Jesus writes: 'the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.'
How often do you feel like something would be a really good idea for someone else and you don't do it? How often do you feel like you're ready to make a commitment to Christ but don't end up doing it because there are things that are holding you back?
Personally, I feel this all the time. I see someone and I feel like I should talk to them, help them, or maybe serve them in any sort of way possible, but I don't end up doing it...
I believe that the goal should be to have our flesh become just as willing as the spirit.
When you have actually done what you felt like the right thing to do was, how good do you feel? It's one of the most freeing and fulfilling feelings out there. I think that feeling is because we know what we did was a victory.
Whenever out flesh becomes as willing as the spirit, it's a way to show obedience to God.
In Mark 14 there was a woman who anointed Jesus with perfume....This woman won the battle I just talked about it. The spirit was willing and she did what she felt like the right thing to do was...
The woman had a very expensive alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume of Jesus' head.
When she did that there were some people in the house who thought it was the most ridiculous thing ever...why waste an expensive jar of perfume? That perfume could have been sold for more than a year's wages....and the guests in the house (other than Jesus) told her she could've given that many to the poor..
With all the commotion going on, Jesus instructed everyone to leave her alone.
"Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare me for burial. Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her." (Mark 14:6-9)
I believe that sometimes our flesh is so weak because we care what other people around us think.
This story clearly shows that Jesus always has our backs when we go ahead and do something that we know deep down is the right thing to do. This lady does have a little advantage over us, she can actually hear God affirming her for what she has done, whereas we don't really have that luxury. We have to have faith every time we do something like this, that God has our backs.
It's cool how Jesus stuck up for her when the others thought she was crazy. What God thinks is the only opinion of anyone that we should ever be concerned about...
One of the coolest parts about this scripture is that Jesus told everyone that this story of the woman would be told whenever the gospel is preached...One simple and willing act ended up being more significant than the lady could have ever imagined...
My favorite part of what Jesus said was this...'she did what she could.'
The spirit is never asking us to do anything super extravagant and out of his power. The spirit is simply asking us to do what we can.
That is my encouragement to you as you read this post today.
'Do what you can.'
Win the battle between the spirit and the flesh on a daily basis. I promise you it's going to be worth it...and the fulfillment that you are going to feel is something I cannot even put words to do.
It's such an addicting feeling... you are just going to want to keep doing super awesome obedient things over and over and over again.
It won't be easy...that is for sure. There are still times where the spirit is strong and my flesh is weak, but the battle is becoming a little easier day by day.
Wednesday, December 11, 2019
Tuesday, December 10, 2019
A watchful eye
I believe that one of the most difficult things to try and wrap our minds around is...when is Christ going to return?
All thoughts and opinions that circulate around this idea are all over the place. You might hear it in the news...you might hear it from a friend...you might read something in a text book about our world wasting away, etc.
The goal I have for you by the time you finish reading this post is to have a better understanding of when that day will actually come.
"But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! You do not know when that time will come. It's like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch."
"Therefore, keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back - whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. He he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: 'Watch!'" (Mark 13:32-37)
You can see what Jesus is saying in the scripture...nobody knows when that day will happen. You would think the angels might know, or the Son, but they don't! I find that to be so crazy awesome and that just shows the power of the Father.
Whenever I read this passage it's easy to get a little scared sometimes. Scared to thinking that what if it happened in 10 minutes?
The most important part from that scripture is the part about warning us not to fall asleep. Jesus is not saying that we need to literally stay awake all of the time and never sleep...that'd be silly. What Jesus is implying is that we can never let ourselves spiritually fall asleep/drift away.
No matter how long we have to wait, if we let ourselves drift away and fall asleep we won't get to experience the kingdom of heaven. We are to always be ready. This requires having a significant amount of faith. It might not happen during our lives but it might to our kids, or our kid's kids. Imagine the example that you can set for your family someday about having faith that the Father will come someday. If we drift away, we take the opportunity for eternal life away from so many people...
I always hear the question: 'If Christ came back now are you 100% confident you would go to heaven?'
I hope you answer 'yes' so quickly without a blink of hesitation!
