Why Do You Fear?

The word fear in the bible means many things.  We have been branded in recent years with the idea that fear is simply being scared of something or in most cases frightened.  When someone or something threatens to harm us we “Fear”. 

Webster’s Dictionary:  fear |fi(ə)r|   noun

an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat, the likelihood of something unwelcome happening

• ( fear for) a feeling of anxiety concerning the outcome of something or the safety and well-being of someone

These are just a few meanings based on the word fear.

2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

We learn in 2 Timothy 1:7 that God did not give us a spirit of fear, so it must have came from somewhere else.  This spirit of fear came from the fall and separation of Man from God in the Garden of Eden.

The Pool of the Dead

(Dream Revelation of Dead Religion)

Scripture of the Day:  Matthew 3:11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

In this dream we are on a fishing trip. We are meeting the kids’ Grandpa Jim. We arrive at a farm pond that is in the country, one that I am not familiar with. It is obvious that this pond and location have been used for trips and events many times before.

The Pool of Judgment

(Dream Revelation of Our Judgment of Others)

Facing difficult trials and being purified by fire are very uneasy to our flesh. I have faced many difficult trials where my life was open to the world for ridicule and judgment. I learned that when we judge, we will be judged in the same measure.

Luke 6:38 says, “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

As Christians we often hear this passage when the pastor is talking about the offering. It sends us the message that when we give our tithes and offerings, it will be measured back to us in multiplied form. This is true, and God has proven this truth to me many times.

The Patience of God

Saturday mornings are special, especially when it rains. We had a big day planned with both of our boys playing in baseball tournaments.

The busyness of life seems to continue. It reminds me to stop and enjoy the things that God has given us and to be patient with our day-to-day lives.

Galatians 5:22-25 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering (patience), kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Change the Future!

The month of January launched a new chapter in our ministry life.  We stepped out to follow the call to another level.  Many doors have been opening up as we spent time bringing the Word of God at Taloga Christian Church while also scheduling dates in February for Harvest Fellowship Church in Leedey as well as East Side Baptist Church in Elk City and a return trip to Taloga.

The many facets of ministry that we are engaged in include: Daily Diary Updates on our website, Churches Aid Services, Travel Ministry, Team Spirit Events with the “Unshakable” band and our Book Ministry.

Revelations

This story is not about the book of “Revelation” from the bible.  It is a testimony of Jesus being continually revealed to us and the life changing impact it has on life.

The Holman Bible Dictionary defines “revelation” as the content and process of God making Himself known to people. All knowledge of God comes by way of revelation. Human knowledge of God is revealed knowledge since God, and He alone, gives it. He bridges the gap between Himself and His creation, disclosing Himself and His will to them. By God alone can God be known.

Biblical emphasis points to Jesus Christ as God’s final revelation. God has provided ongoing generations of believers a source of knowledge about Himself and His Son. That source is the Bible.

One thing I have learned about God’s word is its foundation works in all aspects of life.  Sports are a great comparison to life’s challenges.  This parable about coaching team sports provides opportunity of how we can leave positive value to our youth.

A coach has the ability to influence for a lifetime. We must learn that leaving a negative path of influence will cause damage in youth that will someday have to be dealt with by those individuals. There are consequences in the choices we make.

As coaches it is possible to leave a legacy that is harmful to our players. We are often the most impressionable person in their lives. Some coaching tactics might help us win games and could even help individuals become better players on the field, but this doesn’t mean that the foundation they were rooted in has positive direction for their growth mentally and spiritually for their future.

In Proverbs 22:6 KJV it says, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

Close Enough to Matter

(Revelation)

I had a dream where I was coaching my son Luke’s baseball game. As I was standing in the first base coaching box, I noticed my son was on deck and ready to hit. I was distracted for some reason and I began to pay attention to the dugout. They were having trouble with their computer and needed help fixing it. As I walked over to help them, I was watching my son bat. Instead of immediately going back to the coaching box I walked down the first baseline to pick up a ball that had been left on the field.

