A simple Poem of things running thru my head

Choices Choices Choices
That i have to Choose
Oh Lord i want
you to help me out
so that i don't end up

all bruised.
Some fast, Some slow
Some hard, Some not
we make choices an awful lot.

Voices Voices Voices
your the voice i wanna hear
I wanna just belong to You
Lord make the others disappear
Oh Why Oh why
is it so hard to discern
your voice from all other voices
I guess it all comes back to
making lots of choices.


Hi Micah here, I have a lot in my head right now so i thought i would give you a glimpse into some of the things going thru my head,
Many others are to but i have to take a shower and get up at five so i had better save some for another time.

Over my head!!

Ever feel like God led you somewhere but then wondered if it was really His hand guiding you? Suppose He set a task before you (actually I'm sure you don't have to suppose; I'm sure He's set tasks before you as you read this.) I will use an example. This morning, as I drove towards a customer's house on a service call, I was praying a lot. I believe God called me to the coal business, at least for the time being. A few months ago, I probably would have told you this is only a temporary venture. Now, I'm not so sure. He may have me here longer than I expect to be. I prayed He would help me to impact the lives of the people I came into contact with. I got to the house where the service call was, changed a few wires around, and left. Did I impact anyone? I don't know. I hope so. Later today, after lunch, I went with Howard to deliver eight ton of bulk coal to a customer. No one was home when we got there. The bin already had coal in it, and I was doubtful about whether we would fit 16,000 pounds of coal into it. But God seemed to say "No worries Colin. I have led you here. Have faith." With something as small as not worrying about this delivery, God still had something to say. Essentially, there was a parallel drawn for me. Sometimes God calls us to do things that seem impossible. We tend to think or say "There is no way I can do this! Who does God think I am??" And that leaves the door open for God to say "Of course you can't do this alone. Apart from Me, you are nothing." Oh yeah... Sorry I got to thinking I was big enough to handle my own affairs again. Whether it's building a skyscraper or writing a check; flying a plane or walking to the post office; preaching to thousands or saying a simple prayer, we can't do any of it without God. An encouragement to anyone who feels out of their league right now! Lean on God now and always!

Time... This time not in a bottle!!

Remember my blog about time in a bottle and Jim Croce? Well this blog is about another secular artist's view of time. Pink Floyd's song "Time" focuses on time being a valuable thing. The lyrics are sung: "Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day/ you fritter and waste the hours in an offhand way/ kicking around on a piece of ground in your hometown/ waiting for something or someone to show you the way.... And like I said before, if you are interested enough in the rest of the lyrics, there are plenty of places online you can find them.

I don't want to get stuck preaching about time and how valuable it is all the time. But of all the things God has gifted us with, time is one of the most precious. Why? For starters, once used, time can never be reclaimed. It's like soft clay, as soon as we make our mark on time, it's there for eternity. Nothing we do now can change what we have done. Another reason time is valuable is that we never truly know how much we have. I could walk outside tomorrow and be bitten by a rabid squirrel. On my way to the hospital to get a rabies shot, I could get a flat tire. And while fixing that tire, a rattlesnake could bite me. And when the ambulance comes to pick me up off the side of the road, its brakes might fail. And as it swerves to miss me, it may strike a telephone pole. And though the pole may miss me by a couple feet, I will still be electrocuted by the flailing power lines. Hopefully by this point, my heavenly Father will have called me home! I'm not trying to make light of our situation. The chances of those things happening are extremely slim, but the point is there are many things that we do not expect that could cost us our life at any moment. "Redeeming the time for the days are evil." Take the time to read Ecclesiastes. It follows Proverbs and precedes Song of Solomon. The entire book seems to be devoted to making the most of the time we have.

Now, please don't be scared of rabid squirrels or failing brakes. The point of this is not to scare you away from life, but to remind you that life is short, time is precious. One line in one of Petra's songs says "Hurry up and wait upon the Lord." If we are waiting on the Lord and His direction, our time will not be spent on nothing. He will lead us to where we can glorify Him most. So be not afraid, be of good cheer, and redeem the time!!!

Jujitsu and other fun stuffs

Jujitsu!
Did a red flag kinda raise when you read that? I know at one point in time, I was extremely wary about martial arts. Traditionally, martial arts seem to teach two things.

1) How to hurt people

2) Various forms of eastern mysticism

Being wary is not a bad thing. In fact, the Bible teaches that we should constantly guard our heart. This teaching is meant to permeate every aspect of our being. However, the Bible also teaches us to be guardians, protectors, of those who are weaker. God is not willing that any should perish. He is a loving God. Yet, He is not a pacifist. There are numerous examples in His Word that would suggest quite the opposite. As a Christian, I want to be like Christ. I want to be able to show His love to the world. In John chapter 2, Jesus goes to Jerusalem. When He went to the temple, there were merchants doing business there. The scriptures tell us that He made a whip of cords and drove them from the temple. It does not say whether He actually hit anyone with the whip, but He did drive them out of the temple. One of the teachings of Jujitsu as a form of self defense is how to identify a fight and avoid it. Another teaching is how to stop a fight with the smallest amount of people getting hurt. It combines self defense with the defense of others who cannot defend themselves.

I guess I'm just trying to say that tonight was the best night of practicing jujitsu because we talked about our role as Christians in this world and in jujitsu. At the end of our workout and practice, we prayed. It's interesting that with a small change of heart, every aspect of our lives can become a sacrifice. This includes jujitsu! Although many have learned and taught mysticism through martial arts, it doesn't have to be that way. God gives us the ability to reclaim lost ground for His glory. I am thankful for those who are learning jujitsu alongside me while keeping Christ in our foremost thoughts. Thanks to all of you who are there!

