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Wednesday Morning Mind Dump…

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  • I love the weeks I am off from preaching.
  • Gives me a chance to refuel physically, spiritually, emotionally, mentally and relationally.
  • It’s good for my heart too because preaching can become an idol and a source of control for me, so not preaching keeps that in check for me.
  • The last month or so have been a whirlwind for me.
  • I’ve had more travel than normal because of my grandmother’s funeral, we’ve navigated a church plant we were getting to launch this year hit the brakes and we’ve been in the process of hiring a new worship pastor at our church.
  • It’s been hard but good.
  • In past seasons when stress is high, I get really irritable and difficult to be around and want to fight with everyone (or so it seems). Katie made the comment when the stress was at its highest how glad she was with all that was going on that we weren’t fighting.
  • What a testament to God’s grace in our lives and the work we’ve done in our marriage.
  • One of the things that came out of this last season for me is a renewed commitment to getting to bed early and getting 8 hours of sleep.
  • That’s fallen off and something I need to be doing.
  • I was reminded of the importance of this in Michael Hyatt’s most recent podcast.
  • I got to be in Las Vegas last week, which sounds really glamorous, but we stayed in a hotel 30 minutes from the strip in the suburbs.
  • Anyway, it was for an Acts 29 coaching cohort. It was with lead pastors of churches similar in size to ours.
  • So helpful.
  • It’s nice to hear that you aren’t the only one struggling with something.
  • Our team is reading The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups. In it, the author recommends asking your team the following questions: What is one thing that I currently do that you’d like me to continue to do? What is one thing that I don’t currently do frequently enough that you think I should do more often? What can I do to make you effective?
  • It was scary and I know they weren’t excited about it, but it was so helpful to hear from them.
  • Right now, I’m preaching through the second half of Daniel.
  • I’ve been asked about books that would help with that.
  • Here’s one Kingdom Come: The Amillennial Alternative.
  • In the end, whatever you think about end times, the timing of Jesus returning, hold your cards loosely.
  • Lots of smart people disagree with each other.
  • Well, time to get back at it…
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The #1 Reason People Leave Your Church (And Love Your Church)

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People leave churches for all kinds of reasons.

They might move, their kids get older, their schedules change, the church moves to locations.

They also leave for theological reasons. Maybe a new pastor has a different bent on an important theological point. They may have changed the version of the Bible they preach from (not kidding on that one).

The preaching may have changed and it no longer feels as deep as it used to or now it’s too deep and isn’t focused on application like it used to be.

Some of the reasons are good and normal, some make pastors scratch their heads and wonder what happened.

What I’ve learned (and I don’t have a study on this), but I think the number one reason people leave your church is…

Your strategy.

Another way to put it: how you do church. 

The #1 reason people leave your church.

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Think about it.

Almost every church holds up Acts 2 as the model they are going after.

Almost every church and Christian would agree that we are to live out the great commission (making disciples) and the great commandment (loving God and others).

But how?

That’s strategy. That’s how you do church (for lack of a better word).

Your strategy is how you as a church uniquely live these things out.

Do you have small groups, classes, missional communities, men’s ministry, women’s ministry, a combination of these? That’s strategy, but they all get at how you disciple and connect people to each other.

What about kids and students? When do they meet? Do they serve? Attend the service? Are they off on their own? What role do they play in community groups?

All strategy.

How about preaching and music? Do you go line by line through a book of the Bible, jump around, preach topically? What kind of music or liturgy do you use? How often do you do communion?

All strategy.

Make no mistake pastor or church leader, when someone walks up to you on a Sunday morning and says, “We’re leaving”, if you press long enough, it will be the strategy, almost every time.

Now, this isn’t bad at all.

In fact, when this happens this should tell you that your strategy and culture are real and clear.

As well, this is also why people come to your church.

The #1 reason people come to your church.

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They often don’t know it, but your strategy is not only why they stay, but also why they come.

