He's only 7yrs old and he inspires me...

I walked past his homework hanging on the refrigerator this morning. I wished I snapped a picture with my Blackberry, maybe I'll get it later and post on this same entry. The words good job were written at the top of the page by his teacher. Underneath I could not understand a single word, why; because everything was written in Mandarin. When I look at the dreams and the accomplishments of my seven year old, it does something inside me that amazes me. I really believe what God has inspired in my son has already begun to take fruit. My son believes one day he will go to China to tell people about Jesus and he tells me we're going to open a CWC (Christian Worship Center) one day.

Then last week we got on the topic of Brazil for some reason and the question came up. "Dad do we have a CWC in Brazil", I replied "no son we do not." The response I got and what followed is still blowing me away days later. "Well dad we gotta go to Brazil and open a CWC over there too" I replied "replied what about China?" "We're still going to China, then after it will be Brazil" my son replied.

Again, these are the words of a seven year old and to him traveling around the world, preaching Jesus, and opening churches is normal thing, it's just the way that life is and what we are suppose to do. When I look at the destinations in my son's heart compared to the destinations in my own, his look much riskier, and crazier but he belives and say's it like it's completely accomplishable and something that will happen in the future.

I thank God that my wife and I have been able to encourage my son to believe God in the impossible and he believes it. I also thank God for allowing us to install compassion in my son for those that do not know Jesus. But today, I must say son, you inspire me, you inspired me to continue to believe as you do with a childlike faith and trusting God will provide a way no matter what. Thank you Lord for my son Isaiah and my daughter Leia, the lessons, encouragement, and strength that you have taught me through their little lives is priceless.

Welcome All!

I just checked my Google analytics for my blog and saw that I have some new visitors from very far away. Just wanted to say welcome to my new visitors from Cochin India and Lucknow India. Also for those of you in the states that are new as well, I would like to say Welcome and thank you for visiting. Feel free to post comments I would love to hear about you. I hope that in anyway that I can, I can serve you with my life lessons, encouragement and hope that I find daily through Jesus.

God Bless and Welcome!

The Bumper Sticker

We were stuck in traffic last Friday, the work week had officially closed, kids were hungry, I was feeling a bit cranky and although we were not at each others throats the atmosphere had the potential for it. Since we were in the carpool lane I was passing cars by but it was slow enough that I was able to catch a bumper sticker that sparked something. I asked my wife "did you see that?" She replied "the bumper sticker?" I replied YES! Then it came to me, at that moment we installed a tradition, something that we would train up our children with, something that we would always remember. The bumper sticker simply asked a question, it wasn't magical, wasn't outrageous, even the text looked normal but in the stage of our life that we are in, what we know is ahead of us and the attitude that we had at the time it made a profound impact.

What are you thankful for?

Yup that's it, told you it wasn't magical. We made a decision after reading that bumper sticker that when life get's tough and when we may not be seeing each other eye to eye and the air is thick with attitude we are going to stop and tell each other what we are thankful for. I declared it, we agreed as a family and we did it.

So, in our little green Honda Accord, we went around saying, what we were thankful for. Even my 2 yr old gave her thanks. "Uhm I'm thankful for Zai Zai" (her brother) What a powerful moment, what an attitude adjuster, what a powerful life lesson. If your going through it today, if your attitude is slightly sour, if your confused or frustrated, stop and think: What are you thankful for?

