Day 20….Jeremiah 23:23-32

"Let these false prophets tell their dreams, but let my true messengers faithfully proclaim my every word. There is a difference between chaff and wheat!” (Jeremiah 23: 28) 

Notes from the devotional:

• God can and does communicate to us in dreams. But Jeremiah knew all too well that dreamers who profess to have a message from the Lord should not necessarily be accepted at face value.
• There are some who claim to have a message from God who, in actuality, have no such thing. Instead, they are seeking to authenticate their own imaginations and investing their own ideas with divine sanction.
• The problem is, how do you differentiate between a genuine, revealed message from God and the product of a wicked or vain imagination? The key is to test what is said against Scripture.
• The more familiar we are with what God has to say in the Bible, the less likelihood there will be of our being led astray by “smooth tongued prophets” (Jeremiah 23:31). Carefully studying scripture and deliberately applying its truth to our lives may seem unglamorous and mundane compared to receiving dramatic revelations and making imaginative predictions, but warnings against false prophets and their ultimate fate (Jeremiah 23:39-40) should put us on guard for such.
• The Scriptures are so powerful, so life-giving and refreshing, that we should relish them and not have a desire for flashy speakers spouting their own ideology.

My notes:

• My first thought was what they say about the U.S. Treasury Department. They don’t train agents to recognize counterfeit money by studying counterfeit money. Instead, the study every nuance of real money. They become so knowledgeable on every minute detail of real money that they immediately notice counterfeit by its difference from the real thing. To know Truth, we must study Truth. To evangelize and counteract false doctrine, false religions, we must intimately know God’s Word. Anything other than God’s true Word will then become immediately apparent and avoidable.
• I also sit here and am kind of laughing at God’s nudging… Seems like one of the take home messages I get from virtually all these devotionals lately is… get in the Word more. Daily. LOL. Thanks God. I got it. Working on being more obedient …
• We are surrounded by false prophets people. Our culture is becoming more and more splintered because people are looking under every nook and cranny for truth. They think they find it there too… “within themselves”, the charismatic leader who “has a unique interpretation of the Scripture,” the politically charged celebrity, and so on. The more we look elsewhere for truth, the further away we get from it and the harder it is to see the difference between truth and falsehood.
• Stay in the Word. Seek truth there. And no where else, because God is the source of all truth.

Personal challenge:

• Where do you go for truth? How do you judge between what is true and what is false?
• Pray for commitment to stay in the Word daily, so that you may easily see God’s Truth and separate from the false doctrine of the world.

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

Day 19…Isaiah 30:8-17

“The Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says, ‘Only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength.But you would have none of it.’”  (Isaiah 30:15)

Notes from the devotional:

• (Background) Jerusalem was the target of invasion by the Assyrians, and they needed to amass enough of a force to counter the Assyrians. Israel took action and sought to bribe Egypt into a coalition to help them fight the Assyrians. Isaiah was convinced Egypt was worthless as a source of help – he warned against seeking help from the Egyptians – he said this plan would backfire. Isaiah’s plan was simple – according to the word he received from the Lord, it was “only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved. In quietness and confidence is your strength.” But Israel did not see the wisdom of this and ignored Isaiah. And look how it turned out for them – they were eventually handed over to the Egyptians.
• We men are Mr. Fix-it kind of people. We see something that needs fixing, we fix it. We see a problem, we identify a solution, establish a plan, create a budget and goals, and move into action.
• But as activists, or Mr. Fix-it’s, we often do not see the wisdom of “quietness and confidence.” Instead, we take on the doctrine of , “God helps those who help themselves” even though we usually are so confident in our own abilities that the help of God is rarely seen as significant. We rely on ourselves, not God.
• The lesson is this: In every situation, turn to the Lord, quietly and confidently, and expect him to work! And he will!

My notes:

• I tend to be Mr. Fix-it WAY to often in my life – with Kelly, with the boys. But when it comes to my practice and office, I often do nothing. Not out of quietness and confidence, but more in hiding and lack of confidence to know I am doing the right thing.
• I see that to often I am relying on my abilities to fix the problem, or even relying on my perceived LACK of ability to fix a problem, to either tackle it head on, full of hustle and bustle and noise, or quietly avoid it in hopes nobody sees the problems or watches in case I fail.
• Why can’t I see that God is in control, HAS always been in control, and WILL ALWAYS BE in control. If that is true, then why not sit back, BE STILL, and in the quietness know that he is there to help, and he is there to give me the confidence I need to accomplish his will in every situation. Why? Humanity and sinful nature, I guess.
• To me, this is another call for QUIET meditation and devotional time, so that I CAN hear him or even begin to listen for him.

Personal challenge:

• Where do you see yourself letting go and listening for God in your circumstances? Where do you see yourself refusing to let go to him?
• Pray for more humility and wisdom to listen for him and to allow him to guide you in all circumstances.

