To men that are married or ever desire to be married.

Most of you should already know that I consider myself a Christian.  If I've ever shown you otherwise, I ask for your forgiveness in failing to show my faith in leaning upon God for everything.  With that said, I come to encourage you and call you as men, as well as remind myself, that if you are married or ever plan to get married, that you would take these words to heart and make them a part of you and how you live.  I say this not only for the sake of our wives or your future wives, but for our sake as men as well.  Know that while I might not continually call out specific verses of the Bible, every word contained here within is a direct reflection of God's word and is in no way to  be washed down or broken up in to "just the bits you like."

First, as men, we all want to lead.  Every man has a desire to lead and lead well.  But in a marriage, a man can not simply lead.  As men, we are called to lead by example and love by example.  We are called to sacrifice for our wives and families.  We are called to sacrifice first.  To love first. To forgive first.  To repent first.  To step out in faith first.  Why?  Why should we do all these things first?  Well, first, its because Christ sacrificed Himself for us, perfectly, and calls us to do it.  But secondly, if we don't do what is hard, how will our families ever grow in love?  If you don't do the things a man should in terms of not letting anger or sin or resentment remain in your relationship, how can you expect your wife to be able to step up and follow your lead?  These words are not easy, especially when we KNOW we are right.  Being right doesn't matter.  Loving, sacrificing and leading are what matter.  Christ was right in EVERYTHING He said and did, and yet He STILL chose to go to the cross and do what was supremely hard for the sake of His love, leadership, and sacrifice.

Second, when it comes to sacrificing first, this must mean putting our desires after those of our wife.  I know that we all have things we REALLY want to do, but we must love, honor, and pursue our wives first.  They must, without a doubt, know that we love them before any other thing we want to do.  When we've had a long day, or are not feeling so hot, this is not easy to do.  This is why WE are the men...this is a burden that was put on us.  We are not without help though.  God is there for us to lean on.  Only when our wives feel loved, honored and pursued should we feel free to take on our hobbies.  Let me put this in practical terms.  Do we REALLY want to be fishing, or drawing, or doing WHATEVER it is that we love to do, KNOWING that our beloved wife is sitting somewhere resenting the fact that we haven't sat with her and talked to her, taken her out for a movie, rubbed her shoulders, or otherwise served her lovingly?  Our answer should be no.  Is it easy?  Not all the time...not when we feel like we deserve a break or like we've earned our time to do what we like to do.  But you know what, this is OUR calling as men.

When it comes to repenting and forgiving first, these are areas that we don't think about too much.  I know because when I'm arguing with my beloved bride, and I know I'm right, I tend to buckle down and not give up till she admits she's wrong.  There are very few circumstances where this is right.  And by very few I mean VERY FEW.  Who said what on some random Thursday night or who left the ice creams out to melt are not reasons to go to war with your wife.  And yet, for the sake of being right, even when we KNOW we are right, we go to war with our love.  As men, we should forgive and repent first, regardless of being right or not.  There have been times when I step out, suck it up and prayerfully forgive and repent, even when I know I'm right, and wonderful things happen.  My marriage automatically gets 73% better!  My wife and I aren't upset at each other over something trivial any more!  And sometimes, when it is something kinda big (at least in my mind), my wife will normally come back and say that she was probably the one that was wrong.  Men, if you do this, ONLY GOOD THINGS CAN COME OF IT.

Stepping out in faith first requires that you live a life of faith in God first.  If you don't then you might not find this area too interesting.  But this will speak shortly to leading our family spiritually.  As men, we are called to love and lead our wives and enrich their walk with Him as well.  This means finding a good church and doing the things necessary to build our wives' faith and walk with Christ.  This means praying for her/praying over her.  This means reading the Bible.  This means if hard decisions come up with respect to our walk, we as men are called to seek out God's will and make the decision.  This doesn't mean that we should do this without our wives, but it means that ultimately, God will hold US accountable for the spiritual leadership of our wives.

