How's your appetite?

Have you ever been hungry? I mean, REALLY HUNGRY? I have been blessed to have lived a life where I have never known true hunger. Yeah, there have been times that I may not particularly like what is being served, or that I have not eaten right when I wanted, but I have never known true hunger - for food. I have been hungry to know more about JESUS.

There is an old Gospel song that says, "I want to know more about my JESUS. I want to know more about my LORD.." Have you ever been hungry for JESUS? Have you ever wanted to know more about why GOD, Himself, would come to make a way to have a relationship with us? I am a terrible example at times, but I am truly hungry to know more.

Today's word is Luke 6:21, KJV, which reads, "Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh."

When you are hungry, there is only one remedy - to eat. And, there is nothing like the feeling of eating after you have been hungry. There is only One Thing that will fill our spiritual hunger - JESUS CHRIST. There are lots of folks trying to fill that void in their life, in their heart, in their soul with everything and anything when JESUS is the ONLY THING.

Have you ever noticed that even if you just ate a big meal, it wears off. We can have a ginormous dinner and I will awake tomorrow morning wanting breakfast. Yet, in our spiritual lives, we will sup with JESUS and then not commune with Him again until something bad happens or we need an answer NOW. I know, just like my physical hunger, my spiritual hunger should be a constant reminder that I need spiritual sustenance. So, how's your appetite?

Be Blessed,
Mickey T 

Work It

I've been thinking A LOT lately about what GOD wants me to do. I have always tried to seek GOD'S will for my life. Now, I haven't always immediately accepted it. And, I have from time to time tried to run from it. But, as I matured in my Christian faith and walk, I try to follow GOD'S will and call.

Trish and I have young children. I want to be sure that I am being what I am supposed to be as a husband, as a father, as a person. I want to be the one that leads my family, that teaches my children about GOD, and faith, and purpose. I want them to see me living my faith to the fullest. I want them to see me doing GOD'S work for His glory.

Today's word is Genesis 2:15, NIV, which reads, "The LORD GOD took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it."

I think a lot of folks are wandering around trying to find what GOD wants them to do. Why? Because, they don't like what GOD has called them to do. OR, they don't think that what they are doing is "good enough". No, they don't think that their efforts aren't good enough; they think that their calling should be something more glamorous, more visual, more prominent. But, I'll tell you what GOD has called us all to do - WORK.

Maybe you're thinking that GOD can't use you in your work. I want you to know that GOD is using your work for you and for others. Your example of good work, your determination and attitude is a testimony, either positive or negative. GOD put Adam in the Garden of Eden to tend it and take care of it, to WORK it. So, GOD'S calling for this season of your life might have you gardening, or welding, or cooking, or managing, or sweeping, or mowing, or cleaning, or typing, or whatever. His purpose, though, has not changed. He has placed each of us wherever we are to WORK IT.

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

Give Him the glory

If you've ever asked me how I am doing, you have probably heard me reply, "Blessed and Highly Favored." And, as I have shared before, that is not something that I just say, it is not some flippant comment, it is not just something that sounds good, I truly am Blessed and Highly Favored, and I just want to share that with others.

GOD is so good to us if we will just recognize all the blessings around us. I truly believe that if you have someone to love and someone who loves you, you are far wealthier, far more blessed than you could ever imagine. If you have family and friends that you can talk to and fellowship with, that is a blessing many others don't have. If you have the ability to get up and go do, you are truly blessed. And, all these blessings come from our Father, Who loves to bless His children and Who deserves our praise.

Today's word is Psalm 29:2, KJV, which reads, "Give unto the LORD the glory due to His name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness."

We need to give the LORD His deserved glory. He has given us everything, including the gift of eternal life with Him, if we will only accept it. Yes, He deserves our highest praise and honor for the gift of eternal life, and for all the little things that we enjoy in our day to day lives.

I think about this time of year as we are entering into the autumn/fall season. We will see the leaves change into indescribable colors. We will see many beautiful displays, natural and man-made, as we move through the holiday seasons ahead. I pray that I remember that the LORD allows me the blessing to see it all and to experience it all. I want to give Him the glory!

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

Do what is right

If you look up the word "right", you will find that it means, "morally good, justified, acceptable, correct, true, etc." We don't usually have to ask anyone how to do the right thing. We do often struggle, though, with doing it.

I have mentioned before that oftentimes the right thing is the hardest thing. However, it is still the right thing. And, there is no feeling like doing the right thing. Yeah, it is often difficult to feel as if we have done the right thing. It seems that if we do the right thing we should feel better about it, though, we often feel as if we have been through a great struggle. I think not wanting to feel the struggle, not wanting to feel the pain associated with the right thing, we find ourselves from time to time not doing the right thing, but doing the easy thing.

Today's word is a quote from Theodore Roosevelt that says, "Knowing what's right doesn't mean much unless you do what is right."

