Have you ever been taken out physically? Maybe someone gave you the old "1,2"? I haven't. I guess I have never been in a real fist fight. I have walked from two fights, neither of which I felt were worth fighting back.

How about verbally and emotionally? Do you remember that statement..."Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words can never hurt me."?

Right and wrong! Sticks and stones can break our bones, that is true. However, "words can never hurt me" is not true.

Since you will most likely get arrested if you throw sticks and stones at people, what can you do? How about throwing insults and demeaning comments? You might as well call words "sticks and stones" as well. They can do the same damage, only in a different way. The damage words cause is on the inside, it is longer term, it takes more time for healing.

Just think, if someone beats you with sticks and stones you will be seriously injured. A few weeks later you will be better. If someone hurls insults at you, trash talks you, brings you down and hurts your feelings you will be severely injured. This injury takes more time to heal.

I have been trash talked, insulted and brought down verbally. Even though I have forgiven the insulter and given the situation to God; the insults, trash talk and verbal abuse still come to mind at times.

Take a moment to remember a time where someone hurled verbal sticks and stones at you. Now, make a commitment to never allow yourself to do this to others. See, we never want to receive verbal abuse, but at times we dish it out and don't think twice.

Let's go to another comment I heard from my mom when I was a child. "Think about what you say before you say it."

Moral of the story: Sticks and stones can break bones- words can break hearts. Hearts are harder to repair. Don't throw verbal sticks and stones.

"I am what seems to be good. I am where you don't expect me to be. I say what you want to hear. I work with other people to get closer to you. I hide out waiting for you. I sneak around. I put secrets in your ear. I scheme and plan. I try to be with you all of the time, if I'm not with you, I'm working for you, doing what I do. I whisper. I am most certainly cautious. I do my job well, I work hard. My job could be easier if you would only help me. Give up, work with me, give in. Be my friend."
Sincerely,
Angel of Darkness

Have you seen the enemy working in your life? The Word tells us in John 10:10 that the "thief comes to destroy." Keep in mind, your demise can come slowly. It may not happen over night. The good news is in the rest of John 10:10 where Jesus says that He has come to give life to the full or in abundance.

The enemy will use whatever he can to get to you. He may even use people you would have never expected him to use. Prepare yourself, this is more than possible. Things might be difficult, they might be hard. Don't give in! Next time you face the enemy, embrace John 16:33. The world has already been overcome! Victory is yours!

I am a football fan. I LOVE football! My team..yes it is "my" team, I own them...just kidding. Anyway, my team is the New York Giants. I am so stoked that we won the Superbowl last year and hoping that we will make it again this year. Sorry Dallas, I think we will take you this Sunday! Booyah!

As a NYG fan I do different things. I watch as many of their games as I can, I support them by wearing NYG apparel, I defend them to other team fans. I Check their web site and keep up with as much as I have the time to keep up with. I even have a NYG sticker on my car! Are you a football fan? Have you seen people like me before? I'm sure you have. Maybe you are one.

Let this question soak in your for a second: Would I be considered a "real" NYG fan if I never watched their games, didn't wear their shirts or didn't care about their victories? What if sometimes I even went for the other team?

Most will agree that if I didn't watch their games, didn't wear their shirts, didn't support them and so on that I was not a true fan. Fair statement.

What about Jesus? What if I don't pursue Him every day, read His Word, go to His church and genuinely seek after Him? What if I just went to church every week or two, or three? What if I didn't talk about Him? What if? Would you consider me a "fan" of Jesus? Let's take this further...Would you consider me a "follower" of Jesus?

I hope that you answered "no!" If I didn't pursue Him in every way possible I would be no more than the person on the apposing team.

I really like the New York Giants, I will most assuredly never cheer for the apposing team.

I LOVE Jesus, I MUST live fully for Him, and Him alone.

So many people claim to be "Christians", that is what has inspired this post. I am a Christ follower, that means I FOLLOW Him. My prayer for you today is that you would shift from where you are into a full blown relationship with Christ, so much so that you would follow Him in everything.

"Obedience is to do what you are told, when you are told, with a happy heart!"

Have you heard that before? I must have heard that a million times when I was young because it still rings loudly in my mind.

I am constantly reminding my daughter of this statement above. See, she is a really good girl, but being 4 nearly 5 she is learning how to obey and how to obey the right way. See, sometimes she will do what she is told to do but she complains, shrugs her shoulders and hesitates to do it. Sometimes, she wants to wait, she wants to put it off until, well, until she wants to do it or it is more convenient for her. The challenge is that this is not true, pure obedience. This is disobedience.

I find this to be true for me today. On a different level, of course. My instructions aren't necessarily coming from my parents any more. I have many different people that I am responsible to. Mostly, I am responsible to God.

