Is money the root of all evil or are we?

What’s nice about having money, having money. I serve at a church where once every while someone will give the minister’s some extra cash here and there. It’s amazing how God works things out. Usually this happens when something is about to break down. Three years ago, someone gave us an anonymous check for $100 dollars. We felt so blessed, the next day our battery died in our van, it cost around $100 to replace it. Thank you God for giving us awesome people! There is nothing evil about money.

You can do good or bad with money. This anonymous person did something awesome with money, not because they gave me money. They could have spent that money doing or buying something they wanted. Yet they chose to give it away. Money is not bad. You can do good with it. What are some ways you can do good with the money you have? Chances are you can think of some pretty great ways. Along with the good comes the bad. What are ways you have spent money unwisely? Chances are you have had moments of both.

Paul has a great line that doesn’t talk about money but about helping people out, 1 Corinthians 10:24…

“Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.”

In this section of scripture Paul is dealing with some other issues among the people. Some people were unifying the church and having meals together. Others were having meals that were going for idol worship or meals that were going to demons. In between this all Paul mentions that there is good and bad practices we can follow. We aren’t meant to lead people astray with our meals and what the meals are going for. During that time there was a lot of demon worship and meals were a part of what people gave to the demons. What you do with your money could be good or bad, your choice.

Money isn’t evil, but what do you do with your money? I have been reading a book titled Open by Craig Gross. It starts out with a story about two guys who use X3watch to keep themselves from looking at porn online. Gross talks to these guys on a flight from Vegas and asked what are you doing in Vegas if you are trying to stay pure? They respond how they did a whole bunch of things they shouldn’t do, gambling and strip clubs etc. They were trying to not look at porn online yet deemed it acceptable to go to strip clubs. Sometimes what we do doesn’t make sense.

You can do good with your money. I recently read a story about a scholarship program that Magic Johnson has and how he helps people out with these scholarships. He gives money to change the life of these people that wouldn't be able to go to school. Think about the good you can do with your money. How you can help people out? Now if you owe $1,000’s on a credit card/car payment/student loans, get that paid first, you aren’t supposed to be in debt. After that look at your life, what would you like to do with your money that can be a blessing to others? Today you can be a blessing to others. How can you make that happen?

Have a great day.

Forgiveness and family

My amazing wife shared this and I wanted to share this with you...

Sometimes when we choose to forgive people it feels like were the ones losing. Like were giving up on our anger and saying the actions that were wrong are somehow now right. That’s not what forgiveness is about and not what it means. Forgiveness really isn’t about the person(s) hurting the family but rather it’s about ourselves and how we grow as people.

In my life I’ve had a lot of people hurt me but one specifically that for 15 years has haunted me. Thankfully because of my foundation and faith I’ve been able to forgive. I don’t forget and now I’m more guarded in certain areas of my life but forgiveness on my part has been given.

When I married Joel, I always said his family was crazy-energetic-dysfunctional and completely amazing. The only family I know who can argue and disagree but love and support at the same time, unconditionally.

At least that’s the way it used to be. Heck, my first year of camping I witnessed drag out fights at dirtball camping trip! Yet we forgive, love and move on. I can’t change anyone’s way of thinking but there are many young people who can read this. To you, I hope you can learn forgiveness by observing some of the most amazing family members you have. There are many I’ve been honored to call-Family. I’m speaking for Joel and myself when I say, were praying for healing for families.

http://www.focusonthefamily.com/marriage/divorce_and_infidelity/forgiveness_and_restoration.aspx

Watching a police raid from your house

It’s fun to watch the TV show Cops, it’s even better in person. Hailee and I lived in a questionable area in Lansing, MI. While it would be classified as a bad area, there were mostly good people with just a few bad apples that ruined it. One of the bad apples lived across the street. It wasn’t even the family, it was a relative. This was when the fun began.

I arrived home to see a SWAT vehicle parked across the street. This was better than what I was doing so I stopped and watched Cops from my front porch. They got the guy arrested and a whole bunch of SWAT members were walking around with semi-automatic guns and rifles. I should have grabbed some popcorn because this show was awesome. I even got to witness the slowest get away possible.

As the situation died, another began. As the cops were talking and the front driveway was blocked by a couple of officers. A person walked right out the front door unnoticed and into a car in the driveway. Once the car was started, the officers noticed the car starting to move and one blocked the car from leaving and the other knocked on the window to get the person to stop. The car started edging away slowly and ignored the cops. Finally the cop knocked with the gun they had. The person stopped and got out, it was a 70+ year old women. Man, that was the slowest get away in the world. You can’t make this stuff up. The relative of hers was into selling drugs among other things. The family and neighbor needed help, what could I do?

