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March 18, 2002
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.” (1 Corinthians 9:24 NIV)

In our society, many people tend to view life as a competition. There is an unfortunate attitude that we are beating the other guy to get our rewards. Through out my sales career, losing an order truly seemed like that. Many salesmen and business men feel that they are competing “head to head”. In my youth that was certainly my attitude. This is competing as if there would be only one winner.

In business, there are not many Microsofts. Almost all businesses have less than half of their market. They do well servicing a market segment or society. No one does it all. Those that do it the best become market leaders. That does not make the others “losers”. Business is a good example of life.
As we go through life, one of our greatest rewards is the feeling we get from freely giving and serving humanity. When we do that, we are well rewarded.

Your gift will return to you in full and overflowing measure, pressed down, shaken together to make room for more and running over. Whatever measure you use to give, large or small, will be used to measure what is given back to you.” (Luke 6:31,37-38NIV).

Thought for the Week: Recognizing what is truly important is sometimes difficult. Life is full of what seems to be competitions. Often they are overwhelming. Let us focus on the Christian view, the big picture. Let us enjoy the fruits of service.

Prayer for the Week: Heavenly Father, there is a lot of anger and violence in the world. Temples and churches seem to be under fire. This is confusing to us and we do not understand this anger. The world is a place of abundance and plenty. This week we pray that we can find a way to serve in some small way to help. Amen.

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March 3

“Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone.’” (Genesis 2:18,NASB).

“Intimacy is the foundation for both love and friendship. It is a close emotional bond that involves mutual sharing and understanding. Note the word mutual. Each person in an intimate relationship wants to know the other’s deepest dreams, wishes, concerns, hopes and fears; while at the same time, being an open book. Intimacy leads to deep feelings of closeness, warmth and trust. Intimacy eliminates the pain of loneliness and the pain of being strangers with one another. If you are going to have intimacy in your relationship, you must have the confidence to expose the private vulnerable portion of your life. You can not remain isolated from each other.” (edited words from H. Norman Wright).

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself to her.” (Ephesians 5:25).

Intimacy is not only a marriage or “significant other” issue. At a Friday morning breakfast meeting, I came to realize the intimacy of a group of men who gather to share while dining. The reading that day dealt with “The Intimacy of the Table” and how often we share while dining with others. This time of gathering, whether it be family or friends, is special to us.

How do you think your partner and friends would rate the level of intimacy in your relationships?

Thought For The Week: Let us think about sharing ourselves with others and allowing others to share with us. Sharing not only our joy’s but our concerns and accepting the same.

Prayer For The Week: Heavenly father, we crave intimacy and are afraid to share. We crave intimacy and are too proud to show our flaws to others. Please help us share ourselves with others so that we may enjoy the fruits of deepened relationships.

Amen.

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February 23

“Special Prayer Request: One of our Good News group, Bill, age 51, was diagnosed with cancer this week. Please consider him and his family in your prayers as they live through the fear, anticipation and challenges this disease brings to their lives. Thanks.

“You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.”

The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

(Galatians 5:13-14 NIV)

Every day we hear of issues where those involved have chosen to be vengeful, upset or angry. My next door neighbor has a property line dispute with another neighbor over a few inches of dirt. In the work environment, changes at my company have upset several employees to the point of anger. This week a local woman was assaulted by another because she had too many items in an express check out line. It is interesting what causes anger and stress in our society.

Is it too much to “Love your neighbor” and show respect and tolerance? It is it too hard to turn the other cheek? Or are people getting so opportunistic we have no choice other than to retaliate? We live in a complex society that seems to have changed over the last several decades.

When I grew up, there was the expression, “It is not whether you win or lose, but how you play the game that counts.” Since the Vince Lombardi era, his famous quote “Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.” seems to be a more popular style. That is a sad state of affairs and does not leave a lot of room for love and Christian ethics.

Yes, we all seek freedom. It is our charter, our country’s constitution guarantees it for us. Galatians tells us how to use this freedom. Use it so that we may all enjoy life to it’s fullest, with love and consideration for all.

Thought for the Week: This week, let us focus on our freedoms. When we drive past a church, note it’s affiliation. When we notice a person that is different, make note of their nationality. Notice all the different makes of cars, different shaped houses, note that we are diverse in all ways. Give a thought to diversity that demonstrates our freedom and enjoy it all.