Why?

Because your strategy comes through everywhere. Your strategy on being simple, programmatic, attractional, missional or all 4, attracts them and others.

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Christians, Social Media and Having a Caring Heart

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It feels like more and more our culture is becoming more and more divisive.

Whether it is politics, religion, sexuality, race. Everyone has a take, an opinion and we shout it as loud as we can from every corner of our lives and social media.

One of the saddest things for me is watching the way Christians interact not only with each other but also with people they disagree with who don’t follow Jesus.

It’s an easy trap to fall into and one I’ve fallen into more times than I’d like to admit.

Christians and social media.

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Right now, I’m preaching through the book of Daniel and I’ve been struck by the friendship that Daniel has with the kings in the book.

It’s important to understand Daniel’s heart and view of his life. We are told again and again how everything falls under the rule and reign of Jesus:

… to the end that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. Daniel 4:17

… till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. -Daniel 4:25

… that you know that Heaven rules. -Daniel 4:26

… until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. -Daniel 4:32

… for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’ -Daniel 4:34 – 35

Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven. -Daniel 4:37

This is crucial because one of the reasons Christians shout as much as we do is because we often see social media or government as more powerful than Jesus.

Christians often see social media or government as more powerful than Jesus.

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King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream and it troubled him, so he called on Daniel.

The king told him the dream: I saw a high tree in the middle of the earth. It grew strong and its top reached to the heaven and the whole earth could see it. It was beautiful and its fruit was abundant and you could see it anywhere on the earth. People fed on it, birds lived in it, animals stayed under its shade. Then a watcher came heaven, a holy one, and he told me to chop down the tree, its branches, take off its leaves, scatter the fruits. Let the animals scatter. And to leave the stump.

In verse 19 of Daniel, were told that Daniel was dismayed and his thoughts alarmed him.

How to disagree on social media.

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He did not want to tell the king what it meant.

And the king sensed this so he told him, “Tell me what it means, don’t be alarmed and don’t keep silent.”

Before telling him the dream, Daniel tells the king that he wishes the dream and its interpretation were for the king’s enemies, for someone else.

This is important in our culture today because many people who claim to follow Jesus or more interested in being right than being loving.

In the gospels, were told that Jesus wept over the people who didn’t love God.

On social media, do you weep over the people who don’t know Jesus or do you find yourself trying to figure out how to win a fight or pick one? In your family, does it break your heart the people who don’t know Jesus or do you have contempt for them?

Too often our attitude is we’re glad we know Jesus and want others to know how sinful they are, how wrong they are, how superior we are morally more than we want them to know that Jesus loves them.

Here’s a question: Are you more interested in being right or helping people find life in Jesus?

With this heart, Daniel tells him the interpretation of the dream:

The tree is the king himself, whose greatness has grown and dominion now reaches the end of the earth.

But the tree is chopped down. Which means the king and his kingdom.

But the stump stayed, the roots stayed so there is hope he will grow again.

Only we don’t know how long.

The king was driven from his kingdom and made to eat grass like an ox, his body was wet with dew, his hair grew as long as eagles feathers and his nails were like the claws of birds; so that he would know that God rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whoever he chooses.

The king is learning, what we need to know, all things in our lives fall under the rule of Jesus.

Again, this is a crucial lesson for Christians in our culture.

Daniel’s heart is for this king. They may have been friends at this point.

How to engage lovingly on social media.

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Daniel is a great reminder of the kind of heart we are to have towards those over us, those we disagree with and those who make life difficult for us.