What throws me off sometimes is that the scripture about this is clearly right there and people still have their own opinions about when that day will actually happen.
You know what Jesus says?
So be on guard; I have told you everything ahead of time. (Mark 13:23)
He has told us everything. Nobody knows besides the Father. Stop believing all the crazy societal opinions out there and remember that Jesus has told us everything ahead of time...Keep a watchful all eye, you never know when that day will come...
All thoughts and opinions that circulate around this idea are all over the place. You might hear it in the news...you might hear it from a friend...you might read something in a text book about our world wasting away, etc.
The goal I have for you by the time you finish reading this post is to have a better understanding of when that day will actually come.
"But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Be on guard! You do not know when that time will come. It's like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch."
"Therefore, keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back - whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. He he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: 'Watch!'" (Mark 13:32-37)
You can see what Jesus is saying in the scripture...nobody knows when that day will happen. You would think the angels might know, or the Son, but they don't! I find that to be so crazy awesome and that just shows the power of the Father.
Whenever I read this passage it's easy to get a little scared sometimes. Scared to thinking that what if it happened in 10 minutes?
The most important part from that scripture is the part about warning us not to fall asleep. Jesus is not saying that we need to literally stay awake all of the time and never sleep...that'd be silly. What Jesus is implying is that we can never let ourselves spiritually fall asleep/drift away.
No matter how long we have to wait, if we let ourselves drift away and fall asleep we won't get to experience the kingdom of heaven. We are to always be ready. This requires having a significant amount of faith. It might not happen during our lives but it might to our kids, or our kid's kids. Imagine the example that you can set for your family someday about having faith that the Father will come someday. If we drift away, we take the opportunity for eternal life away from so many people...
I always hear the question: 'If Christ came back now are you 100% confident you would go to heaven?'
I hope you answer 'yes' so quickly without a blink of hesitation!
What throws me off sometimes is that the scripture about this is clearly right there and people still have their own opinions about when that day will actually happen.
You know what Jesus says?
So be on guard; I have told you everything ahead of time. (Mark 13:23)
He has told us everything. Nobody knows besides the Father. Stop believing all the crazy societal opinions out there and remember that Jesus has told us everything ahead of time...Keep a watchful all eye, you never know when that day will come...
Monday, December 9, 2019
A severe punishment
You are either all in or you're all out. There is no room for people who fake it just to look good in front of others. I am sure you know some of these people....and to be clear...I am not saying that God doesn't change our hearts. Paul killed Christians and then he committed every part of himself to God and spreading the gospel, and that is what he did the rest of his life.
What I am talking about in this post, is when people just put on an act over and over and over again. There is no time for that and not really any need to be associating with them. The best we can do is pray for those people over and over again because we are all going through something and maybe that one thing is holding them back from giving it all to Christ.
For those who think you can be a little two-faced and put on some sort of extravagant new hat, it won't ever work.
Jesus says in the bible that those people will be severely punished...
As he taught, Jesus said, "Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely." (Mark 12:38-40)
Jesus is clearly warning about trying to make a good impression. These teachers of the law were religious hypocrites who had no love for God.
I bet there are of people out there who do this. Why? Think about it. It's easy to put on this sort of act to look good in front of others. This is a perfect reminder that God always looks at and knows our heart vs. our actions and good deeds.
True followers of Christ are not distinguished by showy spirituality. Reading the bible, praying in public, or following church rituals can be phony if the motive for doing the is to be noticed or honored.
We need to let our actions be consistent with our beliefs. Live for Christ, even when no one is looking.
With this post, I don't want you to believe that we are all just a bunch of phony's because that is not the case. This post is for those who are a little bit phony. Maybe you're just putting a little bit of an act on right now to look good for some people, or maybe you just don't know what to do and how to handle your relationship with Christ.
The two most important commandments that God gives us are...
1. Love the Lord your God with ALL your heart, ALL your soul, and ALL your strength.
2. Love your neighbor as yourself
God wants every part of your heart seven days a week and not only on Sundays.
I know there are a lot thoughts I have in this post that I wrote this morning, but it all comes down to one thing...if you just continue to fake it to look good, you are going to be severely punished someday.