Ignoring situations don’t prevent bad things from happening. Watching this was fun and interesting yet sad. They were a family in which one got into a bad situation and lived their lives selling drugs, how can I help with that? Romans 12:1-2 (The Message)…

“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”

We can either watch lives get ruined or do something to change lives. I look back at that situation in that neighborhood, I could have tried helping my neighbors or get to know them better instead of just watching. You can talk bad about this generation or you can do something to help.

Everyone can help even an 80 year old lady in a Mexico prison. A lady who grew up in Beverly Hills went to one of the most dangerous prisons in Mexico. She started serving and loving the inmates in a very dangerous situation. She even broke up a riot.

http://www.catalystspace.com/catablog/full/renegade_nun_a_walking_gift_of_love/

She could have thought she couldn’t help the situation, but God did. God puts people in your life for a reason, some for friendship, some for love, some for you to love. We aren’t going to get along with everyone we meet, but we can still show them love. We aren’t supposed to live life for the American dream. We are called to help others out when they are down.

God brings the best out of us. Jesus gave us the ability to show love to other people because he showed love to us. I wonder what would happen if I showed love to the people around me in Lansing? While you can’t go back, you can go forward, who can you help in your life today? Who can you serve and encourage today? God gave you his best in his son Jesus for your sins, one of the best ways to help others out is to serve them the way God served us. Who can you help today?

Have a great day.

You hurt? Rub some dirt on it

“Everyone’s going to die…” in response a person said, “Yeah, but not this week.” One guy terminally sick and was told he was going to die very soon, the first guy had no clue. Things happen in life that are out of our control. We all have times like this. We have a chance to let a bad event overtake us. Will you let that happen?

Honestly it’s not that bad. This was a phrase I said a week before my baseball season when I was younger. Our first game was a week away and we had one of our final practices. I was the starting catcher. The hitter hit a lazy pop fly in foul territory going towards the dugout/first base side. I lived for moments like this. I threw off my helmet and ran to try to catch up to it. I had a great jump and was about to make a nice diving play, except for one unforeseen problem, a rock. In foul territory was a rock I didn’t see, running full speed I stepped on the rock. It caused me to slip just as I was leaning towards making the catch. I reach out but was thrown into the ground with my wrist being the first thing to hit the ground. I was in pain.

The coach came over to me very quickly and asked if I was alright. Something was wrong, but I wasn’t going to admit that. “Nope, I’m fine,” I stated. I sat out the rest of practice. My wrist hurt and I couldn’t close a baseball glove. After three days of being in pain, I went to the doctors to find out I broke my wrist. I was hurt and I wish rubbing dirt on it would have helped, it did not.

Bad things happen in life sometimes, yet can things really be that bad? We all face different challenges in life. Sometimes those challenges hurt us, they can cut deep. Yet in the scheme of life they can be very small in comparison. Listen to what Paul shares in Romans 8:18…

“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”

Man, there are some verses in scripture I read and feel the power of God. We are suffering people in so many different ways, whether mentally or physically. Yet when we have God and trust in Jesus with our lives, the present sufferings are a blimp on the radar. God is God and will do amazing things. Know this, trust in this, through our imperfections Jesus allowed us to experience eternal life when we give our life over to him. What you are going through Jesus knows about wants to comfort you and wants you to know there is light at the end of the tunnel. There is something to look forward to when you have Christ.

We were never meant to die at the side of the road like roadkill. We have a chance with our life to experience greatness. If you are going through some struggles, hang in there. Sometimes we experience lows in life just to experience greatness or to see how good we have it normally.

Bad things happen but don’t relish in them. Rub some dirt on it, know it’s temporary and God has plans for you! We always have something to look forward to when we are Christians, no matter how bad life can get, we are given eternal life. Don’t stress too hard on small things that have a low value. Hang in there! God is with you!

Have a great day.

Good or bad

We have a chance to be good or bad. My son Ty can be one of the most lovingly and sharing kids. It's normal of him to go somewhere and not eat all of his food so he could share some with brother and sister. He will go to the doctors office and always get a little sticker for his siblings. Yet while he can be good, he can also be bad.

Ty had some issues with listening to his Sunday School teachers. He bent one of his teachers fingers around and also was repeatedly hitting his teacher. Not the behavior we expect. For the good he can do, the bad he can also do. We can be the same way. While we might not hurt our teachers like Ty did, we have plenty of choices to do good or bad.

