As I return to work stress free after honoring our Lord on the Sabbath, I am reminded that still countless others are going back to work stressed out, juiced up and definitely not ready for prime time.

29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.[a] 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Matthew 10:29-31

It's Monday and I'm ready to start off the new week all refreshed from the one day that gives me rest - Sunday.  

Just as I head off for the start of a new week refreshed and stress-free, I am reminded that many others are heading off to the start of a new week stressed out, juiced out and definitely not ready for prime-time.

 One Sunday morning as I was searching the radio for our old standby Ravi Zacharias, I happened to find one station's  program about investing money wisely,  It seems that we have become a nation obsessed with money that we see Sunday as a wasted day of activity, not worthy of recognition. 

 It is as though two big men came along and pushed the week together while conveniently taking out that one important day the Lord gave us to refresh and rekindle our soul. 

According to this BBC,article, more people are calling sick on Monday. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8347332.stm According to Dr. Cary Cooper,"It is more believable to use back pain as a reason as often stress is seen as a four letter word. It's seen as embarrassing.

"The UK has gone from being a manufacturing economy to a service-based economy in the past 30 years so the problems that are most likely to rise in the workplace are people problems rather than physical problems, despite what the survey suggests." In another article in the BBC, a 10-year study carried out in Scotland suggested that up to 20% more people die from heart attacks on a Monday than any other day.http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/612550.stm

Like the panic-stricken worker's on the Edmund Fitzgerald as their ore boat was beginning to sink, many of us are entering the new week without the refreshing water that only our Lord Jesus is capable of providing,  Sunday, my friends, was made for man and a reminder that He will take care of all of our physical, monetary and psychological needs, no matter what you are experiencing in this life.

As we begin the work week, let us be mindful of our stressed filled coworker's by offering words of encouragement, and if they ask you why the silly grin on your face you can simply add, 'I went to church, helped out in the children's ministry, sang in the choir and had lunch with friends. You don't have to say anything more to convey the importance Sunday has in your life. 

May this coming week be a blessing to all.  

It is when we are suffering that Jesus wants us to have conversations with him....

IYour word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path. Psalm 119:105

In conversational style as though I were talking to a friend, I share my burden, my pain, and all my hurts with my Savior Jesus. It seems, that those moments of conversations happen in the middle of the night when I cannot sleep when the images of my suffering come to the forefront of my thoughts. 

When my thoughts gravitate to.....

If only I had done this

If only my loved one had listened to me

If only I could rewind life's take for a do-over

It is that moment when my thoughts are lifted up to my Savior Jesus It is that moment Jesus comforts me so I can lull myself to sleep.  

Our lives are like the rocky, perilous mountain path, narrow and unsteady with thoughts of uncertainty each time I look down and see the cascading stones slip away each step I take. 

When my thoughts drift to the 'what if's' of life......

What if my faith isn't strong enough?

What if God isn't who he said he was?

What if He doesn't hear my cry?

It is at this point on my perilous path that my shepherd Jesus gently lifts me up and carries me. In conversation style, I tell my savior Jesus...

Thank you, Jesus, for hearing my cry

Thank you, Jesus, for listening to my momentary affliction

Thank you, Jesus, for rescuing me

Thank Jesus for being my guiding light on this treacherous journey

Once the ground beneath my feet levels out my savior Jesus sets me down so I could once again walk beside him and share my afflictions in a conversational style. Just as he has been my guide through these darkest days, he wants to be yours too. Won't you unlock the door to your heart and welcome the king of Kings, the lord of Lords in?  

It just might be the beginning of many conversations!

Porque de tal manera amó Dios al mundo que dio a su Hijo único, para que todo aquel que en él cree no se pierda, sino que tenga vida eterna. Juan 3:16

6 Porque de tal manera amó Dios al mundo que dio a su Hijo único, para que todo aquel que en él cree no se pierda, sino que tenga vida eterna. Juan 3:16

Soy un hijo de Dios vivo lleno del precioso Espíritu Santo, que es como una casa que se encuentra en una colina frente al mar, con sus ventanas abiertas. preparado para recibir las brisas que fluyen suaves. Antes de nuestro Salvador ascendió a tomar su lugar que le corresponde en el cielo que se comprometió a enviar este precioso regalo para todos los que lo reciben.

