Reb Rev's Blog

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” – Jeremiah 29:11

I remember completing the booking sheet (arrest report) as a police officer. There was a block entitled “Scars, Marks and Tattoos.” There was always the possibility of some interesting stuff to fill in that block. But, the purpose of the block was to help identify the person.

These things were unique to each individual. There are a lot of 5’6”, 125 pound, red headed females with green eyes. But, only one with a 3 inch scar on her left arm just below the elbow and a (full color) peacock tattooed on her right thigh (from hip to knee) and a butterfly on her left um “chest area”.

Once while working undercover, an informant went missing for a few days. Then, a body wrapped in chains was found in a local river. Both my informant and “the body” had multiple tattoos and I was called to see if they were, in fact, the same person. Fortunately, for the informant, the tattoos on “the body” (I still don’t know who that was) were not the same and the informant turned up  – alive -  a few days later. 

The “scars, marks and tattoos” combination along with our other identifying information make each of us unique. Some may not like them, some may try to hide them, but they are a part of us and are a record of times and events of our past. Some remind of us painful times, others of happy ones. They are part of us.

Think for a moment about all of your experiences – the things which make you you – your “scars, marks and tattoos” of life. Then realize God can use you and all of these things to reach people and minister to folks in so many other ways – all for His glory.

You have experiences others do not have which will connect with folks, reach them in their place of hurting or need, others just do not have.

But, in order to do this you have to surrender completely – yes even your “scars marks and tattoos” to God. In turn, you get a “future filled with hope” as Jeremiah tells us in the verse above.

My prayer for you this week is that you will realize your uniqueness and, because of it, your ability to be a blessing to others. And, that God will use you in mighty ways to be a source of blessing to many – for His glory.

“A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” – Luke 6:45

We have all watched in horror over the past many weeks as oil gushes from the broken well into the Gulf of Mexico. We are just now beginning to see the effects along the shores of the Gulf and we are told the oil, tar and other associated junk very well may be on our NC beaches soon.

And every minute more of the toxic stuff pours into the water.

As I pondered this, and the environmental tragedy it is, and will be for years to come, I thought about the verse above. There are many people who pour “toxic stuff – poison” from their mouths every day. And, as in the case of the oil on the water’s surface, the source of the “mess” is from a deeper source.

What is the “poison”? Of course, profanity quickly comes to mind yet that is only one part of it. Gossip, hateful words, cursing (as opposed to blessing), negativity in its various forms all add up to a “toxic” mess which not only fouls those immediately around us, but touches many others and in some cases the effects can (and will) be felt for years to come.

Proverbs 18:21 tells us death and life are in the power of the tongue. James 3:1-12 deals with the importance of the issue of controlling our tongue.

So, how do we fix it? Skimming the surface has little impact for really fixing the problem. We must go the source – the heart. A heart filled with things which are pure and Godly will bring forth things which have a positive impact on those around us. Spending time with God through prayer and reading His Word will fill our hearts with those things and leave little room for the poison.

Are there other forms of poison which come to mind? Are you a source of life in your school, workplace, circle of friends?

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.” – Galatians 5:22-23

One of my favorite things about this time of year is the fresh fruit we can buy locally. You know, those strawberry fields where you can pick your own? You take a container and they weigh it going in and coming out. I’m just thankful they don’t weigh me going in and coming out! You find those plump, red, juicy berries that are at the point of perfection – five more minutes on the plant and they would be “too ripe,” yes, those must be eaten quickly.

We are now entering blueberry season. Oh, you can buy blueberries from all over the world before our local season, but they just don’t have that flavor that punches the inside of your mouth and hollers, “Hey, I’m here, don’t I taste wonderful?”

It just seems fresh fruit at just the right time can make your day a little brighter. I think that’s what Paul had in mind when he wrote about the “Fruit of the Spirit” in the passage above. Not the “faky, it’ll pass on looks, but no one wants to eat, it” fruit.

No, I think when we really show forth the Fruit of the Holy Spirit living within us, our lives will make people long to have some of what we have. We will truly be a blessing to others and make their day a little brighter.

Has someone made your day a little brighter, or your load a little lighter?

There is a training exercise which is based on an old Native American practice using the “Talking Stick.” In it, folks sit in a circle and the only one who is allowed to speak is the one holding the “Talking Stick.” When that person finishes, he passes it to the next speaker and she is the only one who can speak until she passes it along, etc.

In John Maxwell’s “Everyone Communicates, Few Connect” he used the Talking Stick approach to write the book. In so doing, not only did he communicate his message, he connected with his audience by posting the chapters on his website then inviting comments from readers. Thousands participated and some even had comments included in the book (mine are on the bottom of p. 239).