Prayer for the Week: Heavenly father, we live in a confusing but wonderful world. War, murder, interracial and religious persecution are common. They receive a lot of attention. We pray this week that we may focus on the parts of our lives that practice love, patience and caring. We pray that in our small piece of the world, we may show your love through our behavior.

Amen

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February 17
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” (Matthew 6:25-27 NIV)

Several weeks ago, my pastor and I were having coffee at his request. His concern was due to some business stresses that were effecting June’s and my lives. During this session we talked about money, law suits and tough decisions that often have to be made. Often these decisions are made to minimize financial risk. We surely all do that. This was without me having remembered today’s passage.

As we talked about my life strategy, he was challenging some of my decisions based normal financial logic. My comments made Pastor Rick laugh harder than I had ever heard him laugh in our seven year relationship. They were that “June and I felt that God had a plan that we had not yet seen and that somehow we were serving His needs.” Then I made a slight error and slipped into some studio language, “ After all, it is only @^% money.” Pastor Rick almost fell out of his chair in laughter.

There is a message there somewhere. Matthew 6:27 above asks what “worry” will do for us. But we still worry. What will worry accomplish? Higher blood pressure? Broken relationships? Jealousies? Just maybe we should pray more than we worry. After all, our faith says that God is with us at all times.

Thought for the Week: This week let us think about Matthew 25-27 and try harder to enjoy the week. Think about how great it would be to get through the week without “worry.” Let’s “Let go and let God.”

Prayer for the Week: Heavenly Father, there are many reasons for us to be concerned about our future. There is war and conflict in the world; many of us are unemployed or concerned about our future; our children are exposed to dangers that were not around when we grew up. It seems that there are endless reasons to worry. This week we pray for the faith and good judgment to let you help us. We pray rather than worry.

Amen

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February 12
“God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear.... The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” (1 John 4:16-18, NIV)

In all relationships there is a need for love. That is not to say that we should walk around all day handing out roses! But being kind, serving and helping when we can is an act of love. Within our family structures, trust comes from our love. One of my favorite quotes is from H. Norman Wright’s “Ten Commandments for Loving Your Spouse”- “‘Don’t suffocate your spouse with possessiveness.’- Remember that God is the one who owns us. He has merely entrusted our spouse to our care.”

Love is an interesting concept. It is something that we all want and need, but is it something that we freely give? My experience is that successful or over achieving people are passionate people. People that enjoy serving, people that feel that they have helped others while accomplishing their tasks. People that love other people. Often when looking at their lives, they also have a strong faith. Usually a love of God.

On election day in 1992, I had a chance to talk with a former Governor and Senator from Minnesota and asked him if he missed running for office. He talked for several minutes about missing the ability to “serve” the people. His answer surprised me. But the truth of the matter is, to put up with the exposure of politics and the negatives of the job, the reward must be internal. A love of serving. Since 1992, I have grown to understand this man’s spirituality, motives and his love of humanity. He deserved and earned my respect.

Somehow, through loving God, having a strong faith and spirituality, we can give and receive love. This sharing gives us confidence and drives out fear. It makes our lives better.

Thought for the Week: Let us focus on those who give us love, those close to us. Let us stop each day and appreciate the benefits we receive from those around us. Let’s enjoy the week.

Prayer for the Week: Heavenly Father, each week we hear of war, terror and cruelty in the world. This week we pray that we can appreciate the love and caring in our lives. We pray that we can contribute to the peace and tranquility of others by sharing our love for them and our love for You.

Amen

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February 3
“There are different kinds of gifts,
But the same spirit.
There are different kinds of service,
but the same Lord”.
(1 Corinthians)

Good feelings are great. Through out our lives there are those special moments that burn into our memories, the warm fuzzies. They vary in many ways. Often at a funeral, family and friends recall those feelings about a loved one who has passed. They make a great celebration of life.

As an athlete, I have experienced a lot of self induced memories. A hole in One, championship swimming races and a 1991 Triathlon with my daughter Karen are my favorites. This type of memory is good, but the ones that set me on fire and bring tears to my eyes are the ones I have from helping other people. The smile on the face of a nursing home patient when you visit them or seeing progress or success in another person after assisting or mentoring generate feelings that exceed personal memories.

Service to others not only brings them joy, but a great feeling of satisfaction within the server. We all have been given gifts by the Lord. Real satisfaction in life can be accomplished through the sharing of these gifts with others.

Thought for the Week: This week let’s take some time and do some serious thought about our past service. Let us enjoy the memories, the reward given to us by God for our service. Yes, we deserve the “warm fuzzies” given to us for sharing our gifts. Enjoy the moment and the week with His blessings.