With Excellence

I am a student of one of the greatest teachers of excellence that I know. I've learned a whole lot from my Pastor, mentor and friend, Pastor Dan Vera, What I've learned most is that excellence must be a standard that we always keep ahead of us in anything we do for God. Excellence is as plain as black and white. Sometimes excellence means you must play hurt, other times it means suck it up and get the job done all the way, but one thing that excellence always is, "Doing the best that you can, with what you have"

Just moments ago I text some of my team and I brought up a question that we ask now and then to grade our level of excellence. "Can you see the heart?" Here the answers I got back:

1) Getting back...
2) No, I feel disconnected
3) I feel like everything is moving too fast
4) Vaguely

Why am I showing this too you? Why am I exposing our current struggle? Why am I being so vulnerable? Because, You can't do anything excellent if one ingredient is missing, HEART, and all of our hearts have a way of straying. Life, schedules, jobs, problems, family, stress, etc. all of it has a way of affecting your heart and if your in ministry like I am how do you continue to do things with excellence when your heart is under all of that? Truthfully you can't, and if you try, there will be this unsatisfying feeling in your gut because heart was missing. I'll be honest I hate that feeling. I can't stand to think I'm wasting time, life and energy because I can't find the heart.
So what are we going to do?
Maybe under difference circumstances, but we've been here before, so we know what to do. We may be tired, stretched thin, and even burdened with some stuff, but we know where we want to go, and where God wants us. We know how to find heart again.

I know with that simple text just moments ago, people are beginning to think, regroup and prepare to encourage one another. I can hear the question now, "How's the heart?" Can you see it? Can you feel it? Can we pray about it? If excellence is your standard, find the heart, don't wait, find it now. Say a simple prayer and ask God to help you get back on track. David's prayer in the bible was this "I will not offer to God that which cost me nothing"

Anything with heart involved will cost you something, but in the end, it cost you more if you live without heart. Find the heart again and live excellent.

I don't have what it takes, but I'm still standing

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them Romans 8:28

No, I haven't arrived, so don't let this post fool you. I don't have what it takes, but I'm still standing. When I look back at how much I've been stretched, pulled and pressed in life, those words in Romans 8:28 mean so much more to me. "Everything... every difficulty, every pressure, every time I wanted to give up, every time I thought things were not going to work out, every time my wife and I prayed and wondered who are we kidding? Every time I confessed, apologized to my team for not being the leader I felt they deserved, Every time I ran inside, screamed inside, was spinning out of control in my mind.
E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G worked together for my good.

I can't explain it fully, all I know is I've had to hunt for what I did not have. I've had to depend on what I could not produce on my own. I've had pursue, depend, and lean on a strength that is not my own. I've had to quiet my life and listen for that single sound whisper that is louder and more powerful then any word produced on this earth. I stand today because of God, and to continue to stand will be because of God, there's absolutely no other way I can put it. I realize now that the times that life felt like it was spinning out of control the most is actually when God was doing His greatest work in me. God loves me, and He loves you, and truthfully you don't have what it takes...but you can still stand when you sit at the feet of Jesus and depend on Him more then you depend on yourself. Your going to make it, you can pull through, because Jesus will get you there...

Inspired Pt.1

Ideas capture the mind, inspiration compels the heart. Why is this, because, anything birthed in the heart is hard to let go. I've had ideas that come and go, ideas that never quite take off or ideas that were just bad all together. Being inspired has a way of getting my full attention and getting the attention of others. Inspiration has a resounding effect on the heart when pursued. When I've been inspired to do something, experience something or accomplish something, there is very little that can stop me especially when I know it's God doing the inspiring. Inspiration is like a fire that consumes a person from the inside, ignites anyone around and spreads even further. Take a look at Twitter, how many times have you seen someone post something inspirational. 75% of people I follow on Twitter and Facebook say something inspirational more than once a week, is that coincidence or am I just following inspirational people? Where does this desire to leave something behind, make an impact, and to say something important come from?  

There must be a common denominator...

I believe God wants us to live inspired lives for Him. What does that look like, an inspired life for God? A life inspired by God, is living with a heightened awareness of who God is, His purpose in our lives and lastly a heightened awareness to those who around us daily.

You see, your life is a story, it's a story fearfully and wonderfully created, it's unique and it's to be filled with inspiration. Be inspired... There is more to come on this thought later. 

I'm curious though, what or who has inspired you in life? Why? Feel free to comment below. 