If you are that person who thinks that there is no way that God is going to change your heart, seek him, pray, and I promise you'll change. You can always have hope and a faith because God is loving, and more faithful than we will ever be able to understand. Throughout history God has changed the hearts of some of the most sinful people.
Lastly, pray for those people. Pray for those who are struggling with being able to give all of themselves to God because I guarantee there are a lot of people who are in that boat.
Always remember, this most likely won't happen overnight. When you commit your life to Christ, your heart changes, but it takes lots of discipline for everything to make sense. It's taken my whole life to get where I am today.
Have faith my friends...
I encourage those who are stuck in this phony act to really seek Christ and I am praying for you too. I pray that God does work in all of your hearts every day. I want to see as many of you as I can in heaven someday and I am sure that God wants as many people up there as possible so never stop praying.
What I am talking about in this post, is when people just put on an act over and over and over again. There is no time for that and not really any need to be associating with them. The best we can do is pray for those people over and over again because we are all going through something and maybe that one thing is holding them back from giving it all to Christ.
For those who think you can be a little two-faced and put on some sort of extravagant new hat, it won't ever work.
Jesus says in the bible that those people will be severely punished...
As he taught, Jesus said, "Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely." (Mark 12:38-40)
Jesus is clearly warning about trying to make a good impression. These teachers of the law were religious hypocrites who had no love for God.
I bet there are of people out there who do this. Why? Think about it. It's easy to put on this sort of act to look good in front of others. This is a perfect reminder that God always looks at and knows our heart vs. our actions and good deeds.
True followers of Christ are not distinguished by showy spirituality. Reading the bible, praying in public, or following church rituals can be phony if the motive for doing the is to be noticed or honored.
We need to let our actions be consistent with our beliefs. Live for Christ, even when no one is looking.
With this post, I don't want you to believe that we are all just a bunch of phony's because that is not the case. This post is for those who are a little bit phony. Maybe you're just putting a little bit of an act on right now to look good for some people, or maybe you just don't know what to do and how to handle your relationship with Christ.
The two most important commandments that God gives us are...
1. Love the Lord your God with ALL your heart, ALL your soul, and ALL your strength.
2. Love your neighbor as yourself
God wants every part of your heart seven days a week and not only on Sundays.
I know there are a lot thoughts I have in this post that I wrote this morning, but it all comes down to one thing...if you just continue to fake it to look good, you are going to be severely punished someday.
If you are that person who thinks that there is no way that God is going to change your heart, seek him, pray, and I promise you'll change. You can always have hope and a faith because God is loving, and more faithful than we will ever be able to understand. Throughout history God has changed the hearts of some of the most sinful people.
Lastly, pray for those people. Pray for those who are struggling with being able to give all of themselves to God because I guarantee there are a lot of people who are in that boat.
Always remember, this most likely won't happen overnight. When you commit your life to Christ, your heart changes, but it takes lots of discipline for everything to make sense. It's taken my whole life to get where I am today.
Have faith my friends...
I encourage those who are stuck in this phony act to really seek Christ and I am praying for you too. I pray that God does work in all of your hearts every day. I want to see as many of you as I can in heaven someday and I am sure that God wants as many people up there as possible so never stop praying.
Sunday, December 8, 2019
Strategic reminders
I believe that one of the keys to living a life to the fullest and really being content with who you are in Christ is having little strategic reminders all over the place.
For some people it's the wallpaper on their phone, hanging up a poster on your wall or having something on your desk at work. It's really different for everyone.
I wanted to write a brief post about this tonight because of those reminders was just what I needed to be reminded of tonight.
When Rachel was in Arizona a couple summers ago for a little trip with her friends, she found this small little rock along a trail while they were hiking. When she shared this story with me I found it to be very cool because she told me when she found the rock, it was at a time when she needed to be reminded of the things that were written on it.
So this rock is really colorful and there are some things written on each side: This to shall pass, Peace, In God we trust, Always pray, and Pray.
When she gave it to me when I first asked her to be my girlfriend it was one of the most meaningful things ever.