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

Day 18…Psalm 85

"I listen carefully to what God the Lord is saying, for he speaks peace to his people, his faithful ones. But let them not return to their foolish ways.” (Psalm 85:8) 

Notes from the devotional:

• Men find it hard to stop, look, and listen. We don’t like to stop what we’re doing – we think it wastes time.
• We don’t find it necessary to look – we think we already know. 
• We find it difficult to listen because as another speaks, we are formulating a rebuttal.
• Failing to listen intensely can mean missing the message entirely, or it can lead to hearing the message only partially.
• To miss the message entirely means living in ignorance.
• To grasp the message only partially can mean living with confusion.
• In the psalmist’s time, God spoke powerfully to prophets whose job it was to deliver the message to his people. the problem was they only listened halfheartedly or not at all. Because they did this, though, disaster overtook them several times in the Bible. Those who listened though knew that God’s salvation was near (v9), knew about unfailing love and peace (v1), and so on.
• Men today have the Bible, godly preachers, and gifted authors on every hand speaking God’s message. If men would just listen, they would see God is still offering all these things. But as we continue to refuse to listen, disaster can overtake us too, especially if we “return to our foolish ways.”

My notes:

• I am too busy trying to either be Mr. Fix It or Mr. Ostrich-With-My-Head-In-The-Sand to ever really listen. In the car, it’s the radio. At home, it’s the TV or the Xbox 360 or Facebook. At work, it’s patients and phones and letters and stress and anything else I can find to occupy my time.
• Why can’t I just sit still and listen? Is it because I am afraid of what I may hear? Is it because I am afraid I will hear nothing?
• Ok, I have committed to one thing this year – daily devotionals to keep me in the Word at least a bit every day. Not enough though. I need to “Be still and know that he is God” at least for a few minutes every day.
• We’re not radio stations. It’s okay to have airtime silence, people.

Personal challenge:

• What is your technique? What do you do to try to listen to God intensely”? What do you hear him say?

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

Day 17…1 Timothy 1:18-19

"Timothy, my son, I give you this instruction in keeping with the prophecies once made about you, so that by following them you may fight the good fight, holding on to faith and a good conscience.”

Notes from the devotional:

• Every man should seek to have three individuals in his life: a Paul, a Barnabus, and a Timothy,
• A Paul is an older man who is willing to mentor you, to build into your life.Not someone smarter or more gifted than you, but someone who’s willing to share his strengths and weaknesses and everything he’s learned in the laboratory of life. Someone’s whose faith you’ll want to imitate.
• A Barnabus is a soul brother, somebody who loves you but is not impressed by you. Somebody to whom you can be accountable – willing to keep you honest.
• A Timothy is a younger man into whose life you are building – affirming, encouraging, teaching, correcting, directing, praying.

My notes:

• Wow. I guess this goes back to my thoughts on an accountability partner. I don’t really fit into any of these roles for anyone around me, and I don’t really feel like anyone is filling those roles for me.
• It just goes to show you how much of a spiritual island men are in our world. No wonder we all struggle so much with anything from substance abuse to pornography to gambling to workaholism to infidelity to aggression to whatever else you can think of.
• These recent passages are making me look at relationships with my buddies in a different light. And that’s a good thing.

Personal challenge:

• Can you be a Paul – a spiritual mentor – to someone else? Ask God to keep you open to this.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

Day 17...delayed

Cold. Bad. Head explosion imminent from sinuses.

Will catch up tomorrow or Friday.

God Bless! 

Sean

Day 16…Mark 3:20-35

"When Jesus returned to the house where he was staying, the crowds began to gather again, and soon he and his disciples couldn’t even find time to eat.” (Mark 3:20)…. “[Jesus said] Anyone who does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:35) 

Notes from the devotional:

• Making lists of priorities is commendable, but life does not fit so conveniently into compartments. A neatly balanced life is not easy to achieve.
• Perhaps the desire itself is misplaced. How “balanced” was the life of Jesus and his disciples? We are told that the crowds demanding their attention were so vast and the needs so great that “he and his disciples couldn’t even find time to eat.” (Mark 3:20)
• Jesus and his disciples knew the pressure of life – the pressure of being aware of the needs of a crying world and being prepared to address them. This kind of pressure pushes people away from the equilibrium of a neatly balanced life. You miss meals (and family time, and bedtime, and playtime, and study time, etc etc ad nauseum)
• Jesus’ own family didn’t agree or approve of his lack of balance! (Mark 3:21) - “When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, ‘He is out of his mind.’”
• Not only were Jesus and his disciples driven by their world’s need, they also recognized they were in a spiritual battle for the souls of and and women. Fighting Godly battles required more than balance – it took everything they had.