I find myself struggling to obey with a "happy heart" all of the time when God gives me instruction. Sometimes, like Carmen (my daughter), I struggle with doing what God tells me to do when He tells me to do it. For some reason I think I may have better timing or something. I have told Carmen to do something that would pull her away from her toys and she struggles with that. In the same way, God tells me to do things that pull me away from things I like or enjoy. Sometimes God gives me instruction that doesn't seem to make sense for my timing, I struggle with that.

God has revealed this statement to me: "Obedience is to do what your told, when your told, with a happy heart."

Regardless of my agenda, my plan and my priorities. I have to be obedient. Why? For the same reason Carmen has to be obedient. If she isn't, discipline will inevitably occur. I hate discipline just like Carmen does. The good news is that when she is obedient she is rewarded - blessed. Same for me, when I am obedient, I am rewarded and blessed.

We have two choices: 1. Obedience. 2. Disobedience.

Which will you choose?

1. Do what you say you will do
2. Follow Christ

3. Own it

Many times when we venture into something new or different we kind of half hearted go into it. In order to gain full support from your spouse in anything you need to own it. You need to spend time preparing, know details, have a plan and mostly, you must buy in!

If want a new shirt what do you do? You go to the store and buy the one you want. But before you go to the store, more than likely you probably have an idea of what kind or style of shirt you want to buy, you probably have a budget in mind and most likely you know what store(s) you will go to in order to buy the shirt.

What happens if you don't know these things before going to purchase the shirt? You go to a ton of stores, spend a ton of time, spend more money than you originally wanted to, and probably get more than one shirt- shirts that you didn't necessarily want.

To get the shirt that you want you have to own it before you ever get to the store. When you own it before you get there you know it when you see it. You will stay in your budget, you have spent less time and frustration. Overall your experience of getting a new shirt will have been lovely.

Same thing goes in any area of your life. You have to own it before you ever pursue it. You have to own it before you ever present it. You have to own it before you go for it. If not, you will never get it. And you certainly won't gain support from your spouse.

You spouse wants to see that you have taken all the appropriate steps in you plan. You spouse wants to see that you have a plan. How can you expect support from your spouse if you don't even fully support yourself?

Do what you say you will do. Follow Christ. Own it!

2. Follow Christ
Seek after God's heart every day, this will give your spouse assurance.

Following Christ is more than telling God what you want and asking Him to accommodate. To follow Christ is to seek Him, know Him and be obedient to everything He says.

Your spouse wants to see that your relationship with Him exists. Don't begin getting up early and waking your spouse to let them know of what you are doing. Allow Christ to consume you to the point where it is obvious.

Take your plans, visions and aspirations to God. Ask Him for clarity, ask Him to confirm to you that this too is His plan, ask Him to give you guidance.
This is more important than you may think. See, God holds the whole universe, nothing happens without Him knowing or being a part of it. If you shoot off into some new plan you have created and God is not in it, nor does He approve. This could mean devastation for you. This could also mean devastation for your relationship with your spouse.

On the other hand, if you seek God's heart on your plan, and He blesses it. Go for it!

In summation: Your spouse wants to see your intimate relationship with Christ, they want to know that you are having faith in Him not just in you. They want to know there is more behind this than just some idea you had.
If you're not following Christ yet, today is the best day to start. If you don't know how, shoot me a message I'd love to help you.

Support from your spouse is hinged on your obedience to Christ.

A few days of no blogging = well, I guess it = a few days of no blogs. Anyway, I am back.

We just came through the Thanksgiving holiday, what a great time! I got to smoke the turkey for my family this year - that was great. We had my sister and her family in from FL, everyone came to my house - wonderful!

We sat in a circle after lunch and and told what we were thankful for. Of course, all of us could have gone on and on but we kept them short and sweet. I mentioned my thankfulness for my wife who loves and supports me even in my wildest dreams and aspirations.

The most interesting thing about my wife, anyone for that matter...they have a choice, they don't have to support you.

Here are 3 ways to gain your spouses support:

1. Do what you say you are going to do.
"I'll take the trash out after dinner." "I'll take the kids to practice." "Yeah, I'll do a couples Bible study with you."
These comments barely touch the surface of different commitments we make to our spouse.

If you say you are going to do something, do it!
You said you would take the trash out after dinner and now it is the next day, the trash truck has already came and your trash is stacked up. Now, your spouse is mad. It is this kind of failed commitment that ruins your chance of the "bigger" ones.

When we get down to it on this taking the trash out issue. Not only did you fail on a commitment but you lied. You said you would do it and you didn't. That is a lie.

How can we expect support if the spouse doesn't even have a reason to beleive us?

In doing what we say we will we earn trust which in turn will give us support.

Next time your spouse doesn't support your absolutely crazy idea or plan, check the amount of trash stacked up in your garage.