God has blessed me, God has saved my life, and I thank God for everything I have. I’ve lost so much, suffered so much, and through all that God is next to me blessing me. When it felt as if my ship was sinking, just like Yoda, God has lifted my boat out of the water to safety. As the storm passes, God shines bright in my heart and I know I’m not alone.
What Does Easter Mean To Me and What Does Mine Look Like?
Easter to me is the most important day of the year. For a Christian today is the day Christ rose from the grave. Christ was killed a perfect sacrifice to take away the Sins of the world.
Luke 23:44-47 “44 It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, 45 for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. 46 Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last. 47 The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.”
Three days later John 20:7 “And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.” Before Christ died he screamed the word ‘tetelestai’ which in Hebrew means paid in full, which was his sacrifice for the Sins of all man Kind. So the napkin being folded in Hebrew tradition of the day meant the master was coming back, and the servant shouldn’t touch the table. Jesus folded the cloth to represent he was coming back that he wasn’t finished yet. The earthly life of Jesus had ended. The turn of the page in the life of Jesus was just beginning. Jesus returned no longer a man that we knew it, but more, the savior of our sins, the giver of eternal life.
We live free from eternal damnation; we live life to live in Heaven for ever. Easter is a day to remember how imperfect we are, but how the perfect plan works to save us from ourselves. The truth of it was we didn’t deserve that sacrifice, we didn’t and don’t deserve the everlasting life that has been gifted to us.
Today as my phone died last night due to a broken charging cable, I missed sunrise service, missed breakfast and Sunday school, and missed the Easter cantata. Thankfully my church has a live stream for me to enjoy from the Internet. The weather outside is a very beautiful sunny 80* with a low humidity, a perfect sunny Easter day. We often give thanks for the big stuff in our lives, but what about the small stuff? How often do we forget to thank God for our weather, our homes, the breath we can take, the country we live in. As for me I have lived and seen places where Air Condition is a luxury, solid floors didn’t exist, instead were dirt. I’ve lived in places where the walls where that of tin and not wood or dry walled with insulation between them. How lucky are we to have and live in a place with so many wonderful things that because we see them every day we don’t see them as gifts anymore. Everything we have is a gift from God.
The world is a dangerous place, and we never get through without pain and suffering. We experience loss and heartbreak so we know what we have when we have it. We cannot improve unless we loose. We cannot be grateful for what we have unless we know what it’s like without it. So as we look to the East at today’s beautiful Sunrise, remember that on this day the Son Did Rise.
22 Veterans a Day
On a daily basis there are 22 veterans on average in this country that commit suicide. The number of veterans who try per day is a number that’s not even known. Sadly the amount of people who die is vastly too many. Why is this an epidemic in our country? The life a veteran lives after the military is never an easy one. It’s full of pain, and loss, and a lack of self worth like few will ever know or understand. What kind of pain can someone feel that would be enough to override the simplest of functions, self-preservation? When the world beats us to the ground, when our value seems to go away the notion of self-preservation is the farthest thing on our minds.
Sometimes it’s a single trauma that can cause enough pain to force our hand. I’m not saying it’s ever right, but I do understand. When you feel you’ve lost everything you once held dear to your heart, everything in your life you rated as being who you were, that loss can be strong enough to wish it all away. As a soldier we are trained to do. We are trained to react and do so without feeling, without questioning the decision, so why not when it comes to our personal lives. The training isn’t like a switch you can turn on and off anytime you wish. What happens is sad, but true. When threatened the brain automatically kicks into fight or flight response. As a soldier our flight response doesn’t usually kick in it’s always fight and never stop fighting. When we feel as if the mission is done, and or lost, that flight kicks in. We are trained to avoid emotional attachments, so when something happens that’s extremely emotionally charged, we don’t know how to handle.
2 Timothy 2:4 “4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.” This of course defines a big problem with today. Soldiers of today’s wars will go from war to home in a matter of a week. This is never enough time to decompress, to deal with the horrible things we face in war. When we get home and the real battle begins so few understand. We struggle to open up and let others know how we feel and what we think, sadly we often fail.
The true nature of the struggles is we just don’t know where to look. There are plenty of people who may not know exactly what we feel, but have struggles of their own. It’s not for us to push people aside. The mission isn’t over it’s just different. When we return, the mission is no longer to seek and destroy the enemy it’s to be there for our fellow brother and sister veterans. We must have faith that whatever battle we face, the battle will not be waged alone.