My notes:

• I NEEDED THIS TODAY.
• I have been struggling with increasing anger and resentment toward my job… toward my office… toward the people I serve. I have been feeling used and abused. I have been watching my kids suffer because people say they can’t afford to pay me when I see those same people turn around and buy EXPENSIVE frivolous things for the very kids of theirs I am trying to help. I am becoming resentful of the way this is dragging my Kelly down and affecting our marriage and our relationship with our kids.
• Then God, you have to go and remind me that if I am in your will as we have felt we were, then that is all that matters. I have to trust that the commitments we are making and the sacrifices we are making are what you want of us. But it is so painful to struggle so, so painful to watch my kids feel like none of this is fair, so painful to try and explain (AND UNDERSTAND MYSELF), why being in God’s will is SUCH A STRUGGLE sometimes. I struggle to stay mindful of the fact that doing your will does not always mean my life WILL be in balance, or even my own life at all. It is yours and I struggle with Kelly and I not getting to share in the family that you have gifted us with.
• Are you telling me not to be resentful of feeling pulled away from you and my family BECAUSE I am doing your work? I understand the point. But it doesn’t make it any easier to accept…
• I am tired. I am tired of wanting more. I am tired of giving every stinking thing, every stinking minute and ounce to this office and to people who don’t seem to care about their own lives and use me to their own ends. I am tired of Kelly having to sacrifice everything for this place, including hr role as mother and wife, to help keep it running.
• I desperately want relief! For me, for my wife and kids, for our bank account, for our time as a family, for our time with You!
• Lord, help me understand the living a life for you isn’t always about balance. It’s about service and commitment and obedience. I am struggling with this and ask that you lift this burden from us in the way that keeps us in your will. Forgive me my anger and resentment today.

Personal challenge:

• Seek ways to find Godly balance in your life.
• How does a life of Godly balance differ from a life of Worldly balance?

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

Day 15…Proverbs 27:17

"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” (Proverbs 27:17) 

Notes from the devotional:

• Men need accountability as much as women (in my opinion probably more so!).
• Men find accountability difficult for at least four reasons:
  1. Fear of rejection
  2. Embarrassment
  3. Fear giving up control
  4. Do not like facing negative feelings

My notes:

• After all these years as a man seeking God, I have yet to find an accountability partner. But the reason for this is I have purposely not sought one – for the very reasons listed above. I have not allowed myself to get close to people to the point that they can know my weaknesses and the thorns in my side.
• Women seem to find close intimate relationships with other women and find such accountability. Men, however, do not. We prefer to keep others at arms’ length – if we let others in, we have to admit weakness, failure, falling short of God on a daily basis. To admit these things, is, well, not “manly” in the eyes of the world.
• I prefer email and texting to actual talking on the phone – it is less personal, and I have more control over the flow of conversation and information. Actual conversation is to personal, leaves me to bare and vulnerable, and I may slip up and let others see the chinks in my armor.
• I would bet that most men feel this way, which is why we fall into so many traps – substance abuse, gambling, pornography, affairs – they are all slippery slopes that, without accountability, can be all to easy to fall into.
• I thank God for my bible study group and close friends, and most especially for my wife. But I am still missing that close accountability that provides that extra layer of spiritual protection against the world. Because of that, I have to work extra hard to avoid the wiles of this world.
• Dear Heavenly Father, I pray for accountability. I pray that you would reveal the man in my life that can sharpen me and my spiritual walk much as iron sharpens iron. I desire with all my heart to be a man after your own heart, and do not want any earthly weaknesses to distract me from you. In addition to making an effort to spend more time with you, your word, and in prayer, I need accountability here in this world to grow more like you. Remove my fear and reluctance about opening myself up to others to remove all obstacles to you. Lord, I ask these things of you in order to honor you and make you proud of me. Amen.

Personal challenge:

• If you’re already in an accountability group, thank God for each of the other men. If you’re not, ask God if he’s leading you to join one.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

Day 14…Mark 2:23-3:6

"Then [Jesus] said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27-28) 

Notes from the devotional:

• God set aside the Sabbath for the Israelites as a day of rest - “Six days a week are set apart for your daily duties and regular work but the seventh day is a day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God.” The Jewish nation were forbidden to do any work on the Sabbath, and they defined 39 prohibited actions!
• When Jesus and his disciples violated one of these 39 activities on the Sabbath by picking some wheat for food on the Sabbath, they were challenged by the rabbis – Jesus was in violation of the Law of the Sabbath. Jesus replied that the Sabbath was made for the benefit of man and, therefore, it was appropriate for his hungry disciples to be fed
• If Jesus’ words are to be applied for modern people, surely they mean that our times of rest from work should be lived in conscious recognition not only of the Creator who rested, but also of his Son who rose again
• Such recognition would lead to worship and service as a prime weekend activity
• this should not only serve to renew weary people after the struggles of the previous week, but also refresh them with spiritual energy with which to face the new week

My notes:

• I do not honor the Sabbath enough. Period. While today I am spending the evening in bible study, typically I am spending my Sundays catching up on work related stuff that I couldn’t get done during the week. Such disrespect of God and his Word. 
• It says the using the Sabbath not only of a day of rest but also as worship and recognition of God renews you from the past week but prepares you for the week ahead. Maybe I am always dreading the next week and never feel fully recharged from the previous week because I don’t use the Sabbath enough to worship and recognize God and his mercy and sovereignty in my life. Maybe if I did what he says, I would get what he says. Just like yesterday’s study, reverence for god leads to wisdom… Maybe honoring God has pretty good benefits too! Duh!

