Your Prayer Is More Powerful Than Your Opinion

So the Fresno Police Department is facing another scandal involving an officer; this time a high ranking officer in the department.  Of course the social media sites are full of people who are sharing their opinions on the matter.  Some of the comments are vicious and really reveal the ignorance and hatred towards police in general, but now at Chief Jerry Dyer.

The reality is, while he is the chief, he cannot possibly babysit the 1000 or so employees that are members of the department any more than the manager of your place of employment can!  Sure he is responsible as the leader of the group, but some of the criticisms are completely unrealistic, unfair and are nothing more than personal attacks on him.  None of us know all of the facts, so it is humorous to see all of the arm chair law enforcement officers spouting off about what is happening in a case that the chief did not even know about, until after the arrest was made.

While we fully expect that people will have their opinions about things, what is troubling is how people will personally attack an individual.  What is even more troubling is when so called "Christians" begin throwing stones of personal attack too.  1 Timothy 2: 1-3 says:  "The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live."

We are certainly entitled to our beliefs and opinions, but our PRAYERS are much more powerful than our opinions.  So, if you support Chief Dyer and think he is doing a good job, then pray for him.  If you think he is not doing a good job and you are not a fan, pray for him.  Pray for him and the majority of the good men and women who put on the badge, strap on the gun and go out to protect us every day.  If prayer isn't for you, or you still feel that you could do a better job, I encourage you to go to the Police Academy.  If you survive the academy, then go get a job as a cop and show us all how you can do it better.  I promise you I will pray for you.

Sometime's You Have To Speak Up!

In today's world, a good argument could be made for staying quiet when you see something take place that is not right.  Getting involved could mean taking a bullet, being stabbed or otherwise injured.  Too often we stand by and just let things happen, for fear of retaliation.

The other day I was sitting in line behind a Chevy Tahoe while waiting to get gas at Costco.  I could not see around the vehicle, so I never saw the car in front of the Tahoe drive off.  I was next in line and there were a few cars behind me.  All of a sudden a car raced all the way up, passed everyone in line and pulled up to the pump in front of the Tahoe.  Soon the Tahoe left and I pulled up behind the driver.  I kept thinking to myself, "shut up", but even though I knew it probably wouldn't change anything, I decided to speak up.

I told the older "gentleman" that I was next in line and not in a big hurry, so it didn't bother me, but that his actions were a bit unfair to the other three occupants of the cars he crowded in front of.  I pointed out that perhaps they were in a hurry and he had just rudely crowded in front of everyone.  He responded with something to the effect of "well you all should have been paying attention."  I explained that the small car was hidden by the Tahoe and that we never saw it leave, but he responded with "well that is all your problem!"   I said to him,  "and we wonder why today's kids think it is OK to go around bullying people!"  He yelled something back, got in his car and drove off.  I didn't realize how many people had seen what he had done and their reactions made my actions seem somewhat heroic.  An older couple that he had crowded had pulled around to another pump right next to mine and thanked me for saying speaking up.

The whole scenario made me think a bit.  Why did that man have no fear to do what he did, but I initially feared speaking up?  Why is it that we will sit silently and watch people take advantage of others?    This was just a simple gas station situation, but how can we expect anyone to speak up for the real injustices in life if we ourselves are not willing to speak up for the little things.  While I don't suggest we go around causing fights by rudely challenging everyone who does something wrong in our eyes, but I simply think we need to think twice next time we decide to clam upon witnessing a case of injustice.  I'm no hero, just someone who hopes someone else will speak up if I ever find myself at the losing end of a situation that is not right.  Ultimately it is our choice, speak up and possibly provoke change, or stand quietly and let injustice rule.

The Drum Line

Just watched a video of my son performing in his school drum line.  He plays the bass drum.  It seems like a very insignificant part of the line compared to the higher profile snare drums and others that are more prominent.  However, if you take the low boom of the bass drum out of the line, the void is very noticeable and it doesn't sound the same.
In life, God created each and everyone of us to play our own unique part.  Some of us have roles that place us in the spotlight and others of our in the background, but we both matter and are significant in the whole picture.  No matter how insignificant you feel today, the role you play in this life is important, so don't give up, things will not sound the same without you....

Trusting God When You Don't Feel Good

It is easy to say we trust God when things are all good, but what about when they are not?  Can we trust God during financial crisis, marital issues, or health issues?  It is easy to blog about trust, or put cute postings and sayings on Facebook and Twitter, but what happens when the doctor comes back with a report with news that is not good?

I have not felt well physically for about 3 years, but I attributed most of my feeling tired and worn down to my busy schedule.  The demands of being a husband and dad, employee, small business owner, minister, friend etc. can wear you down a bit, but the tired never seemed to go away.  I finally saw a doctor and was told that I have Hypothyroidism, which basically means my thyroid is not functioning properly.  I won’t bore you with all the details, but the list of symptoms that I have are right in line with all the side effects of this disease/disorder.  It is a very common condition that in most cases is treatable and fairly easy to deal with.  I started a thirty day prescription of steroids that will hopefully control things and make me feel "normal" again.  If that is not effective, then we will cross that bridge when we get there.

So why blog about this?  I want to make it clear that this is not written to garner sympathy.  First off, I believe in the power of prayer, so it is a request for prayer.  I don't particularly want to take medication for the rest of my life, so it is going to take a healing to avoid that.  Secondly it is a request for anyone who is dealing with this for help.  Any suggestions, tips or other information you can offer me is welcome.  Your ability to deal with this could be an encouragement to me when I’m having trouble trusting.  Finally, it is a reminder that there are some things we can control with our health, but there are other things we cannot.  We should go to the doctor when we don't feel good, and try to eat better and exercise.  It is with the things that we cannot control that we have the choice, to trust God or to not trust.