All these things go against what our minds, our oh so logical minds, tell us is right.  They go against most, if not all, of what we've been taught is fair or expected of a man.  I'm glad that you see that, or at least feel it.  I still struggle with some of these aspects, so don't think I'm speaking down to any of you.  Quite the opposite, I'm typing this out so I have a black a white reference to go back to and read some of what's expected of me as a man.   You ask, "SOME of what's expected of me as a man...?" Yes, I said some.  This is by no means a complete list of all the things a man is called to do when he loves a woman.  But its a good foothold.  I encourage you, as my friends, to love, honor and pursue your wives as Christ loved us.  And if you want to know how Christ loved us, feel free to ask me.

The Beginning

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." --Proverbs 1:7

So...yeah...this verse sure seems pretty simple upon first glance. But its not. The concepts which it presents are preposterous to those who don't believe in God. So first of all, and very importantly, you must acknowledge and/or be aware of God's existence. He by no means demands obedience...He'll let us do what we want for our whole lives...but we must be prepared to answer for those actions when we are to be judged. God wants sons and daughters who are eager to do His will...to be loved by Him and directed in all their paths...He wants warriors, lovers, friends, truth speakers, counselors, listeners...anyone and everyone, to know His love.

BUT FIRST, we must know and feel the fear of the Lord. Now, fear isn't normally regarded as something desirable or good...but this isn't your average fear. The fear talked about in this verse isn't a cowering, crying fear as we wait for some big creepy god hidden in the skies to strike us down...or smite us if you'd prefer. ;) No, the fear spoken of here is the reverent fear a child has for their father. A father who loves them with everything he has and would do anything for his children. A father who displays that love with every breath his children take. The fear spoken of in THIS verse is respect and reverence for the Almighty Creator of the universe.

This is a fear that many people don't know...a fear that many people refuse to acknowledge because they claim that God doesn't exist. They hold their own intellect as their personal savior, rationalizing their existence through whatever means is most convenient to them so that they might stay on their earthen platform and claim their godhood. Oh, but they shall know the OTHER type of fear upon their expiration...they will know the terror of being judged by the God who created the mountains and valleys with His finger...who spoke everything into existence and made man His very own handywork.

Search your hardened hearts and know that God waits for you...as your savior through His son Jesus Christ...or as your Judge seated upon the throne which will only be looked upon with shame and regret when you go to be judged...if you can even look at it at all. Know that He wants to deliver you from the bondage you live in. You claim to be so free, yet your life is filled with the same distractions and diversions that you repeat over and over so as to forget for as long as you can that you need to be saved.

And yet, so many of you out there will just huff this off as more "religious crap," instead of the plea of a friend for you to know true love. Love that could change your life. Love that could deliver you from relying on your own limited and finite intelligence. Love that could move you to be a person that you never thought you'd be.

and thats why the verse goes, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." Because a fool will not and can not know real knowledge...sure, a fool can learn things and claim them and cling to those few things as their saving grace, but they will never know true knowledge, much less wisdom, without God.

I love you all and hope that I can help you...if even in the slightest way!

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends.John 15:13
and I would, for any of you, that you might know Christ.

Springtime Apostrophe!

Everything looks so green, so lush, so beautiful when its in bloom and growing. Its not until Summer and the harvest time comes that you see what has truly had a purpose in its beauty.

As the flowers bud and the grass grows and the fields begin to sprout, you see everything so green...so bright, so lovely. But weeds grow along side the flowers and the grass and tares next to wheat. So while yes, the beauty of so much lush greenery is breathtaking, the usefullness and purpose (or lack there of) becomes apparent and obvious only after a time.

As the summer comes and the flowers grow and bloom, and the grass grows emerald green and beautiful and the wheat bends and sways in the wind, you see the weeds grow and begin to show their twisted fruit. As they grow, they spread, trying to choke out the other plants, to take their nutrients and sunlight. They dry out and the thorns and thistles begin to harden. They are a plague to man. They get stuck in your clothes in your shoes, they bother you and you wish they never existed. Really...who really, in their hearts, wishes weeds existed?

