Let It Fade ... a song by Jeremy Camp

Let this wash over you today and see how it hits you:

Have you been walking on a surface that's uncertain?
Have you helped yourself to everything that's empty?
You can't live this way too long.
There's more than this, more than this.

Have you been standing on your own feet too long?
Have you been looking for a place where you belong?
You can rest, you will find rest!

Let this old life crumble, let it fade.
Let this new life offered be your saving grace.
Let this old life crumble, let it fade, let it fade.

Have you been holding on to what this world had offered?
Have you been giving in to all these maqueradees?
It will be gone, It will be gone.
Are you carrying the weight too much, are you running from the call?

Acts 4:13

"When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus."

Wow! I pray that as we go throughout our day, others might say the same about you and I. We may not have the opporunity that the apostles did of seeing Jesus physically and following him for 3 years, but we do have a chance at any moment to spend time with him. Let's spend some time with Jesus today!!!

Stay strong and TRUE! PLD!

STP, an IronMan

Update on Christmas Wish opportunity

IronMen, just a reminder and some more info on Blanca Alfaro, the lady we are going to help this holiday season. We really need two things if you can help:

1. Money is good or Home Depot gift cards so that we can get supplies for the work we are going to do on the house.
2. Time if you can help. We are going to go to her house after Christmas (day and time to be determined) and work on fixing up the place.

Please think about these two things and see how you can help. The basic things we will be working on at her house are:
1. Misc painting
2. Fixing some tile
3. Pressure washing outside of house
4. Misc small projects

These are things that i know of right now that might change. She is needing to sell her house because she cannot afford it anymore. I will get you more info later, but if you can help financially, please do so asap. thanks so much.

Stay Strong, PLD

STP, an IronMan

Service idea

IronMen, here is something i want you to be thinking about. I contacted KLTY and their Christmas Wish program to see if I could find a family that we as IronMen could help this holiday season. I have found one that I think is going to work out great! Please be in prayer about this and I will give you more info very soon. I don't want to give all the info right now because i have not confirmed it yet. So, just pray about it and maybe later today or tomorrow I can give you more info. Thanks men!

STP, and IronMan

A Thought on Prayer... from "Prayer" by Phillip Yancey

This is an excerpt from the book "Prayer" by Phillip Yancey and I thought you might enjoy this as it really put authentic prayer into focus for me:

I was teaching a class at a church in Chicago when a young woman raised her hand with a question. I knew her as a shy, conscientious student who attended faithfully but never spoke. The rest of the class seemed suprised as well and listened attentively. "I'm not always sincere when I pray," she began. "Sometimes it seems forced, more like a ritual. I'm just repeating words. Does God hear those prayers? Should I keep going even though I have no confidence that I'm doing it right?"

I let the silence hang in the room for a moment before attempting an answer. "Do you notice how quiet it is in here?" I said. "We all sense your honesty. It took courage for you to be vulnerable, and you touched a nerve with others of us in the room. You seem sincere, unlike a salesman, say, who gets paid to give a spiel. We're tuned in, listening, respectful, because you are being authintic. And I imagine it's the same with God. More than anyting else, God wants your autintic self."

And a couple of other quotes from the same chapter:

Prayer makes room for the unspeakable.

In truth, what I think and feel as I pray, rather than the words I speak, may be the real prayer, for God "hears" that too. (Reference Psalms 139:4,7-8)

Unless I level with God, our relationship will go nowhere.

"We must lay before Him what is in us, not what ought to be in us." (C.S. Lewis) In other words, we must trust God with what God already knows.

Stay Strong, PLD
STP, an IronMan

Seeking the Savior - Max Lucado

Simeon said, “Can I stay alive until I see him?”

The Magi said, “Saddle up the camels. We aren’t stopping until we find him.”

The shepherds said, “Let’s go…. Let’s see.”

They wanted the Savior. They wanted to see Jesus.

They were earnest in their search. One translation renders Hebrews 11:6: “God … rewards those who earnestly seek him” (NIV, italics mine).
Another reads: “God rewards those who search for him” (PHILLIPS, italics mine).
And another: “God … rewards those who sincerely look for him” (TLB, italics mine).
I like the King James translation: “He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (italics mine).

Diligently—what a great word. Be diligent in your search. Be hungry in your quest, relentless in your pilgrimage. Let this book be but one of dozens you read about Jesus and this hour be but one of hundreds in which you seek him. Step away from the puny pursuits of possessions and positions, and seek your king.

Don’t be satisfied with angels. Don’t be content with stars in the sky. Seek him out as the shepherds did. Long for him as Simeon did. Worship him as the wise men did. Do as John and Andrew did: ask for his address. Do as Matthew: invite Jesus into your house. Imitate Zacchaeus. Risk whatever it takes to see Christ.

God rewards those who seek him. Not those who seek doctrine or religion or systems or creeds. Many settle for these lesser passions, but the reward goes to those who settle for nothing less than Jesus himself. And what is the reward? What awaits those who seek Jesus? Nothing short of the heart of Jesus. “And as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like him” (2 Cor. 3:18 TLB).

Can you think of a greater gift than to be like Jesus? Christ felt no guilt; God wants to banish yours. Jesus had no bad habits; God wants to remove yours. Jesus had no fear of death; God wants you to be fearless. Jesus had kindness for the diseased and mercy for the rebellious and courage for the challenges. God wants you to have the same.
He loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to be just like Jesus.