Psalms 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
Help is all around us. There are people there who are willing to and want to help. If you’re a veteran and having financial troubles there are organizations to help. Facing PTSD there are places that help. It’s just a matter of using the resources that are there for you. Do not place your self worth on a temporary pain. When the mission doesn’t seem so simple anymore, when life seems bigger then we can take, we feel alone, realize we aren’t. What’s one soldier to do when life is so big? When the pain we face every day is a solitary one it’s more likely that we will loose the battle and sadly we can loose ourselves. The only truth that matters is we aren’t alone. The pain we face in basic training is only temporary. Sadly when one war is over and the next begins something about civilian life is harder to face. We feel as if the world no longer cares about us. We feel as if the problems will never go away, but the fact is they will and they do.
Joshua 1:9 “9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” God is always with us. As we may feel alone, we must not loose our faith. If we look hard enough God will always send someone to be there for us when we need it. God expects us to be proactive. God is not Santa Claus, things won’t be gift wrapped and left on the door for us. He will however give us exactly what we need, when we need it. Romans 8:38-39 “38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” No matter the fight ahead, no matter the fight behind we have hope. There will always be hope as long as we remember where to look.
As for me, I know who my friends are. I know where my support is. In the last 8 months my close friends have come out of the woodwork to help me. My close friends have lifted me up, supported me, helped me, talked to me, hugged my neck, called me, written me, and have gone out of their way to help me change my future. I can never thank all my veteran friends, or tell them how much I appreciate or care about them. Faith in the future may not come easily for some, and some days that faith will be tested to the absolute max of it’s limits, but no matter what is going on, PLEASE reach out and let someone know if you need help.
You don’t have to be a victim anymore. Take control of your life and start to live again.
I’ve Got Your 6.
I’d like to dedicate this Blog to a few people very important to me. (Galyn, Tabby, Doc, Brian, David, Paul, David, Michaela, Thacker, Chelsey, Dustin, [just to name a few]) You know why your name is on here.
It’s Been A Long Road Getting From There To Here
Most of you probably don’t know the song that title is from, ‘Where my heart will take me’. The song speaks of a journey, a long one but finally after a long time a breakthrough, and following your heart, and faith to achieve anything because of strength of that faith and soul.
Do we have faith like that? Do we have faith in God to grant us peace in the storm? Do we have faith that God will be our light in the darkness? Do we have faith that when we are down on our knees with no where left to turn God will lift us on the wings of Angels and give us reprieve from our assorted sufferings?
There’s so much in my heart that is full of pain, it’s full of doubt, its full of fear. Multiple times over I’ve faced death. I’ve seen death in the eyes, and I’ve overcome. I’ve seen RPG’s just barely pass by me. I’ve been caught in explosions, I’ve been shot, I’ve been just seconds from death. Every step every turn I’ve been protected by Gods hands. Because Christ lives in me I have managed to overcome. No matter the long road, the destination is beyond the stars. I pray my soul to find peace. I pray that because Jesus lives I will be saved of this pain and tomorrow the day of our salvation will hold true in my heart.
As I struggle with myself, it’s my own weakness. Faith in the Lord is a hard thing to keep. It isn’t the Lord part that’s tough; knowing that because of God I am safe. Because of God I am a free man. Because of God I am alive and the only thing that matters is His love. The world may beat me, the world may torture me, but it’s the life of Jesus Christ, a high price, but I am saved in that love.
The road I’ve traveled has been a rocky road full of pain and suffering. Days like today I struggle to maintain my positive outlook, but the truth is there’s no reason I shouldn’t be positive. Christ has Risen for me. Knowing that if Christ had to die for just me, he would have. A love like that should never go to waist.
As I have lost so much, as I have had to sacrifice so much, it’s never as much as our Lord sacrificed for us. When life does me wrong, keep moving forward. When trouble knocks at the door be sure to raise to the Lord your hands in prayer, and lift our weary soul to our Almighty God. Lift higher and higher to the Lord. We may never be worthy of Gods love, but we have it anyway. Put your own ambitions aside, God will provide.
No matter the road I’ve traveled, here I am, by Gods purpose, and Gods design. I’m here typing to show there is hope. Hope for tomorrow; hope for today because in all things darkness cannot survive the light. The darkness cannot snuff out the light, but the light will always overtake the darkness. Embrace the change of the light inside you. Let the Light of Christ fill your heart and let it change you. Be born again of the light. Even in the darkest of nights the stars will shine, and will guide your path. Look to the sky and see what’s written in the stars. The Lord gives us a sign and we must follow. The Lord will always say “Trust in Me.” So in the starlight, even the words can be seen when you know how to look.
Success Ratio
How do we rate our success in life? I used to think my success was in my career, my relationship, my GPA in college, but really I was only hurting myself in the long run. When those things are taken away what does that do to our psyche? For me when my world fell apart I fell apart. I put my faith in all the wrong places. Even as a good Christian boy I didn’t do what I was supposed to.
