Convicted By A Shovel? What God Taught Me Today

So here I am, just 30 miles south of the Mason Dixon Line. Last Friday, we were slammed by 30+” of snow and we were blasted again yesterday with ~20” more. Everything around us is shut down (even the snow removal crews and the Post Office). The road in front of my house is still unplowed, and that is strange b/c it is considered a “high priority” road by the county (meaning it always gets plowed first).

“Fortunately”, the nature of my job enables me to work from home. Frankly though, working from home is like torture for me b/c all day I hear my wife and kids playing in the house and it tears me up that I can’t be downstairs with them. I put fortunately in quotes b/c the ability to work from home also means that there is an expectation that I will actually work a full day from home and there won’t be any break in my productivity, and no excuse for missed meetings/deadlines/etc. Attending meetings and keeping everything on track doesn’t exactly give me the time I need to clear my long & steep driveway.

OK, so now you know all the things that were going through my head when I woke up this AM. I really hope I conveyed the tone accurately. I was bitter. I was grumbling. Bottom line, I was sinning! But give me some credit…I had a reason to be, right? I mean come on! I had to shovel my driveway! I had to get work done! I had to spend time with my family!

Nope, I had no reason to be at all.

As I sat down in my office to start my day of work I was immediately struck down and overcome by conviction. I knew I had to get into the Word. Believe me, I wanted to keep going on and on about how rough I have it. But that wasn’t going to happen, I knew that I was just about to be taught a lesson…and it was going to hurt.

As I got into the Word I knew where I needed to go, Colossians 3:17:

“Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.”

Ouch. Add to that little gem the fact that I had been reading in Philippians 2:14 yesterday, and what we have here is a good old fashion head smacking “double ouch”.


So what was my conviction? The Holy Spirit exposed my ungrateful heart. The little things in life are often not little at all. How you handle them is a reflection of your heart, and will have a compounding effect on how you approach each subsequent situation. Think about this for a second. What was I grumbling about? What was I bitter about? Let’s take a look:

1. I have a long snow covered driveway – I mean come on!?!? I am blessed to have a driveway. My driveway isn’t just a barren road in the middle of nowhere…it leads to the house the Lord has provided for me and my family.
   
   
2. I have to balance work from home with clearing my driveway – Seriously Mike?!?!!? Do you know how many people out there don’t have a job right now? And even those who do have a job, do you know how many of them are being forced to take days off w/o pay b/c they can’t get to work?
   
   
3. I have to work from home while my wife & kids are downstairs – Cry me a river!! Poor little Mike has to sit upstairs in his warm office sipping coffee and working on his computer while his family is mere feet away from him. Then when he is done he gets to walk downstairs and be with them in a matter of seconds. Poor Mike.
   

Do you see how ridiculous my complaints are when we put them in the appropriate context? Who am I and on what grounds do I have to grumble at all? Do I somehow deserve a driveway/house/job/family/anything?

No.

So what was the result? Here it is:

Today I shovelled for the glory of the Lord. I'm thankful that the Lord has given me the health and strength to shovel, a driveway, and the conviction to examine my heart. (Colossians 3:17)

-W.S. (mike)

I need your help: What terms do you use to describe Jesus?

I need some help, I'm looking for your perspective on something. I set up a VERY SHORT survey which provides a list of 10 terms commonly used to describe Jesus. It asks you to rank them from 1 to 10 with 10 being the most likely term you are to use, and 1 being the least likely.

I would really appreciate if you would take a few minutes to honestly walk through this survey, and pass it along as you feel appropriate:

What terms do you use to describe Jesus?

Thanks for your help!
-W.S. (mike)

Your Kids Listen To Your Actions - Part 2

Last November I posted about how our kids listen to our actions, and just this last Sunday I was blessed to be able to witness another example just last that I want to share with you.

Before I share this story, I want to reiterate that I do not share this as any sort of righteous testimony to my competency as a parent, or out of pride for the actions of my daughter. I know I have many shortcomings as a parent, and there are likely many more that I have yet to realize. I am sharing this as an encouragement for each of you; so you can see that the children in your life are watching you...they are listening to your actions.

Each Sunday morning for the past few months, my 5 y/o daughter "Minnow" and I wake up and head off to church early so I can finish my prep for the Youth Sunday School class I teach. My wife (who is expecting) and our 2 boys (2 & 3 y/o) stay back and arrive later in time for worship. Minnow & I have developed a bit of routine on Sundays. We leave the house in plenty of time and stop by a local gas station/convenience store and get some breakfast. We typically bring at least one million dollar bill tract in with us to give out in the store, and usually leave one at the pump if we need gas that AM.

