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All the freedoms we enjoy in this nation came at a price.  The expense was paid by brave men and women who have served our country faithfully to ensure that our homeland is safe.  They have fought foreign wars to rid other nations of tyranny and to bring freedom to other lands as well.  These veterans have served within our borders to secure our land and to protect it from those who seek to harm us. 

For wages that are not comparable to the risk of their lives, these veterans have served faithfully out of a call to patriotism.  They make less than most of those who enjoy the benefits of our military’s sacrifice.  Yet, they serve proudly and humbly because that is what veterans do.

They have gone to foreign lands and left behind their families so that they could bring peace to other families in far away lands.  They have stared in the face of danger yet not showing fear.  With courage they become all they can be for a people who often take for granted the freedoms.

This group of veterans is often overlooked but they still cherish their service to our country.  Veterans, thank you!  You are my heroes!  You have exemplified the words of Jesus, “No greater love has a man than he who lays down his life for a friend.”  Thanks for being willing risk your life for our freedoms.

I would have never dreamed that time would fly by so fast.  20 years ago today, Sonya and I exchanged vows.  What an amazing journey!  We were 19 years old.  Too young to realize that we were “too young” to get married.

Through these years we have been through many valleys and we have even spent time on the mountaintop, yet through the years we have grown.  It has always intrigued me how God created such a thing as love and then gives us the capacity to learn to love and then to grow in that love.  Certainly, there have been challenges in our years together, but through it all we have grown closer.

Now, after 20 years, we say the things that the other is thinking.  We respond to one another, knowing what the other one needs.  As the years have passed by, we have learned what it means to become one.  God’s intention for marriage was that the two would become one flesh.  He didn’t say that would happen overnight.  Love is cultivated by sacrifice on the part of each spouse. It is learning to make concessions while also knowing that, sometimes, you receive much more than you deserve.

That is how I feel with Sonya.  I have received much more than I deserve.  She has made many concessions in this marriage that resulted in her becoming a pastor’s wife.  I wasn’t called to ministry until 2 weeks after we were married.  She didn’t sign up for life in ministry, but she has embraced it with poise, grace and sacrifice.  She has shared me with others in crisis.  She has graciously encouraged me to participate in ministry needs, even when it meant it would cut into family time.  Sonya has been a counselor to many and a friend to all.  She has ministered to people and served in ministry for the last 15 years.  Always willing to pick up the slack and be all things to all people.  She has kept silent, when it would have been much easier to “speak up” and defend herself or her husband.  God could not have created another “helpmeet” that would be able to walk in this life of ministry with me.

Taking that a step further: As we raise our 17 year old and 5 year old, she tries hard to balance ministry and her family needs.  Sonya is a wonderful mother to her children and will sacrifice everything to make sure their needs are met.  When we were married 20 years ago, I would have never dreamed that she would be so selfless and giving to her children and her church.

Cheney, I love you!  Here’s to another 20 years!

Do you need glasses? I always thought that when you turned forty (which is only a few months of for me) that you were officially over the hill. No one told me what to expect when I turned thirty. I noticed, however, something drastic change when I turned thirty. Everyday when I came home from work I had a terrible headache. Without fail, my head was exploding so of course I blamed it on the lack of caffeine. Then when that theory was shot down I thought, “Maybe I am studying and reading too much”. Then the thought hit me that maybe I ought to see the eye doctor.

Finally one day I decided to go to the eye doctor to see if I could get some reading glasses. The doctor laughed and told me, “You do not need reading glasses but all the time glasses. Your vision is not as good as it used to be.” I had vision impairment and I hadn’t noticed that my total vision was going bad. I never even realized it. The only way I could tell was by fixing my vision. After I got glasses I could read the road signs and everything else alot better.

This is the way it happens in our Christian lives. We once had a fire and vision for the Lord and His ministry but somewhere down the road our vision became impaired. Our vision is not as clear as it used to be.

Sad to say, many people once had great vision and dreams for their work for the Lord, but over the years it has faded. They once had great plans and goals of what they wanted to do for God’s Kingdom, but now they cannot see ahead.

It may be the case that they don’t realize that their vision is faded. It could also be that their dreams were crashed on the rocks and discouragement and frustration has impaired their vision. All they can see is their failure and can’t think of trying something new.

The fact is that God has a great plan for all of us, young or old. He has a plan for all of our lives and He wants us to carry His vision. Even if you have lost your vision, we can find a pair of glasses that will help us to see again. God has great things in store for us and He wants to give us 20/20 vision once again.

If your ministry was once flourishing but now you cannot seem to get the fire started, ask God for a renewed vision for your ministry. Without a vision the people perish. We must have vision or else we will die on the inside. Our ministry around us cannot live unless we have a vision for it.

If you have lost your vision, look for it. If your vision is impaired, look back to the days that you had vision and passion for what you did. Rekindle that flame and let God’s vision burn in you once again.

The enemy desires to block your vision because He knows that your ministry cannot go forward with your eyes dim. Satan desires to thwart the ministry of the Lord by discouraging, frustrating and making the people of God feel inadequate. No weapon formed against you shall prosper. Go to the eye doctor (Jesus) and ask Him for a pair of new glasses to see His heart for you.