I have this rock sitting on my desk where I live and every couple days I'll flip it to a different side so I am reminded about something else.
I just had a really special weekend with Rach and her family and now that she is home for a month for break is one of the things I have been looking forward to for months! Driving back to where I live tonight I was really in my feels. I am not really sure why. I think it's just because we are both so ready to always be together! When she is home it's the perfect taste and I love it.
I was also a little bit down because work is hard. I can't sit here and say that it's super easy. When I sat down to write, I looked on my desk, and was reminded that 'This too shall pass.'
It was just what I needed to be reminded off. I saw that and felt totally at peace and was reminded to be thankful for the seasons that we go through and I am, because it's the most exciting time of our lives!
I also have some other strategic reminders that I use...
I have a backpack that I always keep my bible, journal, and laptop in and I pretty much take it everywhere I go with me. Always having my bible with me reminds me that I simply need to be reading it every day.
I also have a couple Polaroid pictures of Rach and my family in my car so that I am always reminded of them all of the time. No matter what traffic I get stuck in, or what boring drive I am on, I can always look up and see my motivation and the people I love the most.
Lastly, the tattoo on my wrist is a perfect reminder too. My tattoo on my wrist stands for...'He must increase and I must decrease.' Whenever I look at my wrist I am reminded that God is so much greater than I am and that there always needs to be more of him and less of me.
I encourage you all to place a strategic reminder somewhere. Something you know that will always be there and something that is convenient for your eyes to see. I promise that when you need to be reminded the most, you will be.
For some people it's the wallpaper on their phone, hanging up a poster on your wall or having something on your desk at work. It's really different for everyone.
I wanted to write a brief post about this tonight because of those reminders was just what I needed to be reminded of tonight.
When Rachel was in Arizona a couple summers ago for a little trip with her friends, she found this small little rock along a trail while they were hiking. When she shared this story with me I found it to be very cool because she told me when she found the rock, it was at a time when she needed to be reminded of the things that were written on it.
So this rock is really colorful and there are some things written on each side: This to shall pass, Peace, In God we trust, Always pray, and Pray.
When she gave it to me when I first asked her to be my girlfriend it was one of the most meaningful things ever.
I have this rock sitting on my desk where I live and every couple days I'll flip it to a different side so I am reminded about something else.
I just had a really special weekend with Rach and her family and now that she is home for a month for break is one of the things I have been looking forward to for months! Driving back to where I live tonight I was really in my feels. I am not really sure why. I think it's just because we are both so ready to always be together! When she is home it's the perfect taste and I love it.
I was also a little bit down because work is hard. I can't sit here and say that it's super easy. When I sat down to write, I looked on my desk, and was reminded that 'This too shall pass.'
It was just what I needed to be reminded off. I saw that and felt totally at peace and was reminded to be thankful for the seasons that we go through and I am, because it's the most exciting time of our lives!
I also have some other strategic reminders that I use...
I have a backpack that I always keep my bible, journal, and laptop in and I pretty much take it everywhere I go with me. Always having my bible with me reminds me that I simply need to be reading it every day.
I also have a couple Polaroid pictures of Rach and my family in my car so that I am always reminded of them all of the time. No matter what traffic I get stuck in, or what boring drive I am on, I can always look up and see my motivation and the people I love the most.
Lastly, the tattoo on my wrist is a perfect reminder too. My tattoo on my wrist stands for...'He must increase and I must decrease.' Whenever I look at my wrist I am reminded that God is so much greater than I am and that there always needs to be more of him and less of me.
I encourage you all to place a strategic reminder somewhere. Something you know that will always be there and something that is convenient for your eyes to see. I promise that when you need to be reminded the most, you will be.
Friday, December 6, 2019
Temple Courts & Christmas Markets
I really hoped you decided to read this because you saw the word 'Christmas' in the title. It's an added bonus if that is your reason...
One of the things my mom and I did this past week while we were in Europe was attend the amazing Christmas markets. In Europe, these Christmas markets are all over the place in most cities. We were fortunate enough to go to four different Christmas markets in four different cities and three different countries.