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Tuesday Mind Dump…

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  • After being out of town for the last week, it feels nice to be sitting in my office today.
  • I first went to Reno for the Acts 29 West Conference and then spent Wednesday – Sunday with Katie in Colorado.
  • The conference was good.
  • One of the best Acts 29 conferences I’ve ever attended.
  • Eric Mason’s message on justice was by far, one of the best talks I’ve ever heard on the topic and one I think every Christian needs to wrestle through.
  • She was shooting a wedding, and I officiated it.
  • The first time we both did that at the same wedding, so it was a fun time.
  • I love watching Katie use her talents in photography.
  • The wedding took place in Breckenridge, so it was beautiful.
  • One of the highlights for me was it snowed last Thursday, dropping 2 feet of snow on the top of the mountains, so I got to spend the day on Friday snowboarding.
  • It’s the first time I’ve ever snowboarded at 13,000 feet.
  • These pictures don’t even do it justice.

  • It feels good to be back though, but now that it is 100 in Tucson, I do miss that snow.
  • I’m so excited for this weekend because not only is it Mother’s Day (which is a big day at my church), but were interviewing a worship pastor candidate this weekend.
  • I can’t wait!
  • We’d appreciate your prayers.
  • I got to read most of Daniel Pink’s new book When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing on the plane.
  • I also finally finished Bloodline on the plane.
  • If you want to see broken family systems and family of origin issues on display, it is a fascinating show to watch.
  • On the podcast I co-host, we’re interviewing Greg Atkinson this week on first impression and guest services in a church.
  • So excited for that interview.
  • Definitely going to have my notebook out to take notes during it.
  • Casey and I also shared this week one of the most helpful exercises our staff did recently.
  • Well, time to get back at it…
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How to Glorify God in Everyday, Ordinary Ways (Daniel 4)

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I want you to think for a minute about the things that you do every day. More than likely, you spend a lot of time on these things.

It could be sitting in meetings, working on creative projects if that’s your job or hobby, cleaning up after kids, taking care of an aging parent, keeping a house clean, running family and friends from place to place like you are an unpaid uber driver.

Think of the places you go to often: the coffee shop, the gym, the school, work, that restaurant.

Many of us struggle to see how what we do every day can glorify God, yet all throughout Scripture, we are told to glorify God in all that we do. 1 Corinthians 10 says: Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

How to Glorify God in Everyday, Ordinary Ways

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Here’s the problem for us though, we don’t think the things we do every day can glorify God. we don’t think they are that important, but we spend a lot of time on them. So they have to matter.

If you’re like me, you think, but they are too ordinary, too normal, too small, too everyday kind of things.

Where does this come from?

Some of it is cultural and our desire to do great things, be great, be remembered.

Some of it is a Christian culture that says if you don’t do something great and big for God, it doesn’t count.

That’s a lie.

One author said, “My concern is that the activist impulse at the heart of evangelicalism can put an enormous burden on people to do great things when what we need most right now is to do the ordinary things better. We can miss God in the daily stuff, looking for the extraordinary Moment. If we were more serious about these ordinary means of grace, I’m convinced the church would have a much stronger witness in the world today.”

Daniel 4 is a great reminder that everything in our world and in our lives falls under the rule and reign of Jesus, which gives us a great picture of how important all the ordinary, every day things are.

… to the end that the living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. Daniel 4:17

… till you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. -Daniel 4:25

… that you know that Heaven rules. -Daniel 4:26

… until you know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will. -Daniel 4:32

… for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation; all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?’ -Daniel 4:34 – 35

Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise and extol and honor the King of heaven. -Daniel 4:37

One of the interesting things about Daniel 4 is that Daniel is now middle age.

You start to ask different questions in your 40’s compared to your 20’s.

Many times in our teens and 20’s and even into our 30’s, the questions and struggles of life and faith are often around doing great things, big things. Experiencing the power of God.

As we move into our 30’s, 40’s 50’s and beyond, the questions start to center around: Is God still with me? Does God still have good plans for me? Am I doing the right things? Did I miss it? Am I making the most of my opportunities?

In Daniel 4, we find Daniel interpreting another dream for the king.

While this seems extraordinary for us, this was Daniel’s job.

