Prayer of the day

Ever had one of those days? You know, those days? Or maybe 47 of them in a row? Maybe you're in one of those stretches right now. 

Maybe this prayer of mine will help you and encourage you. 

Maybe you know someone who needs to hear this. 

So that maybe tomorrow won't be one of those days :)

My prayer today

God, I know the call You gave me in college. I know I spent many years chasing that call and nothing worked for me to do it full-time. I know I gave up on that call for a season. Or two. Or twenty-seven. 

I know You never did. 

I know I've made many mistakes in my life. Many steps that weren't in line with Your path. I know that every time You have stepped in and corrected my course. 

I know that lately things are happening that make me believe You are about to step in again. I know the opportunity is there. I know the need is there. I know the future will be bright - IF this is Your next step for me. 

I know that You have all things under control, and it will all work out right as long as I learn to follow Your lead. Life is a dance, after all:

"Life's a dance

You learn as you go

Sometimes you lead

Sometimes you follow

Don't worry 'bout what you don't know

Life's a dance

You learn as you go"

Time Marches On ...

Tonight marks the end of an era in my life. I have arrived at the 41st anniversary of birth. Wow ...

The funny thing is that I don't feel or think like a guy in his forties. Having young kids does that to you :)

So many things I wanted to have accomplished by now ...

So many decisions I'm proud of, so many others I wish I could do-over ...

And yet, the sun will come up in the morning and present me with another day in which to lead my family and myself.

It won't ask my thoughts about any one day in the first 40 years I've lived. I have no chance to defend or apologize for anything I've done.

I can only do what's right today.

I can rely on God's mercy once more.

It's a new dawn, it's a new day.

Time marches on ...

Mighty Mouse

February 9, 2012, will mark 5 years since my youngest son Nathan was born.  In case you don't already know, here is some of his story.

Nathan wasn't supposed to be possible.  Because of cancer treatments, his birth mother had been declared sterile.  The fact that he survived the first few months of life is a miracle!

Nathan was born via C-section at approximately 27.5 weeks.
He weighed only 2 pounds 4 ounces.
The doctors gave him a 50% chance of survival at best.

So incredibly tiny.
So perfectly formed.
So fragile.

I still remember the doctor holding him in one hand.
I still remember him struggling to breathe.
I still remember the NICU, and the care they provided him.

He spent 3 months in NICU.  I visited him every day for several hours.  I'll never forget walking in one day and he was struggling so much.  His vital signs were a mess.  I reached into the incubator to let him know that I was there.  He took my finger in his hand, and within a minute all his vital signs returned to normal levels.  

Through the years, he has remained totally healthy with no signs of any complications from birth.  He is honestly one of the coolest and funniest kids you will ever meet :)  His intense desire to get the most out of every moment inspires me, as if he knows deep inside that he's a miracle.

You'll have to pardon me a minute while I brag on someone.  Renee', you were and still are a Godsend to me and 'the kids'.  I have watched you take on the responsibility of raising 4 kids and never look back.  Thanks is totally insufficient and incapable of describing my feelings.  Your bond with Nathan is an integral part of his success.  I love you :)

Pictures are great, and I love taking them, but sometimes they don't do justice to the message.  With that in mind, here are a few snapshots we took this past weekend in a return trip to the NICU.  I hope you enjoy them.

This last one shows just how far he's come.  The bear is roughly the size of Nathan at birth, and he's wearing a diaper and the sunglasses that each preemie wears in the NICU.

I've said for years, mostly in jest, that God watches out for babies and idiots, and that I don't really care which one He thinks I am as long as He's watching out for me :)  God has really blessed us with Nathan.

Happy Birthday Mighty Mouse!

Usable (S)crap

I'm in the process.
Of a lot of things.

Family.
Salvation.
Work.
Ministry.
Photography.

Sometimes I don't quite make the cut.

Some of my efforts wind up as scrap pieces of me,
laying on the floor.

Abandoned.
Useless.

One of the things I'm involved with (at my day job) is building a plastic extrusion machine, which takes millions of tiny pieces of plastic and forms them into a usable product.  This process involves tons of pressure, almost unbearable heat, some stretching, cooling, cutting, etc.  The master computer monitors each step of the process, and adjusts as necessary to make the finished product perfect.  The process itself guarantees that there will be some portion of the product that becomes scrap, but the design allows for that scrap to be re-introduced to the process.

How many times has God started over with me?
How much of my (s)crap has God been willing to work over again?