Personal challenge:

• How do you honor the Sabbath?
• Can you tell a difference in your life when you truly honor the Sabbath versus when you do not?

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

Day 13…Psalms 111

"Reverence for the Lord is the foundation of true wisdom. The rewards of wisdom come to all who obey him. Praise his name forever!” (Psalms 111:10)

Notes from the devotional:

• As the psalmist contemplated the Lord, he knew that reverence for God is the only appropriate response to his existence – not only in public worship, but in the day-to-day matters of the heart.
• First of all, the psalmist recounted the amazing deeds of the Lord and instructed his hearers to ponder them – events in history that clearly demonstrated the power and majesty of the Lord:
• God rescued Israel from their Egyptian oppressors (Psalms 111:4)
• God fed them in the wilderness (Psalms 111:5)
• God “had shown his great power to his people by giving them the lands of other nations” (Psalms 111:6)
• God “always remembers his covenant” (Psalms 111:5)
• The psalmist then turned his attention to the giving of the law to the people of Israel – the law was a revelation of God’s character and purposes and an explanation of God’s expectations, promises, and warnings – he communicates with his creatures who revere and obey him
• This psalm was written for use when godly people gathered for worship (Psalms 111:1) – in the writer’s mind, reverence in worship was of prime importance – our hearts should be prepared as we enter worship out of reverence and awe for our Holy Creator

My notes:

• I catch myself sometimes in worship listening to myself sing and singing harmony rather than just closing my eyes and singing the MESSAGE of the song to God – it really is the point of the song… I need to make sure I come back to the heart of worship, because it is all about Him…
• Just as the Israelites did at the urging of the psalmist, I need to look at those “God shots” in my life and the spiritual markers that show his grace and mercy and awesomeness to pull me into a sense of reverence day and night

Personal challenge:

• What are those events in your life that really demonstrate God’s sovereignty in your life that pull you into a sense of reverence?
• How is your worship affected by your sense of reverence (or lack thereof) of God?

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

Day 12…Romans 8:29

"For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.”

Notes from the devotional:

• A major sign of manhood is a man’s word. To be conformed to the image of Christ, our words must conform to God’s Word.
• Five vital truths about God’s Word:
  1. God’s Word is his bond. When God made a promise to Abraham, he swore by himself, because he could swear on nothing greater.
  2. God’s Word is the expression of his nature. Jesus said, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father.” (John 14:9)
  3. God’s Word is the measure of his character. As the Alpha and Omega, there is no end to God’s character, and thus no end to his Word.
  4. God’s Word is magnified above his name. God’s name is as good as His Word. When we pray in Jesus’ name, we’re using His authority.
  5. God’s Word is the sole source of faith and the absolute rule of conduct. “…there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12) 

My notes:

• Number five sticks out at me. This is where our world, our cultures, our families have fallen. The world has convinced us that moral relativism is the new truth – that there is no truth, there is no right or wrong. If you don’t have a solid foundation or frame of reference for the decisions you make in your life, you are constantly going to be backtracking and running in circles as the decisions you make begin to contradict one another depending on the circumstances you are in at the time of the decision!
• I see this play out in my office every day. Kids that think what they are doing is not wrong, parents who have no boundaries on their kids, schools afraid to discipline kids because of fear of retribution from the moral relativistic parents or out of fear of “damaging the child’s self-esteem”…
• I rejoice in the conflicts I have with my sons about these things. They inevitably pick up on or want to do the same things some of their friends are doing, and the conflict comes when Kelly and I stand on your truth and provide Godly boundaries. It is an opportunity to teach our children (though I don’t know how much they are listening).
• Thank you God for drilling in me and helping me understand the infallible truth of your Word!

Personal challenge:

• What Bible passage has helped you become more like Christ?
• Ask God to use His Word to transform your life.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

Day 11…James 5:16b

"The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

Notes from the devotional:

• In a culture of decline what can we, as men, do to effect change? We can pray for revival.
• We need to understand that nothing can be accomplished, either for ourselves or throughout our nation, without prayer.
• God still needs men who will give themselves to prayer and then go and do whatever the Holy Spirit tells them – men who will fall on their knees and cry out to God.
• Men begin the journey of being transformed into the image of Christ through such fervent prayer to God.
• As men become transformed, the course of a nation can be changed.