As I’ve gotten older my priorities have changed. Sadly, as I’ve gotten older the stakes have gotten higher. It’s hard to watch a life fall apart and have faith that tomorrow will be better. As many before me have struggled through life’s difficulties and challenges, I know that I too will not fail to make a new life for myself. I don’t pretend to know or understand the direction my life is going, but I do know no matter where it is my faith in God will be my guiding light.
No matter what hardship you’re having there are some scripture verses that help the wary heart.
Psalm 34:17 “When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
2 Corinthians 1:10 “He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again.”
No matter the troubles, no matter your peril, your shortcomings, the Lord will be with you every step of the way. If depression and anxiety are flooding your ship don’t go into battle alone. Reach out to others and find help. There is always aid; it just takes a little effort to find it. It isn’t a sign of weakness to ask for help, it’s a sign of strength. James 1:12 “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.”
We measure our success by 1 Kings 2:3 “3 and observe what the LORD your God requires: Walk in obedience to him, and keep his decrees and commands, his laws and regulations, as written in the Law of Moses. Do this so that you may prosper in all you do and wherever you go” No matter how far we must travel, to Hell and back, remain steadfast in our faithful service to the Lord. Isaiah 41:10 “10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Never give up. Sometimes we may loose, but it’s how we carry ourselves. Sometimes we may give up everything for the ones we care about, and that, is a measure of success worth fighting for.
Change of Plans
People keep asking me what my plans for the future are. Now that everything in my life has fallen to pieces, the time has come to come up with a new plan. What do we do though when life doesn’t go according to our own ideas? The case can be made that since we are just pieces on the board we cannot see the whole board. The day may come when the strength of this man may fail, but I will not allow failure for as long as I draw breath, or at least that’s my plan.
God however has a different perspective. Proverbs 16:9 “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” We take our life one step at a time, one small journey or adventure at a time. I often feel as if I am wondering in the woods alone and lost. As time ticks away I have to remind myself that I am not in control, and I must ask for guidance, ask for help, seek wise counsel. The fear that comes knowing we are not to be in command of our own destiny, but the Lord above has all the power.
Lately that worry and concern seems to have consumed my everyday waking thought. I have been left with the difficult task to force myself to trust in God. The constant undertaking to believe in the plan that I myself cannot see, is hard to say the least. The end may come, but we will never be alone. Lost we may feel, but truly we are not.
Someone asked me once how God could allow so much bad to happen in this world. Why children who’ve not yet grown should die early in life. The impact of one life can change the course of a life beyond our understanding, beyond our wildest dreams. One stone may not change the course of the river, but that same stone on a narrow wooded path can change ones footing, and that could change a great deal in that regard.
My goals in life where to get married and have kids to carry on my family name and blood, but as I am now older each major step in that direction has failed, I sadly question the why. I have lost two great loves in my life, and now as the change affects me more and more every day, I wonder what is the next step for me. As this blog has been a major outlet for me, and an outreach to others, I pray that I can continue to reach others in Christ’s name. We are but pieces on the board, but what piece are we? Look at some of the greatest most influential people in history, I am sure growing up they had no idea how important they would be in history.
We cannot judge our own importance because we ourselves are too close to fully understand our worth. The plans we have for ourselves are always going to change, they are always going to adapt, and sometimes we just need to let go of the reins and let God handle the details. The amount of faith it takes to uproot and move across the country, across the world, is great. Sometimes it’s necessary to do so without a plan, without a long-term objective, but that’s what faith is sometimes. A blind leap and pray that God will catch you before you hit the bottom. Proverbs 19:21 “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” The final word I give to you is that of Philippians 4:6-7 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Beautiful Change
God is our rock, our anchor in the storm, our light to guide us home. Through all things God is with us. Praise God when life is hard, Praise God more when life is great. You make the choice to listen to the word and believe the truest of words. God is the voice of truth. The storm will always leave and when it does the skies never look so clear, so bright, so beautiful. When the caterpillar goes into the cocoon it will emerge more beautiful then it ever thought possible. Gods grace once it touches us changes us. Fundamentally changing who we are from the inside out. Find that healing in Christ’s name. The scars will always be there, the failings will never be erased from time, but today is a new day to choose to follow God. WE make choices every day in which we are judged. Make the choice today to follow God. Let God into your heart. It’s never too late to choose God. Never too late to fall to your knees and give up all you are. As for me and my house we will serve the Lord.
You see the world through a lens. A particular viewpoint of perspective says what’s good for me, but it may not be good for you. No matter what happens we must have faith in God. No matter what you think, or what you feel remember Romans 13:1-2“Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. 2 So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished.” Today’s world is a volatile and sometimes unforgiving place, but in all today’s world we must have the faith that everything is according to the plan. Never give up on moving forward. Never give up on the next day.