But to Daniel, this was something God gifted him in, a talent God gave to him. This was normal for him. This is important; because we struggle to see how the things we do or are gifted at, fall under the authority and rule of Jesus.

We struggle to see how the things we do or are gifted at, fall under the authority and rule of Jesus.

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I love the message version of Romans 12:1: So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering.

This means when you are singing to your kids, cleaning up after someone, driving someone to work, paying for lunch, going to the gym. The ordinary, everyday things you do all the time. They are an act of worship to your Father in Heaven who has placed you in that place at that moment and given you the talents needed for that place, whatever it is. No matter how big or small it is.

In her fantastic book, Theology of the Ordinary, Julie Canlis said, The Spirit’s primary and most difficult work is to persuade believers to act like children, to pray like children, to help them delight in the Fatherhood of God, to be gentle with themselves and to be, long before they do. Our identity as children of God is not something of which we can convince ourselves. It is the Holy Spirit, who without, we cannot experience the Fatherly favor of God or the benefits of Jesus.

God may call you to do great things that change the world. He may also call you to do small, ordinary, everyday things that change your corner of the world.

Be faithful in both.

How to Glorify God in Everyday, Ordinary Ways

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Career, Kids, Values & What we Worship

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Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “What dominates our imaginations, and our thoughts will determine our lives.”

“What dominates our imaginations, and our thoughts will determine our lives.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

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What dominates your imagination and thoughts?

We know what we’d like to have dominate our imagination and thoughts, but that isn’t always the case.

The reality is, the things that we think about, the feelings we have, those become our idols, and they drive our lives.

Ultimately, they become what we worship.

But how do you know what that is?

Here are a few questions:

Questions to discern the idols of your heart.

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  • What do you worry about? What do you daydream about? These are important things to you; they aren’t necessarily bad things. It could be money, your kids, career, health, a vacation, dream home.
  • What do you use to comfort yourself when life gets tough, or things don’t go your way? It could be food, drugs, alcohol, work, working out, sex, even pushing past the threshold of what is healthy.
  • What, if I lost would make me think life wasn’t worth living? Like the first one, there’s a good chance this isn’t a bad thing. In fact, this could be a devastating thought, but again, this is getting to the heart of what matters the most to you.
  • What makes you feel the most self-worth? What do you lead with in a conversation? Early on, what do you want to make sure people know about you? These all go together, but they get to the heart of who you are and the story you tell yourself and the story you want others to know about you. You might want people to know what you do for a job, how awesome you are, how much hurt you’ve experienced in life. You might want people to know that you are needed, and you want to be needed by them.
  • What is your hope for the future? What will complete you? This is the question of, if you accomplish this, get this, what would make you think, “this is the good life, I have arrived.”

Why ask these questions? They get to the heart of what we worship.

Worship is our response to what we value most.

Worship is our response to what we value most.

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That’s what Daniel 3 and the focus of the book of Daniel.

What we value and what we worship because they are the same thing and then determine what our lives become.

In the book of Daniel, the word king and kingdom is used over 150 times.

When we think of kings, we think of Europe or a movie or show we’ve seen; we don’t often think of our lives or our hearts.

But all of us have a king of our lives, a king of our hearts.

That is about worship.

How do you find out what you worship?

The easiest way, besides the questions above, is to look at your life when it is hard or painful.

What we worship becomes obvious when life is the hardest.

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In Daniel 3, King Nebuchadnezzar builds a statue and demands that everyone bow down and worship it when they hear the music. But, 3 of the king’s wise men: Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refuse. They are willing to be killed to stick to their beliefs, values, and worship.

Most of us won’t face a life and death situation when it comes to worship, but what this passage shows us is the stakes of worship.

When we put our kids above Jesus, we don’t think of it as a sin or a bad thing, we think of it as parenting. This priority can have disastrous implications for us, our kids and one day our grandkids.