Last Sunday as we pulled into the parking lot Minnow asked me, "Daddy, can I give a million dollar bill to the lady at the counter?" I had a feeling this was coming, as we had been talking about whom we would give the tract to ever since we left the house. "Of course!” I replied, and we walked into the store. We picked up my coffee and her water, our sandwiches & some pastries for the boys and my wife and went up to the counter to pay. Without any hesitation whatsoever she handed the tract to the woman at the counter and said, "Did you get one of these?" and immediately followed up with "Read the back when you get a chance." I was quite impressed with how smooth it came out for her, but this isn't even the part of the story that I wanted to share. It gets better.

On the way to church we were listening to a sermon and talking some more about the Gospel. Minnow asked me if she could have a couple of tracts to keep in her bible, and I gave her a few after giving her some instructions:

a) They are for giving away, not to be kept and treated as toys.

b) They should always be kept crisp and new looking.

After church, I headed out the front door and back towards the rear of the building where we parked my truck. As I started walking down the hill I noticed three little pony-tailed heads huddled around the opposite side of my truck. I was wondering what they were up to, and my first thought was that it wasn't something good. I decided to slowly approach the truck and keep the cab of the truck between us to shield their view of me.

As I approached, the only voice I could hear was Minnow. What she was saying absolutely melted my heart. This is what I heard:

"Here girls, take these. They are not real money, they are Gospel tracts, and they have the Gospel on the back of them. Here's what you do with them. You give them to someone that doesn't know the Gospel. Just say, "Did you get one of these?" and then you ask them to read the back when they get a chance. Remember, don't keep them for yourself, they aren't toys. Oh yeah, and don't wrinkle them all up. Keep them flat."

I must admit I was quite filled with pride at that moment, and I had a hard time not just interrupting their little pow-wow and picking up Minnow to give her a giant Daddy-sized hug and kiss. But I quickly checked myself and focused on how pleasing this must have been to the Lord, and thought of how I could use it to teach Minnow a lesson on obedience. It is so often as parents that we only teach lessons of obedience when we are battling disobedience.

On the trip home I asked Minnow why she gave those tracts to her friends and she said, "Because I don't want people to go to Hell, Daddy. They need to know about the Gospel so they don't go to hell."

Maybe I need to start listening to her actions more.

(Matthew 18:2-4)

-W.S. (Mike)

New Logo - What do you think? & Why I did it.

Hopefully you have noticed the new logo/banner at the top of the site. I have been considering making a change for quite some time now but I just haven't had the time. But today I decided to just get it done. And here's why:

I created the previous logo when I launched the site well over a year ago. I put a lot of thought into the development of that logo. To me, it symbolized my sinfulness (the red lava like skin) calling out to my Savior to save me. In the logo, I attempted to symbolized Jesus as pure, holy, perfect, exalted (white, w/o blemish, elevated above me). And this is exactly where I failed, and it has been bothering me for some time.

What in the world was I thinking? I'm a wretched sinner, whose every work compared to His (from God's perspective) are like filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6), and I tried to somehow capture the essence of the Pure, Holy, Perfect, Loving & Righteous God in a logo? I mean, even if I was able to come up with it, can you even imagine what that would look like? Do you see how inaccurate it would be? I dare not make myself a graven image of the one true God, in order to make him my god. (Deut 4:16-18)

I just want to be clear on something. I'm not saying you can't paint a picture of Jesus, or you shouldn't wear a cross as a reminder of what Jesus did for you. But I am saying that we should be careful with those things. We should be careful anytime we try to capture the essence, character, or nature of God outside the bounds of scripture. When you make (or use) the image of Christ there is a very fine line between glorifying & blaspheming.

Like most of the "gray areas", it comes down to a matter of the heart. I prayer-fully searched my heart, and The Holy Spirit convicted me...I dare not ignore His conviction.

-W.S. (Mike)

A few weeks ago, my Pastor asked me to sub in for him and teach our Wednesday night bible study. He and I talk quite often about evangelism, and he knows the burdent the Lord put on my heart about reaching the lost, so he asked me to teach on that subject in particular. It turned out that there was no way that I could fit it all into a 1 week class, so it has turned into a 3 week series.

The first session was focussed on two main ideas, "What is evanagelism" & "Why we don't evanglize". Below is the 1st of the 3 sessions, if you are intersted in evanglism I urge you to give it a listen. If you're not intersted in evangelsim...I beg you to listen to this message.