What we do can effect us in positive and negative ways. Listen to what Paul says in Romans 6:21-23...
What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

There are bad things we do that result in bad. This is what happens with sin, we can do things and face the punishment in the end. When you do bad things, bad results often happen. When you do good, good things can follow. Doing bad things against God's will is sin, nothing good happens from sin. Yet with faith in Christ, we are offered something even better, eternal life. You don't have to be ashamed anymore when you have Christ. You can be good.

You can do bad or you can do good. What do you regret in life? What if you didn't have to be haunted by those regrets? This is what Christ offers, no matter how much bad you have done, you can be modified. You don't have to be the person of your past and you can be a better person in the future. I love Ty, hopefully we will see him do more good and less bad. What about you?

Have a great day.

Dead or alive

It's a good day to be alive. There is so much great in the world that we can look forward too. What are things you love about today? For me, it's Friday. I reflect over an amazing family that God has given me even though I am not worthy and a sinner. God can still bless people that make mistakes.

There are times when we make mistakes. There is good we can do and we can choose to do the opposite. Hopefully it doesn't happen that often but at times we get wrapped into things we shouldn't do.

Paul tells us this in Romans 6:11-14...
"In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. ¹² Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. ¹³ Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness. ¹⁴ For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace."

We don't have to be wrapped up into thigns we used to do. Through God I have seen people get rid of some amazing addictions or things that can rule over them. It doesn't have to be an addiction, it can be as simple as stop ignoring kids to play video games. We can change and try to improve.

Sins can take hold of people but through Christ it doesn't have too. When you make a choice to follow Christ life can change when we give it all to Jesus. What do you want to be your master? The things you own can end up owning you. Jesus gives us a chance to live a new life. How many people could use a do over? Jesus gives us that with grace. Jesus gives you and I grace. You don't have to be or do the things you did in the past. You are a new person when you make that commitment to Christ.

Have a great day. 

Faith is not Burger King

You can’t pick and choose who gets Jesus.  In elementary and middle school, everyone would line up and you would pick the best players.  Then there were leftovers you barely accept and throw in a corner on the field.  Not exactly the best feeling, to be picked over.  When teams get more competitive, they just cut people.

 

I have been on both sides of this. I have been the one to pick over people and I have been the one picked over.  There was a time in high school I was trying to get a spot on the worst hockey team (They once lost a game 30-1). I dislocated my knee cap about two weeks before tryouts (No really a great excuse) and decided to tryout for defense instead of goalie.  I thought I played ok, but I got cut. I was crushed.  It sucks to get picked over, but you can either be depressed about it or get better and move on. Faith does not pick and choose.

 

Paul was opening up his letter to Romans explaining who he was and what his general message was.  This was part of that letter in Romans 1:5-6…

“Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake. And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.”

 

Faith is not Burger King, it does not pick and choose who it’s for. The word gentile is meant for those who were not raised up believing in God. A lot of people fell into this in the area.  They were outcast by those with faith at the time.  It’s not how it works today.  Faith is for everyone.

 

You can’t get cut from faith. No matter if you like someone or not faith in Jesus is for you and them.  God is for everyone and as Christians we are called to share this whether we like people or not. 

If you feel like God isn’t for you or can’t use you, you’re wrong.  God loves you, gave his only son Jesus for you and wants you to share this love with others.  You can’t pick or you chose who gets faith like you pick and choose what you want at Burger King.  Jesus loves you and is for you.  No matter what you have done, Jesus loves you and cares for you.  Paul was a murderer of Christians and this is the same guy who wrote this letter for Romans. God can use you.  What can you do today to feel accepted or help someone feel accepted by Jesus?

 

Have a great day.

Just visiting can be fun even when if it doesn't happen in Monopoly

It’s nice to see family and friends that you haven’t seen in a while.  One of my favorite times was for Hailee’s 30^th birthday.  We had friends coming from Canada, Texas, Missouri, Illinois and a whole bunch of people come from Michigan.  It was an awesome time (we have the pictures on Facebook to prove it).  It means so much when people drive/fly 5+ hours to visit.  Seeing people come from a distance away just to have some fun for a birthday party. It makes you feel loved.

It took sacrifice for people.  People had to pay for some gas/plane tickets and leave work for a long weekend in Terre Haute, IN.  People left work early or took vacation time to celebrate this special occasion.  Traveling a distance away makes you feel loved and it’s always great to have that feeling. Paul felt encouraged when people traveled to visit him.