From Just Like JesusCopyright 1998, Max Lucado

Enjoy the moments

Question: How do you learn to appreciate the different stages of your life?

This is a questions that has been haunting me lately. I am trying to understand this concept as my life seems frazzled presently. My kids are going through some interesting stages, they are sick with seasonal illenesses, work is very busy and oftentimes difficult to understand, we have a new business that Paige and I have started and that has some normal concerns, I don't seem to have the time to spend on IronMen that I desire and the list goes on. I know there are good and difficult things to each of these circumstances and my human nature is to focus on the "difficult". I know this is the mind games the devil plays in our heads.

Lots of times, your thoughts go to extremes during stressful moments. Example: Your work gets you down and you instantly think about changing jobs, your commute is long and traffic is traffic so you think about moving asap, etc.... Why do we do this? Why can't we learn to appreciate the things we go through for what they are? We are not promised a simple, easy life. We know that the life of a Christian is going to be hard and those are the time that we grow so much. After all, once this day is gone, it's gone! And really how bad are things? Probably not as much as we make them out to be.

Being Positive! What a concept and what a difficult thing to focus on. It is so much easier to focus on the negative side of things. We must go through the valleys to get to the mountaintops. Have you heard the Third Day song "Mountain of God"? This song describes it perfectly and here are the lyrics:

Thought that i was all alone,
Broken and afraid,
But you are there with me,
Yes you are there with me,
And I didn't even know
That i has lost my way,
But you are there with me,
Yes you are there with me
Till you opened up my eyes i never knew
That i couldn't ever make it without you
(Chorus):
Even though the journeys long
And the road is hard
With the one that has gone before me
You will help me carry on
And after all that I've been through
Still I realize the truth
That I must go through the valley
To stand on the mountain of God
As I travel on the road
That you have led me down
You are here with me
Yes, you are here with me
I have need for nothing more
Now that I have found that you are here with me
Yes you are here with me
I confess from time to time
I lose my way
But you are always there to bring me back again
(Chorus again)

Here are the comments from Tai Anderson, the Bass Guitarist from Third Day about this song:

We've all had those mountaintop experiences. You feel so close to God. You can see for miles. Vision galore. Then life happens, the valley, the struggles. We often think that the valley is a consequence for the sin of our life. But, maybe it's just our life. We're all promised struggle. We all experience suffering. The hope that we have is wonderfully expressed in this song. "You were there with me." We don't have to go through the inevitable trials of life on our own.

Stay Strong, PLD!
STP, an IronMan

Dealing with difficult relatives - Max Lucado

Does Jesus have anything to say about dealing with difficult relatives? Is there an example of Jesus bringing peace to a painful family? Yes, there is.
His own.
It may surprise you to know that Jesus had a difficult family. If your family doesn’t appreciate you, take heart, neither did Jesus’.
“His family … went to get him because they thought he was out of his mind” (Mark 3:21).
Jesus’ siblings thought their brother was a lunatic. They weren’t proud—they were embarrassed!
It’s worth noting that he didn’t try to control his family’s behavior, nor did he let their behavior control his. He didn’t demand that they agree with him. He didn’t sulk when they insulted him. He didn’t make it his mission to try to please them.
Each of us has a fantasy that our family will be like the Waltons, an expectation that our dearest friends will be our next of kin. Jesus didn’t have that expectation. Look how he defined his family: “My true brother and sister and mother are those who do what God wants” (Mark 3:35).
When Jesus’ brothers didn’t share his convictions, he didn’t try to force them. He recognized that his spiritual family could provide what his physical family didn’t. If Jesus himself couldn’t force his family to share his convictions, what makes you think you can force yours?
Having your family’s approval is desirable but not necessary for happiness and not always possible. Jesus did not let the difficult dynamic of his family overshadow his call from God. And because he didn’t, this chapter has a happy ending.
What happened to Jesus’ family?
Mine with me a golden nugget hidden in a vein of the Book of Acts. “Then went back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives.… They all continued praying together with some women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and Jesus’ brothers” (Acts 1:12, 14, emphasis added).
What a change! The ones who mocked him now worship him. The ones who pitied him now pray for him. What if Jesus had disowned them? Or worse still, what if he’d suffocated his family with his demand for change?
He didn’t. He instead gave them space, time, and grace. And because he did, they changed. How much did they change? One brother became an apostle (Gal. 1:19) and others became missionaries (1 Cor. 9:5).
So don’t lose heart. God still changes families.

Two Fathers, Two Feasts - Max Lucado

Two Fathers, Two Feasts by Max Lucado The following is an excerpt from In the Eye of the Storm.Download Chapter 12 of In the Eye of the Storm to read even more.
I drove the family to Grandma’s last night for Thanksgiving. Three hours into the six-hour trip, I realized that I was in a theology lab.
A day with a car full of kids will teach you a lot about God. Transporting a family from one city to another is closely akin to God transporting us from our home to his.
A journey is a journey, whether the destination be the Thanksgiving table or the heavenly one. The fact that my pilgrims were all under the age of seven only enriched my learning experience.
As minutes rolled into hours and our car rolled through the hills, I began to realize that what I was saying to my kids had a familiar ring. I had heard it before—from God. All of a sudden, the car became a classroom. I realized that I was doing for a few hours what God has done for centuries: encouraging travelers who’d rather rest than ride.
I shared the idea with Denalyn. We began to discover similarities between the two journeys. Here are a few we noted.
In order to reach the destination, we have to say no to some requests.
Children have no concept of minutes or miles.
Children can’t envision the reward.
It’s worth it.
As we sat around the table today, no one spoke of the long trip to get here. Yesterday’s challenges were lost in today’s joy.
That’s what Paul meant. God never said that the journey would be easy, but he did say that the arrival would be worthwhile.
Remember this: God may not do what you want, but he will do what is right … and best. He’s the Father of forward motion. Trust him. He will get you home. And the trials of the trip will be lost in the joys of the feast.