Do you have a problem judging others?

I find it interesting in life that it is easy to condemn others without regarding our own faults. If you watch the news enough, you find a host of people who are quick to point out the speck in one man’s eye and yet he cannot see the log in his own eye. If you think that I am referring to politicians you are right. (we are moving into election season after all)

This is not only a problem in the political world or the corporate world only. It is the problem of Christianity. If it was only exclusive to the world, the apostle’s would not have written about it to the church. In fact, I dare say that Christian people can be just as critical and judgmental as those of the world.

Now before you stone me, let’s reason together. In our spiritual pursuit, we look at our spiritual lives and think everyone should be just like us. In our denomination, our church, our Sunday School class, if someone does not act or believe like we think they should, they are wrong of course. We look down at others who have not been able to walk in victory like we have. God forbid if anyone fall from grace and then come looking for mercy from a Christian.

My grandfather once said, “Christians kill their wounded.” This is true, but Christianity is not all that bad.  All types of people and religions struggle with this, but there is a remedy. Giving mercy as Jesus instructed us.

Luke 6:37-38, “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. 38 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.”

This text of Scripture has been somewhat misrepresented over the last couple of decades. We like to focus on verse 38 and think that if we give money then we shall get back good measure, pressed down, shaken together and our finances will be running over as men give into our bosom. This, however is taking it out of context. This text is on giving mercy and not judging others harshly. We are not to judge others lest we are judged ourselves. Jesus said, “The measure you use it will be given back to you.”

The harshness you and I judge others with will be the same harshness we receive in judgments. If we condemn others then we too will be condemned.

The promise here is to those who give and show mercy. Give mercy and it will be given back to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over shall men give mercy to you. If you will show mercy you will receive it. Love covers a multitude of sins.

Next, time you see someone trip up or fall in sin, don’t condemn them, restore them. If someone doesn’t behave or act as “good” as you do, do not judge them, pray for them. If they do not believe like you do, search the Scriptures for yourself and see if you might be the one that is wrong.

The ultimate judge is the Lord. I want to show mercy, so He will show me mercy.

Saturday afternoon, Sonya, Hannah & I went to Hobbs State Park and hiked the Sinking Streams trail.  It was beautiful!  The stream was pretty well dried up, but other than that, it was a nice hike.

Having said all of that.  It is my goal to be such a husband that I would be comfortable enough for Hannah to marry one like me.  To be such a husband that I am confident my son has seen an example of how to treat a woman.  It is easy to love a woman such as Sonya, my goal as a husband and a parent is to Love My Wife as Christ loves His church and to teach my children what true loving relationships are.

Sonya, Hannah and I took off a little early today to take in the Tanyard Creek Trail in Bella Vista.  After all the rain we have had, the waterfall and creeks  were flowing.

Is there a cause that we are fighting for?
All we say is there’s not an open door

There has got to be something more
Something worth dying for

What about us, what about me
What is it that we really see?

Hanging in the balance is their destiny
A soul destined for hell, for all eternity

Something to die for was what Jesus saw
With His blood He bought us all

He spread His arms on the Cross of Calvary
Pierced through to purchase you and me

To die for was His thought towards mankind
Why is it that the world stays so blind

Cannot see, Cannot hear,
That Jesus loves them dear

Where is God’s own
That to them the way is shown

The path to eternal bliss
If we keep silent the world will miss

This is the cause that we were born for
A cause for us that is to die for

To give up my life it might be
But I will share to set man free

I will give everything for my Lord
Surely He is worth dying for

Danny Cheney

Are you possessed?

Since it is not possible for a Christian to be demon-possessed, I am not speaking of that kind of possession. What possesses your life? What is it that consumes you?

As I was reading in Genesis, I discovered for the hundredth time that God gave us dominion over this earth and all that is therein. He said that we shall rule and reign and have possession of creation and we would have dominion over it. But do we have dominion over this world? Or does this world have dominion over us?

As I pondered this thought, I concluded that God’s intention was different than what we have made it. We have become possessed by the possession. Our lives are meant to live in pursuit of God and to be inhabited by Him and His presence. He created this world that we might oversee it’s creation but I think somewhere we have mistaken what our role is. It is as if now we are worshippers of God’s creation not the Creator, God.

Maybe you have no problem with being content in such things that you have but, are we pursuing God or are we pursuing what we can gain in this life? In this life are we seeking to advance the Kingdom of God or to advance our own kingdoms?

I remember many years ago, living in a one bedroom one bath apartment. Then we moved to a two bedroom one bath duplex. I was content with what I had. I then had the opportunity to “move up” into a three bedroom, one bath house. Booya! I was living in a mansion. From there I was able to live in a three bedroom, two bath with a formal living room. Man, God is good! Now I am living in a house that is the largest I have ever lived in. I have arrived!

Now, what if God asked me to live in a one bedroom again? Could I do it? What about all the stuff that fills this bigger house? He has blessed me with all of this STUFF certainly He wouldn’t ask me to downsize, right? I won’t do it…I am not downsizing because I have all of these things that I MUST keep.

