Free Gas

If I see one more advertising for Free Gas or Gas for a discounted price I'm going to jump off the proverbial cliff! Who are they kidding? How can you fall for it.

Just this morning on the television I saw a furniture store offering FREE GAS with the purchase of a piece of furniture. Yeah Right! And how many people, with little or no willpower go in with the intention to buy one piece of furniture and end up buying a whole house full because they're getting FREE GAS. So what if they end up paying interest on their purchase for the next 20 years, they got FREE GAS. Not so much.

Or what about the desperate car companies offering a fixed price on gas for the next 3 years. Although its probably slim, gas could drop below $2.99 a gallon again. I know, I need to quit dreaming, but it could. I'm not saying it will. So you make a $30,000 purchase to save a $1.00 per gallon on gas.

C'mon...get a clue! Isn't it bad enough that we have to pay $4 for a gallon of gas and then get schemed on top of it. If you're in a bind because of the price of gas there are other ways to address it. If you don't have a budget, maybe its a good time to create one. Perhaps you can budget more money for gas. You could cut back on unnecessary trips. There are many things that won't cause you to go deeper into debt to save a few cents on gas. Don't get sucked in to it!

Chase Financial Peace

Yesterday I had the opportunity to visit the new CHASE bank branch on Main Street in Mishawaka. I've admired the exterior of the building ever since it was constructed. I am a big fan of modern design and this building fits that category in my perspective anyway.

Ok, so enough about the exterior of this building. I went into the branch and was as equally impressed with its interior. I was promptly greeted by a customer service person and escorted to her desk for assistance.

As we were walking to her desk I continued to scan the inside of the building. I mentioned to her that it was my first time inside the branch and I was very impressed with the design both inside and out. She immediately seized the selling opportunity and replied "You dont' bank with us?" I said that I did not bank with Chase and have been with a local credit union for several years. She asked what the credit union offered that resulted in my loyalty? Ok this could take a while.

I replied that my banking situation is rather unusual and the credit union has been very accomodating. I said I have 20+ savings accounts with them. Its part of how I do my budget and its worked quite well. I deposit X amount of dollars in various accounts and when the bill comes for that account I just transfer the money to my checking and pay the bill.

There was silence when I finished explaining. She looked me straight in the eye and said "You're one of those Dave Ramsey people, aren't You!"



I said "as a matter of fact I am!" She took my transaction over to the teller line to have it processed and returned with her manager. She introduced her manager to me and told her about my budget process and that I was one of those Dave Ramsey people..."he uses saving accounts instead of envelopes." I didn't know whether this was a good thing or I was a freak show! I'm thinkin' it was a good thing. Thats what I'm telling myself anyway.

I love the appearance of the Chase branch. And I have to say that the customer service was very good. Would I change financial institutions because of that...probalby not but my initial experience with Chase was great.

Nesting

These little guys have taken up temporary residence in a tall shrub just outside our garage door. It's amazing how they've grown in just a weeks time. On Monday I peek'd in on them and all I could see was little beaks pointing straight up in the air, opening and closing, just waiting for some nourishment from mom. Mom, however was up in the tree on the other side of the garage, scolding me like crazy! But these babies new she'd be back with a big, fat, juicy worm for them to devour. They knew they'd be cared for and had no worry.

Matthew 6:26 (The Message)

25-26"If you decide for God, living a life of God-worship, it follows that you don't fuss about what's on the table at mealtimes or whether the clothes in your closet are in fashion. There is far more to your life than the food you put in your stomach, more to your outer appearance than the clothes you hang on your body. Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far more to him than birds.

I thought about these baby birds a lot last night after I snapped their picture. They are virtually dependant upon mother robin to care for them. They can't go anywhere, so they wait upon mom to meet their needs. No need to worry.

God tells me the same thing in Luke 12:24. So why do I continue to worry? Sometimes I can get totally consumed with things of which I have no control. However, now that I think about it, things I can control often fall into the worry category too! Does worry really make anything better or less stressful? Quite the contrary!