Una de mis cosas favoritas para hacer es Google Earth. Me encanta como se puede ver en nuestro planeta desde lejos, y luego poco a poco acercarse más, más y más hasta que la visualización de los edificios de la vista de la calle.

Es como tomar unas vacaciones sin gastar cantidades exorbitantes de dinero.

Empecé a pensar por un momento lo que si Dios nuestro Padre está sentado en el cielo de ver nuestro planeta desde lejos. Se puede ver las explosiones de todo el planeta como la guerra y las batallas de estallar. Se puede ver a familias enteras están destrozando por los argumentos y las guerras. Estoy seguro de que Dios no se complace en ver todo el derramamiento de sangre, toda la discusión, todo el odio que viene de nuestro pequeño planeta

 El corazón de Dios está rompiendo en su búsqueda de sólo un remanente que aún creen.

In a world filled with forsaken people you are the change that can give them hope. You are the child of a living God.

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16

I am a child of the Living God filled with the precious Holy Spirit, which is like a house that sits on an ocean facing hill with its windows opened. ready to receive the gentle flowing breezes. Before our Savior ascended to take his rightful place in heaven he promised to send this precious gift to all who receive him.

One of my favorite things to do is to google earth. I love how you can look at our planet from far away and then slowly get closer, closer and closer until you viewing buildings from the street view.
It's like taking a vacation without spending exorbitant amounts of money.  

I started thinking for a moment what if God our Father is sitting in Heaven viewing our planet from far away. He may see the explosions around the planet as war's and battles break out. He may see whole families being torn apart  by arguments and wars. I'm sure God isn't pleased to see all the bloodshed, all the arguing, all the hatred coming from our little planet 

 God's heart is breaking as he searches for just a remnant who still  believe. 

As he scans the planet, he sees little pop-up messages with one word- 'forsaken'.It seems that people all throughout the planet, filled with feelings of abandonment, hurt, and shame, unable to find God, ready to simply give up. Some of those 'forsaken' people take their own lives, while others may join hate-filled terror groups masquerading as a group who worship God, but in reality are further from the King of kings as one can imagine. 

 One by one he sees hopelessness being spread like a wildfire, burning out of control. As God scans the earth's surface, he occasionally sees those little 'forsaken'signs switching off with the word 'hope'..

As he scans closer to the surface, God sees little pockets of believers scattered throughout the parched hopeless and thirsty  land engaged in fervent prayer for a revival. God remembers the prophets he used thousands of years ago-imperfect men and woman- who were willing to be God's mouthpiece to share his love for them. God remembered that it wasn't the highly pedigreed people who became His mouthpiece, but he remembered the imperfect ones who were obedient and willing to refresh their souls  and bow down at the foot of the cross 

As he watches these small band of believers praying he sees whole communities, once forsaken, now fervently believing.

No matter where you are in this life, what journey you are currently on, or what suffering you are enduring, please remember that you are a child of the living King with the ability to possess the living and breathing holy spirit. 

You are the hope that God wants to use to bring hope to hurting souls.

What the world needs more is for men and woman to search after God's own heart

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. I Corinthians 13

One of my favorite commercials is the one for Capital one where the celebrity spokesperson tries to convince you of the superiority of their card. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkj3pcL95Ko I'm going to take a slightly different twist on this slogan and ask you 'what's in the foundation of your life you're standing on?' 

This question comes at a time when the world is crying for leadership that truly believe that God sent his son into our world to transform souls, not just be a cultural Christian pulled in every direction the wind decides to blow them.

 The sad reality of today's political climate is the lack of leaders willing to search after God's own heart.

They are searching for it in all the wrong places.

