He taught us love

Truly He taught us to love one another;
His law is love and His gospel is peace.

Greetings all,

It’s that time of year again, Christmas time. The most wonderful time of the year, as the song goes. I was driving down the road the other day listening to the radio, the song “Oh Holy Night” started playing. Not only is that one of my favorite Christmas songs, but one of my favorite songs of all time. About half way through the song the choirs sings that line “Truly He taught us to love one another; His law is love and His gospel is peace”. I’ve heard that choirs a thousand times before, but for some reason, this time it really struck a cord with me. There is so much in that little line. “Truly He taught us to love one another”. That really sums up His ministry here on earth. He taught us this by example and His words from the Father. What does the Father desire? That we become like his Son Jesus Christ. Now I don’t know about you, but this time of the year it always seems easier to love other people, or at least be a little nicer. We seem to have more patience with people; we are more generous with our time and money. What hit me when I heard that choirs this time was; why does this seem to apply only at this time of the year. It’s almost like Christmas is an extended Sunday. You know what I mean, in church you’re a much nicer person. Once church is over, and you’re back out into the world, that church face starts to come off after a few hours. Come Monday your back into the same ole rut. Christmas season is the same way. We put on our Christmas face during the holidays, then once the season has passed, off comes the mask.

Yes, Christmas is a time of celebration, celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. But is He lord and savior only on Sundays and Christmas. If you call Christ your Lord and savior, then your life is not your own. His spilled blood paid for your life, in full. What ever you do, this must be done in His name. His laws now become your laws; His gospel now becomes your gospel. I don’t need to remind you what Christ says about being lukewarm in Rev. 3:16 “So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” The word “spit” used here in Greek “emeo” means to vomit. Lukewarm Christians make the Lord want to vomit, not a pretty picture is it.

I think a lot of it is this time of the year there are constant reminders all around us that it’s Christmas time. Even as you go about your busy day, around every corner you are reminded. Because of this flooding of reminders, we become more Christ like. You don’t even have to pick up a bible; it’s a natural thing that happens if His spirit lives in you.

Wow! I was just thinking about how truly hard it is to be a true follower of Christ here is America. We are taught from an early age what it means to be successful in life. A nice big home, 2 cars in the garage, a nice 401K package so that we can retire in peace and comfort. Oh! And don’t forget the 50” HD TV, so we can see the commercials clearer that pollute our minds with the idea that unless we get this, or have that, then we are less of a person. This is ideal is even taught in our churches. I’m not stating that God does not want you to have nice things. God loves blessing His children, but these blessings are passed down so that we can bless other people. To help those less fortunate and in need, in His Holy name.

Somewhere along the way the movement of Jesus Christ became a sort of civilized Christianity. We created a religion using the name of Jesus Christ and convinced ourselves that God’s optimal desire for our lives was to insulate us in a spiritual bubble where we risk nothing, sacrifice nothing, lose nothing, and worry about nothing. The original message of Jesus was so simple, so clean, and so clear: “Follow Me.” He wants us to surrender our lives to Him and follow Him into the unknown. And if it means a life of suffering, hardship, and disappointment, it will be worth it, because following Jesus Christ is more powerful and more fulfilling than living with everything in the world, minus Him.

Please don’t get me wrong here; I’m as guilty as the rest of the world. I just wanted to share what I was feeling. Nothing written here is meant to make anyone feel guilty, that is not the purpose of this newsletter. We all fall short! And I more than anyone needs to practice what I preach. The purpose of the letter is more of a reminder I guess. Just like this time of the year is filled with reminders of whom we are truly meant to be, or should I say, be like.

To all my family and friends, I pray that the living God will fill you with His spirit, revealing the truth of His love. Ok, one last thing on that note. A few years ago, one of my sons passed away, Brett was 17 when he died. The last 2 weeks of his life were spent in the hospital. During that time he died twice, both times the doctors were able to bring him back. The second time he was brought back, when he opened his eyes, the first thing he said to the nurse was “do you know how much God really loves you”. He told us that he saw the Kingdom, he actually described it just how the bible describes it. Brett was glowing with the glory of God. Brett had been in His presence, and he was glowing with it. I’m not just saying this because it’s what I wanted to believe, there were other people there who witnessed this as well.

Ok, I promise that’s all. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas with family and friends. And remember, He taught us to love one another.

Love,Tim

Gods love

*A few days ago we lost two of our dogs when they crawled under the fence. The one dog came back, but the smallest one did not return. The smallest one was the runt of a liter, so my wife was very concerned for her well being. Both of our sons spent a couple of hours trying to find our missing family member, but no luck. I came home from work early and posted some flyers in the neighborhood hoping that someone might have seen the little dog and taken her in. When I say little, she is about 10 inches tall, weighing about 4 pounds. My wife was very upset, she felt that she would never see her dog again, and worried that the elements alone would kill her. The story does have happy ending, the next morning, after a restless nights sleep, we get a call right b4 I'm heading out the door for work. The call was from a lady about 4 houses down the street... she had found our dog... her husband had seen the flyer and called his wife with our number. I can't tell you how happy my wife was… She was overjoyed.I'm telling this story because of something that came to me as I was walking through the door with the dog in my hands. My wife was standing there waiting for me to come through the door with her precious loved one. As I opened the door and saw the tears of joy in her eyes, my mind flashed to the Lord. At that moment, God showed me something... He showed me that this is what its like for Him when one of His precious children comes home to Him. When I came through the door, my wife was standing there with 2 other dogs by her side. Now she loves those other two just as much, but she could not hold back the joy in her heart for the one that was found and brought home. God is the same way, even though he has millions of other children at His feet, its the one that was lost and now found that bring Him so much joy.