I know there are a lot of smart people that read this blog, and I would love your thoughts and comments on this message, but not related to me. I would like them to be focussed as to how this message could be improved and how effective it was in Glorifying the Lord. That's why we preach & teach, for His glory.

The Most Important Thing We Have (Session 1/3)

(1Cor 15:1-4)

"Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures" (emphasis mine)

1. What is evangelism?

• a. Evangel literally means "_______________" - Or Good "___________________"


• b. Evangelism is the _______________ of "Good News"


• c. An Evangelist is the ______________of "Good News"

2. What is the Good News? The Gospel

The Gospel is

• ________________________________________________________________________________________________


• ________________________________________________

3. Why don't we evangelize (more)?

• Not my gift (Eph 4:11-12)


• I don’t know how (2 Timothy 2:15)


• Not my personality (Eph 6:20)


• What if it doesn’t work? (2Cor 4:1-5)


• I don’t know enough of the bible (Eph 3:8-9)


• I don’t like confrontation (2Ti 4:1-2)


• People don’t want to hear they will go to hell! (2Ti 4:3-5)

The video referenced (and audio heard) in this message is called "Do you believe the Gospel?" from I'll be Honest

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Or download the MP4 directly HERE.

For His Glory,

W.S. (Mike)

One Way? or Wrong Way?

I assume most of you have a daily driving routine and you probably leave your house driving basically the same route each day. If that is the case, then this analogy shouldn’t be much of a stretch.

Let’s take this a bit further by imagining for a second that you live on a one way street. You know that each day when you leave your house there is only one way to go, and fortunately for you there is a sign just across the street from your driveway telling you which way that is. It’s a “One Way” sign, and it is there to remind you which way is the right way to go.

One day as you prepare to leave your house and get to the bottom of your driveway you are greeted with a new sign. You notice it is still a “One Way” sign, but now it has the option for you to go “One Way” in either direction. You are immediately troubled and start to think to yourself, “I know that can’t be right!” Your troubles are confirmed as you look down the street and you see the same exact sign across from each neighbor’s driveway as well. It doesn’t take you long to realize that this sign is VERY dangerous. You recognize that people should have the common sense to understand the danger in the sign and ignore it, but there is also no doubt in your mind that someone is going to fall victim to this trick.

You know that it wasn’t the highway dept, the government, or any other authorized party who put the new sign up. It had to have been someone else. So what would you do? I know what I would do. I would immediately start taking the signs down in hope that my effort would rescue someone from a dangerous situation.

And that is exactly what I started doing on my last business trip. Someone had put a dangerous and confusing “One Way” sign in the top drawer of the end table in my hotel. This sign conflicts with the “One Way” I know to be the Truth. The Truth as I know it is in the Word of God, it is the Bible. The dangerous and confusing “One Way” sign I found was the Book of Mormon. Like the sign in the example above, I could not in good conscience leave that book lying in the drawer knowing the confusion and danger it may bring. I did however replace it with a Million Dollar Bill Tract.

-W.S. (Mike)

Hiatus is ending - did you notice I was gone?

I've taken a little over a month away from this blog.  Did anyone notice?  :D

Mostly I've been working on my 1-John study for Sunday School and that has taken up a lot of my time, not to mention work has been pretty crazy.  Something had to give, and it was this blog.  I have a lot of things that I want to catch-up-blog about...so buckle up.

In the mean time,  I'm on twitter.

https://twitter.com/wretchedsinner

-Mike

Try It Out - The Blasphemy Bell

This is my newest "experiment", it's called the "blasphemy bell".  This idea came from several discussions with my small group about how much we have just come to accept blasphemy on T.V.  

Background:

One night after our study, we flipped on the TV to watch American Idol.  What a perfect test case.  It was the initial stages of the show and people were either told to go home or they were chosen to go to Hollywood for the next round.  Almost every single time they person made it through, they would get very excited, scream and jump for joy....and then proceed to use the name of the Lord in vain.  We started counting the number of times we heard it, and while I don't remember the exact totals, I do recall they were quite disturbing when you calculated BPM (Blasphemy Per Minute).

Enter the Blasphemy Bell.  My children have a service bell  they play with in their little toy kitchen.  I saw it one night and decided to move it out to the living room.  Now instead of counting, I just hit the bell each time I hear the Lords name used in vain.