Through their conquests over woman

Through their conquests up the corporate ladder

Through their multiple job titles

Through their upward and lateral moves

Our leaders are forgetting that at the very heart of what makes America great is having their priorities straight, value their family, and their relationship with God. In the path of these current leaders, on both sides of the aisle, are people damaged by the wake of their strivings.

People told not to say anything about what they did to them

People to ashamed to move on because of what happened to them

People who lost the ability to strive and be successful, and

People who fell off the corporate latter because the one who rose higher

stepped on their hand until they lost their grip

As they fell, these leaders let out a laughter as they kept climbing

Instead of searching after God's own heart, We absorb the little sound bytes of life and believe the lies that cloud our thinking. 

My value is measured by my self-worth

my financial statements

My value is greater than those who make less than me

My value is measured by my job titles and corresponding wage and bonuses received

My value is measured by my new and exotic cars

My value is measured by my conquests (you fill in the blank)

 So often, it seems, we allow the world to mold us into what they think we should be, Men are often told that 'they ought to sow their wild oats when they are younger and only then they can get down to business and make a million dollars, marry a trophy wife, have trophy kids and live in a McCastle of a trophy house with a trophy size great room to entertain other people striving for trophies, not realizing that what God truly wants from us is to search after His own heart and be what you were intended to be in the eyes of our living God. 

Our country is in need of a revival- a revival of the heart, mind, and soul of men and woman. What the younger Donald Trump's, Billy Bush and Bill Clinton needed were for godly men to take them under their wings and help them to believe the things in the bible and reach their full capacity of what God has for them.

But the amazing thing about God's redemptive power is that it is never too late for anyone to get their priorities straight---never too late for Donald Trump, never too late for Billy Bush and never too late for Bill Clinton, or Hillary Clinton or every other political leader for that matter.

All we have to do to start such a revival for hearts of men and woman is to pray for them.

Pray for them

model what it means to be a godly man or woman

Share your life's story with them about God's redemption in your life

so they can see when hard times come,  God helped you recover

What's in your foundation?  Is it solid ground that only God can create, or is it the sinking sand of cultural change?  Our world needs men and woman to listen to God's voice and resist the messages this world sends to  us.   

God truly does have a better plan for our lives than the one the world convinces us we must have.

I

What's on your Joy list?

27 Why did you run off secretly and deceive me? Why didn’t you tell me,so I could send you away with joy and singing to the music of timbrels and harps? Genesis 31:27

What's on your Joy list?  The first time I heard this term was on our FM Christian radio station on my drive time to work. I've heard  of bucket list as some things we want to accomplish before we die, but not 'joy list'.

I  never liked the word 'bucket list'- the term that someone will use for  things they want to accomplish before they die.  It's downright depressing, and who knows whether we will even have the physical strength or the cognition to do those things on our 'bucket list"?

When God made this world, he made it for all of us to enjoy. From our every waking moment he presents the beauty of the world everywhere we look. 

 But, the burdens of this life wear on us. We carry the weight on our shoulders forgetting that God designed us to allow Him through the gift of our Savior Jesus to carry the burden. Yet, as hard working as we are we insist on carrying our own burden even as that little stone we dragged around  when we were younger now becomes a huge albatross of one as we get older. 

Those boulders prevent us from seeing the joy in life.

We were meant to give God our burdens and learn to live life joyously, no matter what happens in our life.

The moment Jesus was raised from the dead, the distance from God was removed. We no longer need  to travel to the 'wailing wall' to feel his closeness. The gift of his Son was freely given to us who freely accept the gift of his son Jesus Christ. 

.That 'gift' holds the secret to our joy, our reason for living, and helps us to remove the blinders of our burdens and see God's creation from a new perspective.

Unlike a 'bucket list', a Joy list is something all of us can do.  A Joy list helps us remind ourselves that life is more than being a slave to work.  Many employers say that the vast majority of vacation time goes unused every year by employee's who feel the burden of life. 

' A joy list is something all of us ought to have, not just those facing the end of their earthly existence.

 A joy list consists of the places you want to see or experience in this life or things you want to do.  

