Life of a Pastor Blog

Has your integrity ever been tested?

I used to love to play golf.  Golf was always a way for me to enjoy life a little more and also to help me control my anger.  You see golf is exhilarating as well as a test of character.

A few years ago, a friend and I were playing a round at Bayou Din Golf Course and I was having a decent game (low 100′s) but I sure could use some extra help on my score.  On the back nine we happened to pick up two guys to play with us for the last nine holes.  We all hit from the tee box and we went to our respective balls.  Mine usually ends up in the water or near the water.

One of the gentlemen we were with said he had found my ball right next to the water but it was dry.  Which amazed me…rarely do they end up dry.  He asked me if I was playing with a Pinnacle and he pointed to the ball.  I told him no and that I was playing with a Strata.  He laughed and said, “Oh, I was just checking to see if you would lie about it.”  My ball had indeed gone into the water, and I could have claimed the one that was dry.

A test of integrity.  Next hole he asks, “So what do you do for a living?”  I said, “I am a pastor.”  He replied, “I am glad you didn’t lie about the ball.”  The other guy said, “So that explains your golf game.”

We never know when our integrity is going to be tested.  Our lives are on display all of the time, regardless of whether we are a pastor or a layperson, we all fall under the label CHRISTian.  We are representatives of Christ.  Paul said that we are to be imitators of Christ.  How we live is how people will view Christ!

How is your integrity level?  Do you strive your hardest to live a life of character and represent Christ well?  In every area of our lives we must evaluate and see where we have made small compromises.  Adjust those areas and allow God to work those things out.

The book of Hebrews says that He will give us grace to live holy.  Rely on God’s grace to help you live a life of integrity.  You never know when you will be tested.

Seated around a conference table in a dimly lit room, were gather several men.  All of them were there for the same purpose.  The leader of the meeting was assessing each person’s worth.  On the table in front of each man was an application and a spreadsheet with many calculations.  Each paper was different.  Each man flipped through his paperwork as the “boss” discussed an all-important subject: Worth.  What was each man worth?

The thing I noticed about each man was that they were all about my age.  They were in the same age bracket I was.  As each of us looked at our spreadsheets and figures calculating our worth I noticed that most of us had the same figures.  Basically the same worth.  Yet, among our group, was one man who stood out.  When I noticed His paperwork, it far over-shadowed each of the other men.  One’s worth recorded 92,000, while another was 111,000.  I wasn’t allowed to see my own figures but I noticed the other man’s.  The boss was looking at his figures.  17,000,000.

I thought to myself, “He’s the same age as I am.  How could he have built up such a figure in his short life?  What investments did he make?  WHat did he do that I didn’t and what could I do to be where he is at?”  Then I noticed his spreadsheets.  Where most of ours had a few pages of investments made, his read like a book.  Page after page of investments.

It was then I noticed the heading above our figures.  It wasn’t how much money we were worth.  The heading read simply, “Spiritual Life”.  This man was rich spiritually and we were lagging way behind.  As soon as I noticed the heading on each of the papers, I awoke from my dream.

Instantly, the Scripture came to mind, “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers.” 3 John 2

I asked myself the question as I awoke, “If I prospered as much as my soul did, how much would I be worth?”  I believe it was intentional that I was not able to see the figures on my “spiritual life” chart.  Perhaps it was the mercy of God saving me from the shock of deficiency.  Or maybe God was just speaking to me about the pursuit my life should be taking.  If this text of Scripture is interpreted correctly, prosperity is linked to my soul’s prosperity.  You can be wealthy financially and be spiritually bankrupt.  You can have a nice home with all amenities while your spiritual house is crumbling.

What matters at the end of the day is not how much we have in the bank but rather what spiritual investments we have made.  So often, we are adamant to make investments that will ensure us financial security, but forget about the investments that will help our soul to prosper.I am stirred that my life must have investments of prayer, God’s Word, sharing Christ and serving Him fully.  Yielding in obedience.  When the “boss” looks over my spreadsheet of investments, I want it to read like a book.

One last note: the fact that everyone in the dream was my same age, reveals that spiritual life is not reserved for those who are older in the faith.  It all has to do with how we invest in God’s Kingdom.  No matter our age, our soul can be as prosperous as a saint who has walked with God for 50 years.  It is all about the investment.

What are you worth spiritually?

I just got back from a hospital visit and while out I noticed how warm it was.  Let me re-phrase that. I noticed how HOT it was.  As I was walking in the hospital I thought to myself, “Is it really this hot or is it just the reflection off the windows and heat from the concrete?”

