I watched The Bucket List this week.  In the film, two guys figure out they are dying, so they make a list of the things they want to do before they kick the bucket.

The story inspired me.  What is it God has asked me to do today, that I have put off until tomorrow?  And what am I waiting for that keeps me from doing it today?  In Joshua 1:9, God says:

Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

Let’s not wait any longer to start living. Let’s speak words of life to each other.  Let’s start praying together.  Let’s become accountable for how we use the internet.  Let’s stop spending money on worthless things.  Let’s give up our guilt about the parents we had, or the parents we have become.

The enemy wants us to stand still and to do nothing.  He wants us to talk, to wait, to fear, to talk some more, and eventually, to do nothing.  But God says he is with us wherever we go.  The time is now — don’t be afraid, just take the next step.  Don’t bank on tomorrow when all you have is today.

This week I had a moment of crisis.  I had just ordered my drink at a coffee shop, when I pulled out my wallet and my debit card was missing.  I looked one pocket over (where my cash would be) and… there was none.  So there I was, caught in the embarrassment of begging the cashier, trying to convince her that I am good for it.  Luckily, she agreed to let me pay the next time I returned.  But I can tell you, there is nothing like the feeling of being unable to pay a bill, no matter how small.  It is a debilitating and helpless feeling that weighs heavily over time.

We don’t have to live beyond our income.  You’ve probably heard the commercial that asks, “what’s in your wallet?”  Many of us would probably respond: “nothing.”  Let’s face it – after we pay rent, our credit card bills, make our car payments, there is simply nothing left.

Changing our circumstances requires a change of dependence and a change in behavior.  Who do we depend on?  What do we spend money on?  This weekend we will look at practical wisdom in the Proverbs to see what it says about our money.

As many of you know, our senior pastor Boyd Hannold is on sabbatical this summer, completing his doctoral dissertation.  In an email I received from him this week, he said that he is looking forward to being with you all again.  He also wrote, “I completed my 100^th page of writing today!”

What is it about crossing these milestones that motivates us?  I think it is being able to see when the end is in sight.  Sometimes the plans we make take months, even years, to complete.  What goals have you been working on that are not yet complete?  Do you trust God with a child-like faith?

Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.”  Whatever you pursue, celebrate the milestones, and remember that if your plans are His plans, God will bring them to completion.

Two weeks ago I told my five year old son, Titus, that he could have anything he wanted for dinner.  He had been especially good that whole week so it was his turn to pick his favorite dinner.  I sat on the couch with him and asked, “Titus, what do you want for dinner?”  He paused a short while and responded, “you mean I can have anything I want?”  “Yep,” I replied, “it’s all about you.”

If you could have anything, what would you want?  More of something?  Less?  My son looked at me a little while longer, then said simply: “cookies.”  See, what we want is often not what we need… and who better to know what we need than the one who created us?

This weekend we will begin our summer’s journey through the book of Proverbs.  We will be learning from a man who asked God for the one simple thing: wisdom.

In the end, I didn’t give Titus cookies for dinner, but we did compromise on Burger King.

I love the 4th of July.  What I love most about it is summed up in two words, fireworks and food.  For whatever reason, when you get a bunch of people together looking up in the sky watching fireworks, something happens - community.  When you get a group of people together slamming down hot dogs and hamburgers and drinking their favorite beverage something happens - community.

So what should we do this weekend?  I think it is pretty simple.  The 4th of July is the best opportunity you will have this summer to eat with and listen to people.  Go where the people are, eat with them, listen to them, and you never know where the conversation will lead.  Hopefully they will see you as an ordinary person and they will sense what is different about you: that you have been with Jesus.

Enjoy!

I love spending time with my family during the summer, making memories together. Yesterday I was playing Go Fish with my daughter and son, Lilly and Titus. Since it was a modified version of the old game, Lilly called it Extreme Go Fish. Titus had every deck of cards we had for the fish pile, so there were easily 500 cards in the middle. The game went on for at least an hour and a half, and still we weren’t even close to finishing it (it’s still going, by the way, and at this rate may never end).

It reminded me of a few things: first, that we live in a population center with millions of “fish” all around us. Next, it reminded me just how much we can do to demonstrate Jesus’ love to these people. So how will we catch fish?

It is all about being ordinary, having authentic faith and simple courage. Do you have any… fish? No? Then go fish…