 It's a list that helps us keep straight the things that truly matter in this life....things like going up north and hiking the trails on the north shore, camping, visiting places you've never been to, or simply walking around one of the area's many Metropolitan lakes.  Some of you  might have things like taking a helicopter ride or riding in a hot air balloon. or traveling somewhere so you can play in the ocean. Or it can be something simple like being part of a good church, singing in the choir, going out with friends to a movie, dinner.  You get the picture.

 Start your list and keep adding to it with each passing year, and before you know it, you will be living life joyously.

Learning to embrace our stories and sharing them reminds others that there is always hope in tragedy

13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.Romans 15:13

As a student at Hopkin's Charles A. Lindbergh high school, I remember the overwhelming sense of sadness as word filtered out regarding the deaths of two classmates when one of them came in contact with a high tension wire as they sat stargazing from the rooftop of a local business.

The families of those boys were not as lucky as this gentleman featured in this TED talk, and knowing more about what it is like to be in grief I now realize that they lived the rest of their lives wondering what their sons would have been like in later years, who they might have married, and how many children they might have had. 

I think when tragedy strikes young people, there is a deep wisdom that settles in as they travel through  the topsy-turvy waves of grief. Like winning a round  the world sailing race, the person crossing the finish line of grief is filled with exhilaration just knowing they came out stronger than when they first went in. They no longer take life for granted and decide to make a difference in other's lives.

I know, as a Christian and as a grieving dad, that God truly does speak to us, Scripture is full of bible passages that remind us of God's presence to the broken hearted. He often reveals himself through our dreams, through friends, and in the Church messages and in the well placed 'rainbow' as we are driving.

The speaker in this TED talk survived his brush with death despite being pounded by powerful electrical volts  and later  went on to specialized in Palliative care.  He has embraced what happened to him with reminders each day as he gets out of  bed i of those earlier events that changed his life, and why he chose to pursue the field of Palliative care.

We may not have the daily physical reminders of our trauma,but we may nonetheless have the emotional wounds of past trauma that can be equally as troubling.  God gives us the inner strength in the form of his holy spirit to help us weather the storms of life. He gives us the strength to face whatever we are enduring so we are able to walk through the valley of the shadow of death and learn one day to embrace our emotional and physical wounds so we can help others by sharing the hope that is within us. 

Embracing our story, not burying it in a bottomless vault is the answer to help us recover.

God does his greatest work through the stories of people once inflicted by the physical, emotional wounds of life. Our story of how God helped you recover from that pain becomes the focal point for others to come to know that same inner strength.

If we all learn to embrace our stories and be willing to share that story, we will begin to see God do amazing things in our lives, and just maybe be an inspiration for others entering the valley of the shadow of death.

Survival tips for life when your child dies

14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. John 10

Perhaps, there is no painful grief than when a child dies before the parent. Scott and Joy recently experienced this type of loss.

There is no written manual that prepares the parent ahead of time for such an unthinkable event, Nor is it something that others who know the parents who lost their child can even relate to, much less know what to say to that couple experiencing the loss.

The death of a child will cause such an adrenaline rush to the brain that all systems will be on high alert- panic sets in and becomes your constant companion and breathing becomes more shallow so with each breath you take you're unable to rid your body of the toxins inside.

Traumatic grief can literally make us sick.

As a dad who has been down that road, I want to post some helpful tips for any family who has suffered the unfortunate fate of losing a child.

A.) I recommend that every member of the family see their primary care physician so they can do a general vitals check while at the same time start a dialog with your doctor by letting them know you just lost your child. When you see your doctor you are taking steps to keep your grief on the surface, not underground, like most American's have been taught.

B.) If you are having trouble sleeping ask your doctor for his advice on a sleep aid he could recommend. As a parent, it is important that you get 8 hours of sleep a night, After all, the bills still need to be paid and professional responsibilities fulfilled and if you have surviving children they need the assurance their parents are there for them.