Random Thougths - Stacey Pearson

1. Have you seen the movie "The 5 People you meet in heaven"? this is a great movie based on the book by Mitch Albom. Paige and I have watched it twice now and we both are intrigued by it. I don't know what heaven will be like for sure (see the latest newsletter by Joel for more on this), but this movie put and interesting take on it. This is one idea of what i may be like. In the extras, Mitch is interviewed and he does not tell you exactly what his faith is and what he believes, but he definitely believes in God and heaven. You should rent this movie and see what thoughts come to you. You might be amazed!

2. Paige and I got to go on a vacation this past week. We went to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Wow! How amazing it was. Beauty like I've never seen before. You see, i have not had much experience on the beach, so i am somewhat of a rookie. This was a great experience for me and we had lots of fun. In the midst of all the fun, reality set in. Paige's stepfather died on Saturday and we got ahold of Paige's mom on Sunday morning (right before we were leaving) and found out. What a change of emotion. Though this world is so beautiful, it is not our home and we are just passing through. Paige and i went from a feeling of celebration to a keen sense of reality real quick. Please keep Paige's mother in your prayers. She is a wonderful woman and has so much on her plate!

3. Back to work. Why is it so difficult to get back in the swing of things. I was only gone for 4 days and now that i am back, i feel so lost. It was a great break and much needed.

4. Service. Let's work on opportunities to serve others this holiday season. I am working on some organized efforts for the IronMen as a group, but please think about the little things you can do every day to serve others. After all, that was Jesus' M O.

5. Next IronMen breakfast is Dec. 2 at LCCOC, 7:30 to 8:30am. Bob McKinnon will be leading us. Last time Ken Boggs led us and did a great job. Thanks Ken!

STP
Stay strong, PLD

Bring the Rain - Mercy Me

Read the words of this song, it is amazing. This is on the newest Mercy Me CD. I highly suggest it!

I can count a million times
People asking me why
I can praise you, with all that I’ve gone through

The question just amazes me
Could circumstances possibly
Change who I forever am in You

Maybe since my life has changed
Long before these rainy days
It’s never really ever crossed my mind

To turn my back on you O’ Lord
My only shelter from the storm
But instead, I draw closer through these times

So I pray…
Bring me joy, bring me peace
Bring the chance to be free
Bring me anything that brings you glory
I know there’ll be days
When this life brings me pain
But if that’s what it takes to praise you
Jesus bring the rain!

I am yours regardless of
The clouds that may loom above
Because you are much greater than the pain

You who made a way for me
By suffering your destiny
Should tell me, “What’s a little rain”

So I pray…
Bring me joy, bring me peace
Bring the chance to be free
Bring me anything that brings you glory
I know there’ll be days
When this life brings me pain
But if that’s what it takes to praise you
Jesus bring the rain!

Holy, Holy, Holy, Holy, Holy, Holy,Is the Lord God Almighty, Is the Lord God Almighty

Just a little info - Alan Phillips

Oh great world of Blog … Greetings!

Those who know me know that global missions runs rather freely in my veins. I was the child of missionary parents where I grew up in Perth, Australia. Later in high school when we moved to Oklahoma from the other side of earth, we used to have missionaries come stay in our home quite frequently. Now in my ‘advanced years’ (no need for “Amens”), I have come full circle. Following my college years and then a couple of decades of work in higher education administration and consulting, I now work with a missions ministry called, Missions Resource Network, here in the Dallas metroplex. I also serve on the missions team of the Lake Cities Church, as our church strives to make a difference in people’s lives, both locally and globally.

I grew up going to church three times a week, memorizing scripture, hearing lots of sermons, going to Bible class and VBS, attending Christian College lectureships, and “Gospel Meetings”, and eventually graduating from a Christian University. What I learned most about what Christianity has to offer, however, I observed from my parents and from other selfless ‘soldout’ followers of Christ. As a child and teenager, I watched my parents give of themselves in extraordinary ways. They served others as people had need without partiality for status and without judgment … the physically poor and the spiritually poor. They shared their joy-filled lives (and still do) with anyone and everyone, for they saw (and see) each contact with someone an opportunity to reflect the selfless love of Jesus. By the standards of the world my family didn’t have much, but in reality we had everything!

In reflection I’m reminded that you and I are called to be ‘missionaries’. Self was nailed to a cross. Our identities as Christ-followers are not tied up in our pedigree, where we went to college, where we live, our family makeup, our careers, our portfolios, nor our church affiliation. God’s calling is personal. I pray that in humility I will consider others greater than myself. I pray that His power be at work within me, because I can’t do it alone. I pray that people will not see me, but rather that they see Jesus who lives within me. I pray that as iron sharpens iron, we might sharpen each other in His service. And not because of anything that I’ve done, but rather because of my debt that Jesus paid, I proudly claim to be His missionary!