When we prioritize our job and career over relationships (or things that will last) and our relationship with Jesus, we will say things like, “I’m just trying to provide for my family” which sounds noble, but it also feeds a desire and idol that we have.

Once the king sees that they won’t worship his statue, he throws them into the fiery furnace.

What is incredible is before this moment, when the king confronts them, they reply “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Here’s the thing about worship, values, and idols. They are all to provide us with deliverance. They provide us with hope, life, vision, joy, and happiness. If they don’t offer that, they at least promise that. That’s why we purchase anything, work like we do and stress our kids out by signing them up for every activity under the sun.

For these three men, they knew what would deliver them and trust in that God.

 

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6 Things I Wish I Knew About Marriage When I Got Married

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This month marks 16 years of marriage for Katie and I. It is hard to believe all of life that we have lived together when I think back to meeting her when I was 16 and she was 14.

Like most couples, we were really idealistic about life and marriage when we said: “I do.”

6 things I wish I knew when I got married.

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In light of that, here are some lessons we’ve learned over the years that I wish we would’ve known at the beginning:

It will be harder than you think. When you get married, you think it will be easy. After all, you’ve been dating for awhile, maybe you’ve lived together so how different can it be.

A lot different.

I think this one thing hits couples like a train when they get married and they aren’t prepared for how difficult and hard it will actually be.

Schedules, living together, sharing things, meshing family stories, careers, kids, mortgage, credit and school debt, aging parents. All of it blends together to be harder than you expected.

I think if couples could walk into marriage knowing how hard it will actually be, they will be further down the road than most couples.

This isn’t to make you depressed at all, but to help you be realistic about what you are walking into.

Your marriage will be harder than you think.

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It will be better than you expect. I told you it isn’t all bad news.

Marriage is difficult, yes, but like everything in life, there are plenty of beautiful moments as well.

When I said “I do” I was not prepared for how great it would be.

Why?

I had met very couples who actually enjoyed their marriage. Most of the people I’ve seen stay married were miserable (or at least tolerating their marriage). In the same way that couples need to be realistic about the challenges awaiting them, they should be hopeful about how amazing it will actually be.

The history that Katie and I share is incredible. From raising kids, traveling to different places, sharing experiences, meals, and sunsets, all add up to more than I imagined.

Your marriage be better than you expect.

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You are more broken than you think. I had an older guy tell me before I got married, “you’re about to find out how selfish you are.” He was right. Marriage has a way of showing you how broken you are. While most of the time we think it’s the other person (we’ll get to that in a minute), a lot of the problem in marriage is us. That’s where a lot of hope lies in marriage because the only person we have power over or influence over is ourselves, not our spouse. In fact, Katie and I did an entire sermon series on this topic. You can only change you.

Before you jump the gun and say, “My marriage would be better if my spouse did _____.” That might be true. But there are hundreds of things you could do to improve your marriage as well. Why not start there?

Your spouse isn’t as broken as you think. In the same way that you have rose-colored glasses about yourself, you need to do a better job of seeing your spouse for who they are and who they are and they aren’t as bad off as you think.

Many marriages hit a snag when they think that the other person is the only problem or that the other person is the biggest problem. Remember, you fell in love with this person. You said “I do” to them.

They aren’t as bad as you make them out to be.

This is where extending grace in your marriage becomes crucial.

Your spouse isn’t as broken as you think.

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Be a student of yourself. I’m surprised at how little people know about themselves. Most people I talk to don’t know if they’re introverts or extroverts or what that means for them, they don’t understand their personality or enneagram or the strengths and talents they have. This leads to all kinds of frustration because they often end up in jobs that don’t fit them or situations that work against who they are.

You should be more knowledgeable about yourself than anyone else is, but that is rarely the case.

Be a student of your spouse. Second to knowing yourself is knowing your spouse. I don’t mean simply what they like or dislike (although that’s very important), but understanding their story and how they’re wired. One of the byproducts of a great marriage is when each person helps the other become a better version of themselves through encouragement and growth opportunities. Do you know what your spouse wants to grow in? What dreams they have? You should because you are in a unique position to help them accomplish those.