Sometimes worry causes me to be grouchy. Worry makes me edgy. I'm risk adversive when I worry (like I need anything else to make me more conservative!). Worry over-activates my preventative nature. I'm overprotective when I worry. I withdraw when I worry. Worry makes me want to take control. Worry messes me up!

Mowing the lawn is one of my LEAST favorite things to do. But because I worry about not having a lawn that matches the rest of the lawns in our subdivision, I fertilize and water regularly. This equates to mowing regularly, like every 2-3 days, ARRGGGGHHH! I could really resonate with Mark Beeson when he was comparing life being hard to cutting your grass, in this past weekends message. Mark said "the grass grows and grows, and you mow and mow, then you die!" I'm now convinced that I'm going to drop dead while mowing the lawn one day...ha ha!

While mowing the lawn last night I had this revelation. I get totally consumed with worry (and often paralyzed with fear) when I have life impacting choices to make. Will I make the right choice? What is the right choice? What if I make the wrong choice? I've found myself praying for God to take options away at times. Don't make me choose. You pick God, cuz You know the right answer anyway.

But then it hit me last night. I don't think I want God to take the option away. I don't think that having choices should be synonomous with worry. When I have to choose between options, to worry or not to worry for instance, it makes me lean in harder on God to trust that he will provide.

Will I continue to worry? Is my grass green (and long...arrrghh)! But just like when these baby birds get pushed out of their nest, I can't let worry make me plummet to the ground. It will make me soar because I am confident that God is taking care of me......And you count far more to him than birds

Seeds

Back in April our friend Dixie gave Lori one of those packages of wild flower seeds that show and amazing picture of a field of wild flowers in bloom on the package. I've always been a skeptic of the claims on those packages and didn't really believe they would produce one flower let alone a field of flowers.

We have this wine barrel on our back patio and in past years we've gone out and bought flowers in the spring a planted them in it. We didnt do that last year and it probably wasn't likely we were going to do it this year. As a matter of fact weeds had already started to emerge. Lori cleaned out all of the weeds and scattered the seed for the wild flowers in the dirt that was in the wine barrel.

One of the reasons we don't plant many flowers is that we're not very good at ensuring they get watered. I think Lori diligently watered the seeds in the dirt for a couple weeks but then it became mother natures job. I had noticed that some green sprouts had begun to push their way through the dirt but I'd just assumed it was more weeds. Lori assured me they were flowers. I wasn't sure I believed it.

As you can see I was wrong. The seeds have produced red, yellow and purple flowers.

Mark 4

3-8"Listen. What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road and birds ate it. Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn't put down roots, so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly. Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled among the weeds and nothing came of it. Some fell on good earth and came up with a flourish, producing a harvest exceeding his wildest dreams.

We weren't really sure if the package of wild flower seeds would produce anything in that old wine barrel. Yet we tossed them in and had faith that they would grow. As Christ followers, we have to spread the seed of Jesus and have faith that God will grow it within those we encounter. The potential for a beautiful harvest is limitless.

Starbucks to Cut 600 Coffee Shops

Starbucks to Cut 600 Coffee Shops and 12,000 U.S.

Coffee snob that I am, when I first heard this last week I was panic stricken! Course I've never really understood why you can walk from one corner to the next and find a Starbucks, but then again, I am all about convenience.

First news releases in our area said that there was a Starbucks closing in Indianapolis and Ft Wayne so it seemed Michiana was spared. Not so much. As it turns out one the locations on the west side is closing. I feel bad for the people who work in that location and the consumers who have a Starbucks addiction like me.

I have to wonder if Walgreens or CVS won't be next. There are probably 3 of each of these within 5 miles of my house. Where does the competition line get drawn?

If Eienstein's Bagels or Caribou Coffee were smart they'd snatch up these abandoned Starbucks locations and create some competition!

A wise study

I’ve been trying to come up with a new Bible study to embark on but have not had much luck. I’ve tried topical things, researching specific words but nothing was clicking. I like to read scriptrue then ponder, evaluate and see how what I’ve read applies to my life.