Maxwell draws on his years of experience as a communicator to audiences from one to thousands to offer valuable lessons not only on why we should connect, but how to do it. The book is divided into two major sections on Connecting Principles and Connecting Practices. He closes each chapter with pointers on how to apply specific lessons covered in a setting of one-on-one, small group and larger audiences.

“Everyone Communicates, Few Connect” is vintage Maxwell and is well worth the read.

(I do these book reviews as a member of Thomas Nelson’s Book Review Blogger Program)

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” – Joshua 1:9

Someone shared with me the following story of the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth’s rite of Passage.

His father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone. He is required to sit on a stump the whole night and not remove the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it. He cannot cry out for help to anyone.

He cannot tell the other boys of this experience, because each lad must come into manhood on his own.

The boy is naturally terrified. He can hear all kinds of noises. Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some human might do him harm. The wind blew the grass and earth, and shook his stump, but he sat stoically, never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he could become a man!

Finally, after a horrific night the sun appeared and he removed his blindfold.

It was then that he discovered his father sitting on the stump next to him. He had been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm.

As I read the story, I was reminded that we, too, have many rites of passage in this life. However, just like the young lad in the story, we are never alone in our journey.

Maybe you are experiencing just such a trial at this very moment. My prayer for you this week is that you will know firsthand the love of the Father, and that you will be ever conscious of His presence in your life.

Would love to hear your story of how you came to the realization you were not alone.

“Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now)… – Romans 1:13a

It’s been a while since I’ve written about our dog Reb. But, God has taught me many life lessons through him, and I just picked up on another one.

You see, Reb likes to eat. He likes to eat his food, Hogan’s food, the cat’s food, people food, you name it he likes it. So, when Hogan leaves food in his bowl – he’s a nibbler – we have to put it up so Reb won’t eat it.

We don’t have to put it up high, or hide it, just out of reach and he will act like it isn’t even there. Some may think, “Well, that’s a dumb dog, or lazy, if he just stretched he could reach it.”

However, I think he’s pretty smart and we could learn a(nother) thing or two from him. You see, God will often put things which we don’t need, which aren’t good for us or for whatever reason out of our reach. But, how many times do we try to stretch, reach, climb, hurdle, back flip, tunnel or otherwise circumvent His way to get our way in order to reach that very thing? Then we (often) get mad at God when we suffer the consequences.

In the verse above Paul writes of his passionate desire to go to Rome, but God had placed it out of his reach – for the time being. He was finally allowed to go – in God’s time. (By the way, there were other places where God put Paul on hold or sent him in a different direction.)

At times, God places things out of our reach for our protection, sometimes it is just His way of saying, “Wait.”

Whatever His reason we need to listen and know His plans are great for us, always for our good and always for His glory.

Have you experienced this? Maybe you are going through it now.

"And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart." – Galatians 6:9

I read a story recently about a teacher who was helping one of her kindergarten students put his boots on. He asked for help and she could see why. With her pulling and him pushing, the boots still didn’t want to go on. When the second boot was on, she had worked up a sweat. She almost whimpered when the little boy said, "Teacher, they’re on the wrong feet." She looked and, sure enough, they were.
It wasn’t any easier pulling the boots off than it was putting them on. She managed to keep her cool as together they worked to get the boots back on-this time on the right feet. He then announced, "These aren’t my boots."
She bit her tongue rather than get right in his face and scream, "Why didn’t you say so?" like she wanted to. Once again, she struggled to help him pull the ill-fitting boots off. He then said, "They’re my brother’s boots. My Mom made me wear them."
She didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. She mustered up the grace to wrestle the boots on his feet again. She said, "Now, where are your mittens?" He said, "I stuffed them in the toes of my boots…"

That story reminded me of the passage above.

Do you ever get tired of doing good? At times it seems those who cut corners, do evil, cheat and scheme and cut others’ throat get ahead and seem to suffer no consequence for their actions.

God knew we would face that form of discouragement. We know that because He inspired the Apostle Paul to write these words of encouragement found in the book of Galatians.

So we should continue to strive for good and justice – and when we begin to lose heart, we can draw strength from these words and the fact the One who really cares for us and about us is watching us and sends these words encouraging us to “keep on keepin’ on.”

My prayer for you this week is that you will draw new strength in your efforts to do good – not only will you not grow weary, but you will be given new confidence and courage in your endeavors.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” – John 14:27

It is the worst day of your life. Everything, everything, you’ve worked for appears to be gone. Everything you believed in appears to be shattered. Everything you’ve invested in appears to have vanished. The person closest to you in the world has been killed and you have few friends and they are in the same boat with you.