Church can be... Fun?

Okay, so maybe an 'edgy' title for a blog entry. But I'm gonna be honest. Church and fun are words I wouldn't normally put in the same sentence. Unless, of course I would say, "Ya know, church needs to be more fun."

Not trying to disrespect the church here. I know church is not meant to be fun, not meant to entertain, not meant to be a leisurely pass-time. However, I am fairly positive God doesn't really want us to sit in our pews falling asleep. I have been in quite a few different churches growing up, and rarely did I think it was enjoyable. Unless, of course, refreshments were shared afterward.

So how exactly did I come to find church to be enjoyable?

They put in a gym! Just kidding. Actually, God changed my heart. He has given me a drive to learn about Him and grow in Him even more. So now, church is fun right? Eh, not exactly. When God gives us the desire to learn more about Him, we need to find a place to be edified in a way that glorifies Him. If there is indeed a change of heart, it may also be a change of direction. So, not every church will necessarily be 'fun,' but God will bring a peace to us when we are in the place we need to be. Sometimes we are in the right location, but are called to make a change. Sometimes we are told to move on. Listen to God. Be where He wants you to be. I am trying to find my place now. Prayers are appreciated!!

I am forgiven?

Okay, so I have had a lot going through my head lately. I don't know what triggered my contemplations, but I have been feeling 'unforgivable' lately. Memories of past sins come floating back to me , and I am left wondering if I ever confessed them to God. And sometimes I feel like even so, how could I be forgiven? I understand that I am washed by Christ's blood and my sins are covered eternally, but that doesn't always make sense to me. I think that I, having a finite mind, cannot comprehend fully the infinite love of God. I tend to think "I have committed xxxx amount of sins, God now hates me xxxx amount. I know this isn't true. God said my sins are in the depths of the ocean, they are as far as the east is from the west. So how do I overcome these lies about God hating me?

1) By recognizing that they are indeed lies
2) By praying that God will help me to accept His forgiveness
3) Realizing that all I am doing is taking my salvation into my own hands.

We cannot pay for what we have done, from the 'smallest' white lie to the worst thing you can think of that you have ever done. It's covered, it's paid for, it's bought at a price we couuld never afford. Praise God!

Good Weekend!

The weekend was great!! It started out on Saturday with a very fun barn dance at the Bernier's barn. The trip out was alot of fun... I taught Elise a game that is too hard to explain in a blog.... Okay maybe not too hard but I just don't wanna explain it right now. And Christine was kinda dazed from some sinus medication. So we got to the barn and I learned a bunch of new dances which I am sure to forget until next time, but it was a blast!!! Then we left (four hours later) and ate at Applebees where we all talked about dreams and stories and writing and such.

Then today, Sunday, we went to church at the Guthrie's household. Mom Guthrie made a bunch of stew which was magnificent!!!! And mom Holden made cheesey biscuits which were amazingly deciduous! The church service was good too. Mark actually had the congregation preach his message for him, though he tied everything together at the end. It was pretty neat. Oh, and during the worship service we had a good prayer time.... And i cried..... But Micah was a true friend and cried right alongside me! Then his sister, Elise, in true sister form, cried alongside us! Jake afterwards said I was a jerk cause I almost made him cry. And Rachel was crying too.... But it was great. God gave us emotions for a reason, and I have been keeping things too bottled up inside lately. So we all prayed for each other, and were brought closer together through it all.

So after food and church, we shot guns! There were probably 30 guns there! (don't tell Obama) And we probably shot over 3 thousand rounds at clay pigeons and a globe and home grown veggies and a washing machine.... I don't know how the washing machine offended Mrs. Guthrie, but I'm not sure if it deserved what we put it through! And I rediscovered that I'm not a great skeet shooter. But it was fun all the same.

All in all, it was a busy but enjoyable weekend filled with great friends, family, food, fun, and fellowship. I am so thankful for this church family that God has blessed me with. Thank you all for being there!

Ins and outs and ups and downs....

Ever feel like you don't know how you feel? Like lately there are times when I'm sad without a reason, overjoyed without cause, contemplative without solutions, and driven, but not sure exactly where I'm driving. It's kinda like being on a roller coaster on a ship lost at sea during a hurricane... I think. Not that I have ever been on a roller coaster on a ship lost at sea during a hurricane, but maybe you get my drift.

On the bright side, even though I may be on said coaster-shipamabob, I know I'm not alone. Someone is sitting right next to me, going with me through everything. Jesus is the only constant in my life. I think part of the reason I have been feeling this way is because of the book I recently read. It is entitled "The Trouble With Jesus" and was written by Joseph Stowell. The book really stirred up my spirit and really got me fired up! Sometimes when I think about it, I feel like I'm not doing enough to really stand up for Jesus. And in our day and age, how can we aford not to!? This kinda tears at me and I just wanna do more to glorify His precious name. But ya know, sometimes it can be a bad thing to be running at full speed for Him. We need to remember to rest in Him too. And when we are running on high, we can get burned out and lose focus as quickly as we obtained it. There is a precious balance, and I think it's something I haven't yet learned. It's kinda like Mary and Martha when Jesus came to visit. Martha was trying to do too much! There is a time and place for everything, and I am learning to recognize the times and places for every aspect of my life. I know it's a long process to finding this balance, but I am thankful for Jesus, and for the friends and family that God has blessed me with. There are so many people in my life that encourage me and help me keep my focus.

So to any of you in one of the cars on this roller-shipamacoaster, remember you are not alone!! Jesus and your friends are right there with you!!