I know what you may be thinking, "Why is he making a game out of blasphemy, it's not funny at all!"  I agree, it's not funny...and that is why I created the game.  I (and I'm sure you as well) have become so desensitized to Blasphemy in T.V. shows and movies.  Sure, if we hear someone at work, on the street, or *GASP* at church  blaspheme we all upset and say "Did you hear that?".   But on T.V.?  Nah.   That's just the way it is, right?  Wrong.

The blasphemy bell is all about sensitization, getting ourselves to listen closely to what we are actually hearing.   Sure, it's fun.  At first.  But as soon as you hit that bell 3 or 4 times I guarantee you will think to yourself, "What in the world am I doing watching this?".   Now, if you don't feel like it's a big deal to watch shows or movies that blaspheme God's name (remember the 3rd Commandment?), it's not up to me to convict you.   That's not my job.

However, it is my prayer that you won't harden your heart to what the Lord is saying in Psalm 139:20:

"For they speak against You wickedly, And Your enemies take Your name in vain."

God's enemies take His name in vain.  If you want to read more, Psalm 139 goes much deeper and talks about how we are to respond to such enemies.  Even to the point of  how our heart is to be.

I leave you with this quote from Charles Spurgeon, that I read last week over at my Buddy Dawg On The Lawn's Blog:

"If the devil comes to my door with his horns visible,I will never let him in; but if he comes with his hat on as a respectable gentleman, he is at once admitted.The metaphor may be very strange, but it is quite true--many a man has taken in an evil thing, because it has been varnished and glossed over, and not apparently an evil; and he has thought in his heart, there is not much harm in it; so he has let in the little thing, and it has been like the breaking forth of water- the first drop has brought after it a torrent.  

The beginning has been but the beginning of a fearful end."

Service up.....Ding!

-W.S.

Do Your Best?

As I drove into my parking spot at work this AM, I noticed this bright green bumper sticker on the car next to me. I think it summarizes a key difference between Mormanism and true Christianity. Not only that, I think it also summarizes a key difference between modern Christianity and true Christianity.

Doing you best is not enough. (Isaiah 64:6):

"For all of us have become like one who is unclean,
And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;
And all of us wither like a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away"

If you just do your best, you'll still die like the rest. Our hope is in the perfect penal substitutiany atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ alone.

Ephesians 2:8-9
"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast"

Each one of us will fail the test if we stand alone on the day of judgment.
-W.S. (mike)

People You Shouldn't Witness To - Really

I learned a valuable lesson yesterday. There are some people you shouldn't approach to hand a gospel tract. Even if you think you have a good idea for how to approach them.

You see, after my Dr.'s appointment I had to go to the pharmacy that is inside a local grocery store. As I walked out there was an armored car and two guards there unloading cash from the back. This is when I got this "oh so" bright idea as to how I could give them a million dollar bill tract.

As I exited the store, I started walking towards the truck. My first clue should have been the guards reaction...they stopped in their tracks (not tracts) as I approached the open truck filled with money. They just stared at me. Then, I reached into the inside pocket of my jacket (another bad idea) and they changed their posture again. I then proceeded to take out a million dollar bill and said, "Here, I think you dropped one of these." Clever, right? No...not at all.

"No I didn't, now get out of here." He replied. Whoops. My bad.
-W.S.

Get Out Of Your Own Way – Share The Gospel

There I was, at the airport on my way to St. Louis for a business trip. Sitting all by myself I had commandeered (unbeknownst to me) the only working power outlet and was charging up my gadgets. I was alone for a while, but soon the terminal started to fill up. A man sat down a few chairs away from me and tried to use the outlets below his chair. But no dice, they weren’t working. He slid down closer and tried the next set with the same result. So I offered to unplug mine so he could charge his phone. I knew this was the Lord’s doing and my opportunity to start a conversation, but I blew it and just let him plug his stuff in and slide back down to his seat.

About 30 minutes went by and I was so convicted it was driving me nuts. But as each minute passed by, the awkwardness increased and it was harder and harder to start a conversation. I couldn’t get out of my own way.

Finally, I just asked, “So, where are you headed?” Seems like such a simple question to ask in airport, doesn’t it? But to me it felt like the hardest question I’ve ever had to ask. It seemed like such an awkward and forced question. Why was it forced? It was forced because the reason I was asking him the question was to get to something. I wasn’t asking because I cared for the answer. Do you see the subtle difference? Do you see the lesson to be learned? I share the Gospel because we care, so I need to care to share the Gospel. I know I’ve learned my lesson, I pray you will learn from my mistake.

