First it wasn't there, then it was & some more important stuff.
I was talking to my pastor this morning and telling him about the post I tried to post on my blog yesterday that didn't post. Hey, I tried. I even looked and it wasn't there. That's OK because although I wrote it, maybe it wasn't for sharing. That's just kind of my view on life because of the things I've seen God do in my life. When I start down the wrong path, a little roadblock comes up.
I noticed today, just a few minutes ago, that the post in question had somehow appeared. That's great because although there are a few more details I didn't share with you that would have added a bit of conviction to the story I told, you can get the point. God does work in my life.
But don't take my word for it. Judge for yourself these two stories: First, I spoke to my youngest for an hour and a half last night and took him driving in Chevron (my F250 pickup). It was great because he was nervous about driving the big truck and I just filled him full of confidence. At the end of the afternoon, I left both him and his mother a copy of the New Testament and a couple of other books, along with a heartfelt apology for not living up to what I should have been according to that wonderful book. That's story #1 and I'm so thankful for God arranging something that only He could have done!
Praise God for that!
But that's not the only story. This one is also good.
I attended a function this morning in Salt Lake called "Men at the Cross". During this event, they have breakouts for teens. A few of the men from church went as well and we sat together as a group. We learned about discipleship and about standing up for Jesus! I never realized what kind of courage that can take sometimes, by the way. At the end of the seminar, the young men joined us again and came down to the front of the room. I noticed one boy in particular looked a lot like my nephew, Joshua.
I looked at him twice and he didn't say anything to me. Looked right at me and didn't even recognize me. I guess he figured that this was about the LAST place he'd run into old uncle Coop. As he turned around, I thought, "That's gotta be him", so I said his name. When he finally figured out who the heck I was, it was an almost surreal moment. Just a while before we'd been talking about the need for the older men to help new Christians grow and I stood as one who was willing to take on that responsibility. Then there was my nephew, alone at the conference, and neither of us had any idea the other was there! It was a nice ride back to his house. Praise Jesus for that opportunity to share in that moment with my own nephew!
Maybe I need to take some more time for him? I should have known to ask him to go with me but sometimes I get so wrapped up in the little soap opera that my life is that I tend to forget about things like that. Today was a good reminder for that.
I didn't get to talk to my middle son. He's still upset with me and that upset, unless we can talk about it will be there for a long, long time. I'm praying that today was just the beginning of better relationships with family, especially the young men of my family. One thing God has shown me is that some good can still come of all the bad and if I can show the young men of my family that they cannot make the same mistakes I did and couple that with some things that may help them from being the fool their dad/uncle was, I'm all about being that example, no matter how painful to me!
It's been that kind of a day. It started out that way, continued that way all day (one little hiccup but I'll take care of that with my sis later.) I'm still a little naive about this whole Christianity thing and I gotta remember to account for others feelings sometimes. Baby steps, baby steps. My sis was upset with me and I only got half of what I wanted to say out of my mouth. Fortunately, my mom was there too and can get the other half out for me. Otherwise, it was a great morning and afternoon and I'm absolutely on FIRE to spread the good news.
I hope I never lose that zeal I have and as I keep going, I hope I can learn to harness that excitement, temper it with a little patience and softness. I'm working on it.
And, like my nephew, is yesterday's blog post. All of a sudden, there he was; all of a sudden there it was, and all of a sudden, I found a hinge for my kitchen cabinet, but that's another story for another day...
I noticed today, just a few minutes ago, that the post in question had somehow appeared. That's great because although there are a few more details I didn't share with you that would have added a bit of conviction to the story I told, you can get the point. God does work in my life.
But don't take my word for it. Judge for yourself these two stories: First, I spoke to my youngest for an hour and a half last night and took him driving in Chevron (my F250 pickup). It was great because he was nervous about driving the big truck and I just filled him full of confidence. At the end of the afternoon, I left both him and his mother a copy of the New Testament and a couple of other books, along with a heartfelt apology for not living up to what I should have been according to that wonderful book. That's story #1 and I'm so thankful for God arranging something that only He could have done!
Praise God for that!
But that's not the only story. This one is also good.
I attended a function this morning in Salt Lake called "Men at the Cross". During this event, they have breakouts for teens. A few of the men from church went as well and we sat together as a group. We learned about discipleship and about standing up for Jesus! I never realized what kind of courage that can take sometimes, by the way. At the end of the seminar, the young men joined us again and came down to the front of the room. I noticed one boy in particular looked a lot like my nephew, Joshua.
I looked at him twice and he didn't say anything to me. Looked right at me and didn't even recognize me. I guess he figured that this was about the LAST place he'd run into old uncle Coop. As he turned around, I thought, "That's gotta be him", so I said his name. When he finally figured out who the heck I was, it was an almost surreal moment. Just a while before we'd been talking about the need for the older men to help new Christians grow and I stood as one who was willing to take on that responsibility. Then there was my nephew, alone at the conference, and neither of us had any idea the other was there! It was a nice ride back to his house. Praise Jesus for that opportunity to share in that moment with my own nephew!
Maybe I need to take some more time for him? I should have known to ask him to go with me but sometimes I get so wrapped up in the little soap opera that my life is that I tend to forget about things like that. Today was a good reminder for that.
I didn't get to talk to my middle son. He's still upset with me and that upset, unless we can talk about it will be there for a long, long time. I'm praying that today was just the beginning of better relationships with family, especially the young men of my family. One thing God has shown me is that some good can still come of all the bad and if I can show the young men of my family that they cannot make the same mistakes I did and couple that with some things that may help them from being the fool their dad/uncle was, I'm all about being that example, no matter how painful to me!
It's been that kind of a day. It started out that way, continued that way all day (one little hiccup but I'll take care of that with my sis later.) I'm still a little naive about this whole Christianity thing and I gotta remember to account for others feelings sometimes. Baby steps, baby steps. My sis was upset with me and I only got half of what I wanted to say out of my mouth. Fortunately, my mom was there too and can get the other half out for me. Otherwise, it was a great morning and afternoon and I'm absolutely on FIRE to spread the good news.
I hope I never lose that zeal I have and as I keep going, I hope I can learn to harness that excitement, temper it with a little patience and softness. I'm working on it.
And, like my nephew, is yesterday's blog post. All of a sudden, there he was; all of a sudden there it was, and all of a sudden, I found a hinge for my kitchen cabinet, but that's another story for another day...
I'm am so encouraged by your faithfulness in trying to do whatever it takes to follow the Name above all Names. I'm thinking God has a wild ride in store for you as He uses you to do great things. Hope you'll let me come along beside you. Blessings, Pastor Karl
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking you're right Pastor Karl, but I always know whatever happens that it's for God's glory. Thanks for being my "Paul" and I'm glad I have you to lean on, to learn from, and to laugh with. Thanks for everything.
ReplyDelete