The following is something my wife Sarah wrote today, and it brilliantly illustrates what is on my mind.  I probably could not have written this today, but wanted to share her words.

From Sarah's Blog Today, March 8:

Eighteen years ago today, my husband's father died.

It started out like any other day. Phil was a junior in high school, the only child of two incredibly loving parents. Phil's dad, Ed, was the senior pastor at a large, thriving and growing church in Tucson, Arizona. His mom was just about as sweet and kind as anyone you've ever met.

Mom & Dad were in Seattle for a couple of days, teaching at a church where they had many friends, and had lived before. Phil stayed in Tucson. It was a Sunday afternoon. Phil got a phone call from someone his family knew in Seattle. Ed had been in a pretty bad car accident.

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Yesterday, as I made some phone calls to a couple different friends, a verse was brought to my attention a couple different times (and also through an excellent blog by John Barry "Worry is Like a Dancing Bear").  This verse has been a favorite of mine for quite some time, but this morning I went back and read it again.

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear.  Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not of more value than they?  And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?...indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  So do not worry aobut tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own.  Today’s trouble is enough for today.”  (Matthew 6:25-34)

Looking back a bit farther in Matthew 6 we find “The Lord’s Prayer.”  In it, there is the phrase, “give us this day our daily bread.”  

Today, as I sit and write, I can hear the birds singing outside.  They sing in an outside where it has been cold and dark and dead for the last several months here in Idaho.  Now, we are beginning to see signs of life.  We are beginning to see some new green grass grow, and some buds peeking out of branches.  The sun has been out for several days and we have played outside.

The birds of the air are taken care of even through winter.  In the life of my family, we have experienced a winter.  But, God has been so faithful to provide us daily bread, gently bringing us along through the winter to a place where we can see some light and growth as we feel we are nearing the spring.

We do not know what God has in store for each of our lives.  However, we do know that we can trust this one who is so faithful to provide for our needs, bringing daily bread, and taking care of our needs.  

Dear God, let us not forget the winters in our lives, and let us not forget your magnificent provisions that are more than we can ask or imagine.  Forgive us of our worrying and fretting.  Let us remember these times, and be an instrument of grace to others as they traverse through winters.  Amen.

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So I have been noticing around conversantlife a theme of very serious blogs lately.  My own last blog took on a very somber tone.  I don't want to discount any of these blogs or thoughts, but I did want to add a slightly lighter blog to balance my own thoughts as of late.  Not everything in this life needs to be so heavy.

I saw two signs today.  This first one spoke to me prophetically for where I am at currently.  To learn what we need to learn, our family needed to come to where we are at.  God has been at work healing and doing some stuff in our lives, and today, when I read this sign, it was a visual reminder of the process and path that I am on.

The second sign is much lighter.  I had seen this before but never photographed it.  Is there really any explanation needed?

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So, it has now been almost 7 months of being unemployed (at least full-time employment).  Today, I am extremely discouraged.  Not only is it overcast and depressing outside, but my heart is heavy and overcast as well.

We are learning a lot here and honestly believe that God brought us here for some reason, but we are unsure of what.  I do know one thing.  He is breaking us down, and making us uncomfortable in the process.  I am not into discomfort.  I personally would much rather live life in all of my comforts and securities, with lots of ease.

But, alas, this is not what God has promised or even intended for us.  Instead, it seems he wants to stretch and grow us.  He is teaching me about my attitude, and that I need desperately to change it.  He is reminding me of his call on my life.  He is showing me that I have a propensity to always be looking on the other side of the fence in order to see the greener grass.  I am learning that I am bad at being satisfied where I am.  You know that phrase, “wherever you are, be all there”?  Yeah, I suck at that.

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Today I came across this article in the NY Times paper.  The title "Flock is Now a Fight Team in some Ministries".  The article lays out the details of several ministries oriented around the idea of fighting.  They promote the idea that Jesus was a fighter, not a wimpy boy. 