Alan Phillips - an IronMan

Forever Young - Max Lucado

"Whoever tries to keep his life safe will lose it, and the man who is prepared to lose his life will preserve it."LUKE 17:33 (PHILLIPS)
“There are two ways to view life,” Jesus is saying, “those who protect it or those who pursue it. The wisest are not the ones with the most years in their lives, but the most life in their years.”
What Annie Dillard says about writing in The Writing Life is true about life: “One of the few things I know about writing is this: spend it all, play it, lose it all, right away, every time. Do not hoard what seems good for a later place in the book, or for another book; give it, give it all, give it now.”
There is a rawness and a wonder to life. Pursue it. Hunt for it. Sell out to get it. Don’t listen to the whines of those who have settled for a second-rate life and want you to do the same so they won’t feel guilty. Your goal is not to live long; it’s to live.
Jesus says the options are clear. On one side there is the voice of safety. You can build a fire in the hearth, stay inside, and stay warm and dry and safe. You can’t get hurt if you never get out, right? You can’t be criticized for what you don’t try, right? You can’t fall if you don’t take a stand, right? You can’t lose your balance if you never climb, right? So, don’t try it. Take the safe route.
Or you can hear the voice of adventure—God’s adventure. Instead of building a fire in your hearth, build a fire in your heart. Follow God’s impulses. Adopt the child. Move overseas. Teach the class. Change careers. Run for office. Make a difference. Sure it isn’t safe, but what is?
You think staying inside out of the cold is safe? Jesus disagrees. “Whoever tries to keep his life safe will lose it.” I like the words of General Douglas MacArthur when he was seventy-eight: “Nobody grows old by merely living a number of years. People grow old by deserting their ideals. Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up interest wrinkles the soul.”

From He Still Moves StonesCopyright 1995, Max Lucado

Thought for the Day - Gary Williams

"Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love." (1 Corinthians 16:13-14)

Paul can say a lot in a few words.

Gary Williams - an IronMan

From Cary Chisholm

Hey IronMen. Sorry I haven’t been around much, but I’m now doing my rotations for medical school, so unfortunately my schedule is awful. Before I share my thoughts, I just want to ask for prayers for Leann and me. We are not having problems, and I would like to keep it that way while I’m spending so much time at the hospital. The only way to do that is with God’s help during this time (and even not during this time of course).

So this last Saturday I had my first patient die. Well, he wasn’t my patient, but I was on call that night so he was mine by default. About six in the morning my pager went off and woke me up in the call room. I slipped on my shoes (no socks or tying the laces…dying people don’t like to wait for those things) and ran down the hall with the other 4 people on call. We are the code team on our on-call nights, so when a code blue is called, we all get paged. As we arrived on the 13th floor, the nurses had already started CPR and the man’s family was in the hall. Ahmad and I rotated doing chest compressions while our residents ran the code. We got a heart rhythm back briefly after about 20 minutes of CPR, but we lost it again when we tried to move his bed down the hall to go to the ICU. After another 10 minutes of CPR, the man’s family wanted us to stop, because they realized that their husband/father was gone. 30 total minutes of CPR, 2 or 3 episodes of shocking him, and using 2 crash carts of medicine weren’t enough to bring this guy back. Granted, he wasn’t expected to live much longer anyway. He was already in kidney failure and just had heart bypass surgery. In spite of those things, using the best technology and latest research guidelines weren’t enough. Our best effort wasn’t enough. It was just his time to go.

Then there are those crazy stories on the news. You know, where a guy dies because he somehow manages to drive his car into a second story apartment (true story). People get struck by lightening when there are no rain clouds. Young athletes die while playing basketball during a high school or college game. People get attacked by sharks in fresh water. People who smoke, drink, and do drugs sometimes manage to live into very old age without being sick, while those of us who take care of ourselves sometimes die young or live into old age in terrible health. The fact is, sometimes, it’s just our time to go. Our entrance into the next life is not controlled by us: Nothing we can do can help us. Exercise, eating right, taking the right vitamins, going to the doctor regularly, not drinking and driving, avoiding drugs…they can’t keep you alive when God has called you home. I guess what I’m trying to say is that we have only a limited time here on earth.

What is on my heart this week is that each of us take time each day to value and love our wives, children, parents, and friends, because none of us knows when God will call us home. For me, it entails spending the first 2-3 hours of each day with Leann when I get home from the hospital before I study. Even though I am losing a lot of study time by doing so, God has blessed me in my schooling, I believe, in part because I have kept my wife as a priority over school. Even though sometimes we feel that giving up extra time each day to spend with our families may hurt us in other areas, God will bless your prioritizing, and He will bless those activities that you give up. For some it’s studying, for others it’s work that they bring home from the office, for others it’s TV or movies or sports, and for others it’s (fill in the blank). The point is, we all are busy. We all have other things to do when we get home. Sometimes we all want a break away from wives and kids. Just don’t move them down on your priority list. Make sure that each night as you go to bed, you have no doubt that you did everything you could that day to let your family know you love them. You never know when you will not have another day to do so.

Cary Chisholm - an IronMan

Rewards - Stacey Pearson

Matt 6:1 "Be careful not to do your "acts of righteousness" before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven."
Matt 6:4 "then your Father, who sees what is done in secret. will reward you."