Anyway, it turns out his name was Gabriel. He was in the Army (served in Iraq), got out about a year ago and just got the call to go back to active duty and return to Iraq. He went to church “sometimes” and thought he was going to go to heaven b/c he was a good person. He heard the Gospel and it was amazing to witness once again the power of the Holy Spirit convicting him of his sin, and his need for a savior. He had never heard the Gospel like that before. I know the Lord brought us together for a reason that day, please pray for Gabriel.

-W.S.

Scientific Fact: Or is It?

I read an interesting article this AM that I thought about posting about soon, but then I came across this related video and realized I should probably post on it today:





You see, all these scientific "facts" that all the "smart" people in the world come up with don't always stand up to the test of time. These articles (Part 1|Part 2) by the British Medical Journal just debunked several scientific "facts" which I know I have bought into over the years. Here are just a couple:

1. Sugar does not cause hyperactivity in children.
2. You don't lose excess body heat from your head. (You can leave your hat at home if you don't want to muss your hair!)
3. Eating at night does not make you fat. (Though the obvious rules still apply—you can't eat more calories than you burn.)
4. Unfortunately, there is no scientific evidence that you can cure a hangover.
5. Shaving does not cause hair to grow back faster, darker, or coarser.
6. Reading in dim light will not destroy your eyesight.
7. You don't need to drink eight glasses of water a day, so save yourself the bloat.

So what's the point, you ask? My point is that we just accept many things from the scientific community as fact. Many of the myths above have been shown on TV as part of educational shows that many of us end up believing. While not listed in the article above, evolution is another "fact" that many people just accept without any argument whatsoever. Why do we put so much faith & confidence in the ever changing realm of science, but yet are so fearful to put the same in the Word of God which remains unchanged and steadfast? Just think about it.
-W.S.
(Mike)

Should you bring your kids to see santa? Sure..To share the Gospel of course!

We chose a few years ago to tell our (now 4 y/o) daughter that Santa isn't real. We did so to make sure we focused on the right things at Christmas, but we are sure to constantly remind her that other children do think he is real and it is important to not ruin that for them. Besides, we should spend our time telling people the Gospel of Jesus Christ...not debunking some story of a velvet wearing home invader. :P

Anyway, this morning I was shocked when my daughter asked if we could go down to a local store to see Santa. She actually prefaced the entire question by saying, "I know it's not really Santa, it's a guy dressed up like Santa". I was thinking of this as a great parenting opportunity, but my wife had a great idea and rightly said it would be a great witnessing opportunity. We decided that what we would do is ask our daughter if she wanted to bring a million dollar bill along and share the Gospel with the man dressed like Santa. She said "Yes". Praise the Lord!

There are a few lessons that I've (re)learned through this experience.

1. Everything we do should be about spreading the Gospel. Believe me, I think of this all the time...but somehow I got lossed in "Being a good parent" & trying to teach my daughter something. All the while I neglected to teach her the most important lesson of all. That we must share the Gospel to all people.
   
2. My wife is fantastic, and I am so blessed to have such a Christ focused woman as my bride.
3. You can preach the Gospel everywhere, anytime. And we need to think harder about this when we plan our day.

Matt 28:19-20 (NASB)
19"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

-W.S. (Mike)

We Lost The Baby. (My 3 Word Response)

Psalm 19:14 (NASB)

"Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart

Be acceptable in Your sight,

O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer."

Last Thursday was Mrs. WretchedSinner's first OB appointment since we found out we were pregnant 10+ weeks ago.  We were quite excited at the  prospect of another addition to our family, and this would make 4 children in 5 years...I guess you can say we like it a bit crazy around the house. :)

We had grand plans, we planned out how we were going to move the boys around to sleep in the same room and we were already picking out names.  Sure, we experienced some trouble with Super George but we knew God would be faithful again and His will would be done in this situation as well.  We prayed a bit, but as I reflect back I realize I was really taking the whole thing for granted.   So much so that I didn't go with my wife to her first OB appointment.  I haven't misssed many (actually I can't think of one) OB appointment's with our first 3 children, but I "needed" to be at work that day.  Then I got the call.

My cell rang, I answered it expecting to hear some great news.  There was a pause.  My wife was almost speechless, but in her typical gracefull manner she said, "Are you busy?"  I knew something was wrong.  She began to cry.  "The Dr. can't find the baby's heart...pause...the think the baby is dead.  They are sending me to get another ultrasound"   

I immediately found out where they were sending her, and ran out of the office.  I made some quick phone calls to two of my most trusted friends for prayer and guidance and then called my wife to talk to her on the way 30 minute ride to the Dr.'s office. 