When I returned to my office, I noticed the weatherbug on my desktop.  115 degrees.  That’s only 97 degrees from boiling. It’s hot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Do you ever like to go your own way? I remember when I was a bi-vocational pastor, I drove 60 miles one way to work and it could become a monotonous drive. We lived in the country and there were six different ways to get to my office. So everyday I would take a different route. The shortest route was always the easiest but I often took the long way just to have some new scenery. It was the way I wanted to go, not necessarily the best way. Some of the roads I went down were old country roads that had potholes and gravel, but that was the way I wanted to go. It was not the best way.

Sometime, this is the way we follow the Lord. There is a better way to go, the Lord’s way, but we choose rather to follow our own paths. The Lord’s way is the best path but we choose the roads filled with potholes and gravel rather than the perfectly paved road the Lord has prepared for us.

Jeremiah 10:23 says, “O Lord, I know the way of may is not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps. O Lord, correct me, but with justice; Not in Your anger, lest You bring me to nothing.”

As I read this verse I was reminded of the many times I have chosen my own path only to find myself on a dead end street. We must allow God to direct our steps. We must not lean to our own understanding but acknowledge Him in all of our ways and let Him direct our paths. Our problem is that we have our own ideas of how God should order our steps. We have our own agendas and we try to fit God into what we want. As we live this life, we want things our way and we want them now. We want to do the things we want. We want the ministries that we desire.

In the old movie Bells of St. Mary’s, one of the nuns proclaims, “May the Lord’s will be done.” Another nun replies, “and may our will become His will.” That is often the extent of our prayers; convincing God to follow our will instead of us following His.

Our prayer ought to be as Jeremiah, “Lord correct me but with justice.” I challenge you this morning to not seek your own way but allow God to correct the way you have chosen. Follow His chosen path. Do not get ahead of Him or go down a road that you want to take. Follow Jesus on the road that leads to life and abundance. He surely has chosen the better way.

Have you ever fell flat on your face in front of a bunch of people?

One Sunday, several years ago,  was a tough day for me.  I was under the weather and thus my balance was really off.  As we were closing the service, the youth pastor was praying for protection, of all things, and I was coming down off the platform.  I hit the bottom step, twisted my ankle and spilled in front of everyone.    Laughter could barely be contained; I had fallen in front of our congregation. 

There is a spiritual lesson to be learned from this.  Many people today are off balance.  Teetering in life’s balance and could be swayed either way easily.  Some are good Christian people whose weaknesses keep them off balance.  Others are non-Christians who at any moment will sway to give their hearts to Christ.  There is an enemy of our souls, however, who desires to make us fall.  He desires to keep Christians fallen and non-Christians away from God.  Satan is the one who laughs when we fall.  

It is similar to when we were in Junior High and someone would drop their lunch tray.  Instantly, applause would erupt to embarrass that person.  The devil gives applause to our failures.  As a matter of fact, as our lives hang in the balance, he is waiting to trounce on us and kill us spiritually. 

I Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”

A lion is a patient hunter.  He waits back, watches the herd run, and looks for the weak and sick prey.  Then he moves in for the kill of the one who can’t run away easily.  Satan is not looking for the strong as much as for the one’s he knows he can make fall.  I do give you hope.  If the devil is a lion looking to devour us, we serve the Lion of the Tribe of Judah who can devour the enemy with one word.  

We don’t have to be off balance.  We can be solid Christian people.  We can overcome our weaknesses.  We are more than conquerors through Christ.  I challenge you to ask God to make your life balanced and unwavering.  You are important to God.  He wants to see you overcome.

We had a great time at Devil’s Den State Park and enjoyed being outdoors.  Devil’s Den is one of our favorite places in Northwest Arkansas.  We go there several times a year just to admire the beauty. 

It amazes me that after all the rain we had during the spring, we are now in a drought.  We were thinking that we would be able to do some swimming in the creeks at Devil’s Den, but you will notice that the creeks are virtually dry. 

Over the main creek, there is a foot bridge that spans from one side to the other.  In the spring flood it was destroyed.  Notice the tree driven through the bridge in the pictures below.  Rushing water has amazing power!

For some reason, we decided to go camping in this sweltering heat.  Our camping trip was fun but because of the heat, we decided to only stay one night and come back to the A/C.

We started our vacation with a trip to Powell, Missouri (just over the Arkansas/Missouri border).  We spent the evening with some friends from Powell.  This small town was the home of Albert Brumley, the famous songwriter.  His songs include I’ll Fly Away, Turn the Radio On and many more.  Brumley’s old home place and publishing company was the site of the July 4th festival and firework’s show.  We had a great time with the folks from Powell.

We had a great time at our Father’s Day cook-out!  Thanks to Susie and Cordy for cooking the burgers and hot dogs.