6 important marriage lessons.

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All couples could grow in any of these lessons (and we aren’t all the way there) and many others. So where do you start? Anywhere.

Too many couples seem to shrug and say, “This is as good as it’s going to get.” It doesn’t have to be that way.

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7 Ways to Glorify God at Work

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You spend the majority of your time, at one place.

It isn’t your house (although it might be if you’re retired or a stay at home mom, but even if that’s you, this article will still apply), or a hobby or at Starbucks (unless you work there).

It is at your job.

We spend the majority of our lives, sitting at a desk, in a cubicle, listening to a boss that is not as smart as you. Dreaming about when the weekend will come, the next vacation will arrive or a promotion.

How to stand out at work.

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On Sunday in my sermon, I looked at how to glorify God at work. Here are some of the ideas I shared (these are my ideas or from books and blogs I pulled from in my research):

7 ways to glorify God at work.

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1. Focus. What is the first thing you do when you wake up? If you’re like most Americans, you reach for your phone and check Facebook, Instagram or your email. Make no mistake, what you fill your heart and mind with first thing in the morning, determines much of what your day becomes. What if, instead of your phone you grabbed your bible and prayed? Your life and day will change if instead of reaching for your phone first thing in the morning, you prayed and said, “God, use me today, guide me, help me honor you in everything.”

2. Integrity. Be honest and trustworthy on the job. Be on time. Give a full day’s work. So many people rob their employer by being lazy, doing fantasy football, facebook and march madness at work. Go to work and work. Be that guy. If you want to stand out at work, have integrity, it will be rare. Integrity and dependability are one reason people get promoted or not, whether or not they can come through on a promise or assignment.

3. Skill. Get good at what you do. God has given you n the gifts, talents, and abilities you have. Take continuing education when you can, read books on your skills, listen to podcasts and read blogs. We honor God when we use the gifts and talents he’s given to us to their maximum potential. The ability to grow in your skills and talents are another reason we do or don’t see promotions in our lives.

4. Beauty. If you’re part of creating things, create beautiful things. Beauty is in things that are pleasing to the eye, things that taste good, things that work well. CPA’s know this feeling when an excel spreadsheet adds up. That’s beauty. A beautiful meal, clothes. Create great stories, works of art, movies or buildings when you build something.

5. Winsome. Be winsome is how you relate to others. Your speech to others should be kind and loving, and your countenance at work should be one of winsomeness, not being a jerk to those around you.

6. Money. Work is where you make (and spend) money. It is all God’s, not yours. Tim Keller said, “The way to serve God at work is to make as much money as you can so that you can be as generous as you can.” Turn your earning into the overflow of generosity in how you steward God’s money. Don’t work to earn to have. Work to earn to have to give and to invest in Christ-exalting ventures.

7. Thanks. Always give thanks to God for life and health and work and Jesus. Be a thankful person at work. Don’t be among the complainers. You have a job; you have the boss that God has given to you. Think about that one for a moment.

7 ways to glorify God at work.

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If the message resonated with you or if you want to grow more in this area, I’d encourage you to check out the great book Every Good Endeavor: Connecting Your Work to God’s Work.

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Where is God when Life Gets Hard? (Daniel 1)

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All of us at some point will walk into a situation we can’t control. It might be a relationship where the other person continues to make poor choices, and you are left cleaning up the mess. It might be a parent or a spouse that keeps hurting you but doesn’t seem to care. But it hurts, and you know it. It might be a financial crisis where it continues to be harder and harder to trust God. It might be a health issue, and you wonder why God doesn’t heal you, why God doesn’t take that pain away.

Why?

We cry out in the dark places of our lives and many times in the darkness; God feels silent. God feels distant.

