Living Unfiltered for God

  From the time I was a young boy (when I first started playing competitive sports) I remember hearing the words, “You have to be in the right position!” Playing baseball, as a Shortstop, it was vital that I placed myself in the most advantageous position between second and third base. (Fortunately, this was before “the shift” became a thing!) It varied from batter to batter, how many outs there were, if there were runners on base, and so forth. To be the best shortstop that I could be, I had to pay attention to my physical location.             This continues today, as I’ve recently started playing tennis competitively with my daughter. If you watch Mixed-Doubles on TV, it may seem innocuous enough, but let me tell you – there is A LOT going on and to keep track of! Not the least of which is placing yourself in the proper position on the court. Michelle (possibly the world’s most patient daughter) is forever telling me to, “...

It was a beautiful day for New Years in our little town. So nice that my wife and I decided to go for a walk at our local park. (Sunny and mid-50’s… Winter in North Georgia isn’t terrible!) One of the things I love about our walks is our conversations. And this time of year, like many of you, I’m sure, we love to take some time to look back at the last year to remember where God moved and where we maybe could have done more (or less!) in different areas of our lives. Of course, it’s also fun to look ahead – to dream about what might be? It was during this part of the conversation that I asked this question… “What story do you want to be able to tell 365 days from now?” For the next half-mile, we talked about different scenarios and things that are important to us. Our daughters and grandchildren were part of that discussion. Also, our company and some things concerning our church. What resulted were some challenges to us. One, in particular, was my comment about finally finishing...

Recently, I’ve been watching a series of sermons from Pastor Miles McPherson ( Rock Church in San Diego ) about prophecy. One definition that keeps getting repeated is that prophecy is a word , that becomes a thing , that in turn gets transformed into God’s Glory. Maybe it’s because my wife and I have been talking about this a lot lately, but when I felt the Lord give me a word this morning – out of nowhere, by the way, (and isn’t that often the case?) – I knew I was supposed to share it in this manner. I’ve written in this space often ( here , here and here , for a few ) about the family camp we attend every summer. There have also been posts about the scripture stones that the youth receive on the last day of camp. This is always one of my personal highlights of our camp – to see which scriptures resonate with the kids. As part of this tradition, I ask one of them to choose a stone for me. I can’t begin to tell you (although I attempted to in a previous post ) how much these s...

Last week, Barbara and I spent our 25th anniversary celebrating with a little much needed R&R and “just us” time in Charleston, SC. There were several times in the weeks leading up to our trip, however, where it seemed we might not make the trip. Looking back, I’m sure it was the enemy trying to keep us from some very important divine appointments. While not everything went the way we planned, we made some new friends and came home with some wonderful “God stories”. This is just one of them… One of our main objectives for our stay was to visit the Charleston City Market. When we had been to Charleston years ago, we only had a little bit of time there and so we were looking forward to taking our time while we perused all the booths and wares. We were specifically looking for gifts for several grandchildren’s birthdays, while also looking for a special anniversary gift to, and for, each other. About an hour into our shopping, I noticed Barbara striking up a conversation with th...

In the last four posts, we have been studying some lesser-known, or at least less talked about individuals from the Bible. All of them have played an important role in the broader story that is HIS-story. Our final character though, Ananias, exhibits perhaps the best example of what it means to live unfiltered for God. That is, when we hear God prompt us to do something (however that may work for you), we do it. We all know the story of Paul. How he was originally known as Saul and made quite a name for himself by persecuting (and worse) any and all Christians that he came across. We also know of his “conversion experience” as he was on the road to Damascus one day. Scripture records it like this:   As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”   “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.   “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting, ”...

Have you ever wanted something so badly, that you prayed if God gave it to you, you would give it back to Him? Sounds a little crazy, doesn’t it? Yet, that is precisely what the individual we’re about to look at did. We’re almost done with our recap of what the Youth of Florida Family CFO discussed out on the dock early each morning. When Thursday came, it was time to study a little more about another great woman of the Bible… Hannah. Hannah was one of two wives of Elkanah. (A detail that required a little extra discussion that early morning.) His other wife had given birth to multiple sons and daughters, while Hannah’s womb, “was closed”, and had not produced any offspring. This was a constant point of irritation to Hannah, as her rival “provoked her.” Once, during their annual visit to Shiloh, where they worshiped and sacrificed, Hannah, while in the presence of Eli, the priest, started weeping and praying. In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the Lord, weeping bitt...

As I mentioned in my previous post, while we were at Florida Family CFO recently, I was blessed with the opportunity to spend each morning with the youth of the camp. Every morning at 7:30 we would meet on the dock that reached into Lake Yale to discuss The Word and share Communion together. (We would also watch – and keep an eye on – the occasional alligator that would float by, as well as shoo away the water birds that were overly interested in our communion bread!) I’ve done this for three years now, and each year it stands out as the highlight of my week. I am continually impressed with these young people and it gives me great confidence in the future. Every year we have a theme of sorts on which our devotions are based. This year, it was less than 12 hours before our first gathering that the Holy Spirit showed me what we were to study this year. It was Sunday evening and John Kimer, the main Youth Speaker this year, was sharing briefly about what God had put on his heart to...

There’s something about the end of a calendar year that tends to make us very introspective. This day – New Year’s Eve – is traditionally the day I spend the most time thinking about where I’ve been… and where I’m headed. My wife and I enjoy remembering the “highlights” of the year as we prepare to embark on a brand new 12 months! While today marks the height of this process of reflecting, for us it typically starts a week or so before Christmas. Things will pop up that we’d almost forgotten, and it gives us time to digest what it all means and perhaps, what we were supposed to learn from it all. Last night, I had a thought not from 2017, but from 1987. New Year’s Eve 1987, to be exact. I was reminded of something that took place 30 years ago today, which I will share in a minute. Some other thoughts followed – what it might mean and why, that I feel, the Holy Spirit brought to mind. I’m still not entirely sure why. I was just sure that I needed to write it down. If I’m honest, I’...

I've been reminded this weekend of one of the very first times I remember being actively aware that I was being obedient to one of God's promptings. And actually, I don't even feel like I can "take credit" for doing so, because I truly believe that I had no say in the matter. It was a situation where God literally "took the wheel", as they say. Let me explain... Many, many years ago, after a few years of floundering in college, I knew it was time for me to get my act together. I had taken a year off of school - my mother had been diagnosed with cancer an the outlook was not good. I decided to go back home to spend some time with her as well as figure out how I was going to get my schooling back on track. After she passed away, it was time. No more messing around. I needed to finish my degree and get on with my life. It was a definite 1 Corinthians 13:11 moment, although I didn't necessarily think of it as such back then. When I was a child, ...