Where is my heart? Is my heart and motive pure?

This is a question that I must continually ask myself and we should all ask ourselves. It is very tricky for me because I know that in many situations I may have the best intentions, but Satan can sneak in an twist my motives during the situation. Before I know it, I am looking for praise from others. What a battle! This seems so simple, but in the moment I seem vulenerable because I am doing "something good". I must continually check myself and keep my guard up.

What is the reward? How does God reward us? How does God work in our lives?

I am amazed at this thought: God loves us so much that he wants to reward us! Who knows exactly what the reward is, whether it is based on ability to have a relationship with the Creator or it is specifically talking about rewards you will receive in heaven. Either way, that is amazing to me. God's love is so rich and so multifaceted! I am so encourage that he wants to reward us.

With my son, I often tell him to do something and he will ask me, "Why daddy?" I will reply with the traditional, "Because I told you too, just do it." God does not tell us that. He wants us to follow him and live accordingly because he wants to reward us. WOW!

We also know that when we fail, God does not leave us and that just makes it even more amazing!

Just some thoughts for today! IronMen, stay stong and PLD!!!

STP

Traveling Light - Max Lucado

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“Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28 NLT).

Rest from the burden of a small god. Why? Because I have found the Lord.
Rest from doing things my way. Why? Because the Lord is my Shepherd.
Rest from endless wants. Why? Because I shall not want.
Rest from weariness. Why? Because he makes me to lie down.
Rest from worry. Why? Because he leads me.
Rest from hopelessness. Why? Because he restores my soul.
Rest from guilt. Why? Because he leads me in the paths of righteousness.
Rest from arrogance. Why? Because of his name’s sake.
Rest from the valley of death. Why? Because he walks me through it.
Rest from the shadow of grief. Why? Because he guides me.
Rest from fear. Why? Because his presence comforts me.
Rest from loneliness. Why? Because he is with me.
Rest from shame. Why? Because he has prepared a place for me in the presence of my enemies.
Rest from my disappointments. Why? Because he anoints me.
Rest from envy. Why? Because my cup overflows.
Rest from doubt. Why? Because he follows me.
Rest from homesickness. Why? Because I will dwell in the house of my Lord forever.

From Traveling LightCopyright 2001, Max Lucado

Two readings for your today!

IronMen, two things for your reading. The web link is to Grant Boone's (a fellow IronMan) regular spot on PGA.com. This article is about Byron Nelson and is a definite must read. The second reading is from an email i received about Rick Warren and i think is worth of reprinting here for your reading.

http://www.pga.com/news/grantmethis/grant_me_this092706.cfm

You will appreciate the new insight Rick Warren has with his wife nowhaving cancer and him having "wealth" from the book sales.
This is an absolutely incredible short interview with Rick Warren ,"Purpose Driven Life " author and pastor of Saddleback Church in California.
In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren, Rick said: People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond: In a nutshell,life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever, and Godwants us to be with Him in Heaven.
One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body--but not the end of me. I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act - the dress rehearsal.
God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity. Wewere made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn'tgoing to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one. The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort. God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making yourlife happy.
We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life.The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness. This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer.
I used to think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore. Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life. No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on. And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for. You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems. If you focus on your problems, you're going into self-centeredness, "which is my problem, my issues, my pain." But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.
We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make it easy for her. It has been very difficult for her, and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her atestimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people.
You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life. Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the book sold 15 million copies, it made me instantly very wealthy. It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal with before. I don't think God gives you money or notoriety for your own ego or for you to live a life of ease.
So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do! with this money, notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages that helped me decide what to do, II Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72. First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change our lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases.
Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a salary from the church.
Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The Peace Plan to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, and educate the next generation.
Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24 years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It was liberating to be able to serve God for free.
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity?Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Oram I going to be driven by God's purposes (for my life)? When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better.
God didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what I am than what I do. That's why we're called human beings, not human doings. Happy moments, PRAISE GOD. Difficult moments, SEEK GOD. Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD. Painful moments, TRUST GOD. Every moment, THANK GOD.
FRIENDSHIP IS THE GOLDEN THREAD THAT TIES HEARTS TOGETHER

Lamentations?

In the midst of the 5 chapters of Lamentations, you find some amazing verses of hope:

(The Message)
3:25ff God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits,
to the woman who diligently seeks.
It's a good thing to quietly hope,
quietly hope for help from God.
It's a good thing when you're young
to stick it out through the hard times.

When life is heavy and hard to take,
go off by yourself. Enter the silence.
Bow in prayer. Don't ask questions:
Wait for hope to appear.
Don't run from trouble. Take it full-face.
The "worst" is never the worst.

Why? Because the Master won't ever
walk out and fail to return.
If he works severely, he also works tenderly.
His stock piles of loyal love are immense.
He takes no pleasure in making life hard,
in throwing roadblocks in the way.

HOPE this means something to you today! God has had it on my heart for several days now and i wanted to share it with you!

Stay Strong, PLD!
STP

To Crawl or Cry - Gary Williams (Missionary in Italy)

“The trouble with life,” someone said, “is that it is so daily!” No sooner do we survive one day then another one is upon us.

The little people in our lives have something to teach us about that. They know about struggle.

Some of life’s greatest lessons come from those beneath our normal line of vision. We need to look down, watch them and learn how to grow up. If you don’t have a small child of your own, go borrow one.

