So, here's why I listen to random...
Good Saturday morning, readers. I think you're really going to like today's blog because it's kind of funny. Yes there's a good dose of preaching but that's kind of what today's blog is all about.
I kind of wonder sometimes if I come across as an idiot. I don't try to but I know some of the things that have happened in my life have been, well, unless you're a believer, hard to believe. I know that and I've talked about it a couple of times. Well, I kind of wondered about the two comments on one of my posts. The first one was "God, where's Coop", and the reply about being "abducted by aliens". I enjoy sharing what God does in my life with you, for reasons I've already touched on. That's not what today's blog is about. This week, random things were telling me two things: Share the news about Jesus with others. Maybe it's because I was worried that I wasn't doing a good job of that. The second one was about smoking,
It's been my experience that sometimes what you need to hear is something you hear that is completely random but something inside tells you to key in on what you heard. That's how it was with quitting smoking. I've cut down considerably over the past week. Being sick helped, to be sure, but the desire is just about gone. I'd like to say I've quit completely but I will say that I threw away almost a full pack of cigarettes today. I kind of get the message that it's time to put that habit to rest, once and for all. Here's my story:
I'm in the car, driving between hangars the other night. On the radio, a preacher was talking about giving things to God, including the body. It says someplace in the Bible something about the body being the temple for the Holy Spirit. This is what the pastor was talking about, at about the same time I lit up another smoke. I'm not going so far as to tell you that God told me to quit smoking. I think it was just time and what God did was to help me not need them and give me the inner knowledge that I was ready to tackle this. Apparently, though, I haven't done enough to be where I needed to on this issue, BECAUSE, as I drove and finished my cigarette, I rolled down the window to put out the butt on the rear view mirror. I don't flip out the butts on the road because I think littering isn't right. I've done this little chore hundreds of times without incident....
Now keep in mind, I'm self-conscious about this because the little voice says you're not taking care of yourself and you need the money for other things. I heard two stores on the radio program "Unshackled" and both people talk of how the Lord helped them quit smoking by just taking the desire away, which started me down the path to quitting. I try, I've been doing really well, but not all the way quit. I hear this pastor talking about taking care of our bodies for the Lord, and I've read this in the Bible. It's on my mind, and now it's on my chest...
As I said, I've put out cigarettes on the rear view glass hundreds of times. I did the same and kept driving. A couple of minutes later, I smell something and a couple of seconds later, I FEEL something burning. Somehow or other, when I put out the cigarette, part of the lit part flew back in the car, landed between my jacket and right in the middle of my chest. I have a hole in my shirt and a nice blister from where I got to be on fire again. Yes, I've been on fire before. I'll tell that story sometime.
Just a friendly little reminder that when you hear the message, you should act. Random, I know, accident, absolutely (well maybe?). I told this story to Wendi and she laughed at me. She said God tried to start me on fire because I wasn't listening. Well, I still had the smokes, and I had a rather stressful morning so I had a smoke or two today, but had to keep thinking about being on fire. I finally just threw the rest of the smokes away. If I don't have them, I don't smoke them.
Hopefully, you got a chuckle out of that story because God has a great sense of humor, as you will see at the end of this.
On a more serious note, I was really going to quit talking about what He does in my life and how good my life feels now that Jesus is a big part of it. I was afraid that telling my little stories was making me look a little foolish. I know they don't make sense to anyone, so I prayed about this and that's when I started hearing messages on the radio and even little scripture quotes about sharing the gospel. I try to do this. I tell all y'all about what Jesus does in my life, what God can do, and give you examples to see. He answers prayers and I believe that a friend of mine is alive today because of God's grace and an answer to the prayers of a lot of people! He works big miracles in some people's lives, small ones in others.
So, the answer to my prayer about sharing what God does in my life is that sharing it is exactly what I should be doing. It's OK to be skeptical. To ask questions. To crack jokes, but like I said, what if by telling my little stories, I give some hope to someone who's hurting. If I can show what God does for me to you then hopefully you can see He'll care for your needs, too, if you have that right relationship with Him. These have been my two random stories for the week.
I do have an 'it could only happen to me" story for y'all today, too.
We moved from one hangar to another across the runway Thursday night. We're standing around our toolboxes getting them ready to move when I feel something crawling on my neck. I go to brush it away and I feel this sharp, shooting pain in the tip of my "pointing" finger on my left hand. Right in front of half of the guys I work with, at six in the evening on December the ninth, two thousand ten, I got stung by a freaking bee! What, was it the LAST bee still alive in Northern Utah in December?