My notes:

• My first reaction is, yes we as men should be praying for revival and seeking to be like Christ to work toward cultural and national spiritual change. But in reality, men are no where close to this. We are falling dead on our face in this respect.
• I look at myself and see failure in this respect. I have always said that prayer is the weakest area of my spiritual life… but that is just a cop out. I don’t prioritize time to set aside for focused prayer. I allow too much to fill my head and distract me during prayer. And so on. I can’t continue to make excuses in my prayer life and expect to grow spiritually!
• I think most men struggle with prayer… we are so wired to be action oriented… to DO something… to storm the castle… it just seems that prayer may seem too “passive,” not Mr.-Fix-It enough, to be made a priority in our lives.
• But I think men are generally spiritually weak and passive relative to women BECAUSE we are not in prayer enough. I don’t think its a coincidence that traditionally women are more spiritually active and strong than men AND that they tend to rely on prayer more than men, do you?
• If I keep claiming to be a Do-Go-B Man (i.e., Do God’s Will, Go where he leads me, and B whatever it takes to get the job done), I think I really need to be in prayer more diligently to prepare me for just these things!

Personal challenge:

• Pray for your area and country today.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

Day 10…Exodus 3:1-12

"God called to him from within the bush, “Moses! Moses! … Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” (Exodus 3:4-5) 

Notes from the devotional:

• God calls a man into his fiery presence (Ex 3:1-4)… The man who avoids the flame of God’s Spirit will never experience a complete burning away of fear and pride.
• God calls a man to remove his shoes (Ex 3:5)… The issue wasn’t bare feet but the removal of one’s own self-fashioned support.
• God calls a man to know God’s heart (Ex 3:7-8)… Only in God’s presence did Moses learn of God’s gentle heart, compassionate nature, and desire to heal and deliver.
• God calls a man to leadership (Ex 3:9-10)… For Moses, the call was to lead a nation. Your call and mine will likely be less visible, but a call nonetheless!
• Our response should mirror Moses’ response (Ex 3:11-12)… “Who am I to do these things?” …To which God always replies, “I will be with you.”

My notes:

• We must never be afraid to answer God’s call. He only works for good, so despite what WE may see as negative repercussions to the decision to follow his leading, we must obey and understand that his purpose goes beyond what we can see.
• Trust him in this! What does the old hymn say? “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way…”
• Knowing that I am in God’s will should be a comfort when the worldly stressors of our obedience weigh heavily on me. Sometimes I wish God hadn’t called me to move back home to this practice! It is too stressful! I had to leave a place Kelly and I dearly loved! We are financially burdened! We had to leave schools that met the needs of our special needs children so much better! We have very little time to be with one another as a family! This job is forcing Kelly to work too hard at something she does not enjoy (the office manager stuff) and I see it’s weight on her! The only thing… the ONLY thing… that gets me through all these losses and stressors is know that this is the place God called me to at this time in our lives. I am doing what he wants of me, so all these other worldly stressors should mean nothing. I should be joyful. But I admit that I struggle MIGHTILY with this on a daily basis.
• Lord help me stay focused on what you have guided me to do. I beg for a relief from some of these stressors. But if such relief is not part of your will, help me be accepting of this fact and remain joyful that I am doing what I can to be within your will. Help me remain joyful that I am trying to be your Do-Go-B Man…

Personal challenge:

• Moses responded to God’s call by saying, “Who, me?” … When have you felt like that?
• Ask God to give you the willingness to do whatever he asks.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

Day 9…Isaiah 2:6-22

"Stop putting your trust in mere humans. They are as frail as breath. How can they be of help to anyone?” (v.22) 

Notes from the devotional:

• Pride is a is a neverending problem. The more we achieve, the more self-sufficient we become. The more arrogant we become.
• Though we are impressed with ourselves, God is not impressed with us – he knows that everything comes from him and without him we are nothing.
• Humans are frail, and fickle, and unpredictable. We are limited and unreliable. God is the opposite of all this. He is the foundation we must lean on.
• We must ultimately swallow our pride and rely on God. He will be of help to everyone who trusts in him.

My notes:

• I think of our culture, our government, our scientific community. We have been able to accomplish so much that we have begun to mistakenly think that WE accomplished all these wondrous things, that our ingenuity and intelligence was the source of our advances. But what we have forgotten is that all gifts, all skills, all ingenuity was gifted to us from our Father.
• As we become more reliant on ourselves, we become too full of pride and don’t want to share credit with anyone else… Remember Gore…? “I created the internet.” Well if we don’t want to share the credit with others, we sure don’t want to admit that we could have accomplished nothing without God! So we begin to distance ourselves from him, and at some point on that slippery slope begin to wonder if he even exists.
• It scares me that, out of love for us, God may one day decide to discipline us by simply saying, “You think YOU did all this? That I didn’t have anything to do with it. Well, let me show you.” … and take his hand off what we do and leave us to the sinful devices of ourselves without any guidance from him or the Holy Spirit. Disaster, man!
• I must ALWAYS stay humble. Must ALWAYS remember that everything I have, everything I have accomplished, every skill or talent I have, was gifted to me by him. And because of this, my thanks and my praise should always be directed toward him and not other feeble and fickle humans.
• Remember Psalm 34:1 …”I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.” I pray that I will make an effort to do just that and give him all the glory!

