Real Danger....

We had a little excitement at my apartment last night....

We're getting ready to move to Fort Worth, TX, in a couple of weeks, and my mother-in-law came over last night to help us pack. She and Mandy took some garbage to the dumpster, and while they were down there they noticed a group of young men. The group seemed to be in the middle of an argument (Mrs. Debbie said she heard "mf" a few times). So they decided to hurriedly return. Mandy nonchalantly mentions as they walk back in the apartment, "I think there's going to be a fight." Not more than two seconds later, two gunshots are heard in the parking lot. I look out the window to see this group of young men scatter like scared mice. Several of them are jumping in cars and speeding out of the parking lot. I call 911 and tell the police what happened. They send a couple of officers to interview the complex, and thankfully, within a few hours, they make several arrests. (Thanks, Brit, for the info.)

I knew the severity of the situation--there was a gun shoot out in our parking lot, not 50 yards from where we lived. I understood that it was a big deal. But it didn't really affect me. I mean, after all, they weren't shooting at me or Mandy or Mrs. Debbie. We weren't even involved in whatever those men were arguing about. So why worry?

Then I got some more info this morning.

Apparently, one of those two gunshots I heard went through a bedroom window and, thanks be to God, passed OVER a sleeping child and lodged a bullet into the wall. It was the window to Apartment 44.

We live in Apartment 45.

Suddenly the entire situation came into focus. That weren't shooting at us specifically, but they were shooting in our direction. There were no injuries last night, so apparently the shooter had bad aim. But if his aim were to the left instead of the right, it would have entered my window, where I, or worse yet my wife, could have been standing. Suddenly I see the entire situation in a new light. God didn't just let us experiene the sound of a gunshot. He rescued us from that gunshot.

I think a great many of us view the sin in our lives much like I viewed the gunshot at first. Yes, sin is a bad thing, and we really don't need to give in to it. But all in all, it's not that big of a deal, and besides, we don't give in to it THAT much. We just need Jesus to help us out every now and then and we're fine.

Wrong. Romans says, "The wages of sin is DEATH..."--Romans 6:23, emphasis mine. Sin is not some minor error that needs to be corrected, or some small problem that needs a solution. To God, it is the very thing that seperates us from Him. It is the poison that destroyed our eternal peace in the garden. It is the driving force behind the wars and rage that we see on the news every day. It is the enemy steals children's innocence and creates fatherless homes. Sin is a force to be reckoned with, one that we cannot possibly overcome by ourselves.

So, when Jesus died on the cross, He did more than just give us a boost in the right direction. He put us in a place where we could attain something that on our own we could never even dream of attaining--righteousness. We were completely lost without His sacrifice, depraved and condmened to eternal punishment. But by grace through faith in Him, we can experience the eternal bliss of God's presence.

I know for a fact some great mind has already said this, so I will paraphrase and tip my hat to whomever he may be. Our perspective of how powerful Christ is is directly proportional to our perspective of the severity of our sin. If we think sin is really no big deal, then to us, Christ is really no big deal. But if we understand just how serious sin is, then we better understand just how much Jesus did for us on that cross.

Feel free to comment or ask questions. I'm always here.

Keep Soaring,

B

Canaan Bound....

When God told Abraham and Sarah to pack their bags and move to what would be the Promised Land, I'm sure they had a lot of uncertainties to deal with. They had no clue where they were going, what they would find when they got there, or what they were supposed to do once they were there. Abraham's leap of faith was a great deal more literal than anything most of use face in our daily lives.

So when I look at the move coming up in a couple of weeks, I'm not surprised at the fears that I feel. Granted, I'm in a better position than Abraham was. I know where I'm going, I have a general idea of what I'll find when I get there, and I know exactly what I'm supposed to do once I'm there. I suppose the thing I deal with the most is this--once I get there, how do I stay there?

But as usual, God has an interesting way of reminding me of just how in control He is. There is a song by Andrew Peterson (I think this is the 2nd time I've quoted him here) called "Canaan Bound." It's a song between Abraham and Sarah, and Abraham encourages Sarah to go with him to Canaan where "long after [they] are dead and gone, a thousand years [their] tale be sung, how faith compelled and bore [them] on, how barren Sarah bore a son."

God called Abraham to believe in Him whole-heartedly, to jump out into the unknown and trust Him. Abraham did, and "it was credited to him as righteousness." --Genesis 15:6. He believed and was blessed for his believing. And his example beckons us all, "Come to Canaan, come."

And so, with a head full of fear, but a heart full of hope, I sing along with the words of my brother in Christ, Andrew......

"Oh, [Mandy] take me by my arm. Tomorrow we are Canaan bound."

Feel free to comment or ask questions. I'm always here.

Keep Soaring,

B

"Back Man" by big AL

Al Cherry is a coworker of mine who, when he's not teaching Math at Richwood High School, is using his talents for the LORD as a singer and rapper. He's recently produced a Music video to his song "Back Man." You can view it here.

If you enjoy this, you can go to his website to see what else he's done. It's guys like this that are willing to try new ways to teach the Gospel that spear head ministries into places as of yet unreached.

Also, my web comic strip has officially started. You can view the strip here. It updates every Monday, so stay tuned for more.

Feel free to leave comments or ask questions. I'm always here.

Keep Soaring,

B

I am a horse....

My sister was telling me about a guy she saw who breaks horses for riding and then uses that to share the Gospel. He never uses brute force to break the horse. Instead, he simply pursues it. When he tries to pet the horse, if it runs away, he simply chases it, making it run even more. Eventually, the horse tires out and learns that it can't escape the man, so it stops running. When that happens, the man is able to care for the horse, give it water, let it rest, and be the care-taker he wants to be. He says that God is the same way. When He approaches us, if we run, He chases. And sooner or later, we tire out. We reach the point where we realize we have nowhere to go and God is the only way we're going to survive. And when that happens, God is able to be the care-taker to you that He wants to be.

It reminded me of the story Hosea and Gomer, and how God used their relationship to represent His relationship to Israel. Even though Gomer cheated on Hosea and ran from him every chance she had, he pursued her. And when she was on the slave block, with no where to run, Hosea was there to clothe her, nurse her to health, and take care of her.

"Therefore, I will soon fence her in with thorns; I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way. Then she will pursue her lovers, but she will not catch them; she will seek them, but she will not find them. Then she will say, 'I will go back to my husband, because I was better off then I am now. '" --Hosea 2:6-7

God knows that He's the only thing that can satisfy. So when we take off, He pursues, knowing full well that eventually we'll tire out. And at that point, when we've reached rock bottom, He'll be waiting to restore us and ease our wounds. Granted, it's always better to start out doing what God wants, but if it doesn't happen that way, if we turn to God, He will turn to us.

Feel free to comment or ask questions. I'm always here.

Thanks, Maggie, for the story.

Keep Soaring,

B

Afraid to look up....

This is one of those times for me where God feels so close, if I were to look up I might catch Him watching me. This hymn seems to pretty much sum up what's happening in my head....and my heart:

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

Keep Soaring,

B