I kind of wonder sometimes if I come across as an idiot. I don't try to but I know some of the things that have happened in my life have been, well, unless you're a believer, hard to believe. I know that and I've talked about it a couple of times. Well, I kind of wondered about the two comments on one of my posts. The first one was "God, where's Coop", and the reply about being "abducted by aliens". I enjoy sharing what God does in my life with you, for reasons I've already touched on. That's not what today's blog is about. This week, random things were telling me two things: Share the news about Jesus with others. Maybe it's because I was worried that I wasn't doing a good job of that. The second one was about smoking,
It's been my experience that sometimes what you need to hear is something you hear that is completely random but something inside tells you to key in on what you heard. That's how it was with quitting smoking. I've cut down considerably over the past week. Being sick helped, to be sure, but the desire is just about gone. I'd like to say I've quit completely but I will say that I threw away almost a full pack of cigarettes today. I kind of get the message that it's time to put that habit to rest, once and for all. Here's my story:
I'm in the car, driving between hangars the other night. On the radio, a preacher was talking about giving things to God, including the body. It says someplace in the Bible something about the body being the temple for the Holy Spirit. This is what the pastor was talking about, at about the same time I lit up another smoke. I'm not going so far as to tell you that God told me to quit smoking. I think it was just time and what God did was to help me not need them and give me the inner knowledge that I was ready to tackle this. Apparently, though, I haven't done enough to be where I needed to on this issue, BECAUSE, as I drove and finished my cigarette, I rolled down the window to put out the butt on the rear view mirror. I don't flip out the butts on the road because I think littering isn't right. I've done this little chore hundreds of times without incident....
Now keep in mind, I'm self-conscious about this because the little voice says you're not taking care of yourself and you need the money for other things. I heard two stores on the radio program "Unshackled" and both people talk of how the Lord helped them quit smoking by just taking the desire away, which started me down the path to quitting. I try, I've been doing really well, but not all the way quit. I hear this pastor talking about taking care of our bodies for the Lord, and I've read this in the Bible. It's on my mind, and now it's on my chest...
As I said, I've put out cigarettes on the rear view glass hundreds of times. I did the same and kept driving. A couple of minutes later, I smell something and a couple of seconds later, I FEEL something burning. Somehow or other, when I put out the cigarette, part of the lit part flew back in the car, landed between my jacket and right in the middle of my chest. I have a hole in my shirt and a nice blister from where I got to be on fire again. Yes, I've been on fire before. I'll tell that story sometime.
Just a friendly little reminder that when you hear the message, you should act. Random, I know, accident, absolutely (well maybe?). I told this story to Wendi and she laughed at me. She said God tried to start me on fire because I wasn't listening. Well, I still had the smokes, and I had a rather stressful morning so I had a smoke or two today, but had to keep thinking about being on fire. I finally just threw the rest of the smokes away. If I don't have them, I don't smoke them.
Hopefully, you got a chuckle out of that story because God has a great sense of humor, as you will see at the end of this.
On a more serious note, I was really going to quit talking about what He does in my life and how good my life feels now that Jesus is a big part of it. I was afraid that telling my little stories was making me look a little foolish. I know they don't make sense to anyone, so I prayed about this and that's when I started hearing messages on the radio and even little scripture quotes about sharing the gospel. I try to do this. I tell all y'all about what Jesus does in my life, what God can do, and give you examples to see. He answers prayers and I believe that a friend of mine is alive today because of God's grace and an answer to the prayers of a lot of people! He works big miracles in some people's lives, small ones in others.
So, the answer to my prayer about sharing what God does in my life is that sharing it is exactly what I should be doing. It's OK to be skeptical. To ask questions. To crack jokes, but like I said, what if by telling my little stories, I give some hope to someone who's hurting. If I can show what God does for me to you then hopefully you can see He'll care for your needs, too, if you have that right relationship with Him. These have been my two random stories for the week.
I do have an 'it could only happen to me" story for y'all today, too.
We moved from one hangar to another across the runway Thursday night. We're standing around our toolboxes getting them ready to move when I feel something crawling on my neck. I go to brush it away and I feel this sharp, shooting pain in the tip of my "pointing" finger on my left hand. Right in front of half of the guys I work with, at six in the evening on December the ninth, two thousand ten, I got stung by a freaking bee! What, was it the LAST bee still alive in Northern Utah in December?
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