Personal challenge:

• Look at your life and examine what in your life you are giving God the credit for? What in your life are you not?
• Pray for humility and awareness that all we are and all we accomplish is only through him who created us.

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

I love me some Windows Live Writer!

For those of you that blog…

For those of you that write a lot of Notes on Facebook…

You should really try Windows Live Writer!

If you have an “outside” blog as I do (Blogger, Vox, LiveJournal, Typepad, etc.), you can set up those accounts in WLW. Not only that, but WLW will access those sites and pull off your formatting and style template so that as you type in WLW, it shows you exactly how it will look on your blog.

If you are only a “Facebook internal blogger” (Facebook Notes) you can still use this… if you have an outside blog. Just set your Notes to import all posts from your outside blog.

Anyway, there are several plugins for WLW that make it an even stronger WYSIWYG blog editor… you can automatically post pics, videos, Flickr streams, maps, etc. I really like Zemanta. It will read your post as you are writing it, and offer links and pictures to go with concepts or tags within you post. Click on the suggestion in the Zemanta window and it is automatically added to your post!

Anyway, if you have never used it or you think HTML is someone’s license plate for Hot Tamale rather than website code… then you should check out Windows Live Writer!

Day 8…Isaiah 1:21-31

"Once like pure silver, you have become like worthless slag. Once so pure, you are now like watered-down wine.” (Isaiah 1:22)

Notes from the devotional:

• Jesus in Nazareth performed his first miracle – turning water into wine… transformed the ordinary and mundane into something extraordinary and delightful.
• Centuries earlier, the Israelites had done the opposite – morally and spiritually they were no longer what they used to be – they had become morally and spiritually corrupt
• It wasn’t a sudden change – it was gradual and insipid… there had been a slow erosion of standards, a growing carelessness about details, and a gradual blurring of distinguishing characteristics:
• murderers were not dealt with summarily
• thieves attained social standing
• bribery was excused
• caring for the needy ran a poor second to paying attention to the greedy
• it started at the top and worked its way down until the whole culture was polluted and diluted
• (my first impression…SOUND FAMILIAR?!)
• God was outraged and took action to deal with the corruption… the purpose was to restore his people’s purity…”I will turn against you. I will melt you down and skim off your slag. I will remove your impurities. Afterward I will give you good judges and wise counselors like the ones you used to have.” (Isaiah 1:25-26a)
• The same goes for the individual… when God sees the erosion of standards, spiritual carelessness, and poor moral discipline, God deals firmly with us to cleanse and restore…judgment is born out of love, not anger
• His intention is to redeem the repentant – those who turn away from sin and turn to him with new trust

My notes:

• Wow. If this isn’t a sad commentary on today’s world, I don’t know what is!
• Remember that God disciplines us due to our disobedience, but that it is done out of love and a desire for a relationship with us – not out of vindictive anger
• I think the moral of the story here is to STAY TRUE TO YOUR FAITH and do not let the world start you down a slippery slope
• I have a neighbor (who professes to be a Christian), when asked why he was choosing to vote for Obama and how he could support someone who supports so many things opposed to his morals (such as late term abortion and so forth), merely said “…I don’t think it was that big of a deal…” – case in point.
• I make a commitment to not let any political correctness or any “isms” stand in the way of my faith and decisions… not secular humanism, not moral relativism, not liberalism, not conservatism
• Lord thank you for your providing us with a standard. Forgive us when we allow the world to distract us and detract us from your Truth. Have mercy on our weaknesses, Lord. Thank you for your Word which gives us an unadulterated view of your heart for us and instruction for us.

Personal challenge:

• In what areas of your life can you see how the world has diluted your faith and morals?
• Ask God to help you note these weaknesses in your life and find ways turn turn away from the world’s teachings and rely more on his Word to guide your path.

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

Day 7…Isaiah 1:5

"Why do you continue to invite punishment. Must you rebel forever? Your head is injured and your heart is sick.”

