So, what happens when you are in the midst of a struggle?

You do all you can.  You fight for it.

This can be said of any struggle really.  At least any struggle that truly matters.  (Figuring out the difference between important ones and unimportant ones is another matter)

When the job is on the line, you do whatever it takes to make it work.  When a life is at stake, you do all you can.  When you see something that needs to be changed, you do all you can.

As someone once told me, “Just take the next step.  Do the next thing.”  You may not know where you are going.  But you can see where you’ve been and where God looks like He’s taking you.  Go that way.  Move towards that.  Keep getting better at your craft.  Keep refining yourself.  Even when the road looks like a dead end, there is something you can do.  Sometimes that something is to wait, but there is always something.

Go forward with confidence, and go with God.  He can tell you where to go, but He doesn’t make you do it.

Time to step up.

[ Image by rbrwr ]

Think of a baseball team.  9 guys all playing together.  They all have one goal: win the game, be the best team.

How do they get there?  They practice, they work together.  They usually have very good players.  But they’re not perfect.  They have imperfections.

No team is made up of perfect players.  That means they all have strengths and weaknesses.  The shortstop plays there because he’s a good shortstop, not catcher.  The catcher isn’t a good pitcher.  The pitcher can’t hit very well.

We have teams because we need each other.  We can’t all play every position.  Nor should we.  God made us all different, so together we make a better whole.  We should learn to use our diversity.  It gives us a vast resource to lean upon.  The slugger can teach the pitcher how to hit better.

When you have a team, you can rely on your teammates to help cover your weaknesses.  And you can help cover their weaknesses.  As a team, you can accomplish more.

In your team, where do you fit in?  What are your strengths and weaknesses?  What are theirs?  Once you learn these, your team can work better together and achieve more.

Some things to think about.

What am I worth?  What is the value of a life?

On this day, Memorial Day in the U.S., we remember those who have fallen in our armed forces.  We remember what was sacrificed so that our nation could be safe.  I pray that it is worth it.

A scene in Saving Private Ryan stirs me every time I see it.  A solider stands over the grave of the man who saved him in battle.  This is what he says:

My family is with me today. They wanted to come with me. To be honest with you, I wasn’t sure how I’d feel coming back here. Every day I think about what you said to me that day on the bridge. And I’ve tried to live my life the best I could. I hope that was enough. I hope that at least in your eyes, I’ve earned what all of you have done for me.

Let us remember always that someone has paid for our freedom.  Let us remember those who made those sacrifices.  Let us remember those who have endured the losses those sacrifices entailed.

And I pray that you and I remember the sacrifice our God also made in our stead.  Let our warriors’ examples be a picture of what we all owe to God.

[ Image by dbking ]

[ Quote is from Wikiquote ]

I had seen and been told about LifeChurch.tv and this week my wife and I decided to check it out.  Here’s what I thought.

The message was great.  I think God reminded me of a few things.  I liked that the worship music was included in the service.  The podcasts or vodcasts I know of don’t do that (admittedly, I only know of a few).

Overall, I think this is a brilliant idea.  Church online had more attendees than some small local churches I know.  There is even interactivity, via chat rooms and virtual hand raising.  People connecting and praying.

This is a great outreach opportunity.  The relative cost of going to church online is zip.  You can just jump in, no questions asked.  It allows for people wondering about God and church to check something out, and maybe get connected with a church and God.  It allows people who, for whatever reason, can’t make it to services to “go” to church.  This is leveraging the technology of the internet!

I think we should still seek face-to-face interactions in our communities, though.  Being at church online made me miss being with everyone.  I think that people connecting offline will never be replaced.  Not that this is what I think LifeChurch.tv is trying to do (they have physical campuses all over).

But church online is good.  Check out this post if you want proof!  God moves in it.  Welcome to a new era.

Posted via web from On Life, Stories, and Music