The Life We Live

Flying in an airplane is not my favorite activity. To be very honest, traveling by plane is one of my least favorite activities. I am not sure if the issue I have with flying is due to not trusting the pilot, or if it is related to my experience at the airport to board the plane.

Ultimately the reason why I fly is to save time. Flying, I have been told, is one of the safest and fastest ways to travel. Airplanes offer the convenience of using the restroom without having to stop, and the added benefit of finishing the final touches on that presentation.

What happens when flying is no longer convenient or fast? More than once I have boarded an airplane at a busy airport (see Orlando) and found myself sitting in an airplane on the tarmac for many hours waiting for the traffic and weather to clear before beginning the flight.

Some may ask why I am in such a hurry, to which I respond, "I want to get on with my life."

Jeremiah 29 speaks to this as well. In this chapter Jeremiah responds to some false prophets in Babylon who are misleading the exiles. The false prophets have been telling the people that they would be returning to Jerusalem soon and the result is the people were not making any adjustments for their life in captivity. When Jeremiah heard this, he wrote to them and instructed them to get on with their life, because they would be there for a while.

In many ways the exiles were in a similar situation as I have found myself. They were sitting on the tarmac, waiting for change so they could continue their life, and meanwhile life was passing them by...

Looking back, as I sat in that airplane on the tarmac in Orlando, I had a captive audience around me to hear the gospel. I had the opportunity with very little noise or distraction to talk with the people sitting around me and share the saving gospel of Jesus Christ with them. I chose, instead, to sit in the seat staring off towards Jerusalem.

Jeremiah writes to the exiles in Jeremiah 29:5-6

Build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. Take wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, so that they may bear sons and daughters—that you may be increased there, and not diminished.

Jeremiah says to the exiles, build houses, plant gardens, marry and give in marriage: Live the life that you have to live!

I am going to live life.

I am going to live life every moment of every day. I am going to live my life loving the Lord and worshipping Him in all things.

What life are you going to live?




dRo.

Target Fixation

Have you heard the term, "target fixation" before? Wikipedia describes target fixation in this way: a process by which the brain is focused so intently on an observed object that awareness of other obstacles or hazards can diminish. The idea is focusing your mind so intently on a single object or goal that all other aspects surrounding you fade into non-existence.

I experienced target fixation this recently when jumping off the roof of my father-in-law's house into his backyard pool. This was my first experience of "roof diving" and I must admit that it was unique.

Allow me for a moment to explain my experience of roof diving. My adventure began by climbing up a metal ladder in wet, bare feet onto the roof. It may not be obvious to some readers, so I want to be clear here: it is summer time in Arizona and metal (really anything) that is left in the sun is very hot, so climbing this ladder is slightly uncomfortable.

The roof I climbed onto was hot and rough. Standing on the roof went from a sensation of burning to uncomfortable after my brother-in-law donated his shirt to the this-hot-roof-is-burning-my-feet charity drive, however, I found that my weight and his weight standing together in the same small area on a thin plywood roof was great motivation to jump off the roof!

We did some quick, vague, planning of where we would jump to try to avoid slamming into one another and off we went...

As I planted my last foot on the roof and began my leap towards the pool I noticed that my level of concentration peaked. I looked intently at the pool, focusing on the goal to enter the water and not the concrete. I applied adequate force to project myself off of the roof and towards to pool, but not so much force as to propel me over the pool and into the wall adjacent to the pool.

As I descended I retracted my feet and used my arms to try to control the orientation of my body so that by face was not the body part to enter the water first. Everything else around me faded away - it all became inconsequential. My entire being for that brief second was focused on the single objective of entering the water.... nothing else mattered.

This story relates well to what the Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 8:5

For those who live according to the flesh
set their minds on the things of the flesh,
But those who live according to the Spirit,
the things of the Spirit. (NKJV)

Paul was explaining that focus matters. In the Christian life, we must keep our focus on what we are doing. We must remain attentive that our focus is to enter the kingdom of heaven and accomplish our mission at hand: to share the saving gospel of Jesus Christ to a dying world. We are to run (and jump) and work towards this goal without distraction.