Watch the baby on the floor, for example. See how it focuses all of its energy in crawling. But then it stops, looks bewildered and overwhelmed with the distance it must travel to get back to familiar arms, and decides simply to cry for help. Why struggle if you can cry?

If you pick it up quickly, the baby’s plan worked. But if you let it sit long enough to realize that no one is coming, the baby often stops crying and begins crawling again.

Notice how the baby has energy to cry or to crawl, but it seldom both at the same time. It must choose between one and the other.

We are all children of the Father, sitting in the middle of his big world’s carpet. He watches us with unfathomable love. He sees us fall and cry out for deliverance. And he knows that the world is saying to us, "Give up." But he whispers, "Try again."

He does not always rush to pick us up. He likes to see us sit up, look ahead, and crawl forward once more. And as we crawl more, we cry less.

“The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking places,” someone said. God’s love calls us to go and grow, forward and upward.

No matter how often we fall, we do not fail as long as we get up again keep crawling.

Don’t give up.

Gary Williams - an IronMan
Scuola Biblica di FirenzeVia armando Spadini, 24Scandicci, IL Italy

1 Peter 2:12

Wow, what an amazing verse. This week at church we studied the part of the sermon on the mount about turning the other cheek (eye for an eye). This was a great study for me and one that I had no idea would turn out the way it did. I teach often on Sunday mornings and this week as I prepared I was shown some things that I did not expect. It is so amazing the way God works and directs! I was really struggling with my thoughts early on and then God started directing me. I came accross this verse in 1 Peter and I just love it. I had not remembered it before, but it made such great sense to me and challenged me so.

(NIV) "Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God and the day he visits us."
(Message) "Live an exempalary life among the natives so that your actions will refute their prejudices. Then they'll be won over to God's side and be there to join in the celebration when he arrives."

Wow, what a lifestyle. What a goal! I only wish that my life lived up to this!

Some things that I think are amazing about this verse:
1. Notice it does not say, live such good lives that they may think how great you are. We want our lives to reflect God. Who do we answer to? God or ourselves? If we do good so that others might notice how good we are, then we are living for ourselves. I only hope that my motives are pure and that I reflect the goodness of my Maker!
2. Notice that it talks about our actions, not our words. It is so true that actions speak louder than words and in situations where we are dealing with others, our actions should tell the story. I do think there are times when we must use words. Hopefully, our actions tell the same story as our words, only louder.
3. To do what this verse says, we must be commited to Chrsit and consistent in all we do. We must act the same when times are good or bad. We must act the same to beleivers as we do to non-believers. It seems to me that a good deal of the Sermon on the Mount goes back to Commitment and Consistency. These two things are a real stuggle in the daily life I lead.

When you get some time, read this verse and spend some time meditating on it. I was blown away! Let me know your thoughts by leaving me a comment!

Stay stong, PLD!

STP

Some Verses for this morning

Here are some verse for you guys from Psalms:

33:18-20 (Message) Watch this: God's eye is on those who respect him, the one who are looking for his love.
He's ready to come to their rescue in bad times; in lean times he keeps body and soul together.
We're depending on God; he's everything we need.

33:22 (Message) Love us, God, with all you've got-that's what we're depending on.

34:8-10 (NIV) Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
Fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing.
The lions may grow weak and hundry, but those who see the Lord lack no good thing.

34:17 (Message) Is anyone crying for help? God is lisening, ready to rescue you.

34:19 (NIV) A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all.

34:22 (NIV) The Lord redeems his servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.

Just a few verses to dwell on this morning. By the way, did you guys see the sunrise this morning. It was one of the most amazing i have ever seen! Praise God that he loves us so much!

Stay strong! PLD

STP

Let's Pray - Jeremy Paul

My wife (Denise) and I have a 2 ½ years old son (Hunter), and just had our second child (Tanner) on August 24, 2006. They are a great blessing. They learn and grow so fast. It is hard to believe that Hunter is 2 ½ years old. Denise and I had opted for the third time not to find out if baby was a boy or a girl until the baby was born. Every night before bedtime we sit down on the steps and pray. This is a wonderful time for us as a family to share with each other and our Heavenly Father. I wanted this to be a wonderful family tradition for us, to tell each other we love each other and to talk to GOD as a family.

It actually starts with snack time. Hunter has a snack, then he has a shower or a bath. Next, Hunter rocks and sings with Denise. They always sing the same song “Jesus Loves Me”, but Hunter does not always sit or rock with Denise. Hunter loves to sing. Some nights he sings very softly and other nights I am surprised our neighbors have not come over to find out what is going on. Then I wait for Denise and Hunter to join me at the stairs. Hunter runs up to me and gives me a great big hug, most of the time now it is a “Tackle Hug.” We sit down on the stairs to pray. I start by saying “Dad loves Mom”, “Dad loves Hunter”, “Dad loves Baby” (“Tanner” since we now know have him), and “We all love each other.” In early August I was to this point where I say “Let’s pray” and Hunter chimes in “No, No, No, Hunter prays.” Hunter tells me to move and sit next to Denise. Then Hunter starts “Hunter loves Mom”, “Hunter loves Dad”, “Hunter loves the Baby”, and “We all love each other.” “Thank you God for Mommy, Thank you for Daddy, Thank you for Baby, Thank you for MamMa (Grandma), Thank you for Jesus, Please bring rain, Amen.”