C.) Find a trusted listener who isn't afraid to hear your story of loss. In the beginning,, my wife and I saw a therapist to help us understand the unique differences the loss of a child had on each of us,including our surviving children. This information was important because we knew that for each of us our grief was going to be different. For example, when one person is on the upswing, the other one is on the downswing and this will be the pattern for a long time.

(D.) When it comes to the death of a child, there is no timetable to recover from this grief. As grieving parents, you will be given awful advice such as " hasn't it been a year? Isn't it time to move on? But do not buy into that advice because it simply isn't true. Your particular grief journey is as unique as the love you had with that child. There is no band-aid we cam give you like when our mom and dad kissed the scrape on our knee and gave us a colorful Disney band-aid to apply to our wound.

(E) People may often not know what to say to a grieving family and in the process may offer condolences that will in the end cause more pain. For example, many families will be told that "God must have wanted another flower for his garden, or God chose to take your child." At the same time, some may simply say " there are no words to describe the loss you're going through, but just know I'm praying for you."

I chose to believe that because we live in a fallen world bad things do occasionally happen to good people. The shortest verse in the bible where it simply said, 'Jesus wept.' I truly believe that God had a full life planned for your child and it broke his heart when a traumatic event prevented that from happening.

(F.) Learn to tell your story to trusted listeners. The last thing you want to do is go underground with your grief by keeping it 'under wraps'. It is when we do not process our grief that it begins causing damage to our neurological and biochemical system- which can cause other health related issues if our grief doesn't stay above the surface. Another reason to include your doctor as part of your grief recovery team.

G.) New friendships will form while some friendships will disappear simply because there will be some friends you thought would be there for you who simply do not know how to process what happened to your family.

H) Remember to continue the rituals you had as a family before the loss, after the loss. One of the smartest things our family did after our daughter died was to continue our weekly ritual of church attendance. It was often while in attending Church that someone would come up to us to offer up a word of encouragement.

It was while I was grieving that I was able to create a website to help others experiencing this type of loss I throw this 'lifeline' to anyone who has had problems processing the death of a child, sibling, niece or nephew,or for that matter a spouse. www.soaringonwingsofeagles.org

Remember, be kind to yourself as your grieve the loss of your loved one and allow Jesus to be your gentle shepherd who will guide you through the stone strewn paths of this grief. Things may never be the same after the loss, but I assure you things will get better.

From the moment you are born and onward God wants to be your guide.

29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny?[a] And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. Matthew 10"29-31

From the time we were born, we learn that God is in control of our lives. This is not an easy concept to grasp by men and woman who continue to cling to the concept that they are in charge of their own destiny. 

From the time we are little,  we clamor for our throne. We step up and take our rightful seat. We make the rules for our lives, we call the shots, and with our own scepter we make our lives magical where seemingly everything goes right, no matter what decision we make,   

God waits.

In the shadows, he waits for the moment in time when you cry out to Him "I can't do this anymore...I can't do things right...I keep making a mess of my life...help me God"

He watches us from a distance as we stumble and fall, and stumble and fall some more. He is thinking, if only my children would know that my son Jesus died for each of them and I have a better plan for their lives and a holy spirit that they can have to speak to their aching hearts?

And God waits.

He watches us as we go through difficult times in our lives like the loss of a job, or the death of someone special; hoping, that they will cry out to him "I need you, God,"

God waits some more.

He waits for others who know Jesus to come into their lives, to share the special message of hope resulting when Jesus not only died for, but was raised from the dead and sits on the heavenly throne.

He waits.  He waits as his hurting children hear the message of hope, accepting Jesus into their hearts while relinquishing control of their throne, giving God control.

Our God is in control. Whereas fear and anger are so prevalently among us today, God's message to us is that his love for you is greater than your need to have control. God has our back and like that sparrow, he holds a very special love for you and I. 

No matter what you might be going through, what pain you are experiencing, what losses you have suffered, God is in total control over all those circumstances, and instead of worrying and being filled with fear we should cry out to God and pray for every circumstance that comes our way.

Because God is in control