This seems to be the attitude of many American Christians. We are possessed with our possessions. Many of us do not know what sacrifice is. We are bound by our desire for more and we are determined not to go “backwards”. How do you think credit card companies stay in business?

The Ten Commandments remind us, “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve (worship) them. For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God.”

God wants all of us! He is jealous for our attention. The willingness to have dominion over our hearts. He created us to fellowship with Him, but we keep putting more things in between us and Him. Our relentless pursuit of more is not because we are blessed but because we are not content. Only God can fill our hearts and give us true happiness. God cars more about us than He does about our things. It is about us finding contentment in Him and quit putting everything before Him.

God gave us dominion over this earth but He requires dominion of our hearts. Who has possessed your soul? The things of this world or the Savior of the World? We are to be possessed by Him alone!

Last night, Sonya was meeting with someone so I decided it was the perfect time for a Daddy/Daughter date at Chick-fil-a.  After our dinner, we had to run to Lowes to get some things to get ready for Saturday’s workday.  As I pushed the cart down the back aisle, Hannah leans over and gives me a big hug and kiss. She then, threw in a hearty I love you!

A couple minutes later, we were making our way down another aisle and Hannah asks, “Dad, am I a princess?”

“Of course you are honey!”

Hannah replies quite frankly, “That means every one should bow down before me!”

I first wonder, “where on earth does she get his stuff?” Then I quickly reply, “NO honey, we should only bow down before God.”

Hannah finished the conversation, “Well, if I’m a princess, I think they should bow before me too.”

Conclusion: I need to find a book on how to instill healthy self-esteem while mixing it with a teaching on humility into my daughter’s life.  Friends, I believe I have met my match

“Are the things you are living for worth Christ dying for?”

This article was written by Pastor Andy Harris, Central Assembly of God, Springfield, MO.

A Day We Will Never Forget!

• Total number killed in attacks (official
  figure as of 9/5/02): 2,996
  
• Total number of victims killed 2,977 Total
  number of hijackers 19
  
• Total number who died on the four planes
  246
• Total number who died in the World Trade
  Center Towers 2,606
  
• Total number who died at the Pentagon 125
  
• Total number who died in Shanksville, PA 44
  
• Number of firefighters and paramedics
  killed: 343
• Number of NYPD officers killed: 23
• Number of Port Authority police officers
  killed: 37
• Number of WTC companies that lost
  people: 60 
• Number of employees who died in Tower
  One: 1,402
• Number of employees who died in Tower
  Two: 614
• Ratio of men to women who died: 3:1
  
• Age of the greatest number who died: between 35 and 39
  
• Bodies found “intact”: 289 
• Number of families who got no remains of
  their loved ones: 1,717
• Estimated units of blood donated to the
  New York Blood Center:36,000
• Total units of donated blood actually
  used: 258
• Number of people who lost a
  spouse in the attacks:1,609
• Estimated number of children who lost a
  parent: 3,051
• Number of  funerals attended by
  Rudy Giuliani in 2001: 200
• Days fires continued to burn after the
  attack: 99
• Jobs lost in New York owing to the
  attacks: 146,100
• Days after 9/11 that the U.S. began
  bombing Afghanistan: 26
• Economic loss to New York in month
  following the attacks: $105 billion
• Estimated cost of cleanup: $600 million
  
• Estimated amount donated to 9/11
  charities: $1.4 billion
  
• Estimated amount of insurance paid
  worldwide related to 9/11: $40.2
  billion
  
• Estimated amount of money raised for
  funds dedicated to NYPD and FDNY families: $500 million
  
• Percentage of total charity money raised
  going to FDNY and NYPD families: 25%
  
• Average benefit already received by each
  FDNY and NYPD widow: $1 million
  
• Estimated number of New Yorkers
  suffering from post-traumatic-stress disorder as a result of 9/11: 422,000

Friend, the greatest thing we can do as we reflect on September 11, 2001, is to go to church this Sunday to honor the heroes and pay tribute to the memory of those who lost their lives.  Pray for their families and our nation. 

Matthew 6:14-15, “For ifyou forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

To forgive
is to live

To withhold
Is to turn cold

How calloused our hearts become
When we hold ought against someone

We cannot forgive and forget
Instead we just uncover it

Our wounds run deep
Our hearts just seep

It spews the hurt, the hate within
Until to us, it becomes our sin

The remedy is found in Christ our Lord
To forgive others and harbor no more

We must release the past
We must do it fast

Before our own soul
Becomes more like a black hole

To forgive
is to live

Showing Mercy brings grace
To show mercy is the only way

-Danny Cheney-

If you notice me getting taller, you will know that God answers prayer.  Apparently, Hannah is concerned that I am too short.  We have had a few conversations about my being short and my desire to be taller.  I have told her that when I get to Heaven I will be 6 foot 3 inches.

During Sunday School, Hannah requested prayer for me.  Her request was that God would make me taller.  She was specific, 6 feet 40 inches.  Folks that is over 9 foot.  We’ll see about the faith of a child:)