You and your friends left everything a little over three years ago to follow this man called Jesus. Even though He had never received any formal education He taught the Scriptures with authority and knew more about life than the scholars twice His age.

He gave of Himself regularly but asked His followers to do the same. He had high expectations, yet was also so full of grace when you failed Him. He took every failure as an opportunity to teach you how to grow. And, lately, it seemed you were “getting it” more often. You were seeing the point before He had to point it out.

Now this. One of your group has betrayed Christ. The authorities came and arrested Him and took Him before the religious and civil authorities (both pretended a “trial” for Him) and then yesterday they crucified Him. Crucified Him.

Not only was He not guilty of the trumped up charges brought against Him in the trial – He was innocent. He had never once in all His life sinned, and now He was dead. You’d watched it. Almost as if a dream, you watched as they nailed His beaten, naked body to the cross and then lifted Him up in mockery to die. And die He did.

Today you feel as empty inside as one of these abandoned shells on the shore. There is talk of them coming for you and your friends next. It doesn’t even matter to you now. What else is there to live for?

These thoughts reflect what any one of the disciples may have been thinking after Jesus’ death on the cross. Despair to the “nth” degree.

But, aren’t you glad we know the rest of the story? Just a couple days later Jesus would rise from the tomb and defeat the final foe – death.

Some of you are facing challenging, difficult and even desperate days right now, but know that Christ has overcome whatever is causing you pain. Just as He promised His disciples in the verse above, He will give you peace, if you will trust Him with your pain.

My prayer for you this week is that you enjoy the victory which comes from knowing that peace and you will experience the joy and freedom found only in a personal relationship with Christ.

Well, it’s been a while since I’ve written anything about running.

Just as I was gearing back up from the heart attack, I broke my arm. So, there was another little delay. I’m going to write about goal setting again soon but, for now, I want to focus on the running.

A good while back (pre-heart attack), my intention was to run the Myrtle Beach half-marathon this year. As it turned out, there was no Myrtle Beach half (or full) marathon this year due to the snow/ice. When I had to reschedule, I just moved it to 2011. Now, I’m going to change again.

This will be my first half-marathon. I’ve learned a lot just in the preparation phase. Here a few of the things I’ve learned.

1)     Preparation for a February race is tough. The days are short and your preparatory runs need to be long. Practically, this makes it difficult.

2)     In addition to the physical preparation, there is the psychological component. Nothing against Myrtle Beach (which isn’t that far from where we live), but they are not used to snow, ice etc. and that makes their February half a risky proposition when the weather is like it has been this year. All that mental prep getting put on hold for a year can be tough.

3)     Probably the least troubling about a race getting cancelled is the financial impact. The Myrtle Beach folks were very clear on the registration form that the registration fee was non-refundable – even if the race was cancelled. But, that was the least expensive part financially speaking. Folks come to that race from all over the country. They had money tied up in air travel, hotels and time off from work only to spend it watching the snow melt. The Myrtle Beach folks are giving a 50% discount for next year’s race to those folks who were registered this year, but the airlines and hotel expenses certainly aren’t refundable.

So, with this mind, I’m going to change my plans to run a half in May of 2011. There will be warmer, longer days to prep, chances of cancellation due to weather are less and it is local.

So, that’s the new plan. In the meantime, there will be a couple of 5K’s this spring, 10K’s this fall. Of course, all of this must be headlined with the caveat, “if the Lord wills.”

What are your goals and what plans are you implementing to get there?

“And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.” – Jeremiah 18:4

As the orthopedist looked at the x-ray, he pointed to a section of bright white material. “That’s where the break is. That white material is new growth. When there is enough new growth, we’ll take that thing off your arm.”

Well, that was good news. All I had to do was concentrate on growing new bone!

As I pondered this concept, it dawned on me that our walk with Christ is often very similar. Sometimes, we must be broken to grow. Broken hurts – but broken heals. When it does, if we have responded properly to His leading and direction, we are closer to Him and made more like Him.

At times we become broken because of our actions and stupidity (I can give you personal examples). Sometimes, it is to mold us and prevent us from growing in the wrong direction.

“Brokenness” can be physical, but we may also be broken professionally, financially or in our relationships. Regardless of the source of pain, the source of healing is the same – God. In the verse above, Jeremiah sees the image of a potter working at his wheel. When the creation was “out of shape,” the potter would “break it” and rework it to the desired form. Please note – the potter didn’t throw the vessel away!

Maybe you are going through a “broken” period right now. It’s possible you are emerging from such a time – or standing on the brink of one. Whatever the case, my prayer for you this week is that you will first experience the healing which comes from His hand, and sense the new spiritual growth which follows. Above all, remember when you are His – God will never throw you away!