Cry out to the Lord Jesus
I have to admit I don’t usually write about how I am personally feeling. Lately though I have been struggling a great deal to reconcile what’s been happening to me in my personal life. The struggles I’ve been facing are far more then anyone should ever have to go through. As many of my spiritual counsel have mentioned it seems very similar to the life of Job. I find it hard to remain strong and faithful, but I know that up to date, I have kept the faith. I have remained true to my morals and I have not allowed myself to fall into hate, or taken the bait in which Satan has set for me.
I can admit that through these struggles many questions have been asked, and sadly as expected I’ve not received an answer, but why. For every question I think of an answer for another question pops up in its place. When the big changes in life happen and often against your will, it’s so easy to blame God. When we want something so badly we turn to God and beg and plead for it. Do we do the same when we receive so many of our wonderful gifts from Heaven? The fear of man is to not have control, not to have power. If God is the almighty what does that make man? Man’s power corrupts and God’s power is absolute.
The Lord gives us so much when we deserve so little. The only truth that matters is the truth of Easter. I feel as if I have failed and that perhaps I am being punished for things I cannot understand. We don’t always know what or why. We know that the Devil has often targeted those who are big pieces in Gods plan. I was once told of a story of a man who no one knows, but everyone knows Billy Graham. How did he get to where he is? Who set him on the path? If we are to understand how the puzzle fits together we need to not be a piece of it, but instead be the puzzle builder. Sadly, as we are just pieces that go together we will never know the big picture, and we need to find a way to be okay with that.
Deuteronomy 7:9 “9 Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations”
Feeling low, or down does not mean you have little faith. Life has a way of bringing us down; beating us, and making us feel defeated. I feel as if I’ve let so many down, but I know the truth is I haven’t. I know there’s been much pain brought about, all of the situations that have happened as of late, many have been affected not just myself. We must be faithful to the Lord on high. We must understand that our suffering is only temporary. Tomorrow is a new day full of new chances. All we have to do is keep the faith, pray to God, and put in effort to change the fate of tomorrow.
Proverbs 3:5-6 “5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
Carry Your Burdens to Find Light at the End of the Tunnel
Matthew 16:24-26 “24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life[a] will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?”
Luke 9:23 “And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.”
Mark 8:34 “And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”
What does it mean to pick up your cross and follow Christ? The walk with Jesus as our Lord and Savior is never an easy one. We are called to sacrifice our earthly desires, called to love Christ and let go of our sinful desires. Do we deny God; do we deny our Lord and Savior when pushed, when threatened with reprisals, or persecution? Do we have the fortitude to bare the burden of what it means to be a follower of Christ? Remember as the 11 Apostils followed Christ were brutally tortured and killed for it. Amongst strong opposition they never waivered in their faith, they saw Christ for what he was, they saw Him in the flesh. It was once said, “You have seen with your own eyes and yet you doubt, imagine those who will never see.” Colossians 1:11-12 “11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, 12 and giving joyful thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of his holy people in the kingdom of light.” The cross is not a race; it’s a long marathon. The travel takes time. The travel takes fortitude.
When we are weak, we must look to God to help us. As Christians we must help our brother and sisters when they are in need. We all stumble on our journey. Even Christ fell on his trek to meet His destiny. Thus teaching us another lesion about humility, about pride. Galatians 6:2 “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” If Christ was willing to bare the sacrifice for all mankind’s Sins what are we willing to bare for Christ? Are we willing to take public ridicule, or even worse loosing people we care about? What is eternal salvation worth? The life we spend here on Earth is merely a short while, but the end result is perfection in Heaven. Our burdens will be great, John 15:18-21 18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. 19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. 20 Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. 21 But all these things will they do unto you for my name’s sake, because they know not him that sent me.” It was foretold that the world would turn on Christians. It was foretold that the life of a Christian would be difficult and full of anger and hatred.
Entering Easter remember what it truly means to give it all, to give up life, and sacrifice ones self for something bigger then yourself. Are you truly giving up something to follow Christ? Are you truly in your heart following? What does following Christ mean to you? As Christians we face more opposition today then we ever have. Do we sit silent and watch as the world tries to snuff out any last resemblance of our right to choose what we believe in? There’s too much empirical evidence to prove Jesus Christ the man lived. Denying the truth is simply the same as denying the oceans are full of water. 11 men could not have held together some conspiracy. The fulfillment of scripture prior to the New Testament, the fulfillment of the crucifixion, that not one of Christ’s bones were broken, yet he underwent excruciating amounts of pain. Do not doubt, do not forget what’s at stake. Christ bore the burden of sin for us, what can we do to possibly measure up, nothing. All we are asked is to love one another, love Christ, love God, and obey the commandments. Do this and eternity may very well be yours.
The Arrow Preacher 