Sharing the Gospel with my Wife

Today something happened in my life that was so profound and humbling.  Today, I shared Jesus with my wife.  It seems I got so caught up in ministry, following a calling, and reaching out to tell others about Christ, that I was surprised to find out that the most important place I needed to share the Gospel was in my own home.    There is no way I can truly explain what happened today and do it justice but my wife can and did.  She wrote a wonderful blog today about struggling in your walk for Christ.

If you have doubted your faith.  If you have ever wondered if the gospel was the truth.  If you have strayed off the the narrow road.  If you have felt that the Bible only offered judgment.  If you have ever just struggled with who Jesus is and what He is doing in your life, then I highly recommend you read my wife's blog tonight.  The link for her blog is Seeking the Secret.

Blessings,

Greg

After reading my wife's blog you will see the truth of our calling and our struggles also.  Living fully in obedience to the Lord and sharing His message with the lost is a passion we hope to live daily.  We have created a fundraiser to help us overcome one hurtle to us being able to go to the mission field.  I pray that you will take a moment and check out this link.  I thank you for your consideration and ask that you seek the Lord's guidance in considering contributing to this fundraiser.  Thank you.

http://www.youcaring.com/fundraiser_details?fundraiser_id=3437&url=roadtofreedomforproclaimingchrist

The Deep Healing Waters of Jesus

I started my day like any other.  I woke up, got ready for work, and arrived on time.  I had plenty of things to do today and spent the morning trying to take care of the many tasks on my roster.  As the morning continued to slip away, I decided to go down to the kitchen to get some water.  I noticed worship music gentling calling from the living room.  I drank my water and continued to work on the tasks I had inside the house.  I passed the living room multiple times as I checked the furnace filters, the thermostats, and changed some light bulbs.

As I went past the living room, I noticed that more people than usual were attending the worship chapel and each person was doing something different as they enjoyed the music and connected with Christ.  Each time I passed the living room, I felt a draw to join in.  I frequently join in the chapel sessions but not the worship sessions.  So i continued my work trying to ignore the longing that was compelling me to join.

After about 20 minutes of attempting to ignore the desire of my heart, I decided to quietly slip into the living room, sit down, and write in my notebook as I enjoyed the worship album playing in the room.  As I sat down and began to write, a flood of emotion flowed from my heart.  My heart began to pour out onto the notebook in the form of a prayer.  I had not talked with God for a few days maybe even a few weeks. It was time and my heart knew exactly what I needed to say.

My heart had been drawing me to join the worship.  My heart had been longing to reconnect with my Lord.  The Holy Spirit knew my need though I myself had not perceived it or maybe worse had been running from it.  To help deepen and explain the significance of today, I want to explain my daily routine at work for the past few weeks.

I have spent quite a lot of time outside mowing, trimming, weeding, mulching, and so much more.  During this time, I put on my headphones, which are hooked up to my iPhone, and listen to podcast sermons from pastors I respect and admire and Christian music I enjoy.  I have probably listened to over 30 hours of sermons in the last week on Jesus and walking an authentic Christian life.  Now I can't say that I didn't not pray or speak to God in conviction during some of these sermons but I can say that I did not humble myself and give to God all I had been holding in my heart.  The silence of my blog recently has spoken to this condition in my heart.

When I sat down in that worship, I finally took the time to connect with where I was with Christ and was able, through the Holy Spirit, to identify my desperate need to reconcile with Jesus and lay my burdens, worries, and struggles down before Him.  As I sat there quietly in the back of the living room, I was able to truly pour out my broken and contrite heart before the Lord.

The Lord helped to facilitate my healing even further through my best friend, Jono, who spoke even deeper into the need of my heart through the daily texts we share.  I opened up and confessed also to my best friend and accountability partner the state of my heart and my need.  We both dove deeply into our desires to serve and live passionately for Christ.

Through this whole process, I found a peace I have not felt in a while.  I was able to breathe deeply and fully in the certainty and joy of Christ.  I could feel the Lord reconnect my heart into Himself.  I could feel my heart submit to His reign.  The rest of my day has been filled with the peace and joy of knowing that I have a God who knows my heart's need so much better than I do.  I can rest in the knowledge that my Lord will lead me to still waters whether I know I need them or not.