Now I need to pause a minute to illustrate how the Lord is so amazing and how He was preparing us for this.

At the previous week's Wed night bible study at my church I sat in with the youth group.  My buddy MKB was sharing on Creation vs. Evolution and (as is typical) the youth kind of took it in another direction.  I'm really not sure how it ended up there, but the discussion moved towards questions of why things happen to us as believers...good or bad.

This has been part of my study as of late, so I chimed in and tried to tie it all back together with the topic at hand.   I asked the youth, "Why did God make us?"  After a few blank stares and some silence I said, "Three Words...For...His...Glory!".   I immediatley followed up with "Why do good things happen to us?  I'll give you a hint, it's 3 words."  They responded back "For His Glory!"  Now for the hard part of the mini lesson.  I asked them, "OK then, now I need to ask you why "bad" things happen?  Why is there pain and sadness?"  They paused.  They knew the answer, but I think they were afraid to say it at first.  I gave them the same "3 word" hint and they responded, "For His Glory!"

Little did I know I was going to be on this side of that mini lesson just a few days later.  I knew the answer to "why", and it was so simple and beautiful. I didn't desire to challenge the Holy God and creator of the universe to provide me (a wretched unworthy sinner) with questions or explainations.  It was clear...this happened for His Glory!   And with or w/o my help God would be glorified through this.   Did I know how He would be glorified?  Nope.   Did I care how He would be glorified?  Nope.  Did knowing this make my wife an I less sad?   Nope.  Did knowing this make me cry any less at thoughts of what could have been? Nope.  Did knowing that answer provide me with the real understanding and a senstivity to be able to see how God was using it right in the midst of this challenge?  You betcha.  

 

We serve an amazing and Holy God, the best thing we can do to give Him the Glory He deserves is to fully submitting to His will in our lives. 

All praise and Glory to God!

-W.S.

 

Outwitnessed: My Shameful Testimony

Do you have a routine every morning?  I do.  Have you ever had a situation arise that was so totally out of the norm that it blindsided you?  I did.  Were you prepared at all?  I wasn't.

So there I was, at the gas station I stop at every morning.  I drove up to the pump, started filling up and went in for my cup of coffee.  Things were going as planned.  At least how I planned.

I pay for my cup of coffee and head out to my truck...and off to work for the day.  Or so I thought.

As I place the nozzle back in it's place and turn back towards my door, this man litterally  from around the side of the island and says, "Hi".  Kind of shocked and still not properly caffeinated I respond, "Hi!  How are you".  He responds to complete the greeting and proceeds to hand me a gospel tract.  After thanking him I said, "Wait, I have something for you and leaned in and grabbed a "Million Dollar Bill" for him.  I handed it to him and started to share the Gospel with him.  This is a summary of how the conversation went:

W.S. - Here's the million dollar question...what is going to happen to you when you die?"  

J.W.  - What's going to happen to you?

W.S. - Me?  Or all of humanity?

J.W. - Humanity

W.S. - Well, anyone who dies apart from Jesus Christ will receive the Justice of the Lord for their sins and the bible says they will go to hell.

J.W. - *Pause* And you?  

W.S - I have repented and placed my full trust in Jesus Christ who has paid the penalty for my sins.  I will go to heaven.  Jesus is the only way to heaven.

J.W. - Yes, Jesus is the only way to heaven.  Look right here on the front page of this book, it says "What will happen when you die".

This is when I looked down at the literature he had given me and noticed exactly what was going on.   On the back of the book towards the bottom were the words "The Watchtower" which I remember from a recent Way of the Master T.V. Show dedicated to talking about that particular "faith". 

Here's the problem.  I couldn't remember anything from the show.  I couldn't remember anything to ask him.  I knew he was totally prepared for me, but I wasn't prepared for him.  I choked.  I thanked him.  I moved on.

I was and continue to be ashamed.  I failed.  I wasn't prepared to give an account and 1-Peter 3:15 echoes in my mind.

1 Pet 3:15 (NAS)

"but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always {being} ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence;"

But all Praise & Glory to the Lord!  He has used this to strengthen me, to make me desire Him more, to make me see Him more.  Do you know what he has taught me?   Do you know what the difference between a Jehova's Witness & a "regular old" (as Todd Friel said on last weeks WOTM radio) Christian is?  One word.

Jesus. 

Sure, the man agreed that Jesus was the only way to Heaven.  But what I neglected to ask him (and will next time) is "Who was Jesus?".  The Jehova's witnesses do not believe that Jesus is God.  They believe he is the Angel Michael.  