I don't know if you are familiar with these Christmas markets or not, but they are the most wonderful things. All of the booths are decorated with beautiful Christmas lights in decorations. There are hand made Christmas gifts at every booth. There is amazing food all over the place as well, and you can just feel the spirit of Christmas with all five senses.
You see the beautiful decorations.
You hear the Christmas music.
You smell all of the smells of Christmas.
You get to feel all sorts of awesome Christmas gifts and decorations.
You taste the awesome food.
They're so much fun. All of these markets particularly have one thing in common and that was part of the markets were always close to the massive cathedrals. In every city and country this was the same thing.
It seemed weird to me that all of these booths were right outside these massive cathedrals. But it also made sense to me. The cathedrals could be seen from miles away and that is what drew the people there. Plus there were courtyard areas around these cathedrals so there was always room for all of the booths and lots of people.
Let me ask you this...do you feel like this might be a little deceitful? To use the Cathedral's beauty to attract all of the people?
Well...I just read a story in Mark chapter 11 this morning that was very smilier to this.
Jesus was trying to clear the temple courts but was unable because there were vendors and merchants that were selling and making money in the temple courts...
"On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temples courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, "It is not written: 'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations'? But you have made it a den of robbers.' (Mark 11:15-17)
Before I go further, I don't want to make it sound like I am super against the Christmas markets, or that it was super wrong where they were set up. These beautiful cathedrals aren't used anymore, other than for people to go marvel at their beauty. The Christmas markets just fit perfectly to the topic of the post.
In the temple courts, the money chargers and merchants did big business during Passover. Just like how the Christmas markets do well during the holidays. So the bad thing about the merchants being in the temple courts was that their set up made it nearly impossible for non-Jews to spend any time in worship. This made Jesus angry because God's house of worship had become a place of exhortation and a barrier to Gentiles woh wanted to worship.
I get this 100%! These beautiful Cathedrals were right there for us to go see and marvel but I didn't really want to go in because I was distracted and all I wanted to do was shop and eat good food.
What is distracting you from worshipping God? Are there things in your life that you put in-between you and Christ?
Probably! We all struggle with this. My encouragement to you is to rid yourself of those distractions. Eliminate those things in your life that take away your time from God.
My challenge to you is to think of your relationship with Christ and imagine what it would be like if there weren't so many things distracting you from always worshiping him.
One of the things my mom and I did this past week while we were in Europe was attend the amazing Christmas markets. In Europe, these Christmas markets are all over the place in most cities. We were fortunate enough to go to four different Christmas markets in four different cities and three different countries.
I don't know if you are familiar with these Christmas markets or not, but they are the most wonderful things. All of the booths are decorated with beautiful Christmas lights in decorations. There are hand made Christmas gifts at every booth. There is amazing food all over the place as well, and you can just feel the spirit of Christmas with all five senses.
You see the beautiful decorations.
You hear the Christmas music.
You smell all of the smells of Christmas.
You get to feel all sorts of awesome Christmas gifts and decorations.
You taste the awesome food.
They're so much fun. All of these markets particularly have one thing in common and that was part of the markets were always close to the massive cathedrals. In every city and country this was the same thing.
It seemed weird to me that all of these booths were right outside these massive cathedrals. But it also made sense to me. The cathedrals could be seen from miles away and that is what drew the people there. Plus there were courtyard areas around these cathedrals so there was always room for all of the booths and lots of people.
Let me ask you this...do you feel like this might be a little deceitful? To use the Cathedral's beauty to attract all of the people?
Well...I just read a story in Mark chapter 11 this morning that was very smilier to this.
Jesus was trying to clear the temple courts but was unable because there were vendors and merchants that were selling and making money in the temple courts...
"On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temples courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, "It is not written: 'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations'? But you have made it a den of robbers.' (Mark 11:15-17)
Before I go further, I don't want to make it sound like I am super against the Christmas markets, or that it was super wrong where they were set up. These beautiful cathedrals aren't used anymore, other than for people to go marvel at their beauty. The Christmas markets just fit perfectly to the topic of the post.