Hunter prays every night, sometimes it is a very quick pray “Thank you for Jesus. Amen.” other times he will pray for everyone he can think of at the time. Many nights Hunter will remind me to pray for certain people. Still other times he will repeat what we have prayed. It brings great joy to me to hear Hunter repeat something good that I say. There have been other times Hunter has repeated something he has heard someone say. This reminds me that someone is watching and listening all the time. Yes, GOD is watching and listening to us, but we also have children, family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers watching and listening to us. I am glad to hear and know that Hunter wanted to tell us he loved us and he loves GOD.

I Timothy 4:16
“Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.”

JP - an IronMan

John 13:12

IronMen, read this verse. Jesus asks the disciples, "Do you know what i have done for you?" Ask yourself this question that Jesus asks his disciples. Let me know your thoughts on this and what your answer would be. Let me know ASAP by commenting on this topic. Click "comments" below and then you can put your comment on the blog.

STP

One Day at a Time

How do you do this? Isn't this so difficult? When I was coaching baseball, we would always tell our players to treat each day independent of each other. Treat one mistake as independent of another. Don't let one mistake turn into 3 or 4 mistakes. I believe this same thing works in our spiritual lives, but it is so difficult. We never know how much time God is going to give us to live on this earth to live, therefore we have to cherish each day we have. We must be careful not to get to high on the highs or to low on the lows. That is a recipe for disaster. We must give God the glory when things are good just as we call on Him for rescue when things are bad. Consistency! It's the key!

My brother Gregg was a great example of this. Two things he taught me that I remember so clearly today:
1. In baseball and in life, act the same if you strike a guy out or if you give up a home run.
2. Treat everyone the same, no matter who they are.

One of the best compliments I have ever heard was said by one of our customers about Gregg, he said, "Gregg always did what he said he was going to do!"

I wish that I could be this consistent and live one day at a time!

STP

Looking Forward - Ryan Merriman

In an effort of being a little different and my anxious nature, how about we start looking to the future. What will my future hold?? This is a question that has been plaguing me too no end right now. As I am always trying to gain the next position with my company and what will that mean for my future, and what will it look like?

If you take a snap shot of my life right now you would find some great things and some may say the best that most could ask for. I enjoy the life that I share with my lovely bride Angie, someone who has to put up with way too much and whom I love and she loves me to no end. I have the two best boys that any father could ever ask for; they act just like me. (a little scary) I have a great job with a great company and I am enjoying great success right now. So what is next?

This question scares me way too much, but I seem to be obsessing over it now. I recently applied for a position with my company in Tampa FL. It is the next step for my career with this company and somewhere that I would not mind living some day. Although, my parents just moved there! Not too bad now, but times with my mother around can be trying. Anyway, due to applying for this job it made me think what is next and how can I plan for this. I do want the job and I wouldn’t mind a change in climes, but I know that this would rock my wife’s world. She hates change and she has really built a great place for her spiritually and socially with her friends and our loving church family. I don’t think that it is fair to up and move her when she is so happy right where we are. This is my dilemma.

Question for anyone out there:
What has been your experience with change such as this and how did it affect you significant other?

Ryan, an IronMan

Reflection

As this weekend draws to a close, there are some things that i am extremely thankful for. Some of these things i remember often, but others i do not. Here goes:
1. My wife and all that she does. I kept the kids Friday and Saturday while Paige went to WOF conference. I did survive, and i must say i thought it went pretty good. However, my goal was surviving. I can't imagine how Paige is able to survive everyday and also mix in some good teaching and contructive game time where the kids learn so much. she is incredible and i am continually amazed at her gift! I love you babe!
2. My children are incredible. I loved having time to spend with them this weekend. I look at Emaline(7 months old) and i see the joy of the Lord in her eyes. When she smiles, i melt! She is really going through some changing and really starting to cuddle and love much more. I love this time!
Parker and i got to go to the Ranger game Saturday night. That was a spiritual experience for me. Baseball is the game i grew up loving so much and to be able to take my son, well, that was just heavenly. He loved it and we even stayed the whole game!
I love you kids!
3. Our health is so sacred. Within the last 2 weeks, Paige and i have had over 10 family members in the hospital. It is amazing that our bodies work as well as they do being that they are so intricate. Please keep our families in your prayers.
4. I need to keep my focus on serving others and making myself a vessel of God's love. There are people everyday that God puts on our hearts, what are we going to do about it? I need to be more about serving and less about gaining!
5. Often times i do things so that people will notice. That is terrible! I need to reevaluate my life and actions!

thanks Rick for the great message the other day (see previous post "Leaving Home"). I encourage you guys that are reading this and other posts, to comment and share your thoughts on these subjects. Just click the "comments" button below and you can share your thoughts.

Thanks STP

Leaving Home - Rick Morgan

Brenda and I reached another milestone this week. We dropped Zen (our oldest son) off at ACU. As we reach this time in our lives, we now have to say we have a college age son. It is hard to imagine we are that old. Since coming home, I’ve spent some time reflecting on other milestones. I can actually remember the time we didn’t have children and then the joy I had in learning we were having our first child. The birth, first word, first step, riding a bike for the first time, first day of school and then High School graduation were all great occasions but none that measure up to this event. But leaving your child at College is more than a milestone; it is an accomplishment of sorts. Brenda and I have been preparing Zen for this day for 18 years. We’ve been teaching, molding and grooming him for adulthood or a passage to this new chapter in his life as well as ours. Of course, our work is never quite through, but we now need to step back or take a back seat and “cut the apron strings” and let him make choices and decisions on his own. The question that keeps coming to my mind is, will he thrive or flounder without us? Well, God can only answer that question, but we truly believe he is ready to step out and be the Christian man that he was groomed to become. We have been fortunate to have him with us and he has been a blessing to all of our lives. He is, after all, a gift on loan from God.