Does this mean that our life will look different from other people? Probably. A life spent focusing on the Spirit and the goal of spreading the gospel of Jesus to the entire world should look different than a life spent focusing on a relaxing retirement or other self-service.

Does this mean that I will live a life of poverty? Maybe, but the life a believer that is focused on the kingdom of God will find incredible treasure and assurance in their relationship with the Creator - something that cannot be purchased. How many people look to their retirement savings or house for hope when they are facing death?

Does this mean that I will be miserable? No. happiness is an emotional state, that is highly dependent upon the perspective of the moment. This is why something you have, or do, may make you happy one day and not the next. The bible says that Jesus brings joy to the heart of believers and it is a joy that is eternal.

I am focusing on the Savior, His mission, and eternity.

What are you focusing on?


.

Think Outside of the Box

By trade I am an engineer, a software engineer to be precise. Much of software engineering is abstract... in essence, software engineering is the process of creating usable functions and applications from abstract concepts.

One of the difficult tasks in this type of environment is communication. It is just plain difficult to clearly communicate abstract ideas through verbal, or even textual, communication. Typically a conversation will find its way to either a piece of paper or a whiteboard so that through pictures, words, text, and body language one engineer may communicate an abstract thought to a practical solution.

I find that similar things happen when my mind turns to God. Trying to understand this incredible, eternal, wild, uncontainable, incorruptible, awesome God is not easy. .

God is the Creator of creation, not an object of creation. Can you image a painting claiming to be a painter? Seeing a painting, one instinctively knows that there must be a painter who panted the painting... Or how about a building? Seeing a building one can immediately ascertain that there was a builder of the building. Seeing creation, we know that there is a Creator.

The difficulty with this is that when considering God we don't really have much of a foundation to base our thoughts, so we must return to the basic, fundamental part of abstract thinking: the unknown.

We don't know much about God. God is love. God is a man of war. God is full of mercy and patient beyond measure. God is quick to forgive and slow to anger. God loves His creation. God has chosen to reveal Himself in three ways: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The list continues, but is never complete, because God is eternal.

I have resolved that there are some things that must stay abstract.

This is the same difficulty that the Apostle Paul was addressing in Romans 1:22-23 as he wrote,

Professing to be wise, they became fools and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man - and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things

Paul wrote of the idea that we cannot confine God to His creation.

God is God, and not a creating being. When we think of God in terms of creation, we change the glory of our magnificent God into something much less than it is... and we find that in this state this new god is no longer complete.

We must not confine God to our level of understanding. When we consider God we must think outside of creation and allow for our God-given abstract thinking to allow for variables that we cannot resolve.

Join me in glorifying and loving God where He is, for who He is, as He is.

Praise God!

The Weary...The Good Parent

July 17, 2009

As you may know, it seems since March 2009, our life as a family has been full of 'episodes' that are more dramatic than watching television! We have encountered two surgeries for Jeni, head lice, long weeks of international travel, the death of Jake, the addition of Dottie, moving to a new church family, replacement of a vehicle, and a roller-coaster with the legal system. In all of these things, I am so thankful to have the God, the Creator of the Universe as my God.

As I read Galatians in the New Testament the timing was perfect and spoke to my heart.

"Let him who is taught in the word share in all good things with him who teaches. Do not be deceived. God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, the he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith." --Galatians 6:6-10

Reading this Scripture was such a renewal to me. I was reminded that God already has a plan for us and that we need to obediently follow Him. I have introduced the words 'reap and sow' to our children in home-school lessons and the events of the last six months are ways to apply it in my own life.

My prayer is that my heart is in line with God's will for our life and that I am honoring Him in my actions each day. My desire is not to grow weary in doing good as a parent. I am thankful for my parents and my family that has shaped me into the parent I am today.

What about our lives and words "hallows" the name of our Father?