Jeremiah 18:1-4 NLT is speaking to me today:
"The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah.  He said, "Go down to the potter's shop, and I will speak to you there."  So I did as He told me and found a potter working at his wheel. But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over."
(emphasis mine)

God, thank you for never giving up on me.
Thank you for wanting to mold me into a useful product.
Please keep monitoring the process to ensure that I turn out right.
Even when I give you (s)crap.

WORKS

WORKS

John 14:12-13

He that believes in Me ... greater works than these shall he do

I’ve had the wrong impression pretty much all my life.  I have always felt that if I wasn’t doing what I thought was enough in terms of Kingdom work, then I was a failure.  Because everything in life has a season, there are times when God wants you to rest.  Times when busyness must take a backseat to recovery.  Times to blank out all the voices in life and just focus on God.  Whenever these times would come my way, I always would begin to question if God was through with me.  If He would ever call me back into the game, or would I forever be sidelined? 

Then it dawned on me.

God doesn’t want me for what I can do for Him.

Yes, He wants to use me for His kingdom.

But He doesn’t need me.

I need Him.

I’m reminded of a gathering that Jesus showed up to one day.  Two women were involved in hosting the party - Mary and Martha.  Martha took the opportunity to serve and immersed herself in the work.  So much so that when Mary didn’t match her effort she got mad!  Never mind that Mary took the opportunity to give her all in worship; there are dishes to be cleaned!!!  So many times we get caught up in the necessary that we forget the need.

I need Him.

God, help me never to replace my need for You with service to You.  Help me to take advantage of the empty times and rest in You.  There is coming a day when I’ll be called back into the battlefield, and if I’ve wasted the resting times worrying about the necessary I won’t have the strength that You’ve wanted to give me.

I need Him!

Liberty for the Bruised

In the beginning of Jesus' ministry, He went to the synagogue on a certain Sabbath.  While there, He read a passage out of Isaiah ... I've copied the text from the KJV because one phrase has stood out to me for some time:

Luke 4:18 

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, 

Several years ago I manned 2nd base in a church softball tournament.  This particular day was steamy (100+ temps), with little or no wind.  The other team's hotshot came up to bat, and as you can probably predict, he promptly peppered a ground ball my way.  One wrongly predicted bounce later and the ball hit my shin.  Ouch!  If it matters, I did throw the guy out at first, but that has no relevance to this post :)

After a few days, the pain began to go away but I was left with a knot at the point of impact and a juicy black, green, purple, and blue bruise from the knee to the ankle.  While getting ready for church the next weekend, God reminded me of this phrase "to set at liberty them that are bruised".  Several things began to flow into my spirit:

- A bruise is today's reminder of yesterday's injury.

- Even though the pain may be gone, the affected area is still tender and easily hurt again.

- I kept thinking "Don't touch me there, it will hurt more."

- I had been going to extraordinary lengths to protect that hurt.

- In reality, I had become a slave to that hurt.

I love it when the Scripture comes to life in new and fresh ways!  How many times in your life has someone or some situation hurt you?  Maybe you messed up, maybe it was through no fault of your own, but the hurt is still real.  Jesus took time to read a prophecy about Himself to remind us that He came to set us free from past hurts and failures.  It doesn't matter to Him what happened or who caused it, He is interested in healing and delivering us!

A lot of times we will carry our hurts with us for months or even years.  Whether it came from family, church, or work associates, this hurt will affect our lives in drastic ways.  Relationships that were once valued can be dissolved in a short period of time.  Church involvement can be affected; sometimes we even lose the desire to be a part of church.  All in an effort to protect that hurt area, not allowing anyone to touch or discuss it.  It simply hurts too much!

Carry the hurt long enough, and we eventually become a slave to that hurt.  The ironic thing is that all along Jesus has walked right beside you, especially in the times you didn't know He was there.  All along He has desired to heal the hurt and set you free from the burden it has become!

One thing I have learned about God's healing process:  when He heals, He allows your true colors to shine.  My physical bruise only turned colors when the inside had begun to heal.  It takes a generous amount of courage to put yourself out there after being hurt, but God gives uncommon strength when you are willing to do what He has asked you to do.

My prayer for you today is that you simply take that step in asking God to heal you of past hurts.  As the process gets going, don't be afraid to step into God's providence and provision for your life - He's got your back!

Thanks for checking out my new blog.  Hopefully you will find the periodic peeks into our lives interesting and compelling conversation.  Renee' and I have 5 kids, so there is plenty to write about on that alone, not to mention working for God and the other stuff we have going on on a daily basis!  Feel free to comment and/or link to this page at any time.

Jarrett Humphries