Many of you reading this have experienced this passage and know the same emotions that we are having. Some of you young fathers will get here sooner than you think. I find myself wanting and wishing for more time, but just think that is a natural emotion. I urge all you young fathers to prepare yourselves and your children for the time they leave home. Spend as much time as possible with your kids and teach and guide them in the way of the Lord. “Train a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not turn from it.” Proverbs 22:6

In retrospect, our emotions are primarily of excitement. We fondly remember our time at ACU, and know that Zen will flourish in his new surroundings. We really feel that Zen is where he needs to be. He is surrounded by peers that are walking in His steps and can help each other in drawing closer to each other and to their Savior. Yes, it is sad to see that empty chair at the dinner table and know the dynamics of our house will change. And when he walks through the front door, he won’t be a child but an adult, a man of God. Zen will be missed more than words can describe but we pray and we even know that the past 18 years have been years that have prepared him to be where he is now. It is exciting to imagine where God will lead him.

I do find myself longing to talk with him and want to sit down and visit about his new life and what lessons he is learning. I know now how Paul felt when he left a city and church that he planted and know the feelings behind his words as he wrote about wanting to visit and talk about their faith. I also can identify with John as he wrote in his third letter saying, “There is no greater joy than seeing your children walk in the faith.”

---Rick Morgan, an IronMan

Interesting Week

I don't know if yall had an interesting week, I did! There were some up and downs and some in the middle. Goes something like this:
1. A stuggle - Paige brought to light some comments of mine that did not come across the way i wanted them to. She shared this in such a loving and compassionate way that i totally understood where she was coming from. I am so very thankful for her heart and love for me that she cared enough to handle the situation the way she did. At the same time, it was hard to hear. I end up teaching some class each week at church and I now realize that i need to be extra careful how i say things. Not everyone sees things the way i see them or hears things the way i hear them. I thought i understood that (and i think i do for the most part), but reality is that i need to be ever aware of that situation.
2. A stuggle - Cooper's friends (the Tanner's) situation make me so thankful for my family. I hurt for them so much and wish that it could all be worked out imediately, but i know that it's not going to happen overnight. I hurt for the Cooper's (who do so much for so many people) that they are stuggling with the Tanner's and are stretched so much trying to help out. It really brings reality to know that there are so many hurting marriages out there. We have to keep our marriage healty by communicating consistently and correctly!
3. A praise - Two guys called from another softball team and said that they wanted to play with us this next season. This is incredible because we have had a run in or two with this team. However, the run ins seemed to stop after the last one several months ago. We went and talked to them face to face about it all and we both applogized and there have not been any problems since. Now, they are not going to have a team and two of the guys want to play with us! Wow! That is the whole reason we wanted to play softball in the first place. We wanted to have fun but more than that, we wanted to promote Christ by our actions and efforts! I believe this is one step in that direction! Yall keep this situation in your prayers.
4. Prayers - We got word that Paige's SF has multiple spots of cancer that has returned. Just when you think you have it beat, here it comes again.
5. Prayers - My grandmother is in the hospital. She is getting older (93) and is suffering from things they can't trace. They are doing lots of test to try to find out, but no answers yet.

This is a lot of "stuff", some good and some not so good. However, i am continually reminded that God is good all the time, and all the time God is good. He is making good of things whether you know it or not. We just have to trust Him and let him lead. That is the hard part.

Prayers needed

Let's remember Mark and Beth Tanner. They are friends of the Cooper's and are stuggling right now. Please keep them in your prayers.

Let me just say, it is so amazing the way God works. No matter what we do, God still is there for us and loves us and that is displayed everyday in our lives. Just look around you and you will find hopeless cases where God is working in mysterious ways. Ways we cannot understand or even see sometimes. I have been amazingly reminded of this in the past couple of days. Things don't happen by coincidence or luck. I don't believe in luck or happenstance. God is God and he is in control and thank goodness He is!!!

Stay strong, PLD!

STP

Grace vs. Mercy

I recieved this from a friend of mine today and thought it very worthy of sharing:

God's Grace is giving us what we don't deserve
God's Mercy is not giving us what we do deserve.

Very cool thought. Thank the Lord for both!

Thanks JW for this message!

STP

IronMen blog starts!!!

Here we go! IronMen, start your typing! We are beginning an IronMen blog for all IronMen out there. The format is very simple. If you have something to share or want to communicate, let me know an I will show you how to blog it! Then, other folks can come to this site and comment or leave their own blog post. Let's just see how this goes, you never know. This could be a great idea or maybe not. Time will tell. I know that blogging has become very popular these days as a way to communicate things that you may not take time to communicate verbally. Well, anyway, I just sent this idea out to the IronMen, so I don't expect many entries very soon. But, hopefully it will get rolling soon.

IronMen, you're the best! Stay strong and PLD!

STP