And if you aren’t there today, you will be someday. We all find ourselves at the bottom of life wonder where is God when the bottom falls out?

The theme of the book of Daniel is how to trust God when life seems hopeless. That no matter what your present situation looks like, God is in control.

The book of Daniel is about how to trust God when life seems hopeless.

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This theme is important for us because all of us at one time or another feel like life is out of control.

Daniel lived in 600 B.C., so over 2500 years ago. He was Jewish and was taken into exile to Babylon, the empire of the day.

King Nebuchadnezzar conquered the king of Judah and took some of the vessels from the house of God.

In ancient culture, removing vessels from the god of a nation was not only a victory over the people but also a sign of success over the god of those people.

But verse 2 of Daniel 1starts off, God gave the king of Judah into his hands.

The words, God gave, are crucial in Daniel 1.

But we might first ask, why would God do that? Why would He give them into their enemies hands?

Before the book of Daniel, in other old testament books we know that the people of Judah were sinning and through prophets, God continually warned them of the way they were going.

What is essential, is to know that God will give us our desires and sins. He will allow us to end up where we want to.

Many times, when our lives end up in dark places, it is through our sin or the sin of someone else.

This truth is hard for us to wrap our minds around, at least it is for me: that God is in control and we have freedom in our choices. And those choices, as we’ll see, have an impact on life. They determine outcomes.

Nebuchadnezzar then brings some of the youth to Babylon, which includes Daniel and his friends.

Some historians believe that Daniel and his friends were part of the royal family.

Why do this?

Nebuchadnezzar is bringing the best and the brightest with him. Notice scripture says, “without blemish, good appearance, skillful, competent.”

By doing this, Nebuchadnezzar is seeking to stop the growth of Judah and build up Babylon.

They are teaching them their culture, their language, their religion, their values, and customs.

They are changing their names.

Changing their names was also a sign of ownership over the prisoners.

Their new names were for Babylonian gods and cultural beliefs.

I want you to imagine the lowest point in your life. The moment when life felt the darkest, God felt the furthest away from you.

This low point is where Daniel and the people of Judah are.

But what is fascinating about the book of Daniel is that Daniel is writing it at the end of his life and it is only then, that he sees God’s hand.

So how does Daniel respond?

Through this darkness, Daniel and his friends seek to honor God.

They ask not to eat the king’s food.

Now, there are many reasons they could’ve asked for this, but we are not told all the reasons why they asked for it.

Were only told it would defile them.

Here’s what I find fascinating about this and I want to make this point as we think about living out our faith in our culture.

Daniel could’ve fought back on anything, the food, the teaching, the values, the religion, the changing of his name, but he doesn’t. He only chooses the food.

Daniel’s beliefs don’t change, his name does. He still holds to his faith in God as we’ll see in this book, but he is learning what they are teaching him.

But he takes a stand on the food.

Why? It went against who Daniel is and his core beliefs. Your core is what you decide on ahead of time, your values so that when you are faced with temptation or a decision, your heart makes it clear what you will do.

Here’s another point, Daniel did this privately. He talked to the chief eunuchs, not the king. According to Scripture, the king didn’t know.

Daniel teaches us that the struggle is not to make the culture Christian, but how a Christian can live in a hostile culture.

Every stand you take as a Christian doesn’t need to be public to matter. It might, but maybe it doesn’t need to be a public stand.

So, Daniel asked to be tested for ten days. This length of time is important because, throughout Scripture, 10 represents the testing of faithfulness.

And God blessed them through this testing.

We don’t want to believe or hear this: when we trust God, we are better after the testing.

If you read Daniel 1 straight through, you’ll see the phrase “God gave” three times.

In verse 2 God gave them to the Babylonians, in verse 9 God gave Daniel favor with the chief of the eunuchs, in verse 17 God gave them learning and skill.

Now, let’s be honest about this. We like the last 2 of those 3. God gave him favor and learning and skill to move up in Babylon.