I’m not, however, a big fan of tools in which you read a section of scripture and then it has a list of questions to be answered. Ok, I know this is ridiculous but to me it’s like taking a test or something. Sometimes I don’t understand the question or wonder whether I’m interpreting it correctly. And if I’m not answering it right, what then….I fail! YIKES! If I can make up my own questions…I know I’ll pass!

About a year ago I made it my goal to read the entire Old Testament within a year. Well it took about a year and ½ but it was great. Each day I took a chapter, read it and then journaled thoughts on what I read and how it applied to me. It was great and I learned a lot about the Old Testament and myself.

Yesterday at our weekly staff meeting Mark Beeson had referenced a book called “The Richest Man Whoever Lived” by Steven Scott that had been the focus of one of the previous Men’s Breakfasts with Mark Beeson. I have not read this book but it’s my plan to get it soon.

Mark had said that one of the men attending the breakfast had decided to read one Proverb each day and then reflect on that proverb each day and it had great impact on his life. I gathered that was what the premise of the book, to read proverbs, but since I’ve not read the book I’m not sure. Anyway, I thought what a great idea. So this morning I started my Proverb journey.

As I was working out this morning, a song entitled “Hurt” by Christina Aguilera came on my IPOD. I think this song was originally released as a ballad but who can go 9.5mph on an elliptical machine to a ballad so I downloaded the remix dance version. Anyway…the song starts out with

"Seems like it was yesterday when I saw your face… You told me how proud you were… but I walked away… If only I knew what I know today…”

When I settled in at Panera with coffee in hand and my online bible up on my computer, the words from the song rocketed back into my head after reading these verses

Proverbs 1:
7 Start with God—the first step in learning is bowing down to God; only fools thumb their noses at such wisdom and learning…..19 When you grab all you can get, that's what happens: the more you get, the less you are

How often do I walk away from God and don’t even realize it? I think it’s easy to get wrapped in my selfishness that I can push God right out of the picture and then realize that I did that on the backside of things. Stuff, notoriety, etc…. can put a big wedge between me and God if it’s derived from self serving motivation. Outcomes can be devastating. I have to make a conscious decision to start with God every time.

Proverbs 1 goes on to tell us that we can turn this around and point our feet in the right direction. God is waiting to pour His spirit upon us.

About face! I can revise your life. Look, I'm ready to pour out my spirit on you; I'm ready to tell you all I know. As it is, I've called, but you've turned a deaf ear; I've reached out to you, but you've ignored me.

The first lines of the song could be a reflection of me at times, when I’ve made decisions that distanced me from God, but I think the next few lines in the song could be God speaking back to me

I would hold you in my arms…I would take the pain away…Thank you for all you've done…Forgive all your mistakes…There's nothing I wouldn't do…To hear your voice again…Sometimes I want to call you but I know you won't be there

Each time I read these words I get goose bumps. When I think of what Jesus went through for me…for me! I believe He really does want to hold me in His arms. I believe He wants to take my pain away. I believe He wants to hear my voice and be in conversation with Him. I cannot comprehend the sorrow that must overwhelm Him when He calls and I’m not there, I don’t respond, because I’m too wrapped up in ME.


"Because you hated Knowledge and had nothing to do with the Fear-of-God, Because you wouldn't take my advice and brushed aside all my offers to train you, Well, you've made your bed—now lie in it; you wanted your own way—now, how do you like it? Don't you see what happens, you simpletons, you idiots? Carelessness kills; complacency is murder. First pay attention to me, and then relax. Now you can take it easy—you're in good hands."

God tells me that when I pay attention to Him I can relax. I don’t know about you, but tension and worry take its toll on me and I’m not a big fan of them. Yet, sometimes it seems like I live on Worry Street, Tension-town, USA. Relaxing is way better than stressing. I think these last verses of the song sum it up well.

Would you tell me I was wrong?...Would you help me understand?...Are you looking down upon me?...Are you proud of who I am?...There's nothing I wouldn't do… To have just one more chance…To look into your eyes and see you looking back

Could we ask for anything more than the loving eyes of our God looking back into ours.
Thanks for the Proverbs study suggestion Mark. This is going to be a great run!

