But Jonah got up and went in the opposite direction to get away from the Lord. He went down to the port of Joppa, where he found a ship leaving for Tarshish. He bought a ticket and went on board, hoping to escape from the Lord by sailing to Tarshish. Jonah 1:3 (NLT)
Most of us know the story of Jonah. He was a prophet. God called him to go and give a message to the citizens of a city called Nineveh. Nineveh was a great enemy to Jonah's people but God wanted to extend mercy to them and Jonah refused to go. Eventually Jonah did go and proclaim God's message to the Ninevites and they repented of their actions.
The most famous part of this story is Jonah's experience with a big fish (or whale). The part we miss sometimes happens early in the story. Jonah has a choice to make, follow God or go his own way. Instead of following what God wanted to do he chose a destination the exact opposite direction from where God wanted him to go.
We also have the choice that Jonah had. We can choose to follow God or go our own way. Many times in our lives we are just like Jonah, we choose to go against God. We may feel that God has asked us to do something too large or something beyond our abilities. Jonah probably felt the same thing. No doubt, he did not like the group of people that God called him to, but he also probably feared for his life and probably doubted his ability to do what God called him to do.
When we find ourselves in these positions of following God or fleeing lets consider what David wrote:
I can never escape from your Spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!
If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I go down to the grave, you are there (Psalm 139 NLT)
The path away from God may seem the easiest. If we follow God he will be there with us and guide us through any situation. If we follow God's lead, while not always the easiest, I will promise it will be worth it. His ways give us a purpose and a mission something we cannot give ourselves.
What is God challenging you to do today?
2.06.2008
2.05.2008
To The Values Voter
And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him—Colossians 3:17 (NIV)
Today is Super Tuesday, and all across America fired up (or not so fired up) voters are voicing their opinion as to who should get to go to the general election and vie for the presidency of the United States. Without a doubt, many people, especially those who call themselves Christians, will be casting their ballot based on their moral beliefs. These “values voters” are oft talked about in political circles, and entire campaign strategies are sometimes built around how to best reach this somewhat fragmented but voter rich group.
Many Christians, from the guy who sits in the pew next to you to perhaps even your pastor, will tell you that you need to vote for so and so because of his stance on abortion or the sanctity of marriage. They will tell you that you cannot be a true Christian if you do not cast your “values vote” for candidate X, Y, or Z. They say it is time for us to take back this country, and that we as voters must do our part to make it happen.
All this begs the question of exactly what the best way is to “take back” this great land of ours. We tend to carry on as if the political system somehow has wrestled from us every area of society, from the once sacred institution of marriage to what has become the cold, God-less classroom. We act as if this has happened while we were not looking, or perhaps as if some dirty secularists have played a series of cruel, power usurping tricks on us.
This could not be further from the truth. The answer to the problems that face American Christianity today is not a political one. As Phillip Johnson wrote in his book Defeating Darwinism: “I regard the idea of a Christian political party with a combination of horror and amusement, because Christian denominations are themselves so confused and internally divided”. He argues that the real answer to our problems is a spiritual and intellectual one. We have essentially given our country away through talking about values more than actually living them out.
Until we start living our values, dear reader, and until we start showing Jesus to our sons and daughters, friends, and co-workers, we are destined to repeat the same futile cycle of merely voting “our values” while no real change takes place in this country. So go ahead, friends, cast your “values vote” for the person whom you feel is the best moral crusader for this country. But do not expect real results until you, me, and every person who bears His name begin doing everything we do, in word or deed, for Christ Jesus.
Today is Super Tuesday, and all across America fired up (or not so fired up) voters are voicing their opinion as to who should get to go to the general election and vie for the presidency of the United States. Without a doubt, many people, especially those who call themselves Christians, will be casting their ballot based on their moral beliefs. These “values voters” are oft talked about in political circles, and entire campaign strategies are sometimes built around how to best reach this somewhat fragmented but voter rich group.
Many Christians, from the guy who sits in the pew next to you to perhaps even your pastor, will tell you that you need to vote for so and so because of his stance on abortion or the sanctity of marriage. They will tell you that you cannot be a true Christian if you do not cast your “values vote” for candidate X, Y, or Z. They say it is time for us to take back this country, and that we as voters must do our part to make it happen.