July 7, 2009

As I prepare to home school today and read the Bible lesson for the kids, I have to do some additional reading to prepare myself. It is too early in the morning for Danny to be awake, so I have to do some of my own research and study for myself.

What does 'hallow' really mean? Is it that 'hallow' usually used as a verb, "to make holy or sacred, to sanctify or consecrate"... (I will look forward to Danny's reply.)

Here is the point of why I want to know more about that word 'hallow'....

Many verses in the Bible say that we are to fear the LORD to be near him, to understand him and to not be foolishly avoiding him. To love him, we must also fear him, this is part of the way that we respect his awesome character, pure, holy, magnificent, and powerfully goodness. What is my life is 'hallow', made holy or sanctified? Maybe I have a grasp of this idea for worship on Sunday's at church and in my personal prayer life, but what am I missing? Where else can I apply 'hallow' and see the results? In prayer, it is about being humble, recognizing my fear, understanding God's love for me as his creation, and knowing all along I will see Him through Jesus. When we revere Him as HOLY, only then are we acknowledging that HE is, and his name is God. I think that is 'hallow'.

What about when we desecrate or blaspheme God?

We had a terrible struggle with our middle daughter lying to us. It has been building over the last few events and last night was an explosion. It was small at first as, 'Who left a dirty sweeper pan on the kitchen counter, or who cut all of the hair off of a Barbie doll and left the bathroom sink a mess?, but it escalated to Who made a mess on Mom's dresser with Mom's make-up?' At 6-years-old, I doubt she can see the consequences of her sin until we as parents apply significant consequences in a physical way to her life. She only treasures her 'things'. Her possessions such as Barbie dolls, her ATV, and maybe her DS. As parents, we have tried to explain the situation to her, we have been patient and loving, and applying discipline along the way, yet, she continues in her choice to lie. Last night, I felt that if we as parents did not apply a severe consequence that we were desecrating God because we were not honoring him by not applying his commands in our own daughter's life.

We desecrate and blaspheme GOD, when we consider him to be anything less than he is and our finite brain struggles to trust in faith and blinded by worldly views. We do this in attitude, actions and words. It was not just our daughter's lies but we as parents had to apply our beliefs in our actions and words. As difficult as it was, I feel we honored God in our attempt to end the lying. We have to be able to trust our children totally in every situation because their choices to come in their future are going to be more significant than getting into Mom's make-up while no one was watching. We as parents have to be able to trust our children.

I prayed with our daughter again last night and I realized in a true situation that we must let the Holy Spirit control the communication, and let go of ourselves to be given the Holy Spirit's vision of God we can respond to with our character he built into us to worship, and praise at that moment, then we are on his terms; ready to be heard, forgiven, guided, blessed and loved. Often we come to God on our terms, with our demands, and our agenda. How he longs to have us just be still, and know he is God.

I challenge you to look at your life this week for ways to 'hallow' God and continue in those ways. I also challenge you to recognize attitudes, actions, and words that are not honoring God and to begin making efforts to change those ways. As in the case with our daughter, the correction can be immediate and have a physical impact. Our daughter was welled-up with tears as she got a kitchen trash bag to gather her toys and helmet. She has permanently lost toys that are very special to her and our desire is that each time she desires to play with those special toys that she remembers her Heavenly Father that loves her and commands her obedience. Today, my prayer is for our daughter, us as parents, and each one of us as Christians to focus on ways to honor God in our day.

Blessings,
Nikki

For the Glory of God

For the glory of God... this is one of those phrases that sounds great during a worship service. This is the type of phrase that people love to hear when it comes to talking about financial sacrifice and church programs...For the glory of God.

In my family we talk about God's glory in relation to His creation. When we see an incredible sunset, "Wow, God is incredible." When we see or hear of some great movement of God we turn our conversation towards God's glory.

In my personal life I have a picture of God's glory in my mind as something of an intense glow. I have an image in my mind of a four layer cloud that lead the Hebrews out of the bondage of Egypt and into the promised land. In my mind, God's glory is something of power and awe to behold.

