Faith requires Discomfort

1 Peter 4:12-13

New King James Version (NKJV)

Suffering for God’s Glory

 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; ¹³ but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.

This is meant to encourage you, because many will never step out in Faith, with our Heavenly Father, because of the fear of discomfort. Here are some thoughts to chew on.

• Many are unwilling to experience great reward because their beginnings are not glamorous. 
• Everything I ever started required risk, loss, sacrifice and volunteer. It never started with unlimited safety. Regarding true blessings in my life, I would gladly go back in time and inspire myself to trust God all over again.  I would tell myself a hefty, "Its sooooo worth it."

Zechariah 4:10

For who has despised the day of small things?

New King James Version (NKJV)

• The cost of lost purity is to pricey to pay. 
• For some your a target, for others your a treasure. (Your friends, who you will only know in your High School years, might tease you. The Father of the woman of your dreams is praying for you to come along. Whatever price you have to pay for your purity is worth it.)
• Some see your weakness, others see your strengths. 
• Certain ones tolerate you, others celebrate you.

Proverbs 22:11

He who loves purity of heart And has grace on his lips, The king will be his friend.

Church and Sesame Street

I grew watching Sesame Street. It was not a daily source of information for me, but I bet I can still name almost every old character.  I was recently impressed with a decision they made to include a topic that is not easy to talk about, divorce. Sesame Street executives tried to bring this story up years ago, however the approach on the content was way to sad and intense. Recently they revisited the topic. Click here to visit the article and video.

Lynn Chwatsky, Sesame Workshop’s vice president of outreach initiatives oversaw the project explains why the “Sesame Street” crew decided to readdress this issue 20 years after flopping on it.

“We want kids to understand that they’re not alone, and that it’s not their fault,” says Chwatsky. “These kids love and adore Abby. So to know that she’s going through something similar to them, something challenging, it’s like, Wow. It makes it O.K. to have a whole range of feelings.”

So what does this have to do with church. Many times when mistakes happen in the church we care more about addressing the mistake, even trying to eliminate the potential of mistakes, then helping clean the mess up. Here are a few thoughts about how we can better talk about tough issues like divorce.

• Messes happen

- Divorce will always be apart of our culture. (There I said it.) We can help some marriages, others were doomed from the start. Its not the end of their world or the potential of what God can do in their life. My first desire is to see God restore the marriage (He hates divorce). Second can the church successfully navigate someone through a divorce?

• Divorce, now what?

- For many behind the church leadership we don't know. We did not know there were options. Here are some issues we need to study up on and think about. 

Divorce Counseling - (I did not say marriage counseling) What went wrong so I don't do it again. 

Mixed Families - This is a big one. How do we "all" get along? 

Stay in Church - Punishment usually follows people who are committed to church and go through a divorce. I don't believe this is the correct response. There must be time for healing and correction, but punishment is not the remedy. 

Kids Church Curriculum - I lost you here didn't I. Fifty percent of families are effected by divorce. To be more personal, as a kid you either thought your parents were going to get a divorce or they already did get a divorce. There is a lot of emotion locked up inside todays kids. Why not talk about it. The safest place for our kids to do that, I think, is in kids church.

• Hard Headedness is a sin. Divorce is a symptom

 . - Jesus was asked about divorce. Mark 10:1-12. Jesus quotes Moses, then rebukes them, not for divorce but for their own "hard headedness". Church leaders should rebuke (stand against, despise, teach on) hard headedness (arrogance, pride,  hard hearts) instead of symptoms of it.

I would like to know what you think. Remember this is a sticky subject and most people don't open this  "can of worms". However, it is here, it is real and in some form and fashion we are all connected with it. So, lets start the conversation.

2012 hunting season has begun! This of course is one of my loves. He scored 79 inches. It takes 67 inches to make the Poope & Young record books. Everyone needs hobbies. Here are a few of my reasons why.

1. Its "Cross Training" for the brain.
When I hunt I have to be a problem solver, creative and do my homework to be successful. These same qualities are a must for my calling too. Some might think its a stretch or excuse to link the two, but I don't. During a hunt I have time to think. After a successful hunt I come back energized.

2. Goals are Contagious.
When I sit down and write out my goals for every year some goals are more exciting than others. When I start checking off the goal list, because of completion. It sparks enthusiasm to accomplish more. One accomplished goal fuels confidence to accomplish another unachieved goal.

3. Fun is Fuel.
If I love it I will do it.

4. I'm good at it.
That helps a lot also. I want to be clear on what I am good at. Killing an animal? No. I am good at.... Preparing with good equipment, gear and my physical condition. I am good at doing my homework for a hunt. I put out trail cameras and get information to make a good decision on the animal I should harvest. I practice... a lot. I make an absolute best effort to take a good shot. I don't shoot young animals. I know how old the animal is, if he is a candidate for harvest and if he is a trophy or not. I practice self discipline. I have passed on more animals than I have harvested. Then I take the shot. I am honest. I have been in many sticky situations and have done the right thing. These are a few of the reasons I think I am a good hunter. I love being this type of person in other areas also.

5. Friends & Family
I want these two things in every area of my life. It makes the moments last longer. It causes the experiences to be sweeter. I doubt I would do a lot that I do if these two ingredients were not there.