Paul was traveling as a prisoner and was away from a lot of close friends for a while.  They came to visit as it talks about in some of Acts 28:14-15…

“And so we came to Rome. The brothers and sisters there had heard that we were coming, and they traveled as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. At the sight of these people Paul thanked God and was encouraged.”

I checked out how far these places were away from Rome, one was about 10 miles and the other was about 30+ miles away. They wanted to see Paul and lift him up.  After traveling for that distance, it was great for Paul to see some friends again. I tried to see how long average travel took in the Bible but was unsuccessful.  I would image 10 miles was a least a days walk.  It took effort to travel these distances away.  It was worth it.

One of the greatest benefits of good family and friends can be when they come to visit. I have been very appreciative when friends have done this for me. Sometimes a visit from family and friends can help you move on and continue to fight the good fight. What can you do for friends today? Is there a friend that could you a visit from you? Do you think that can make a difference in their life? 

People sacrifice to visit people they love.  They did this for Paul. People did this for us in coming for Hailee’s birthday and so much more. Who can you encourage or visit or help out today? It can make a world of difference.

Have a great day.

Like Destiny’s Child are you a survivor

There are times in life things don’t go accordingly to plan. New Year’s resolution can always be an interesting time of reflection. We reflect on what we don’t like and vow to change it. Usually these revolve around self-image, losing weight, being happier, eating better etc.

How often do we focus on other people with our resolutions? Paul had to focus on other people to save himself. Paul was going through a rough time. He was being transported on a boat and hurricane like forces were tearing the boat apart. 14 days the craziness went on and the result was the crew going that entire time without eating and wondering if they had any chance of living.

The crew was lowered the lifeboat down and to save themselves. Paul told them if they didn’t stay with the boat, they would die. They stayed with boat. Paul was able to convince the people to eat for the first time in 14 days while this storm was going on. Even with a storm going on, Paul did this in Acts 27:34-36…

“Now I urge you to take some food.  You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head. After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all.  Then he broke it and began to eat.  They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves.”

They survived. Even in front of a group of people that came from different faiths, he gave thanks to God. What if the captain of the boat was thickheaded and thought he could survive on his own? He could have said, you’re just a prisoner and your opinion doesn’t matter to me.

Where would they be if that happened? Sometimes our own thickheaded thinking keeps us from accomplishing resolutions. Often our resolutions revolve around what we want selfishly. What if we focused on others? What if this year we decided we were going to forgive someone else that we haven’t forgiven? Maybe you have been fighting with someone for a while and you’re waiting for them to apologize first. A good resolution can be to reconcile a broken relationship.

Often we focus so much on our selfish desires of getting in shape or eating healthier rather than repairing a relationship. God cares more about your ability to forgive than your ability to look better with your earthly body. I have been in an interesting spot lately. I have seen a lot of relationships struggle and it can all go back to selfish desires.

People want to be forgiven and be right rather than forgive other people. If the captain of the boat was focused on being right, 276 people would have died on Paul’s boat. Instead he was humble and listened to the advice of a prisoner. What can be a true resolution for you…

Forgiving someone else?

Asking someone for forgiveness?
Showing grace to someone who hurt you?
Maybe going to counseling and applying what you learn to your own life?

You can be a survivor, one who goes through a bad situation and comes out strong in the end. Are you ready to be the one to take that first step? You can have a great resolution. You can be a survivor of a bad situation.

Have a great day.

If your friends suck, maybe it’s you that sucks and they’re all awesome

Having friends can make all the difference in the world.

There have been scientific facts of what having friends in our lives can do for us.  Lower blood pressure, higher happiness in life and other things you can find out if you go to the Mayo Clinic website.  It’s nice to have great friends.

Friends came through for Paul in Acts 27:3…

“The next day we landed at Sidon; and Julius, in kindness to Paul, allowed him to go to his friends so they might provide for  his needs.”

As Paul was sailing as a jailed prisoner, he was able to go see his friends to meet for his needs.  Friends can meet a need in our lives.  Friends can make a huge difference in the lives of others.  Sometimes though, we are not the best friends.  We think of our own thoughts and wants above others.

There was a time I thought I was really good friends with someone else.  We were talking online one time and I noticed the conversation was all about him (This isn’t always a bad thing). So I kept talking and saw if he would swing the conversation around, her never did. We were decent friends, but I realized the majority of the time we just talked about what he wanted to do.

Finally I decided to stop calling him and saw if he contacted me back. He never did. As a result, we went our separate ways. There are times I have not been a good friend and need to work on it. A good friend can make all the difference in the world.