In chapter 11 of the book of John the glory of God is formed in a unique way. The glory of God begins with bad things happening to good people. In this chapter Lazarus had become sick and when Jesus was told of his sickness, he allowed Lazarus to die. There was crying and mourning. The funeral service was held and Lazarus was placed in the tomb.

A few days later Jesus arrived. Martha, Lazarus' sister came to meet Jesus. Jesus reminded her that Lazarus would rise again... and Martha agreed, that someday in the resurrection -way off in the distance- that Lazarus would rise from the dead. Then Jesus says to her in verse 25, "I am the resurrection and the life."

When they eventually came to the tomb of Lazarus and Jesus had the tomb opened, Martha reminded Jesus of the smell of the dead... and Jesus said in verse 40, "Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?"

Jesus called out to Lazarus, and Lazarus walked out of the tomb to Jesus... ALIVE!

What really struck me about all of this is how everything began with Lazarus dying, and Martha mourning.

I recently did something rather stupid. I made a decision that had the ultimate result of hurting the feelings of someone close to me. The crazy part is that I never saw it coming. I never once thought that the decision I made would result in anyone being upset or being hurt.

Have you ever experienced this? Have you ever done something that had a totally unexpected result? It is a strange sensation for the few out there who have yet to experience the roller coaster of life. What began with one intention has resulted in something quite different, and now I am left wonder, what now?

In verse 45, many who saw believed in Jesus. The final condition was witness and faith all for the glory of God.

Typing this message tonight, my only prayer is that this will all end up being... for the glory of God...

Coming Soon...

Today has been another eventful day in Hawaii. An 8-week old nephew weighing in at 14.2 pounds, a sister with recovering health, doctor appointments, groceries, fuel, laundromat, and telephone calls. I am so thankful for the opportunity to help my sister in her time of need and among all of the things from today I still made time not only as my morning quiet time but throughout the day to reflect on God and how He is in control of my life. What I also noticed is by keeping my focus on Him I have been honored and blessed with a wonderful husband and family. I often wonder if my daily tasks are in the right priority. I wonder if I am wasting time. A day like today affirms that each task and each day is full of joy. As we were driving 'up the volcano' to go home, we drove a new road and I found a sign that I had to turn around and take a picture of it..... look at this picture... does it speak for itself?

Drawing Close Through The Word

About a week ago my wife left to go stay with her sister to help her through a difficult time in her life. At the same time, and mostly to allow me to still work, my children went to stay with their Nana.

I have been without my family for one week. I have not been able to hold my wife's hand or touch her or smell her or listen to her voice (not digitized at least) for 7 days. I miss her very much. For 7 days our relationship has been on hold. For 7 days I have not been "plugged-in" to her life and her person. For 7 days the deepest interaction I have had from her is her blog postings (see image).

For the last 7 days I have spent a lot of time listening to people talk. I have heard people talk about God. I have heard them mention the name of Jesus. For 7 days I have listen to people talk a lot about religion and "churchy" things...

An interesting part about all of this is that I have not heard anyone refer to God or Jesus or their faith in a way that even slightly implies that they are in a relationship or that Jesus is alive and coming. For 7 days people have talked about things of religion and I have not seen or heard a single reference or smidgen of information that would lead me to believe that they love Him, know Him, or are growing in a relationship with Him... why?

Because you can't grow in a relationship without investing time in the relationship... you can't get to know someone by just standing next to them... you can know about them, but you won't know them and who they are...

If you want to know Jesus, you must spend time with Jesus. If you want a relationship with God, you must spend time in the Word.

My family and I have a practice of memorizing scripture together. There is nothing complicated here. We choose a verse that is special to us and we all begin to memorize. We challenge each other. We encourage each other. We hold each other accountable. We talk about how that scripture is impacting us and our hearts.

Will you join us as we follow our hearts to love and know Jesus in a deeper, more intimate way?

What is your title?