Notes from the devotional:

• Why do some people seek out trouble? Perhaps it is the thrill of matching wits with authority…maybe it’s an indication of restlessness of spirit that seeks a satisfaction not found in legitimate activities.
• In the days of Isaiah, the Israelites rebellion and unacceptable behavior were inviting God’s punishment.
• God is the one who defines acceptable and unacceptable behavior, and he is the one who metes out the appropriate punishment when his laws are opposed.
• God displays his righteousness by dealing rightly with his people. This includes ensuring that they live by the consequences of their actions.
• But the question remains: why do we persist in rebelling against God?
• We invite trouble when:
  • we take from God all he provides but do not appreciate his provision
  • after years of instruction and opportunity to learn from him, we still don’t get it and act as if we have not been instructed in his Word
  • when we willingly turn away from him and his wisdom and listen to our sinful natures

My notes:

• I keep talking to the kids I see in my office and their parents the concept of “learning to live by the consequences of their choices”. But I don’t always practice what I preach.
• I know to treat my children with respect and gentleness and patience and kindness, but often (who am I kidding… usually) don’t.
• I am commanded to seek him daily, yet I do not.
• You know, I am so unforgiving to the boys when they violate my rules multiple times, or even a second or third time. But what about the endless times I disobey God? I deserve his wrath!
• Thank you, Father, for your endless mercy on me. Thank you for this passage to remind me that despite your mercy, I must be cognizant of your discipline in my life for my rebellion. And Lord, thank for that discipline. It is only out of your endless love and desire for a relationship with me. help me to always be mindful of this and to accept living by the consequences of my choices.

Personal challenge:

• Where has God provided discipline in your life? How accepting or understanding of this discipline were you?
• Ask God to help you remain mindful of your behavior and the consequences that can occur. Pray that the Holy Spirit will be your counsel to avoid rebellion from God.

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

Day 6…Psalm 50:14-15

“What I want instead is your true thanks to God; I want you to fulfill your vows to the Most High. Trust me in your times of trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me the glory.”

Notes from the devotional:

• God’s people were active in religious observance, meticulously offering animal sacrifices. God had no complaints about their religious activities, but he wanted more.  He wanted them!
• God wanted his people to thank him… saying “thank you” is evidence of a healthy relationship with him.
• Those who recognize who God is in their lives and know how much they depend on him to intervene in their experiences should be overwhelmed with gratitude.
• God wanted his people to fulfill their promises. Though they had a covenant relationship, his people tended to ignore their promises and the relationship deteriorated. Sound familiar?
• God wanted his people to trust him. Instead of turning to him in times of trouble, they turned elsewhere, to false idols and gods.
• What God wants is no mystery – he wants thankful, trusting, and faithful children. He wants people he can delight in and who can delight in him.

My notes:

• The Israelites aren’t alone. We do this – constantly – today. Our country continues to deteriorate because we have turned away from God in times of trouble, looking to men and idols to “save the day.”
• Our families continues to deteriorate because we look to television to figure out how to handle difficulties rather than to the One who made us and made families.
• Our marriages continue to deteriorate because we look to other people – people other than our spouses – for fulfillment, rather than Our Creator and the person he designed for us.
• I have fallen in this trap in all areas, and I thank God for his faithfulness to me when I mess up and lose my focus on him.
• The only way I see to keep my focus on him in both good and bad times is DAILY TIME IN THE WORD. I have never done that consistently and that is why I feel I constantly struggle in so many areas in life. Thank you for this passage, Lord, to remind me what you need from me.

Personal challenge:

• What do you have to be thankful for? What do you put your trust and faith in within this world?
• Ask God to be more reliant on him and to seek him more so that you can fulfill his desire of that intimate relationship with you.

~~from The One Year Book of Devotions for Men (Stuart Briscoe, 2000)~~

Day 5…I Thessalonians 5:17-18

"Pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Notes from the devotional:

• The most important protection we can offer our wives and children is in our prayers.
• Divorce rates….sadly are not much better for people who say they’re evangelical Christians…BUT…
• For couples who pray together every night, the divorce rate is an incredible 1 in 1,052! That is about 0.00095%, or about ONE TENTH OF ONE PERCENT divorce rate!
• God may still allow us to encounter times of severe testing, but he remains faithful to us and our families when we are committed to prayer.

My notes:

• Prayer – probably the weakest part of my spiritual life.
• It is the easiest thing to do… prayer is nothing more than a conversation with God… you don’t need all the Thou’s and Thee’s and Thou Art’s and so forth… He just wants me to TALK with him..
• In the car, in the shower, eating my lunch in my office, anytime… but I fill every waking moment with the radio, the TV, Facebook, football, Xbox Live, and so on… waiting til bedtime to start my prayer time? I’m asleep in five minutes. That is nothing more than a slap in the face of God… “Her, God, have the table scraps of my day…” What about the first fruits? What about my best?
• Conversational prayer is important, but easier for me. For that devoted, focused time of prayer I am going to have to plan my day better. Get work done earlier and get to bed earlier. Only then can I realistically get up early enough to give God the first part of my day.
• I’ve never really thought about prayer forming a hedge of protection around my family simply by doing it. I need to start thinking about it more.
• The one thing I am getting a better idea of is giving prayers of thanks despite what is going on in my life. Despite the time and financial stressors of my practice, the stress it places on my marriage and my family, I try to be thankful for having a job… having a BUSY job… having a job that is somewhat recession safe… having a roof over our heads… a family who loves me… children who do a pretty good job of being understanding about it…
• If I don’t talk to God, I am not going to recognize His voice when he is talking to me. And I am going miss a lot. 

