This is a lesson to encourage us all.
Rick Warren..... (REMEMBER HE WROTE 'PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE') and moderated the "first" McCain and Obama debate?)
You will enjoy the new insights that Rick Warren has, with his wife now having cancer and him having 'wealth' from the book sales. This is an absolutely incredible short interview with Rick Warren,
'Purpose Driven Life ' author and pastor of Saddleback Church in California
In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with20Rick Warren , Rick said:
People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond: In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven.
One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body-- but not the end of me.
I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act - the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity.
We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one.
The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort.
God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.
We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer.
I used to think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore.
Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life.
No matter how good things are in your life, there is always something bad that needs to be worked on.
And no matter how bad things are in your life, there is always something good you can thank God for.
You can focus on your purposes, or you can focus on your problems.
If you focus on your problems, you're going into self-centeredness, which is 'my problem, my issues, my pain.' But one of the easiest ways to get rid of pain is to get your focus off yourself and onto God and others.
We discovered quickly that in spite of the prayers of hundreds of thousands of people, God was not going to heal Kay or make it easy for her.
It has been very difficult for her, and yet God has strengthened her character, given her a ministry of helping other people, given her a testimony, drawn her closer to Him and to people.
You have to learn to deal with both the good and the bad of life.
Actually, sometimes learning to deal with the good is harder. For instance, this past year, all of a sudden, when the book sold 15 million copies, it made me instantly very wealthy.
It also brought a lot of notoriety that I had never had to deal with before. I don't think God gives you money or notoriety for your own ego or for you to live a life of ease.
So I began to ask God what He wanted me to do with this money, notoriety and influence. He gave me two different passages that helped me decide what to do, II Corinthians 9 and Psalm 72
First, in spite of all the money coming in, we would not change our lifestyle one bit. We made no major purchases.
Second, about midway through last year, I stopped taking a salary from the church.
Third, we set up foundations to fund an initiative we call The Peace Plan to plant churches, equip leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, and educate the next generation.
Fourth, I added up all that the church had paid me in the 24 years since I started the church, and I gave it all back. It was liberating to be able to serve God for free.
We need to ask ourselves: Am I going to live for possessions? Popularity?
Am I going to be driven by pressures? Guilt? Bitterness? Materialism? Or am I going to be driven by God's purposes (for my life)?
When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, "God, if I don't get anything el se done today, I want to know You more and love You better."
God didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what I am than what I do. That's why we're called human beings, not human doings.
Happy moments, PRAISE GOD.
Difficult moments, SEEK GOD.
Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD.
Painful moments, TRUST GOD.
Every moment, THANK GOD.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Lesson in humility
This was emailed to me from Alpha Omega Publications. If you don't already receive their Daily Focus articles, they are great for homeschooling families.
It was day seven of a two-week, 95 degree and above heat wave. I was thinking our homeschooling family had done fairly well in not losing our tempers. As I walked outside to do the evening chores, however, I noticed several jobs left undone by my children. Frustrated with their poor performance, I continued to the barn to feed the horses when I noticed my daughter riding her horse bareback in the arena. Dripping wet, the horse appeared to be sweating profusely. Angrily, I barked, "Don't you know you shouldn't be riding that horse when it's this hot outside? Cool that animal down right now and get those chores done like I asked!"
As my daughter cowered and walked past me, I saw the hurt expression on her face. My angry outburst had wounded her spirit, and I knew I needed to make short order of asking forgiveness. Walking up to her, I said, "I'm sorry, honey. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that."
"That's OK, Mom," she replied, "I forgive you. I'm sorry I didn't get the chores done like you asked. I was just waiting for it to cool down before working outside and the reason my horse looked wet wasn't from sweat, it was actually from the water I used to cool her off. I was just riding her from the pasture to the barn to put her inside in the shade."
Humbled by her loving response to my false accusations of irresponsibility, I asked forgiveness again and said, "I'm so sorry. How foolish I was to get so angry without even asking you a few simple questions!"
Anger may be a real human emotion, but like any other emotion, it should never be dictated or controlled by the flesh, no matter what the temperature is outside. Galatians 5:20 tells us that the Lord views wrath as a work of the flesh and James 1:20 says, "the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God." God's remedy for controlling anger's destructive outbursts includes bridling the tongue (James 3:5-6) and allowing the Holy Spirit to help us be "swift to hear, slow to speak" (James 1:19). If homeschooling and the summer heat are getting to you, take a step back, count to ten, and pray for God's help to see and hear the problems for what they are: opportunities to display His grace instead of your anger. "He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding" (Proverbs 14:29a).