I am so happy for Lisa, my sister, as she celebrates her first Mother's Day. Xavier, or X-man, is such a blessing. His tiny smiles, little noises, slight whimpers, and the joy is impossible to describe. In order to help Lisa with Xavier and her recovery from surgery, I am away from my family. I miss my husband and children each moment, yet, I know that my return to them will be soon.

I wonder if this is how God looks at us? Does He await the day that we will return to Him?

On Mother's Day - away from my family, I was 'Auntie' and I loved the title, but I missed my three little children and my title of 'Momma'...and 'Wife'.

I challenge you to think about your title. Is your title meaningful to you? I hope that my title is 'Christian Wife, Mom, Friend'......Is your title enough for you?

The X-Man

Four days of Hawaii and the best view is this...

Do you understand?

My youngest daughter has this habbit of saying that she understands when she really doesn't. I have noticed that I cannot simply ask, "do you understand" because she will always answer "yes." I am not sure if this is because she wants to be right, wants to please her parents, or just doesn't want to listen to me talk anymore... maybe it is a little of each :)

A direct result of this awareness has been a new approach to confirming that she understands. Instead of asking her if she understands, I now ask her to explain to me what I just explained to her. What an amazing concept this is. The idea, I'm sure, was not invented by Nikki or myself, and has most likely been employed by parents around the globe for generations... but for my little family this change has made a world of difference.

our basic position is that if our children really do understand what they have just been taught, then they should be able to teach it to someone else. This sounds a lot like the message of the bible.

In Psalm 119:33-40 the Psalmist is pleading with God to help him find the way back to a right relationship with God. The Psalmist recognizes that a right relationship with God is life and that righteousness is found in understanding and obedience of God's Word.

What really struck me out of this passage is the first two words of verse 33, "Teach me" (NKJV). The idea in Hebrew behind this word is to throw or cast something. Specifically, this word is used a lot in the Old Testament in reference to shooting arrows and such. The picture here is of arrows of deliverance. The Psalmist writes that to know God's Word is to be armed with arrows that can be drawn and shot, stopping the advance of the enemy.

The Psalmist continues in his plead asking God to guide him into discernment to know when to fire and when to hold, to keep him standing firm (holding his position) against an approaching enemy, for it is in this that the Psalmist proclaims he will find life.

I have spent a lot of time in classes over the years - around 15 years in college alone. I am still a full-time (or almost) student at seminary and seek to learn all I can. I have determined that what I know is not gauged by the time I have invested or the school that I attend, but only by my ability to effectively use what has been taught.

In John 8:42-45 Jesus asks the Pharisees, "Why do you not understand My speech?" then proceeds to answer His own question: They do not understand because they have no reference from which to begin. Jesus speaks truth and life to Pharisees who's only frame of reference is a worldview of lies and deception. He speaks a simple truth to people who are accustomed to the complexity of lies.

Do you understand the simple truth of gospel?

Are you able to use and teach what you profess to know?

Are you listening from a perspective of dependence upon the grace of God to save you from your sin, or are you still trying to make up for the evil you have done?

Allow me to encourage you to follow the footsteps of the Psalmist:

1. Pray to God to guide you.
2. Return to daily reading of the bible, searching His Word for the simple Truth.
3. Cling to God's Word and Truth, finding your strength in Christ alone.

Jake E. Baba

My dog of 12 years died today. He was my dog. I picked him. I trained him. I cared for him. I held him as he died.
I will miss Jake dearly. He was there for the birth of all my children. He ran with me. He played with me. He welcomed me home everyday.
My heart is full of love and thankfulness for the time we had together.
I will miss you Jakey.

Burning with Desire

I know almost nothing about marketing and advertising. I am aware it exists. I am aware that I am often drawn to purchase items that I see advertised. I have no idea how it works or why.

Advertising is powerful. Advertising communicates a clear, penetrating message to people through text, music, and images. There is an entire industry that gains all income from clever advertising of questionable products (see As Seen On TV products).