Isn't she....

I'm am so lucky to be married to this woman...

Isn't she lovely .....Isn't she wonderful ....Isn't she precious

Am I blessed or what!

Where oh where is my USB?

I am totally bummed tonite. I have lost my USB flash drive. It had a ton of important information on it. And the worst part, not all of it was backed up to an external hard drive.

I had it this morning at Panera. I was certain that I returned it to my back pack, but apparently I didn't. One of the regulars at Panera told me he'd just got a new laptop that had 1 g of storage. I distinctly remember pulling my flash drive out to show him that it held a gig of storage. It was only in jest but maybe this is what I get of harassing him.

I've turned my backpack inside out 3 or 4 times this evening but to no avail. I called Panera do see if anyone had turned something in but no results there either. After dinner we drove to Panera so I could look for myself in the area that I normally sit everyday, but found nothing. Again I asked management if anyone had turned it in, but no one had.

We went to Wal Mart after Panera. I bought a new flash drive while there with the hopes that I'd find mine when I got home and could just return it tomorrow. But when we got home it wasn't here.

There was a lot of work put into the files on that flash drive. I think I'm just depressed now. Fortunately I can recover most of it up to a couple of weeks ago from my external hard drive. But anything thats been done since then is likely to be lost.

I'm trying to remain hopeful that when I got to Panera for coffee tomorrow that it will have turned up. I'm holding out on opening the new drive until tomorrow morning. Maybe that's goofy....I dunno.

What 'cha gonna do?

Week One of Source

Granger Community Church (http://www.gccwired.com/) started a new 3 week series of weekend messages entitled "Source - Where do you draw your power." Mark Beeson knocked it out of the park with the first message surrounding authority in our lives.


Though the major text of Marks message came from Matthew 8, he challenged us with the truths found in Proverbs, Ephesians, Jude, Chronicals and Acts.


The dictionary defines authority as: the power to influence or command thought, opinion or behavior. Mark showed us examples of God's authority through illustrations found in Matthew 8. The words and touch of Jesus healed afflictions raging the human body (Matt. 8:5-13, 14-16). And, His power cast out demons (Matt. 8:14-34). Authority. Who else but God can do those things? No one. Text from Jude 1:25 confirms that '......All glory, majesty, power and authority are His before time, and in the present, and beyond all time!'

God spoke to and through Mark in amazing ways that made it so clear that God is the ultimate authority in our lives. Mark's message was captivating and challenging. He caused me to contemplate who or what other things I allow to have authority in my life that may cause me to stop short of God's authority.
Although I know that God has the ultimate authority in my life, I know that I often stop short of that and let other things or people rule. One authority bandit that was famous for ruling over me for a period of my life was the credit card industry.

The 'keeping up with the Jones' phase of my life caused Visa and Mastercard to have authority in my life for a long period of time. I relinquished authority to them so that I could be showered with possessions and impress my peers. When I stepped above the enslaving authority of Visa and Mastercard and willingly took that authority higher, God showed me how to turn it around. God is the authority over my finances.

There are appropriate levels of authority in our lives. My mother has an appropriate level of authority in my life. My supervisor has an appropriate level of authority in my life. My pastors have an appropriate level of authority in my life. But God has the ultimate level of authority in my life. And as Peter and the apostles said in Acts 5:29 "We must obey God rather than any human authority"


I left church Saturday nite, not only remined that God is the ultimate authority in my life, but with the peace that God has the ultimate authority over my life.

What did she say?

Sunday was our oldest son Adam's 24th birthday. We decided to take him and his fiance Meg to one of our favorite asian restaurants in Chicago (well actually Schaumberg) called Big Bowl. After lunch we drove up to Gurnee Mills to do some outlet shopping.

Asian food never seems to stick with me nor Lori, Adam or Meg so we decided to get some dinner before making our trek back to South Bend. Lori and I don't usually eat dinner when we finish shopping at Gurnee so we were'nt really sure what restaurants were in the area. We were sure there would be some since the Great America amusement park was just down the road so we drove in that direction.