Where is your heart with Jesus tonight?  Have you been listening to all the Christian songs, reading the Christian books, intently enjoying the Christian sermons, and living a good looking Christian life and yet still finding your heart distant from Jesus?  Sometimes we can cover over exactly what we need by filling our lives with all these things and yet not humbling ourselves before the Lord.  Have you laid your heart, your sins, and your burdens at the feet of Jesus tonight?  Don't hesitate to do it tonight.  The cool waters of our Lord are abundant and sweet!  Don't resist the call of the Holy Spirit who is drawing you to make your path straight tonight.  Dive in my brother and sister.  Dive in.

As a closer, I would love to hear from you about how the Lord has drawn you to himself recently.  I would love to hear ways that you connect with Jesus daily.  I would love to here how the Lord used this blog to restore your heart today.  Feel free to comment on the blog or on my Facebook account.  I would just love to be able to share in the many way Jesus has spoken to, blessed, and uplifted each of my readers.

Blessings,

Greg

My wife and I feel an intense calling on our lives for missions and full-time ministry.  We have created a fundraiser to help us overcome one hurtle to us being able to go to the mission field.  I pray that you will take a moment and check out this link.  I thank you for your consideration and ask that you seek the Lord's guidance in considering contributing to this fundraiser.  Thank you.

http://www.youcaring.com/fundraiser_details?fundraiser_id=3437&url=roadtofreedomforproclaimingchrist

A Weekend to Remember

I have to say that I had one of the most amazing weekends this week.  I truly couldn't have asked for this weekend to go more smoothly or be more impactful.  My weekend started out with Mel and I attending a marriage conference hosted by the church we are attending.  I truly couldn't have guessed how much more connected and apart of our church I would feel after attending this conference.  I really feel quite honored to have so many new friends and be given the opportunity to get to know each person in a real way through the conference.  The speaker was also truly wonderful and I hope that I can't take the words he imparted and infuse them into my daily marriage life.

I was also incredibly convicted this weekend by the words of the speaker at the marriage conference.  There are definitely some areas in my marriage that could stand to be improved.  Finances would definitely be the main one.  My wife and I have struggled financially ever since our first day of marriage and I believe that it has been due to my lack of discipline and unwillingness to make the difficult choices when it comes to budgeting and cutting expenses.  I really saw how these actions have affected our marriage and how getting this area under control could help us achieve the goals we have for ourselves and our marriage.  I repented of my sin in this area because I was not truly trusting the Lord with the money, possessions, and tools He has given us.  Mel and I are now going to be more proactive about budgeting together and holding each other accountable in our financial decisions.

Saturday evening, one of my best friend's, Mike, came up and hung out with Mel and I.  We had a great time hanging out and catching up Saturday night and going to church on Sunday morning.  The real fun together began Sunday afternoon when Mike and I removed an old rickety fence from the back yard.  I have to say that I was incredibly grateful for the strength of a marine while carrying out that task.  After ripping out the fence, we both were ready for a much deserved nap before our big night.

The real reason my friend came up was to attend a Switchfoot concert on Sunday night.  Mike and I have now seen four Switchfoot concerts (three together).  It is something we have both enjoyed doing together over the years.  This time we had the opportunity to meet the band and that was pretty cool.  On top of that, I have to say that this concert was, bar none, the most incredible Switchfoot concert I have attended to date.  It was so much fun!  We truly enjoyed singing at the top of our lungs to each and every song.  Some of Jon's songs are so powerful and I truly felt like I was in a worship concert at times as I sang out to Jesus through the conviction of certain songs.

After the concert was over, Mike and I found out that Jon Foreman, lead singer of Switchfoot, was going to be performing an after concert at a little cafe up the street.  I have to admit that directly after the concert was over I felt like I was in a bubble.  I am pretty sure I have some hearing loss from last night, which is of course a prerequisite of a great Christian rock concert ;).  Anyways, after our ears recovered, Mike and I proceeded to go to the cafe to see Jon perform alone on an acoustic guitar. When we arrived to the cafe, Jon was already surrounded by a large crowd of people.

Mike and I got as close as we could and relished in the beautiful songs he sang but there was something different about this concert because Jon was singing his own music and not Switchfoot's.  As he sung, I noticed that his lyrics were even more overtly Christian than the lyrics from his band.  The songs He sang were new to me and felt like they were the witness of who he is in Jesus.  I got to hear and see his heart last night.  In attending all of the concerts I have for Switchfoot, one of my greatest desires has been the desire for Jon to stand up and give his witness and boldly speak out for Christ.  In that intimate after concert, I got to see his heart and soul.  It was there that he was able to share his heart and passion for Christ overtly.