I was about a hundred feet away when my son got a base hit into right field. It was just barely fair down the line. He was safe at first, and a run scored on the hit. As the throw fell to the ground a few feet past the bag in front of Luke, he took a couple of steps off the base and gladly tossed the ball back to the umpire.

No Strikeouts

(Parable of Choices)

Baseball is a great sport and like any aspect of life the foundation of God’s word is the foundation for success and failure.

I had a dream about standing in the batter’s box. In this dream I remember being afraid that I might strike out. The reason that I am afraid is that I realize I already have two strikes on me when I am approaching the plate. 

Being a part of baseball my entire life, I have looked at the success of hitters with different counts. The highest batting average or chance of success is when the count is three balls and no strikes or three balls and one strike. The lowest chance of success comes when the count is no balls and two strikes. These statistics are true from Little League to the major leagues.

Setting the Table

Scripture of the Day:  Matthew 9:16-18 No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and the tear is made worse. ¹⁷ Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

Parable:  The revelation I received came from when you go into a restaurant and you are waiting for a table.  The waitresses are trying to clean off a table and make it ready for the next group.

Overcoming Trials

Once we have concluded that God is good and loves us based on His word.  We can begin to accept our “position” with Him:  He is God and we are His children.

Many times it’s the trials of life that cause us to dig deeper into God’s word. There are 2 important scriptures that are often quoted to help us get through these times.

Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

The Perfect Game

Each Saturday I will be sharing writings from the books I have published.  Today’s is from one of my favorite topics “baseball” and how it relates to life. This story came from my first book in 2008 called “The Perfect Game”.  

As the author of this book, it is my goal to send the message that at times we all fail. I have failed many times, sometimes miserably. By coaching the sport of baseball, I have been able to look at the substance of this game and what makes it special. “Special” is often a hard word to define. I believe the word “special,” when it comes to the sport of baseball, refers to the difficulties of the sport.

The amount of failure that a player deals with in the game surpasses any sport, in my opinion. Often, you hear coaches make the statement, “You can be successful 30 percent of the time and make it to the Baseball Hall of Fame.” That 30 percent they are referring to is going three for ten at the plate or at bat. The player who has a career .300 average often makes it to the Hall.

Break the Curse!

As we seek God we grow in faith of His word.  We desire to dig deeper and deeper to learn something new daily.  We must conclude the bible is the infallible word of God.  So therefore it is correct in what it says.

The biggest faith builder of my life came when I began to tithe to my local church.  Carrie and I were struggling as a young couple trying to get on our feet.  I heard Pastor speak on Malachi 3:8-12.  This is one place in the bible that God says “TRY ME”. 

8 “Will a man rob God?
Yet you have robbed Me!
But you say,
‘In what way have we robbed You?’
In tithes and offerings.
9 You are cursed with a curse,
For you have robbed Me,
Even this whole nation.
10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse,
That there may be food in My house,
And try Me now in this,”

Press On!

When we grow in Faith we begin to want more and more of God’s plan because we have discovered that it’s better than ours.  Some questions I began to ask are “What is important in Life”?  How can I obtain everything God created me to have?

Philippians 3:12-14Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.¹³ Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thingI do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

God is good and to have all that He has for us we must press on!  The bible tells us that we will have tribulation.

Righteous Prayer

Yesterday we asked the Question  “How do you Pray?”  We learned to pray in faith and ask God to fulfill His plan for us, which requires us to be humble and boldly go the throne of Grace.  Today we expand on the righteousness of prayer.    

James 5:16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

When you read this scripture was your first thought, “I can’t be righteous enough?”

Don’t worry you are in the majority.  Our sinful nature automatically tries to condemn us of our unrighteous failures.  This misunderstanding of God’s righteousness is causing Christians to be non-effective in their prayer life as well as keeping them from growing in God.