In the temple courts, the money chargers and merchants did big business during Passover. Just like how the Christmas markets do well during the holidays. So the bad thing about the merchants being in the temple courts was that their set up made it nearly impossible for non-Jews to spend any time in worship. This made Jesus angry because God's house of worship had become a place of exhortation and a barrier to Gentiles woh wanted to worship.
I get this 100%! These beautiful Cathedrals were right there for us to go see and marvel but I didn't really want to go in because I was distracted and all I wanted to do was shop and eat good food.
What is distracting you from worshipping God? Are there things in your life that you put in-between you and Christ?
Probably! We all struggle with this. My encouragement to you is to rid yourself of those distractions. Eliminate those things in your life that take away your time from God.
My challenge to you is to think of your relationship with Christ and imagine what it would be like if there weren't so many things distracting you from always worshiping him.
Thursday, December 5, 2019
You really told me no?
I was lucky enough to attend an event today in South Bend and it was called the 'Miracle Luncheon.' It was put on by the Center For The Homeless...The main theme throughout the entire luncheon was the word 'kindness' and what it means to so many people and how we should all be more kind.
This post isn't going to make you think to hard, I just want it to encourage you to seek kindness. When you seek something you will find it. Just like how we should always seek Christ...
But seriously though...how true is that statement. It's like having someone close their eyes and telling them that when they open then they must find everything that is brown around them...the first thing those people are going to look for is anything and everything that is brown. If they run out of brown things to see they will begin to compromise. They might see some dark maroon that looks like it could be close to brown and then they will count it...
I believe it's the same thing with kindness. If you are searching for it in other people you will find it. I promise you.
A perfect example of this happened while I was driving back.
Before I share, I want to mention that I never write these things to make me sound good or to try and make myself sound like I am some sort of super-great-awesome person. I am always real with you when I write and I believe the best way people learn and are encouraged is through honesty and stories.
When I left the luncheon, I had one thing on my mind (along with kindness), and that was getting a smoothie. To do this, I had to go out of the way so that I could get one. As I approached the intersection where I was about to make my turn I saw a homeless man standing there.
All sorts of emotions hit me. There had to be a reason that he was there...right after I was at a lunch hosted by the Center For The Homeless. Right after I was at a lunch I wasn't even planning on going to. Yes! I had no idea this was today...one of my colleagues son's was ill and I was asked to fill his spot.
I wanted to do something for this man but didn't know what I should do.
I was either going to get the smoothie I wanted, or I could get this guy something. I figured he needed something more than I did, so I stoped into Bigby and got him the biggest hot chocolate they had. I was so excited to give it to him that I could hardly contain it. I knew that this was going to make his day.
If I was standing outside in the cold I would definitely want one. As I approached, I rolled down my window, I told him that I just got this for him and asked him if he liked hot chocolate and he said to me..."no thanks, I am good."
This honestly wrecked me. I know it sounds silly, but I was super excited to give this guy something I just went and bought for him. I was devastated while driving back to the office. Why in the world did he tell me no?
I wrestled with this thought for about 15 minutes and as I was walking back into the office I remembered that our receptionist was a huge fan of hot chocolate and that maybe I could surprise her with it.
I always saw her drinking hot chocolate, so hopefully she would take it and not think it was weird.
When I thought of this idea, I was so excited and filled with joy. Luckily, our receptionist wasn't at her desk, so I was able to leave it there for a surprise...
Our receptionist was overjoyed when she found the hot chocolate and it seemed like it really made her day. I was also very fulfilled after being shot down 15 minutes beforehand.
Why share this? Kindness is found when you seek it. I could have easily been totally down on myself for the rest of the day but what good what that have done? Probably no good at all. When I was wrestling with my thoughts on what I should do, the idea of kindness was just stuck in my head. I knew that I needed to seek kindness.
I did, and was very fulfilled.
Friends, seek kindness! Especially at this time of year. Just because something doesn't go your way, does't seem the rest of your day should be affected or that there are no kind people in this world. Seek and you will find.
This post isn't going to make you think to hard, I just want it to encourage you to seek kindness. When you seek something you will find it. Just like how we should always seek Christ...