This is to illustrate, that even in nature, God illustrates that there are creations made for honor and beauty and creations made for dishonor. Is it fair? Who are you, finite man, to say what is fair? Who are you, in your less than 2000 years of oh-so-underwhelming technological advancements and knowledge, somehow manage to find more ways to spit in the face of an Almighty God that will one day judge you? To wag your finger in the face of He who created the planets and named every star? Who are you to assume you know how to lead your life, which is like an ant that you see eek along so slowly and seemingly aimlessly? Listen to the call of He that can save you, who wishes to love you more than anyone or anything on this planet could ever hope to. The One true God whose knowledge is folly to the "itelligent" of this world. Or else, be like the weeds, that are cursed by every soul; and when the harvest comes, is cut down and thrown in the furnace to burn.

Wait a minnit...

FIRST OFF...if you read this, I love you. I absolutely do. I want nothing but the best for every single one of my friends, fb or real. Now...where was I...oooooooh yeeeeaaaah...so, I was thinking...

God's grace and mercy are vast and infinite; so much so that every one of His creations that is able to receive it may become one of His children.

Wrap your peabrains around that...it makes all knowledge ever obtained by man, everything we've ever accomplished on this gift of a planet that we've shit on, small unimportant nothing. The fact that you can recognize God is who He is and that He will love you regardless of our faults and imperfections...that's amazing.

The atheist worships his confidence in the fact that there is no God, and he is a fool. Since the beginning, "the fool says in his heart, 'There is no God'"...just look at the evidence. To chalk it all up to mere chance and evolution...ARE YOU SERIOUS?! hahaha...that's tragic comedy. God makes Himself known and evident in all His creation...its simple. And its that very same profound simplicity that makes the intelligent to stumble. But whatever, atheism is another topic for another day. I'm just trying to point out how MASSIVELY good God is and how much He really and truly wants to impact the life of everyone in the world.

But it is YOUR heart that must accept it. It is YOUR heart that must receive it. You may say, God isn't fair. Who says He has to be fair? The fact that He's chosen NOT to send ALL of us to hell instantaneously is an ENORMOUS amount grace in and of itself. The fact that He gives US a LIFETIME to find Him and get to know Him the way we should, well that's just even MORE unmerited favor AND mercy in our box. It is YOUR heart that is hard and refuses to believe in that which you can not see or justify. You bring secular attacks against the infinite God that will judge you or save you in the end. That's like an ant trying to storm the castle by itself.

If you read this, I love you. I only hope that you know the peace, joy, hope, love, grace and mercy of the one true God that seeks to save you from your own strength, which is no strength at all. He seeks to save you from the things you think you know, which is nothing. Now, this does not mean that He wants dumb, uninformed lemmings that believe what they're spoonfed. No. The Bible calls for us to be able to give an answer to any man for the reason for the hope inside us. And I want to be able to do that. He wants to make your life prosperous and blessed.

That's all my friends, loved ones, family, and acquaintances...may your life not be wasted on pride and vanity of this world. Because without God, that's all that there is out there.

Hard Days...every day.

When your spirit is troubled, which, if you're like me (and you are because you're human), is just about every day, don't worry about it. There is nothing in this world that should cause your mind or heart or spirit to be troubled. There is a place of rest that you can turn to. When the skies are dark, and you feel the pressure coming down on you...telling you that you're not worth it, or that there's nothing to look forward to, or that nothing will ever change no matter how much you fight...be still and know that you don't have to fight.

When you feel like nothing means anything any more and everyone has abandonded you, let your soul be at ease and feel peace. Know that you are loved from since before you were born. Since before you were ever a thought present in anyone's mind, you are loved. When everything falls apart and your hope has whithered away in front of you, cry and be comforted. Let all your fears and worries and stress and walls crumble under the love that wishes to elevate you from the stagnant, stale, dead air which you can't survive in.

When you scream for life, and love, and freedom...know that God will be there till you realize that He is your deliverer.