Just let it go, somehow, some way...

I'm literally writing this blog just minutes outside of a big disappointment. I have a lot on my mind, plenty to still do, oh yeah and I'm preaching tomorrow to people on how to live a better life. Immediately I began to call on the Lord because the best thing to do when you feel alone is to get alone with God. I had a decision just a few minutes ago, I could continue to be disappointed, hurt and angry or I could just give it to God and let it go. I asked God what I should do and really felt in my heart just to let what I was feeling go.

Listen, people are going to disappoint you, you will have unmet expectations in life, and you will experience hurt and after each of those moments you will have a decision to make. You will have the decision to let it go on, or to seriously let it go and give it to God. I look at it this way, the longer I hold onto things that hurt, disappoint and anger me the longer I get hurt in the end. If you grabbed a cast iron pan that was hot by the handle you would get seriously burned, but who would continue to clinch their fist around the handle and hold onto it? It's the same way in life, you have to do everything in your power to let things go otherwise you'll continue to get hurt. Truthfully I've gotten burned while cooking a lot, but I hardly have any scars at all because I let go quickly, get the picture?
Let it go, somehow, some way, find an alone place with God and let it go, you'll be glad that you did.

The Back Burner

If I ever have the chance, I just might take up being a chef on the side... I love cooking so here's another cooking illustration for you. Sometimes when I cook I can have as much as three to four things on the stove as I prepare a meal. The front two burners are the most important, I need to watch those items, pay extra attention and make sure I revisit them often. The items on the back burner however are different. Items on the back burner are an important part of my menu, but they will always have reduced flame, reduced attention and reduced priority.

Sadly many people, (and I have been guilty of this as well) place God on the back burner of their lives. How can we expect to have a life that is piping hot with purpose, bubbling with blessing, and as flavorful as life can get, if our relationship with God is on the back burner? Isn't it true that the minute things go wrong, take an unexpected turn and we have no answers, is the same minute we put God back on the front burner again? If there is one thing that I've learned is this "if anything is before God everything will eventually fail." You and I cannot, and should not, even attempt life with God on the back burner. You need God, burning, bubbling, and boiling hot first in your life otherwise your purpose, destiny, and greatest dreams are just simmering and probably just barely at that. Keep God on the front burner and your life will flourish beyond measure.

Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Psalm 37:4

Something small but powerful...

It's Tuesday October 13th, and we are experiencing our first real storm of the rainy season. Tree's are blowing in the wind, palm tree remnants are on the roads and visibility was extremely poor at times during my drive. Something small but powerful caught my attention this morning though as I passed a church during my drive into work. On the church property there are three flag poles, each with a flag hoisted atop. The first flag I noticed was the California state flag, this flag was not blowing at all. Matter of fact the California flag looked like it had been wrung. I begin to think, similar to the state of the California flag, California has been through the wringer in terms of the economy. Families, homes, communities and jobs, have all gone through a tremendous storm that has affected the luster of the Golden State.

Next I saw the American flag, although it was flying, it was barely able to fly. A corner of the flag was actually folded up and the flag looked incomplete. I believe that there is a grace upon our nation that is allowing us to rebound from one of the greatest economic struggles we have ever seen. It's not the Fed lowering interest rates, it's not jobs starting to come back, it's not even a different president that is keeping America flying, it's the grace of God.

Lastly I saw the Christian Flag, and this flag although it was being pounded by wind and rain continued to fly as if there was no storm at all. I love what a visiting speaker at our church recently said "There is no crisis when Christ is." When Christ is...your trust, hope, strength, and faith, no matter what, you will be able to fly. The crisis, rain, wind, and storms of life no matter how ugly, how big, and how long they may seem to last cannot stop who Christ is. Your meant to soar, meant to fly, meant to spread your wings in this life and be the best You that God has called you to be. Fly today, no matter what your crisis is...because Christ is...

"Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life..." Psalm 23:6