There are so many times in my own life where I feel like I have failed Christ as I am critical of areas in my life I could have been more overt for Him.  Last night, the Lord showed me that what matters is how my heart shines in both my big and small moments of life.  If I truly live Christ in all areas of my life, then He will be boldly shown in even the most normal parts of my day.  My witness for Him lies in the authenticity and passion of my heart.  He showed me this in multiple ways this weekend through the conviction of how I spend my money, through how I act when I am around strangers, and through the heart of a man who happens to lead Switchfoot and yet is first and foremost a follower of Jesus Christ.

Thank you Lord for the blessings of sight.  Thank you for how you gently teach me more and more each day.  As I look back and see how much You continue to transform who I am to who You are, I am humbled and encouraged.  Thank you for never giving up on me and continually teaching me how to thrive and not just survive.  Amen

Blessings,

Greg

My wife and I feel an intense calling on our lives for missions and full-time ministry.  We have created a fundraiser to help us overcome one hurtle to us being able to go to the mission field.  I pray that you will take a moment and check out this link.  I thank you for your consideration and ask that you seek the Lord's guidance in considering contributing to this fundraiser.  Thank you.

http://www.youcaring.com/fundraiser_details?fundraiser_id=3437&url=roadtofreedomforproclaimingchrist

Things I Learned From a Trailer

Today, I learned how to load, secure, and drive with a tractor on a trailer.  I use a trailer all the time doing landscaping projects at my job but most of the time I am pulling it around with our tractor.  My trailer adventure today involved me pulling more weight than I ever had before and came with new challenges and lessons.

I had to rent a larger trailer for our tractor because the trailer we have at work is to small.  When I brought the trailer back to my job, I set it up so I could drive the tractor on it.  I decided to put my seatbelt on in this instance because I did not want to take any chance that the tractor would flip or fall off.  Driving the tractor up was simple enough but I was not sure how far forward to drive the tractor to create the proper balance for driving.  I drove the tractor forward until I saw the back of our vehicle even out and load a little and then stopped.

After chaining the tractor up, I got in the vehicle and began my trip to the mechanic.  It did not take me very long to realize that I had not balanced the tractor properly.  As I drove down the road, every little bump made the vehicle sway back and forth and and bounce up and down.  I had only made it a couple miles down the road when I was feeling a slight bit of motion sickness from the swaying and had to pull over to try and remedy the situation.

Luckily, when I pulled into the gas station, I saw a truck that looked like it had pulled quite a bit of heavy equipment.  I quickly parked, got out of the vehicle, and walked over to the truck to ask for help.  I asked the stranger if he had towed a tractor before and he answered that he had.  I asked him if he could help me and show me what I had done wrong in loading our tractor.  I explained to him how the vehicle was bouncing and swaying and he told me that I had not pulled the tractor far enough up on the trailer.

He helped me get the tractor position correctly and I have to say that the rest of my hour long trip was smooth and without motion sickness ;) .  It was still interesting dealing with the added weight, both in acceleration and braking.  I also had to be very careful to keep the trailer wheels in the lines and make sure that I made my turns wide to accommodate the large trailer behind me.  All in all, I am so grateful for the help of a stranger and that I made the trip to the mechanic and back safely.

God spoke to me in a few ways through this trip.  First, He showed me the value of asking for help.  There are many times in life when I have tried to do things on my own without seeking God's help and failed.  Through humbling myself and admitting that I can't do it on my own, I allow myself to be molded and taught by Jesus.  Second, If I had not paid attention to the trailer while I was driving, I would've surely hurt the tractor, myself, and/or others.  Through this, I learned how important it is to pay attention in life.  You never know when the Holy Spirit may be leading you to reach out, talk to someone, or teaching you a biblical truth through the situation you are in.  Lastly, I was acutely aware of how often my life is in God's hands.  Any number of things could've happened on my trip today.  I believe God was at work by steading my hands on the steering wheel, protecting my tires from blowing as I drove, directing the many semis in their lanes, providing a stranger to instruct me on proper trailering, and helping me to find the mechanic and navigate home without issue.

God is constantly moving and working in our lives.  Each day is an opportunity to see Him work in your life.  I leave you tonight with some verses that I hope will give you peace in knowing that God is in control of your life daily.  Ephesians 3:20, "Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us."  Matthew 10:29, "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father."  Proverbs 16:9, "The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps."


Blessings,


Greg