I've said it before and I will repeat it now, "God is good when I'm healthy and He is equally good when I'm not!”  Now it is time to put my faith in action and keep on trusting Him. I trusted Him when I felt good, so now it's time to keep trusting Him even though I don't feel good.

Thanks for reading, go see your doctor and keep on trusting...

Lessons From Watching Wrestling!

Saturday my son wrestled in the district championships for his school district. He has only wrestled for two seasons, but he finished fourth in his weight class, so I'm obviously proud of him!  As I watched, I noticed four basic outcomes that repeated themselves thru out the day.  It occurred to me that they resembled scenarios we often face in life.

The first example is when one wrestler thoroughly dominated the other and pins his or her (yes there were plenty of girls participating) opponent.  It reminded me that in life, there are certain tasks or positive habits that we have mastered and we are easily able to maneuver ourselves through those areas in life.  Some people work out without fail and don't have to think twice about whether to exercise or not.  It has become such a habit that they feel incomplete if they do not work out. 

The next example is when you are on the losing end of the domination.  You get tossed all over the mat and eventually lose by a large point disadvantage, or you get pinned by the opponent.  It reminded me that there are bad habits or other situation; some created by our own actions, that seem to just hover over our lives and won’t go away.  It seems there is no use in fighting because the opposition is so strong.  It is here where we can do the easy thing and quit, or we can try to figure out why we feel so powerless, identify our weaknesses that are preventing us from overcoming, focus on strengthening our weak points and look to God to handle what we can’t.  Take the easy way out and we will constantly find ourselves battling and losing to the same opponent every time.

The last two examples involve the back and forth battles between two equal opponents.  They wrestle back and forth, each of them scoring points as they try to out maneuver each other.  While both are comparable athletes, it is either a mistake by one wrestler, or a successful move by the other that often determines the outcome.  This reminded me that in life, we win some and we lose some.  We do the right thing and our efforts are rewarded.  Sometimes we make mistakes and suffer the consequences as a result.  We struggle against old bad habits and sometimes we succumb to temptation.  The upside is that we are struggling now and are sometimes victorious, whereas before we were dominated by the habit or temptation and didn't even bother fighting it.  We have grown to the point where we realize that when we win, we must stay humble, because we are human and a setback may be around the corner.  Perhaps more importantly, we realize that our setbacks do not need to be permanent, so we rise again knowing we have a chance to redeem ourselves next time.

I suspect there are areas in our lives that fit each of the examples I listed.  Take some time and do a little self analysis. Be conscience of what allowed you to achieve victory so you can keep dominating those areas of life.  Strengthen your weak points so you can reach a level where you can fight back against your struggles.  Finally, whatever you do, don't give up when you stumble or fail!  Keep getting back up after every defeat, because in the game of life, just getting back up can be a victory in itself!


Thanks for reading!  If you want something else to read, click here for my last post!  Go Fix It

Go Fix It!

If we step away from the hustle and bustle of our busy lives and look around, we will see that there things all around us that are in need of fixing.  From the graffiti on the wall, to the kid at your children's school who has no jacket in the middle of the winter, to the elderly lady next door whose fence is in disrepair, the opportunities to love our neighbors and to let God's love shine in the world are endless.

Have ever see a situation and wondered, "Why doesn't someone do something about it?"? We wait for government to find a solution, but our government representatives seem to be more concerned about their own pet projects, or their future political aspirations.  We look to churches to assist, but many church organizations are too busy trying to increase membership to focus on truly ministering to the needs of our communities.  But who is the government?  Who are the members of the church?  I thought it was "we the people" and in the church, I thought that "we are the body of Christ"!

I would like to issue the challenge to anyone who took the time to read this.  Next time you see a need, don't wait for government to come up with a new program, YOU be the program that provides a solution.  Next time there is a person who needs a helping hand, BE Jesus’ representative and minister to their need yourself.  We can cry and complain that "someone ought to do something", or worse yet, see a need and act like we didn't notice, or we can call a few friends, roll up our sleeves and go fix it.

To fix it or not to fix it, the choice is yours! 

Because You Just Never Know!

Two extremely high profile traffic accidents took place in the Fresno area within the last few days.  Saturday night, a mom and her four children were headed to celebrate one of the kids birthday when they were killed after another driver apparently ran through a stop sign and struck their vehicle.  Her husband and the father of the children was in another vehicle behind them and desperately tried to save them from their vehicle that had exploded into flames.  Now this man is left to carry on without his wife and children.  Monday morning two California Patrol Officers were killed when they crashed while responding to an accident.  The victims in both collisions left behind friends and family and the officers also left behind their brothers and sisters in the law enforcement and first responder community.

I could not help but think about a few things as a result of these tragedies.  I'm sure the man who lost his family never thought he was seeing his family alive for the last time when they got into their vehicles to go celebrate.  The nature of law enforcement work makes the possibility of severe injury or death more likely, but I imagine the families of those officers fully expected them to return home following their shift.  I am guilty of taking life for granted.  I am guilty of taking my family and friends for granted.  Every time our family members walk out of the door to go to work, to go shopping or simply to walk down the street to get the mail, there is the potential that it could be the last time we see them alive.  Certainly we would do things differently if we knew that we would no longer see them again, but we live under the constant assumption that they will return every time.

So today, I dedicate this post to the memory of the victims of these tragic accidents and encourage you to join me and learn something from these horrific accidents.  Think about it next time you are about to leave the house angry at your spouse or a family member.  Think about it when you have an argument with a friend and walk away in anger.  Think about it as you pack your kids up for school in the morning and are too busy to hug and kiss them goodbye.  Think about it seriously, because you just never know when that goodbye will be the final goodbye.