There was a good turn out to enjoy a time of food and fellowship.  As expected I didn’t win the Strongman Contest.  The winners of the contest were Josh Reed and David Roberts.  These guys are real men.  They both lifted and pressed a 70lb log over their head 2 reps of 25 and were willing to do it a third time before we called it a tie.

All the men who entered the contest did awesome.  Doris Burton jumped in on the knife throwing contest and did pretty good.

The 18 foot water slide for the kids was a hit among the young kids and the youth.  The best part of that was the fact that the company couldn’t pick the slide up until late Monday night.  So, Hannah and I decided to make a fun day of it on Monday.  We spent a couple of hours playing on it.  It was a great Father’s Day.

I don’t often attempt to review music.  I have a wide variety of taste when it comes to music.  I like just about any type.  But there is something about folk music that I enjoy more than any other.  Perhaps it is the emotions that is sung in the songs or possibly it is the ballads that describe real life.  Folk music is an enjoyment to my ears.  Now before we move on, let me specify that I listen to Christian folk and there are some artists out there that I really like.

I like music that has a different sound. Something that is not common and that is why one of my favorites is Josh Garrels.  This guy is off the charts.  From his melodic guitar rythms to his unique and versatile voice, I like him.  But one thing that sets him a part is, in his own creative way, he brings a little hip hop flare to his music.  Not rap, but rather poetic lyrics.  It is sweet music to my ears.

For a limited time, you can download his new album for free.  Check out his website here.  I also uploaded one of my favorite songs off his new record.  It incorporates the old hymn, Farther Along, and adds his own flare to it.  Let me know what you think.

The other night we went to Lowes.  As Hannah got out of the car I noticed her picking something up out of the car.  As parents often do when their kids take a little too long, I hurried her up only to notice what she was trying to get before we went into the store.  There she was proudly holding her pink princess Bible.  She carried it in for all the world to see that she was proud of her B-I-B-L-E.

She then wanted me to take a picture of her and her Bible on a lawn mower.  Who knows maybe one day she will ride her lawn mower around the world to proclaim the gospel

Do you get sweaty palms and knots in your throat when it comes time to witness to someone?

Fear instantly grips most believers when it comes time to share their faith with someone they do not know very well. Excuses flood our minds of why we shouldn’t do it. When the Holy Spirit compels us to witness we think it is the devil trying to make us fail. Let me give you a prophetic word, the devil tricks no one into witnessing about Jesus.

He does, however, cause us to fear failure. Failure is not possible when it comes to sharing our faith. We may not see the results right away but we NEVER fail.

We were destined to be witnesses. We were created for such a time as this to share our faith. I like what Paul says to Philemon:, "that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgement of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus."

It is already in you, you just have to acknowledge it. You are a witness. You just may not realize it yet. Look at yourself in the mirror every morning and say, "I am a witness" three times." Well, maybe you don’t have to talk to yourself in the mirror, but get this within your Spirit. You are a witness and were created to witness.

Lay down your fear! Remember the show Fear Factor.  The show spotlighted people facing their worst fears. Eating raw bugs (like eating cooked ones would be any better), risking their lives to cross canyons on ropes and much more. People are excited to see people face their fears. Maybe they should put all of US spiritual cowards on the show and watch us go out and witness. That is a major fear factor.

God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of POWER and of love and of a sound mind. Fear means timidity. You don’t have to be timid…be bold. God has already given you every thing you need to witness. JUST DO IT!

D.L. Moody relays the story of how a family can be won to Christ by a smile.  Let us be smiling witnesses for Christ.

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"One Sunday morning in London," reported Mr. Moody, "Spurgeon said to me, just before he commenced his sermon: ‘Moody, I want you to notice that family there in one of the front seats and when we go home I want to tell you their story.’

"When we got home," said Moody, "I asked him for the story, and he said: ‘All that family were won by a smile.’"

" Why," said I, "how’s that?"

" Well," said he, "as I was walking down a street one day, I saw a child at a window; it smiled, and I smiled, and we bowed. It was the same the second time; I bowed, she bowed. It was not long before there was another child, and I had got in a habit of looking and bowing, and pretty soon the group grew, and at last, as I went by, a lady was with them.

" I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to bow to her, but I knew the children expected it, and so I bowed to them all. And the mother saw I was a minister, because I carried a Bible every Sunday morning.

" So the children followed me the next Sunday. And they thought I was the greatest preacher, and their parents must hear me. And, finally the father and mother and five children were converted, and they are going to join our church next Sunday."

"Won to Christ by a smile!" said Moody. "We must get the wrinkles out of our brows, and we must have smiling faces, if we want to succeed in our work of love."

HT: Encyclopedia of 15,000 Illustrations: Signs of the Times.

There are still some items left to be auctioned this Sunday night.  You will find the items attached in a PDF.