I am glad to be surrounded by so many loving people.  There are things I need to do to be a better friend. What are something’s you like in a friend? What are things you can improve on to be a better friend? Are you a friend that can meet other’s needs? If not, you can improve and help someone out in a tough time. Try to work on being a better friend today.

Have a great day.

10 years with the ball and chain

Ready for the good ole ball and chain.

I feel bad for whoever described being married to the analogy the ball and chain.

That would just suck.

Seeing marriages struggle is never an easy thing.

As a minister and coming from a multiple divorce family, I have seen where marriage can be like a prison and struggle.

Where selfish desires can take over and people just think of themselves over the other or the family.

I am proud to say I am on the other side of the spectrum.

No matter the fact that someone once told Hailee and I to our faces our marriage would only last 3 months, I am here 10 years later to say I love my marriage and my wife even more than I did 10 years ago.

I didn’t think that was possible.

Marriage is not always easy.

It takes love and sacrifice beyond just saying I love you.

Love is not a word it’s an action.

You show you love someone with what you do with your life for that other person.

A good marriage is about sacrifice for a greater cause.

Yet I am a screw up.

I have messed up plenty of times in my marriage.

I am not perfect.

Yet I have a loving wife who is graceful and forgiving.

She honestly has made me a better person and I cherish her for that.

As I sit here writing this from a dorm room at CIY with my wife 100 miles away, I can honestly say I miss her and wish I were there but there is a greater purpose then just our marriage.

When Hailee and I got married, we said God would be first in our relationship.

He has been.

Part of the reason Hailee and I can move forward together has been our ability to forgive one another.

I wouldn’t have that forgiveness without knowing that no matter what Christ forgave us and we need to forgive each other.

I am gone taking students on an amazing trip where they grow closer to God.

It has been a great week watching these amazing individuals grow closer to God and that takes precedence over my own selfish desires.

I look forward to tonight when I get to spend time with my wife.

Hailee is the most amazing women I have even met (Sorry mom).

She is beautiful on the inside and the outside.

She has always made me laugh.

There was a Facebook post about marriage and be like having a sleep over every night with your best friend, I can honestly say that is correct.

Hailee is my best friend.

My Jason’s are a close second, but Hailee trumps them.

She knows my insecurities and strengthens me rather than tearing me apart.

She lifts me up when I am down.

She is smoking hot!

She has given me three wonderful children and a soon to be fourth.

She has dealt with where I felt I was called.

“I married a sports writer not a minister, I didn’t sign up for this,” she would say while joking.

Hailee never stood in my way.

She always wanted me to pursue my goals and help me accomplish them.

I don’t know if I would have a college degree more or less a master’s degree without Hailee.

She is truly my better half and I believe that everyday.

I have done many stupid things and Hailee has put up with me.

Before we were dating Hailee was dating someone else and we were just friends.

She broke up with him and I tried to take our friendship to the next level.

Soon she invited me to dinner.

At this dinner she was going to tell me that she was going to get back with her ex.

We were talking and having a good conversation but soon she told me her plan.

People, I have never done this before and still can’t believe I said this then…

I said that’s ok, because I think we are meant to be together and I know it’s not going to workout out between you guys.

Then sticking my foot into my mouth further…

I said, “I think God wants us to be together and I will wait for your relationship to end because I know we are supposed to be together.”

I couldn’t believe the words that just came from my mouth.

I knew I found my wife, she thought I was crazy (Little did she know I was crazy J).

Weeks later, we start dating.

We started dating on Super Bowl Sunday.

Three weeks later in the most romantic way, I asked Hailee to marry me while watching a commercial to Ally McBeal.

She said yes and we haven’t been apart since.

Hailee is the most amazing person I have met.

I cherish all our time together through the good and the bad, til death do us part, I still to love you with every piece of my heart (God bless you All 4 One for coming up with the song I Swear).

I thank God for him putting you in my life and can’t wait to see my wife later on today!

Have a great day (I know I will!)

It’s funny how the people who know me the least have the most to say

People talk.

Some good, some bad.

Human nature leads us to talk bad about other people.

I rarely listen to the radio, but over the past 9 months I have started listening to ESPN radio.

I used to absolutely hate listening to people that talk about sports.

I love watching the game and finding insight, but radio talk takes it to the next level.

Everything can get blown out of proportion.

Sometimes we are a society that likes to talk about the problem rather than trying to fix it.

We talk about losing weight, but we don’t eat healthy.