Personal challenge:

• What family needs can you consistently pray for?
• Ask God to help you faithfully pray for your family.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

Day 4…James 5:16a

"Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so hat you may be healed.”

Notes from the devotional:

• God will begin working in you when you empty yourself of those things you harbor or hide from others.
• God will fill the void in you that you fill with your ego, your pride, your secrets.

My notes:

• “I’m not happy and haven’t been for a long time.” Those were the hardest nine words I have ever said. I had been harboring selfish feelings and resentment and dissatisfaction. Rather than confessing them to Kel, I held them in. I was resentful. I was jealous. I was selfish. And it nearly destroyed me and my marriage.
• It wasn’t until I confessed those feelings to her that I realized what had been missing. “We have fallen away from our faith and our relationship to God.” It had warped my view of happiness and what was right or wrong about my life. It was like God was just waiting to remind me what I was missing until I consciously decided to confess.
• Though that was the toughest day of my life, it also was the beginning of my return to God. He had never left me, I had left Him.
• I thank God every day that Kel didn’t give up on me that day. Nor did He.

Personal challenge:

• Do you have a confession to make to a family member?
• Pray that God will help you to honestly share your struggles.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

Day 3...Exodus 20:12

"Honor your father and mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you."

Notes from the devotional:

• Do the things I say and do honor my parents?
• No matter how right I think I am, God always calls me to honor my mom and dad.

My notes:

• I have the utmost respect for my dad but have always had a bit of annoyance and tension with my mother. Probably because we are just alike. I have always cut dad slack when he was doing things that were wrong, but have always amplified to my mother when she did things wrong. That was unfair to her.
• I still hold grudges with my parents, mostly my mother, on how they raised us and some of the decisions they made about which children they chose to be involved with (or not). That was not and is not showing honor of my parents. I need to let that stuff go.

Personal challenge:

• Think about your relationship with your parents. In what ways do you show honor and respect? In what ways might you have to improve?
• Ask God to show you practical ways to show honor to your parents.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

Day 2... James 1:19

"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry..."

Notes from the devotional:

• We men need to understand that in healthy homes, everyone feels free to express feelings without fear of hearing "That's stupid!" ... "Only an idiot would feel like that," ... or "Why don't you grow up?!"
• Maybe the feelings are immature, but they are real nonetheless.
• It's not our job to analyze; it is our duty to love, value, and understand our families.

My notes:

• This is the crux of my failures with my boys. I'm so quick to say "it's time to grow up", and yell at them, or get angry with them, when they're just being boys that I am daily damaging our relationship. Especially with Luke. Connor is so resilient and Mitch doesn't really understand, but this hurts Luke's feelings so much and he holds on to these hurts.
• Why can't I write Ephesians 6:4 on my heart? (I prefer NIV, but the New Living Translation really pierces my heart...) "And now a word to you fathers. Don't make your children angry by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction approved by the Lord."
• Hard reminder today.
• Lord, I ask for your forgiveness for my harshness with my sons. Please help me hold on to these fruits of the spirit...patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control... they are crucial to my relationship with my sons. Please help me show them the grace and mercy and unconditional love that you afford us through your Son, Jesus Christ.

Personal challenge:

• Ask a family member, "How was your day?" Listen well.
• Thank God that he listens to you.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

Day 1...Ephesians 5:25-27

"Husband, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless."

Notes from the devotional:

• Do you want to know the character of a man? Look into the face of his wife. Whatever he has invested in her or withheld from her will be reflected in her countenance.
• God has MANDATED that every man draw his wife to splendor in Jesus Christ.

My notes:

• Men too often focus on verse 22... "Wives submit to your husbands..." and neglect what God commands them to do as husbands, which is divinely appointed and one of the key components of being the spiritual head of the household.
• Divorce and abandonment of children and violence and so on and so on can all be traced back to men ignoring their divinely appointed role as husband and father.

Personal challenge:

• Look at your wife's face. Does it reflect your love?
• Pray to love your wife as Christ loved the church.

~~from Men of Integrity: A Daily Guide to the Bible and Prayer (1999)~~

A new project...

Kelly has started doing a daily devotional with her mother and sisters over email this year, and it got me to thinking about my own priorities. I always say I don't have time to be in the Word, yet I discount all the time I spend watching football, watching CSI, watching movies, playing Xbox 360, and, yes, hanging out on Facebook.

So I have decided, as a baby step in being more disciplined in my study of the Word, to do small daily devotionals and post here the scripture and notes from that day. I started last night so have yet to post Day 1, but will probably get both Day 1 and 2 up today. I plan to post daily.

I need accountability and encouragement though. If you see me miss a day, bust my chops a bit, will ya?