Prayer for the Week: Heavenly Father, we thank you for the many gifts that you have given us, the feelings that we have when we use these gifts in our daily lives and the opportunity to use them to serve humanity. We pray for the wisdom to discern what you want us to do and the will to do it faithfully and well. Amen

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January 14
“We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, His power, and the wonders He has done. He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel, which He commanded our forefathers to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget His deeds but would keep His commands.” (Psalm78:5-7 NIV)

Is the Law the Law? Do we always obey the Law? Man’s common law and the Ten Commandments are broken every day all around us. Just try driving the speed limit on a busy road, someone will pass you. I read last week that 56 percent of the people surveyed answered that it was OK to cheat on their taxes. Remember the “Fuzz Buster” radar detector? I suspect that everyone reading this today is guilty of breaking a rule in the last 24 hours.

As a 50,000 mile per year salesman in the 70’s, I was asked many times why I did not have a “Fuzz Buster.” My answer was always the same. I did not want to demonstrate to my children that is was OK to speed. That I could choose a rule to break. After all, if I could choose which rules I would follow, then my children would be apt to think that was the way to deal our family rules. We teach by example. (I did break a few speed limits.)

The Psalmist talks about “...commanding our forefathers to teach their children....” The facts are simple, we must teach our children and the best way to do that is to live a Godly example for them to follow. That is a tough order.

Thought for the Week: Let us focus this week on our habits regarding both God’s and common laws. Let’s think about them in regards to honesty and integrity. Let’s observe where we may do a better job— and patch up a few holes.

Prayer for the Week: Heavenly Father, our children are loved by you as much as by ourselves. We pray that we are doing them justice, that they are learning your laws and ways from our teachings and our example. We pray for your guidance so that our children will follow and experience the peace comes from loving you.

Amen

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January 10
“We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.
If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.

If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;
if it is encouraging, let him encourage;

If it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously;

If it is leadership, let him govern diligently;
if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.” (Romans 12; 6 & 7, NIV)

Romans 12 lists seven specific gifts. Each of us has been blessed with some of them and has the opportunity to use them in our every day lives. We are bombarded with opportunities. God’s “HELP WANTED” asks us to use our gifts to do His work. We are therefore facing two challenges. One is to recognize the gifts given to us. The other is sharing these gifts with others in our daily lives. It is the sharing of these gifts in a loving Christian way that brings us peace.

Thought for the Week: This week let us focus on our gifts. Let us understand them and how to use them to help ourselves and others.

Prayer for the Week: Dear Lord, again we pray for peace and justice in a seemingly troubled world. We are trying to understand what everything means and our piece in it all. Often, many of us feel too small to help. Since “...we are one body in Christ..” (Romans 12-5) we pray that we may recognize our gifts and use them to do your work.

Amen

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January 4
“For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.” (Romans 12:3-5NIV)

“HELP WANTED”—When reading the news paper, do you ever take a quick look at the help wanted section? Many of us do for a variety of reasons- some are searching for an improvement in their career position, some for new careers, salesmen sometimes spot new companies as prospects; there are many reasons. In hard times and slow economies, the section grows thinner than normal, but probably gets a closer review by the readers.

Many of us attend church services weekly. We hear a message. Sometimes we listen and absorb and come away enthusiastic about the subject, other times we are pleasantly soothed and calmed and even sometimes we are disinterested. I think it is OK to be in any one of those moods after hearing a message. Because we are all different, even God can’t send us a message on Sunday that effects all of us uniformly.

What does it mean when we are enthusiastic about a message? When it inspires us to think about action? Perhaps there is an opportunity to serve, help out, increase our time or cash commitments. Whatever it may be, we have heard God’s “HELP WANTED” and it is our choice to apply for the job. It is our opportunity to allow God’s will to be done through us here on earth.

Thought for the Week: This week, let us focus on our daily activities. Let us search our planners and calendars for the Godly reasons to be busy. Let us allow some time to do God’s will as we move through our busy schedules.

Prayer for the Week: Heavenly Father, the world is a confusing place. Wars and conflict abound, hunger and poverty seem excessive, there is violence on the streets. All of this seems inconsistent with your will. Sometimes we are confused and have difficulty understanding it all. This week we pray that we find a message, a way to contribute, a way to serve you and society in your name. A way to understand and respond to your “HELP WANTED” section.

Amen