We talk about moving towards our career we want, but do nothing to get there.

We talk about saving money but spend it as soon as we get it.

We like to talk.

We talk about other people, how we would do things different if we were them and how life would improve if they did things our way.

We also have a tendency to love someone’s life or what they have.

Jealousy is sometimes in the put we call our opinion.

Paul went and was sharing his message about Jesus.

Rather than listening to what he was saying, a group of people weren’t happy with the fact he was talking about Jesus.

So they did this in said in Acts 17:5…

“But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city.  They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd.”

They were ticked and unhappy.

They didn’t like Paul and the message of Jesus, so they went on the attack.

Ever feel like someone has went on the attack on you?

When jealousy overtakes us, it keeps us from growing and becoming the people we are meant to be.

Rather than listening to what Paul had to say this certain group of people (I’m not saying Jews as a whole, because this was a small group of people with this faith) created a riot.

Do you think we are a society that is quick to judge and give our opinion, why?

In Facebook, people give their opinion and they like you as long as you say and believed what they believe.  I f you disagree, they are the same ones that say you aren’t loving, caring, showing grace, and judgmental just for not agreeing with them.

We get bitter, protective and possessive when people sometimes don’t agree with us.

I will admit, I will get like this at times and it’s a trait I am trying to improve on.

Do you find yourself being jealous, judgmental, hateful, over opinionated or u loving?

You don’t have to be this way.

You can be a different person, more loving, caring and graceful.

Which would you rather be known for?

Being jealous and judgmental or loving and caring?

Today, you choose.

Make the right decisions.

Though it all, Jesus loves you!

Have a great day!

If you could fight anyone in the world or history, who would it be?

Ghandi.

Not really, that was a quote in a movie though.

Most of us do not choose who we are going to fight in life.

Not every fight is physical.

There are plenty of fights that are more verbal and in other forms.

People fight, argue and disagree all the time.

Who do you choose to fight with?

What are you even fighting about?

I have seen people fight over some stupid things that have no significant value.

Some issues have come up with my family about my Grandma’s possessions since passing.

It breaks my heart to hear my family fighting over an amazing women’s stuff.

There is no earthly possession that represents Grandma or Grandpa.

Yet fighting happens.

It breaks my heart that a family so close as ours fights over who gets what.

Memories are not possessions.

When I think about my Grandma, I think about all the times we ran into her working at Sears, how she would always try to get a volleyball game together at whatever family event we had and how she would always tell you exactly what was on her mind.

I love my Grandma and hate the fighting that has taken place after she has passed.

So much love destroyed by possessions and power.

I love and miss my grandma, and even just hearing about the fighting tears me apart.

God gives us a couple of issues that came up between people and the church.

This is what was given to us to learn from.

In Chapter 15 of Acts an issue comes up about salvation.

Issues came up about whether you had to be circumcised in order to have faith in Jesus.

Faithful followers who came from a Jewish background said yes and people without a history of faith came to know Jesus (Gentiles) did not think so.

There was a discussion of the leaders of the Church.

They came up with a letter to explain their answer to this question.

They sent leaders to explain what their conclusions were, the results were positive.

Verse 31…

“The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message.”

It encouraged each other from them looking into this matter.

So much fighting can revolve around bickering instead of fighting a result.

Matthew 18:15-20 gives us this so solve disagreements…

“If a fellow believer hurts you, go and tell him—work it out between the two of you. If he listens, you've made a friend. If he won't listen, take one or two others along so that the presence of witnesses will keep things honest, and try again. If he still won't listen, tell the church. If he won't listen to the church, you'll have to start over from scratch, confront him with the need for repentance, and offer again God's forgiving love.

"Take this most seriously: A yes on earth is yes in heaven; a no on earth is no in heaven. What you say to one another is eternal. I mean this. When two of you get together on anything at all on earth and make a prayer of it, my Father in heaven goes into action. And when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I'll be there."

Jesus gives us some great tips about fighting and confrontation…

1.      Go to that person first.
2.      If they won’t listen bring in a mediator that both people respect.
3.      In the Church aspect, you tell the entire group.
4.      Offer the chance for forgiveness and repentance.

We can fight over some pointless things and ruin some great relationship over fighting over some meaningless things.

The church in Acts 15 were able to work out their differences.

Are you willing to stop bickering and try to workout those relationships in your life that have went wrong?

God always gives us a second chance, are you willing to do the same?

Sometimes the first step is the hardest.

Are you willing to forgive just like God has forgiven you?

Have a great day.