But, God needed to give them to the Babylonians in exile for him to experience the other 2.

Larry Osborne said God is in control of who is in control.

God is in control of who is in control. -Larry Osborne

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Now, this is easy to believe when life is going well. When your finances are sound, health is good; relationships are humming along, your career, parenting is simple. Of course, God is in control.

When you’re stuck in the storm, this is hard to swallow.

It is hard to hear that God blesses in the darkness of life and pain.

What is amazing is at the end of Daniel 1, Daniel lived a long life. He lived through two kings.

Daniel 1 is the hope we need to trust God in the dark places and place our faith in the power of God and what He is doing. Daniel shows us; we can trust God when life feels hopeless and out of control.

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How to Build a Life that Matters

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All of us build our lives on something.

And that something is the thing that determines what our lives become. The people we become, the places we go and the impact that we make.

The problem for us, is many of us never stop to ask what we are building our lives on. We keep going, keep pursuing, keep moving, but we rarely question, “Am I building on the right thing? Do I like where I’m going with this life?”

What life are you building?

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Joe Ehrmann, a former NFL player, in his TED talk said:

If you were on your deathbed today, knowing that you were doing to die tomorrow, and you wanted to measure what kind of man you were and what kind of success you had in life, it’d come down to two things and two things only.

The first is this: On that deathbed, you recognize that all of life is about relationships. It’s about the capacity to love and be loved. What’s it mean to be a man? It means you can look somebody in the eye and say “I love you” and receive that love back.

You know what the questions you ask at the end of your life are? They’re not about awards or achievements or applause or what you accumulated. They’re all questions of relationships. What kind of husband was I? Wife? What kind of father? Mother? What kind of son or daughter? What kind of friend? Who did I love and who did I allow to love me?

The second comes down to this: At the end of your life you want to be able to look back on your life and know that you made a difference. That you left some kind of mark, some kind of imprint that you were here. All of want to leave some kind of legacy behind.

You might choose family, kids, hobbies, career choices, vacations, and trips, or your 401K to build your life on.

What many of us find if we’re honest is, we overemphasize things that aren’t that important.

We overemphasize things that aren’t that important.

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If we’re honest, most of us have more strategies on how to make a career than we do on how to build a life.

Most of us have more strategies on how to make a career than we do on how to build a life.

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In Matthew 7 Jesus said,

Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house. Yet it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and doesn’t act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed. It collapsed with a great crash.

What Jesus is getting at is a wholehearted devotion.

Jesus wants us to see the difference between merely saying something and doing something, between hearing and doing.

Jesus wants us to see the difference between hearing and doing.

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To help us see, he compares two people who build a house. One on the rock, the other on the sand.

What is fascinating about both of these guys is they are both building a house, building a life.

You and I can build something, really anything.

Let’s say you and I each build a chair.

How will we know if that chair is done? If it is completed and will work?

By looking at it?

No, by sitting on it.

How do you know if a house is built and will last?

When a storm comes.

What happens when you get hit with a storm in life?

You see what matters to you. You look at the relationships you have invested in, you know the faith you have built or not built.

Right now, you might be in a storm. Your finances, marriage, career, maybe one or all of them is not where you thought it would be. Life is harder than you expected. Right now, my wife Katie and I feel like we are in a sprint that we didn’t stretch out for.

In those moments, those places, you find out what you built your life on. You find out what matters to you.

Think about it like this, have you ever experienced a storm in life and didn’t like what you learned about yourself at that moment?

I know I have.

All of us can know the words of Jesus, but belief is a different thing.

You can know something and not believe something.

Belief is not required to pass a test, just knowledge.

Dallas Willard said, “To believe something is to act as if it is so.”

To believe something is to act as if it is so. -Dallas Willard

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Building your life on Jesus means that you do what Jesus would do if he were you. It means desiring that to be true of you, even when you miss it which you will.