It didn’t end the world but I was frustrated with myself.

Right after the service I went up to the music team leader and apologized.  While we were talking someone came a lady came up and told us saying the creed after that song was one of the most moving moments she has had in worship in a long time. She finally said it and really meant it. It was a great Jesus moment.

I feel like we all need this reminder from time to time. We need to be reminded that God can use our mistakes,  our mess-ups for his Work.  He can use our broken best laid plans for his Work.  So today if you messed up remember God is working it for his good. God is working it so others can know Jesus.  May you be reminded of Jesus working in your good times and your bad.

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a] have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28 NIV