But seriously though...how true is that statement. It's like having someone close their eyes and telling them that when they open then they must find everything that is brown around them...the first thing those people are going to look for is anything and everything that is brown. If they run out of brown things to see they will begin to compromise. They might see some dark maroon that looks like it could be close to brown and then they will count it...
I believe it's the same thing with kindness. If you are searching for it in other people you will find it. I promise you.
A perfect example of this happened while I was driving back.
Before I share, I want to mention that I never write these things to make me sound good or to try and make myself sound like I am some sort of super-great-awesome person. I am always real with you when I write and I believe the best way people learn and are encouraged is through honesty and stories.
When I left the luncheon, I had one thing on my mind (along with kindness), and that was getting a smoothie. To do this, I had to go out of the way so that I could get one. As I approached the intersection where I was about to make my turn I saw a homeless man standing there.
All sorts of emotions hit me. There had to be a reason that he was there...right after I was at a lunch hosted by the Center For The Homeless. Right after I was at a lunch I wasn't even planning on going to. Yes! I had no idea this was today...one of my colleagues son's was ill and I was asked to fill his spot.
I wanted to do something for this man but didn't know what I should do.
I was either going to get the smoothie I wanted, or I could get this guy something. I figured he needed something more than I did, so I stoped into Bigby and got him the biggest hot chocolate they had. I was so excited to give it to him that I could hardly contain it. I knew that this was going to make his day.
If I was standing outside in the cold I would definitely want one. As I approached, I rolled down my window, I told him that I just got this for him and asked him if he liked hot chocolate and he said to me..."no thanks, I am good."
This honestly wrecked me. I know it sounds silly, but I was super excited to give this guy something I just went and bought for him. I was devastated while driving back to the office. Why in the world did he tell me no?
I wrestled with this thought for about 15 minutes and as I was walking back into the office I remembered that our receptionist was a huge fan of hot chocolate and that maybe I could surprise her with it.
I always saw her drinking hot chocolate, so hopefully she would take it and not think it was weird.
When I thought of this idea, I was so excited and filled with joy. Luckily, our receptionist wasn't at her desk, so I was able to leave it there for a surprise...
Our receptionist was overjoyed when she found the hot chocolate and it seemed like it really made her day. I was also very fulfilled after being shot down 15 minutes beforehand.
Why share this? Kindness is found when you seek it. I could have easily been totally down on myself for the rest of the day but what good what that have done? Probably no good at all. When I was wrestling with my thoughts on what I should do, the idea of kindness was just stuck in my head. I knew that I needed to seek kindness.
I did, and was very fulfilled.
Friends, seek kindness! Especially at this time of year. Just because something doesn't go your way, does't seem the rest of your day should be affected or that there are no kind people in this world. Seek and you will find.
Wednesday, December 4, 2019
Angles amongst us
I believe that people everywhere have a desire to do good. We either don’t see it, do a bad job at judging character, or don’t look for it.
People everywhere want to help.
Why do I say this?
My mom and I have been in Europe the past few days and we don’t speak French, German, or Swiss. We might understand a couple words, but it’s hard. Everywhere we go we see different languages. The train stations, airports, cities, restaurants, etc.
In each country/city we have been to so far we have randomly ran into someone who spoke decent enough English to help us. Or when we didn’t happen to run into anyone, we just started asking around to see if anyone did speak English. Whether we were on a bus, or a train we’ve just happened to find people who were willing to help us.
This was crucial in our trip. If we wouldn’t have had any of those encounters, our trip would not be going this well. We probably would’ve gotten lost, frustrated, etc.
I encourage you all to look for the good around you, if you need help with something, people will help you. If you ask and someone doesn’t help, ask again. It’s all about having an abundance mentality.
There are an abundance of people all around who are willing to help, we just have to ask. My challenge for you is to seek out good people around you. My other challenge is to be that good person, if someone needs help, help them.
Put those peoples need above your own because you understand what you are doing and they probably don’t. Let’s that sink in..
I like to think of all these good people as angels and they’re a perfect glimpse of the kingdom of God. I believe God puts all these people into our lives for a reason and that’s to show us how real the kingdom of God is and it’s to fulfill his promise.
We serve a God who is so good to us, we just have to be aware of his goodness.
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