Each trip that I have made overseas has had a common observational truth... Each time I have found myself in a foreign country with little grasp of the language and almost totally ignorant of the culture, but still familiar with the billboards and magazines around me... because they are American advertisements of various products.

During my most recent trip to China I was struck by the amount of American advertisement. It seemed like everywhere I looked I found an American advertisement that included some level of sexual stimulus. Billboards advertising cologne were liberally filled with well-endowed, scantily-dressed women. I found myself surrounded by sexually implicit, perhaps explicit, images in advertisement of various products that were all distinctly American.

The majority of the people that I seemed to talk with on this trip were all interested in America and American culture. People were curious of what America was like and seemed to invest a great amount of effort in acting, talking, and dressing American. So it should be of little surprise when I say that the majority of the women were dressed like billboard models and left very little to the imagination and many of the men looked amazingly feminine and spoke in the slang of advertisement.

These people were burning up with lust enticed through advertisement from a country and people that they seemed to admire. They looked at America through the lens of modern-day advertisement and saw a culture full of sex, selfishness, and sensuality. They saw a people without a care in the world, who were lapping up all that life had to offer and living out a fantasy that many dream of. Americans were fat, prideful, sexual people who worship self and seek fulfillment in bodily form without repercussion or penalty. What a great thing to advertise...

This was the same observation of the Psalmist in Psalm 73. The Psalmist looked around and saw how the world around him was full of people who were wicked and yet seemed to be complete. These wicked people were outwardly spoken of their wickedness and continued to lead a life of satisfaction. The Psalmist saw this and wrote how he almost slipped in his envy of them... he almost stumbled in his faith as he watched them... almost.

The key in the life of the Psalmist was an experience in the sanctuary when his eyes were lifted up from the short-sighted goals around him to eternity. As his eyes were lifted up from the happiness of today to the reality of eternity the Psalmist repented of his poor thoughts and regretting his weakness. The Psalmist decided, I want God more than I want anything else. The Psalmist was changed and began to burn with desire for God. He wanted God more than anything else... thoughts of God consumed him, thoughts about God consumed him, a deep inward desire to be like and with YHWH was his only desire.

What do you desire?

Philippines: A First Look

Nikki asked me to put up a post on the Philippines. So this post is in response to her request.

My initial impression of the Philippines is that it is a messy mixture of technology, Asian culture, Malaysian culture, and terrorism all wrapped around a country called the Philippines.

I am not sure how to explain this impression any better than through pictures. So here is the one picture I have taken that I believe describes the Philippines the best.

I believe these lines are the power lines and phone lines all wrapped together. They tend to just wrap up any extra wire and hang it off another strand or hook on the pole somewhere.

When I first saw this I asked, is this area under construction? I have been well assured that this is a very affluent area and one of the most modern in the Philippines.

Don’t misunderstand my intention, I like the Philippines. The food is good, the weather is great, it doesn't smell, and the people all seem to be relatively healthy and happy.. I even love the palm trees and vegitation.

It is absolutely beautiful here. Out of all the places I have visited, this place is one of my favorite destinations. That being said, there is also a downside, like the public transportation

Another interesting part of the Philippines is there local transportation. There are different types of buses on the road, but these buses are my favorite. They are some type of local shuttle that drive people from one side of Manila to the other. This is a picture of one of those local shuttle-buses driving people through traffic. There are two things worth noting here; 1)The people hanging off the back of the buses are passengers not employees, and 2)Traffic here is similar to our concept of bumper cars in the states, without the bumping.

Signs such as one-way, two-way, construction, and no entry really have no meaning here at all. I am not sure if there are speed limits, but I believe the local consider this relative to their vehicles top speed. For instance, a speed limit of 40 is only applicable to a vehicle that has a top speed of 60. So if your vehicle has a top speed of 150, then the speed limit for you is 105.

In a similar understanding the lines on the roadway are really only on the roadway as a courtesy for the painters who needed a job painting lines. I say this because they have no relevance or meaning to anyone.

Home is where my family is...