Here are some other facts about the Jehova's Witness that may prove valuable at your next encounter:

1. They don't believe in a literal hell
2. They don't believe the bible can be understood without the help of the watchtower organization.

I hope that by my failure in this situation others may be prepared in the future and all Glory will go to our amazing God!

-W.S.

Your Kids Listen to your actions..

I know this makes two consecutive posts about my kids, but this story I need to share for all of you out there may have children, know some children, or were ever a child.  Really, this isn't about my kids at all, more about my amazing Lord.

Each day before I leave the house for work my wife (who is pregnat) , and my 3 kids form a circle and pray.  We pray for the day ahead that we will seek Him first in all we do, and that we will have(or make) the opportunity to share the Gospel with those who don't know Him.  

Last Thursday was a great example of the Lord answering this prayer, but He followed it up with one of the greatest blessings a parent can have...a child concerned for the salvation of others.

You see, my wife had just finished sharing the Gospel with her cousin over he phone (for the 2nd time) and had quite a lengthy discussion about repentence and trust and what it really means to be a Christian.  My oldest child (4 y.o. daughter) "Minnow" sat there and intently listened to the entire conversation.  When my wife was done on the phone this is how the conversation went:

Minnow:  "Mommy, what were you talking to Aunt xxx about?"

Mrs. W.S.:  "I was talking to her about God's Law, and sharing the Gospel with her."

Minnow:  "Mommy, does Aunt xxx not believe in Jesus?"

Mrs. W.S. "No honey, unfortunately she does not yet."

Minnow: "Does this mean that yyy (her daughter who is Minnow's age) does not know about Jesus either?"

Mrs. W.S. "Unfortunately, probably not honey.  yyy only knows what her mommy teaches her"

Minnow: "Mommy, do you think I can tell yyy about Jesus next time we go up to visit?"

Praise the Lord!  

Brothers and sisters our children are watching us.  Make sure you are who you pretend to be.

-W.S.

Meet Super George: 1 in 4000? Or 1 in 44,444?

Meet "Super" George. He is 3 years old and he has Down Syndrome (D.S.) He is not alone, every year ~4,000 children are born with Down Syndrome [1]. But then again, he is more alone then he should be.

According to a report[2] from 2002, 91%-93% of pregnancies in the United States with a diagnosis of Down syndrome were terminated. By terminated, I mean the baby was killed.

For some reason I have a hard time visualizing percentages, and understanding what those numbers actually represent...so let's do some quick math to help both of us. Please understand that my calculations are not concrete, they are simply provided as a illustration. Here are the two sets of stats we are going to use as our basis:

• 4,000 children born each with D.S.
  
• 9% of children diagnosed with D.S. live long enough to be born without someone killing them (100%-[the 91% that are "terminated"] ).
  

Here's our equation:
(children born) = (9%) x (# of children diagnosed with D.S.)

Let's sub in our numbers:
(4,000) = (.09)x

Now, we solve for "x":
(4,000)/(.09)=x
44,444.44 = x

So based on the above numbers 44,444 children are diagnosed with D.S. each year and if 91% of those children are "aborted" (y) we get:

y= (44,444)*(.91)
y=40,444

Summary: Over 40,000 children are murdered every year just b/c they have D.S.

Now I have to let you in on a little secret. Super George is not just some random little kid I found on the Internet to use as an example. He is my son.

Some of you who read this blog know me personally, and know George as well. You know that indeed he is special. He has that "something" that few people on this planet possess. He has the ability to light up a room with his smile alone and always seems to know just when to give you a hug or a smile that just makes you melt. All of our children are a gift from God, but George is different and it doesn't have anything to do with D.S. No matter what challenge he has faced in his brief life (aheart defect, open heart surgery, 3x week physical/occupational therapy) he just keeps smiling as he goes.

When I stumbled upon these stats the other day I could not help but think of George. However, my attention immediately turned to the election, and what could happen if (and possibly when) a pro-abortion candidate is elected. I don't know who is going to win, and frankly I only pray that the Lord's will be done in this election. But please, please think of George before you cast your vote. He could have been one of the 40,444 instead of one of the 4,000.

I leave you with Psalm 139 (NASB)

1 O LORD, You have searched me and known me.

2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.

3 You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.

4 Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O LORD, You know it all.

5 You have enclosed me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.

6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is too high, I cannot attain to it.

7 Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?

8 If I ascend to heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.

9 If I take the wings of the dawn,
If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,

10 Even there Your hand will lead me,
And Your right hand will lay hold of me.

11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,
And the light around me will be night,”

12 Even the darkness is not dark to You,
And the night is as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are alike to You.