All this begs the question of exactly what the best way is to “take back” this great land of ours. We tend to carry on as if the political system somehow has wrestled from us every area of society, from the once sacred institution of marriage to what has become the cold, God-less classroom. We act as if this has happened while we were not looking, or perhaps as if some dirty secularists have played a series of cruel, power usurping tricks on us.
This could not be further from the truth. The answer to the problems that face American Christianity today is not a political one. As Phillip Johnson wrote in his book Defeating Darwinism: “I regard the idea of a Christian political party with a combination of horror and amusement, because Christian denominations are themselves so confused and internally divided”. He argues that the real answer to our problems is a spiritual and intellectual one. We have essentially given our country away through talking about values more than actually living them out.
Until we start living our values, dear reader, and until we start showing Jesus to our sons and daughters, friends, and co-workers, we are destined to repeat the same futile cycle of merely voting “our values” while no real change takes place in this country. So go ahead, friends, cast your “values vote” for the person whom you feel is the best moral crusader for this country. But do not expect real results until you, me, and every person who bears His name begin doing everything we do, in word or deed, for Christ Jesus.
2.04.2008
What is a Wooly Bugger?
Glad you should ask. It is perhaps one of the ugliest, simplest, and most effective flies for fishing in Middle Tennessee. When I was a kid I always wanted to try fly fishing. Nobody I knew had even tried it, but I thought it would be great. I grew up fishing with my family in ponds and warm-water creeks for bass, bluegills, catfish, and anything that would hit a worm. I always had a problem...patience. My grandfather is the king of patience. He'll tie on a worm and wait, and wait, and wait, and wait, and wait.....I just couldn't do it. I was constantly reeling and casting, reeling and casting. Well, one day I made a huge discovery, the artificial lure. A bait designed to be cast and then reeled. It was perfect for me. After several years fooling with crankbaits and beetle-spins, I decided to try fly fishing.
I was engaged to my wonderful wife when I dropped the cash for an 8'6" 5wt Cabela's combo. It changed my life. I immediately fell in love with fly fishing. I am no good, but I love it and go as often as I can. I'll never get paid to fly fish, but when you find something you love, you'd pay to do it. As a matter of fact, I was really, really bad. I tried all kinds of flies but couldn't catch anything but a few desperate fish...until one fateful day I discovered the lowly wooly bugger. Since then, I never leave home without one. They are ugly, simple, and often overlooked. But man are they effective. Put a little gold bead on the head of the fly and you'll catch anything from bass to perch and even trout. I actually caught a 5lbs. catfish on a bead-head wooly bugger.
I wonder how many times God has challenged us to do something but we didn't think we could do it because we didn't know very much about it or because we think of ourselves as too plain, too ugly, or too easy to overlook? Sometimes we are the only thing keeping a blessing from our lives. And sometimes, just sometimes it is the ugly, simple, plain, and overlooked that can completely revolutionize a life.
I was engaged to my wonderful wife when I dropped the cash for an 8'6" 5wt Cabela's combo. It changed my life. I immediately fell in love with fly fishing. I am no good, but I love it and go as often as I can. I'll never get paid to fly fish, but when you find something you love, you'd pay to do it. As a matter of fact, I was really, really bad. I tried all kinds of flies but couldn't catch anything but a few desperate fish...until one fateful day I discovered the lowly wooly bugger. Since then, I never leave home without one. They are ugly, simple, and often overlooked. But man are they effective. Put a little gold bead on the head of the fly and you'll catch anything from bass to perch and even trout. I actually caught a 5lbs. catfish on a bead-head wooly bugger.
I wonder how many times God has challenged us to do something but we didn't think we could do it because we didn't know very much about it or because we think of ourselves as too plain, too ugly, or too easy to overlook? Sometimes we are the only thing keeping a blessing from our lives. And sometimes, just sometimes it is the ugly, simple, plain, and overlooked that can completely revolutionize a life.
Welcome to My World!
Why would I want to blog? That's a great question, but the answer may not be what you expect...I don't. I've been all over the internet looking for good conversation on God, religion, the Church, and yes, fly fishing, only to be very discouraged by what I've found. Seemingly everything I read was a disagreement, discouraging, and essentially a few people gathered together to bash the world. I thought about this when I had a great idea...what if there were a blog for people who were "for" something? What if there were a place that wasn't against anything, just for encouraging ,uplifting, and fellowshipping? It was out of this desire that Wooly Buggers was born. Check back from time to time to see what posts are provided and feel free to comment in a positive and encouraging way.
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