We can know what is right. We can tell others what is right. We can quote every law, every scripture, every creed and schism, but none of that means anything if we don't practice what we preach. It's easy to tell others what they need to do, or it is for me. It's easy to point out where other people fail and falter. But, are we diligently seeking to do what is right?

I know today's post sort of goes with yesterday's, and I apologize. I really want to be GOD'S servant. I want to do what He wants me to do. I want to be useful to Him. I want others to see that I don't just say it, I walk it. I want to be found faithful. I want to be an example to others, especially my wife and children. I want them to know that I am going to do the right thing, ALWAYS. I want them to see me doing the right thing, ALWAYS. Because, "knowing what's right doesn't mean much unless you do what is right."

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

The life that I live

Ever have someone say, "Hey, you need to go look in the mirror"? Well, you go, and sure enough, your hair is a mess, or you've got chocolate all over your mouth, or you've got spinach between your teeth. The gist is, you can't see your true self unless you look into something that reflects your image.

I'm not a huge mirror fan. Yes, we have them in our house for the reasons I just stated, along with being able to straighten ties and gig lines. The downside to mirrors, though, is that reflect my true image. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not image-conscious or image-focused, but, I can see that the image reflected back today is a little older, a little grayer, a little more wrinkled than the image from previous reflections. The image I see is the true me.

Today's word is Proverbs 27:19, NIV, which reads, "As water reflects the face, so one's life reflects the heart."

Much as we see our true outward appearance, our true reflection, by looking in the mirror or by looking into water, our life shows our true inward appearance. We may think we are projecting a perfect image but our heart shows our true self. We may try to mask our lives by saying the right things, by going to some of the right places, by putting on an act. However, our heart reflects who we really are, and we all know our own hearts.

I am much more concerned with my spiritual image than the physical one I see in the mirror. I can dye my hair, I can put in colored contacts, I can buy really nice clothes, I can change my physical appearance but my true self, the person I truly am, will always be reflected by the life that I live.

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

To Whom we are attached

I have probably shared before that Trish and I have a flower cemetery; we plant it, it dies. I hate to say that we have a proverbial "black thumb" but we have little success when it comes to flowers and plants. We have managed to allow a cactus and an aloe vera meet their respective demise while in our care. I know, hard to do, but, we did it.

My Mom, on the other hand, can pretty much cast seeds on the pavement of the busiest highway and grow some of the most spectacular flowers in the world. How she does it, I do not know. She just has a gift for cultivating and for horticulture. We had a second aloe vera plant that I was sure had expired that my Mom brought back and it is still living and thriving.

Today's word is Colossians 2:7, NLT, which reads, "Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your lives be built on Him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness."

Without a good foundation, a good root system, plants will not make it. I'm sure you have probably seen large trees fallen in the wind because, while they were massive in size, their roots didn't grow deep enough to withstand the storm's onslaught. When the storm blew the strongest, the tree's lack of deep roots allowed it to be toppled. The same can happen in our spiritual life.

We have to allow our roots to be grounded DEEP into JESUS. We have to allow Him and His Word to penetrate and permeate everything we are. If we will do that, when the storm comes, and it will, we will have roots established so deeply that we may lose a few leaves, we may be "pruned" but we will not be moved.

My Mom is a really good horticulturist. She knows how to cultivate and nurture and promote the growth of plants. She knows that the secret to success is establishing a good root system. Our spiritual lives are only going to be as strong as the depth of our root system, and to WHOM we are attached.

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

Are you listening?

There is a church billboard that I pass on my way to work that currently reads, "When GOD calls you, does He get a busy signal?" It's a great question. And, I know the implication is, "Are you too busy to hear GOD'S call?" Or, "Are you so busy and distracted with other things that you can't hear when GOD is calling you?" With all that we each have going on in our day to day, it is easy to get that way.

I have been gone most of this week to a training conference. As with most conferences, we sat through presentations for seven or eight hours each day. And, as is normally the case, some of the presentations were really good and informative, while others didn't seem as such. Or, so I say...

Today's word is Proverbs 18:15, NLT, which reads, "Intelligent people are always ready to learn. Their ears are open for knowledge."

So, I was asking myself this morning if those presentations that I didn't really get that much out of were really not that interesting or was I just not listening? I would venture to guess that if I were to pay more attention and really listen, I would learn far more than I think I would. Which leads me back to that church sign.

When GOD calls, are you sitting there thinking about all the other things that are going on? Are you tuning out because you think your way is better? Are you thinking your way is better because you feel you need to prove a point? Exact some revenge?

I may never attain it, but, I want to be intelligent. I want to be what I need to be. What I can be. What I should be. GOD will show us what to do and when to do it. He will tell us things that will make our lives go smoother. He will tell us things that will guide our paths and lead us to blessings unimaginable. Are you listening?

Be Blessed,
Mickey T