We found a Craker Barrel and Lori noticed that there was an Oberweis Dairy across the street. Lori and I have been to an Oberweis many times over by Willow Creek Church in Barrington so we told the kids we should go there for ice cream after dinner.

Oberweis wasn't very busy when we walked in and we were able to walk righ up to the counter. I was the first to decide what I wanted so I ordered. The girl took my order and then said something to me that just didn't sound right......

"Are you seeing anyone?" is what I thought I heard her say to me. I was dumbfounded. For the first few brief moments I went into this 'out of body' time warp. I'm thinkin' to myself "oh no you didn't just ask me that in front of my wife!" That morphed into "hey, I guess I still got it...Rico Suave..(NOT!)" But then the angel on my shoulder knocked off the little devil on my other shoulder and I was slapped back into reality.....

What was probably just a few seconds had seem like minutes had passed....I just started laughing. Lori and the kids were looking at me like 'whats wrong with him?' The girl had acutally asked me if I had some kind of "Moo" card for frequent visits to Oberweis. I was dumbfounded. I told them (and the girl taking my order) what I thought she said and they all cracked up. Although I have to wonder if the girl behind the counter wasn't thinkin' "yeah right, yah big freak!"

I've come to the conclusion that I was either really tired or I must be older than I think and my hearing is on its way out.

We laughed about our ice cream experience all the way home!

How big is yours?

Mark Beeson said something profound to me at our mid week service this week (actually he says profound things all the time!) that really penetrated my thought process. "What if God was going to answer one of your prayer's today, would you be disappointed because what you prayed for was small?" WOW! Our God is so big and can do absolutely anything and everything that He wants to do.... are my pidly prayers insulting to Him?


I do believe that there are specific, finite things I need to pray for, but how can I broaden the scope? It's really made me think about the ways I've been praying over the past few days. Is it really my goal for just one small aspect of a huge situation to be resolved or blessed, or do I want the whole situation resolved and blessed. The impact has the potential to be astounding.




Take for instance my sister in law who is battling treatment for breast cancer. There is no way that I can possibly understand what she is going through. As a matter of fact I told her that just the other day. But I know that God cares about her, is taking care of her and knows exactly what she is facing every day. So I told her I pray for her because I know God knows what she needs. But I have changed the scope of my prayers for her. Not only to I ask that she be spared from the ramifications of chemical treatments but I ask Him for complete restoration. I know He can do that. I believe He can do that. And I am waiting for Him to do that. Sure I could, and I will continue to pray for her to be able to endure each specific incident, but my prayer is bigger now and I believe He hears it and we'll see the results.


....Or my youngest son who just recently graduated from college. My concerns for him have been centered around his debt from school, health insurance...the list goes on. My prayer, though I'm not sure was wrong was basically "God find him a job!" But I'm changing the focus of my prayer. I pray that he will find a job that is his passion, and not just pay well with good benefits. Yes those are important. But anyone of us can get a well paying job that is an absolute chore to go to day in and day out. I think when we soar at what God has designed us to be why wouldn't He make everything else fall in to place.


I'm implementing this in other areas of prayer life too. How can I put tiny limits on prayers from a God who wants me to have so much more. Mark spoke Thursday night of a story of a grandfather who gave his grandaughter a string of pop beads that she dearly loved. Later as the little girl was growing into a young woman the grandfather wanted the string of pop beads back and he replaced it with a string of pearls. God wants so much for us. Grandiose eternal things for us. But we often limit ourselves to the small and immediate. We settle for little when abundance is just around the corner.


Now don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that God is like the "jeanie in the bottle" who is going to grant you three wishes. I'm saying that we need to rethink our prayers and open them up to better and bigger opportunities with God. Instead of "God, I don't know how to pay off this credit card" maybe you could pray "God, bring income opportunities that will not only help me align with the stewardship of my resources with You, but get a handle on the debt that makes me think so small"


I'm so excited about this new direction of my prayer life. I'm on the edge, waiting with anticipation to see what God will do next!