I don't think we can even begin to imagine the love God has for us. We get a glimpse of that love in His Son, but to be present with the Lord and bask in His love... wow!! I can't wait.

Peace to you all,Tim

People are watching

Greetings friends, My wife came home the other night and shared something with me that I wanted to pass along.

Suzzanne (my wife) is a waitress at a local restaurant here in town. She deals with people day in and day out. The other night she came home very upset. She shared with me how she has a friend at work who is kind of in limbo in her spiritual walk. The young lady is not a follower of Christ. At this point in her life she is still looking for something to fill that void in her life (Christ is the only thing that will fill that void). That day the young lady was serving a table of four middle aged woman who at first seemed very friendly. When the young lady approached their table, she could here them talking about God and church. Here is where the story gets ugly, when the young server welcomed the four women, she was greeted with short, and rude answers to her questions about how they were doing, and what could she get them to start off with. Not once were these women nice to this young lady. They treated her lesser than themselves. The young server came back to my wife and told her what happened. The young server told my wife that if that’s the kind of God Christians serve, she wants no part of it.

Now my wife would have said something to the young woman about how that’s not the norm, but she couldn't. You see, this happens all the time there. People come in talking about church at God, then treating the wait staff and other people like crap. I can't tell you how many times my wife has come home so upset about how these so called Christians share their love of Christ with other people.

People, if you claim to be a Christian, then you better live it. Christians always run around wanting to know what their mission is... how to serve God. Well, your mission is to live like Christ, so that the rest of the world can see the love of God for His children. You don't realize that the minute you step out into the world, people are watching you. Our actions always speak louder than words. If you tell people one thing, and your actions tell them another, I guarantee that the people are going to believe your actions more than your words.

People, there is a cost if you choose to follow Christ; the cost is total servant hood. A life of sacrifice is our calling as Christians. We are to put others needs before our own. If your life blends in with the world, then you might want to go before the Lord and ask Him to search your heart. We are the light of the world; our lives should stand out before all mankind. When people see us, they should see Christ and His love for all mankind. Do you stand out in the world, or do you blend in.

In His love,
Tim
The way of the Cross

Almost Friday

I have not posted anything in a few days... just been busy. I've picked up a couple of website jobs, so between building sites and my regular job I don't get alot of free time. I'm at work right now, and we have slowed a little here so I'm trying to squeeze in a post.

The weather has turned ugly, only about 52 today with scattered rain. The mountains behind my work here (HP) has some snow covering them this morning. The first snow is always so pretty. One of the reasons I love living here is the seasons. We get to experience every season change. I think fall has always been my favorite season. I love the smell of fall also, not sure what it is, but I feel like I can fill my lungs up so much deeper.

I'm really thinking about opening up my own computer shop here. Right now I work on the Microsoft help desk, I like it, but I really miss working with people one on one. I worked for Computer Pros in Savannah, Georgia for 3 years and I really loved working with people and helping them one on one. If I do open my own business, I'll start with a website and work out of my house at first, keeping the overhead low. Still thinking heard about it... I'll post more about it as the project progresses.

Anyway, enough for now... better get back to work.

Peace to all,Tim

The concert

Well the day finally came, and all I can say about this concert is… WOW!! These guys have done nothing but get better and better with time. Their love for the Lord is stronger than ever, and that’s so evident in their song writing and their performance. Their latest album I think really shows a maturing of the band and its members. As far as their performance on stage, these guys have not lost a thing. From powerful, passionate rock tunes, to slower more personal worship songs that truly had the audience in harmony with the Living God. The stage was laid out nice; you could see all the band members easily. The lighting for the band was great; the colors they choose for each song really set the mood. I don’t know if it was the fact that we were all caught up in the moment with God or what, but this show seemed to go by way to fast.

The bottom line is, if you get a chance to see these guys, do it... You’ll have a great time of fellowship and worship, and just a great time overall.

In His love,
Tim
P.S. For tour information for Third Day go to http://www.thirdday.com

Concert

Greetings in His love,

Tomorrow is the Thirday concert here in Colorado Springs. The show starts at 7:00pm, so I'll have to leave work a little early. I'm really looking forward to the show. These guys are one of the best bands you will ever see in concert. Great musicians, and their hearts are for the Lord. I'll be posting the day after the show... So check back.

I've been reading this book called "The Barbarian Way" by "Erwin Raphael McManus". IF you get the chance read this book. Its not long, like 150 pages, but they are filled with the truth. I must warn you, if your comfortable in your Christian walk, then don't read this book. This book is about what I have been feeling from the Lord for some time now. A real pulling or calling if you will towards the life we are called to lead. If you call Christ your Lord and savior, then every minute of everyday of your life should be living for Him. The living God gave His best for us, I think He expects the same in return. I wonder how many minutes out of our day do we really focus on Jesus Christ. I'm not going any further on that subject, I think that is something we should all pray about... Including me. I truly feel that we have no idea how much God wants to give us. The problem is... Us, He can't give all that He has for us because we don't give up all for Him. I don't know about you, but I personally want to see what He has for me.

I'm still at work, so I guess I better get back to work.

Peace to you all,
Tim

My first post

Greetings!!

Welcome to my first blog. This is all kind of new to me, so I hope you'll be patient.

You will find most of my blogs will be about what the Lord has placed on my heart. Since the job I work allows me to spend alot of time on the web, I tend to research alot of different subject matters. Most everything I write in here will be about our Christian walk and how to make that a closer walk with Him.

As you read my postings, please feel free to add your comments or suggestion.

May the peace of God be in your hearts at all times.

In His love,
Tim