To be honest, I am a fan of MMA fighting.  Perhaps it is a weakness of mine, a character flaw.  But I grew up as a huge Pro Wrestling fan, and when I discovered this later in life as an adult, I instantly gravitated toward it. 

However, I do have my concerns.

Is this sport pushing the boundaries too far?  When I think about MMA fighting, and I think about the push to have a certain serial killer executed on Pay Per View a few years back, I wonder if we are becoming almost a Roman culture of death in the arena.  How far is it before something like MMA gets pushed to a further limit?  Will it happen?  I certainly hope not.  While I enjoy the technique and aggression of MMA, I often find myself wondering whether this is an indulgence of my flesh.

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Have you seen the new Nextel Blackberry commercial?  This commercial is brilliant.  It is not brilliant because it is made so well (although the production value seems good to me).  It is not brilliant because of the product (although I hear Blackberrys are great phones).  It is brilliant because of the story it tells.

Have you noticed all of the best or most memorable commercials tell a story.  There is the old Nextel commercial where people get married quickly utilizing their Nextel phones or the one where the businessmen cut a deal quickly because of their phones.  But this one is even more brilliant.

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Yesterday, I noticed some commentary floating around Facebook about The Manhattan Declaration, and how several conservative theologians are unwilling to sign it (R.C. Sproul, John Piper, and John Macarthur).  In case you are unaware of the Manhattan Declaration, it is essentially a statement that affirms the sanctity of life, the meaning of marriage, and the nature of religious liberty. 

The attempt of this document is to unite believers from Evangelical, Catholic, and Orthodox backgrounds together to affirm that the aforementioned are values we affirm and are common to these various branches of Christianity.

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During the Holidays from Thanksgiving to Christmas, we are typically very aware of the needs of the poor.  We often utilize this time to help those with extra needs.  I applaud this sense of desiring to help.  But the other day, as I was reading in Matthew, I began to think a bit about another kind of poverty.
Jesus states in Matthew 5, “blessed are the poor in Spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”

As I think through this, I have to wonder, what is “poor in Spirit?”  I found some commentary here, and I begin thinking that poverty of spirit has more to do with what one thinks they have rather than poverty in finances, etc.

In other words, when we think we have it all together spiritually, that we are a spiritual leader, when we have a good understanding or mastery of the Gospel, we may actually be far from God. However, when we are humbled, knowing that we are not “the stuff”, we are able to see some glimpses of God’s Kingdom, the one on earth here and now.  

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If you have read any of my previous posts as of late, you will realize that not long ago, my wife and I left Southern California in order to move to the wonderful land of Boise, Idaho.  We love it here so far, but it is really hard to change.  So many times, I have looked back (as if to Egypt) remembering all of the good things I had, and how good I had it.

Although my desire is not to go back, it is easy to remember the good, and forget the bad, while focusing as much on the hard things where I am at.  When I really think about it, I just don't care for discomfort.  Anyone relate?  There are times when I just would much rather be complacent and comfortable.

We miss our friends and the familiarity of the old place.  And it is hard to learn new ways around, find new stores and restaurants, etc.  It is hard to make new friends.  It is hard to stretch ourselves.

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It is a tough flu season this year, and many are going to get their shots.  My family is just getting over two weeks straight of the flu.  But what does a shot do anyway?  Basically, in non-technical terms, the vaccine shot introduces a bit of the flu into your system so that your system can build up immunities to the flu.  Seems like a good idea, kind of a “fight fire with fire” type of thing.  Give them a bit of the bad stuff that you don’t want them to get.

But there is another way to get vaccinated (at least partially).  Get the Flu.  Some would advise one to get a flu shot even if you have had the flu, but many others would ask, “why bother?”  Most would agree that if one has had the flu this season, they have a fairly decent chance of not getting it again, because their system has built up the necessary anti-bodies to fight off a second flu attack.

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