13 For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother’s womb.

14 I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.

15 My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;

16 Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.

17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!

18 If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand.
When I awake, I am still with You.

19 O that You would slay the wicked, O God;
Depart from me, therefore, men of bloodshed.

20 For they speak against You wickedly,
And Your enemies take Your name in vain.

21 Do I not hate those who hate You, O LORD?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?

22 I hate them with the utmost hatred;
They have become my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;

24 And see if there be any hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way.
-W.S.

Why I Was So Scared To Preach

If you had a chance to listen to my first sermon posted here, you may have noticed that I started off talking about what an honor it was to be asked to preach the Word, and how seriously I take that honor.

I was absolutely petrified by the thought that I was to be responsible for conveying the message of God to the people of my church. It's not the public speaking part that bugs me, I do a lot of public speaking and teaching at work. Since I can't say it any better than the Lord:

James 3:1 (NASB)
"Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly."

Now do you see why? Preaching is so much more than just getting up in front of a group of people and delivering a message on what I think the Lord wants me to teach. worked on my message for 2 months prior to last Sunday, and had it pretty well finished going into last weekend. I wanted to preach on 1-John, but the Lord had other plans

You see, when I was reading my bible on the plane ride to Atlanta last weekend for the deeper conference the Lord hit the reset button on my Sermon. 

I wish I could remember how it happened, but it was a combination of things I had spoke with about my with Pastor and my study that made it happen. All I knew was that the sermon had too much ME in it, and I needed to empty it of ME and fill it with Him. You see, as I got closer to Him and His Word, it all started to become clear:

James 4:8 (NASB)
"Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded."

It is no conincidence that I was reading James on the plane. It is no conincidence that I had spent nearly 2 months studying 1-John developing a sermon that the Lord would just erase.

You see, the Lord used my study of 1-John to teach me something I will never forget. I articulated this lesson to my pastor this weekend with this statement, "The Lord has taught me that I need to study it like I'm going to preach it". 

Ultimately what I've learned over the past 2 months was that regardless if we are going to be delivering a sermon, we need to approach our study of the Word like we are. And if you are going to preach, you better make sure you put everything you have into making sure that you are doing in right. Not in your eyes, but in His.
-W.S.

"You're in my thoughts.." - So?

I was having a conversation at breakfast with friend this AM, we'll call him "Rudy".  Well, "Rudy" and I were talking about a mutual friend who is going through some tough medical struggles now and our waitress overheard us.  She gave us a quick update on his condition and his treatmen schedule and ended the conversation by saying "..Yeah, our thoughts are with him".

That got me to thinking.  Is someone actually supposed to draw comfort or peace from that?  When we were going through our struggles with Super George (his birth, heart defect, & surgery), people would always tell me that their "thoughts" were with us.  I'll tell you what, it didn't make me feel any better at all.  Don't get me wrong, it is a nice feeling to be thought of...but what really made me feel better was knowing people were praying that whatever the outcome that we would praise the Lord and He would be glorified.

Next time you decide to send your thoughts to someone, just send flowers.  They are prettier anyway.

Or, you could always tell them that you are praying that Lord will use the situation for His glory.....but you already are doing that, right?

-W.S. 

Devil's Advocate?

In the course of a discussion, have you ever had someone tell you that they were just playing “devil’s advocate”? Perhaps you’ve even used the phrase yourself, but have you ever put much thought into what that phrase really means? Let me tell you why I bring this up.

This afternoon, my wife shared an exchange she had while witnessing to her cousin on Saturday and I was struck by the irony and wanted to share it here. My wife was explaining what the Bible means to her, and stated something along the lines that she believes everything in it is the inspired Word of God and that everything in it is true. Of course, that is crazy talk to the world so her cousin didn’t understand and began asking a lot of questions. That part isn’t the problem, as we should always be prepared to defend the Word of God but I was struck by the words her cousin used to preface her challenges by saying, “I’m just playing devil’s advocate here, but….”

I’m not sure that phrase has ever been used in a more appropriate context. In fact, I would imagine we have all probably used that phrase at one point or another without thinking about what it actually means. Words are powerful and they have meaning. As a believer, the name of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has incredible power and simply the hearing the name spoken makes my heart jump. Now why in the world would I want to advocate anything in the name of the enemy?

Let’s not get crazy and start a movement against devil’s food cake or anything, that’s not my point here…besides we all know that the devil doesn’t even like cake. ☺

-W.S.