Father, forgive me when I allow anger to control my emotions and to destroy my relationships. Help me to be controlled instead by the Holy Spirit and to remember that true love is always patient, kind, and long-suffering. In Jesus' name, Amen.
It was day seven of a two-week, 95 degree and above heat wave. I was thinking our homeschooling family had done fairly well in not losing our tempers. As I walked outside to do the evening chores, however, I noticed several jobs left undone by my children. Frustrated with their poor performance, I continued to the barn to feed the horses when I noticed my daughter riding her horse bareback in the arena. Dripping wet, the horse appeared to be sweating profusely. Angrily, I barked, "Don't you know you shouldn't be riding that horse when it's this hot outside? Cool that animal down right now and get those chores done like I asked!"
As my daughter cowered and walked past me, I saw the hurt expression on her face. My angry outburst had wounded her spirit, and I knew I needed to make short order of asking forgiveness. Walking up to her, I said, "I'm sorry, honey. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that."
"That's OK, Mom," she replied, "I forgive you. I'm sorry I didn't get the chores done like you asked. I was just waiting for it to cool down before working outside and the reason my horse looked wet wasn't from sweat, it was actually from the water I used to cool her off. I was just riding her from the pasture to the barn to put her inside in the shade."
Humbled by her loving response to my false accusations of irresponsibility, I asked forgiveness again and said, "I'm so sorry. How foolish I was to get so angry without even asking you a few simple questions!"
Anger may be a real human emotion, but like any other emotion, it should never be dictated or controlled by the flesh, no matter what the temperature is outside. Galatians 5:20 tells us that the Lord views wrath as a work of the flesh and James 1:20 says, "the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God." God's remedy for controlling anger's destructive outbursts includes bridling the tongue (James 3:5-6) and allowing the Holy Spirit to help us be "swift to hear, slow to speak" (James 1:19). If homeschooling and the summer heat are getting to you, take a step back, count to ten, and pray for God's help to see and hear the problems for what they are: opportunities to display His grace instead of your anger. "He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding" (Proverbs 14:29a).
Father, forgive me when I allow anger to control my emotions and to destroy my relationships. Help me to be controlled instead by the Holy Spirit and to remember that true love is always patient, kind, and long-suffering. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
CARROTS, EGGS, OR COFFEE
This was emailed to our homeschool loop today..wanted to pass it along ...May we all be coffee :-)
CARROTS, EGGS, OR COFFEE
A carrot, an egg, and a cup of coffee...
You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things
were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and
wanted to give up, She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as
one problem was solved, a new one arose.
Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and
placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she
placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed
ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.
In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots
out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a
bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to
her daughter, she asked, ' Tell me what you see.'
'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied.
Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did
and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take
an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard
boiled egg.
Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter
smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, 'What does it
mean, mother?'
Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same
adversity: boiling water.. Each reacted differently The carrot went in
strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the
boiling water, it softened and became weak the egg had been fragile. Its
thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting
through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee
beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had
changed the water.
'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your
door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain
and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?
Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat?
Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial
hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my
shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff
spirit and hardened heart?
Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the
very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it
releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things
are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you.
When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate
yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot,
an egg or a coffee bean?
May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you
strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.
The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they
just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest
future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in
life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.
CARROTS, EGGS, OR COFFEE
A carrot, an egg, and a cup of coffee...
You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.
A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things
were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and
wanted to give up, She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as
one problem was solved, a new one arose.
Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and
placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she
placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed
ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying a word.
In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots
out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a
bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to
her daughter, she asked, ' Tell me what you see.'
'Carrots, eggs, and coffee,' she replied.
Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did
and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take
an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard
boiled egg.
Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter
smiled as she tasted its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, 'What does it
mean, mother?'
Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same
adversity: boiling water.. Each reacted differently The carrot went in
strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the
boiling water, it softened and became weak the egg had been fragile. Its
thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting
through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee
beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had
changed the water.
'Which are you?' she asked her daughter. 'When adversity knocks on your
door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?
Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain
and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?
Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat?
Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial
hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my
shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff
spirit and hardened heart?
Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the
very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it
releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things
are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you.
When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate
yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity? Are you a carrot,
an egg or a coffee bean?
May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you
strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy.
The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they
just make the most of everything that comes along their way. The brightest
future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in
life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.
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