The best thing you can do is relax

Ever get worked up because you aren't meeting expectations, especially yours? I am much harder on myself than I am on anyone else. The truth is, I have a hard time with making mistakes. I know, with all the mistakes that I make, I should have learned by now to not let it bother me as much. But, I do.

I just do not like to mess up, at all. I want to do everything correctly every time. I want to get it right every time, completely right. Now, again, I have messed it up enough that I should be easier on myself but I am just not. And, when I really come down on myself, I try to remember that we all make mistakes and what I messed up can be fixed.

Today's word is an old Chinese proverb, which says, "Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are."

Sometimes, I get really tense about messing up, which only creates an atmosphere more conducive to messing up. So, it just starts a vicious cycle - mess up, get tense, mess up worse, get more tense, mess up even worse...you get the idea.

When you find yourself getting tense because you are trying to do something correctly, that is perfectly normal. However, and I am trying to remind myself, getting more tense about it will only cause me to mess up more. It is much easier said than done, but, the truth is, when things are the most tense, the best thing you can do is relax.

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

What kind of waiter

Have you ever been a waiter? I don't mean the person who takes someone's order and brings that person's food to him/her. Though I respect those servants immensely, it is not the type waiter I am referring to.

No, I mean, a waiter, as in "waiting for something". Haven't we all been waiters. We wait until we are a teenager. We wait until we are sixteen, so we can get our driver's license. We can hardly wait until we are eighteen and graduate. We can't wait until we go to college and become our own "boss" (yeah, like that's how it works out). But, are you are good waiter?

Today's word is Psalm 27:14, ESV, which reads, "Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!"

I admit that I am not a very good waiter. I am prone to say, "Well, if it needs doing, let's do it." Or, "We aren't getting any younger, let's do this." But, sometimes, we have to wait. GOD is doing things in the background, in preparation for what is about to take place, and, just like baking a cake, we have to wait for things to get done. We can rest assured, just like the cake, that when GOD completes it, it will be worth the wait.

While I will NEVER be a good waiter, I am trying to get better at it. I am trying to practice today's verse and be strong and courageous, patiently waiting on GOD to do His thing in His time. We can be sure that GOD will never leave us, never forsake us, never keep us waiting. So, what kind of waiter are you?

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

No turning back

Sometimes, life is just hard. I mean, it often seems that when it is going bad, it just gets worse. I know of countless people that have been through things that I cannot imagine, yet, have continued to press on. I am amazed and humbled by their resolve.

There will be times in our lives that nothing makes sense, that there is absolutely no explanation for what we are going through. We all know that it rains on the just and the unjust. We all know that we live in a broken and fallen world, where no one is exempt from pain and suffering - no one. We all know that we are going to go through some things. So, where do we find our hope, our strength, our resolve?

Today's word is Psalm 44:18, ESV, which reads, "Our heart has not turned back, nor have our steps departed from Your way."

When bad things happen, we can either sit down and blame GOD for letting it happen, OR, we can rest assured that He will bring us through. We can wallow in it, OR, we can know that come what may, He is on our side, and He has it all under His control.

I don't know why people turn from GOD in the midst of trials and tragedies, when they need Him most. I know it is difficult. I know it sucks. I know it doesn't seem fair. But, He has brought us through before, and He will do it again. I pray that GOD strengthens me and gives me the resolve to keep on keeping on, to press forward when I am being pressed down. I pray He will give me the resolve and the determination to say, "There is no turning back."

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

As bad as it will ever get

A friend and I were talking about the challenges good, godly people face in this world sometimes. It can be discouraging. It can be frustrating. It can be infuriating to see people that are not living for GOD seemingly prospering more than we ever will. HOWEVER...

One day, we will ALL stand before a holy and just GOD and give an account for all that we have done, whether it be good or bad. For those who are GOD'S children, we will enter into eternity with our SAVIOR, JESUS CHRIST. For those who do not know GOD, have not accepted GOD, they will hear, "Depart from Me, for I NEVER knew you."

Today's word is Psalm 94:23, NLT, which reads, "GOD will turn the sins of evil people back on them. He will destroy them for their sins. The LORD our GOD will destroy them."

I try to remind people all the time that we live in a broken, and fallen world. Sometimes, bad things happen to good people just because we live in a world that is full of bad things. More important, satan is running things in this world. But, it is not this world that we should be concerned about. It is not our earthly possessions that should drive us. Our treasures are in Heaven. One day all this will be behind us and those that are left can "enjoy" it for what time they have left.

You see, I don't want anyone to go to hell; NOT ONE. But, for those who are living evil lives, they prosper because satan already has them; he gives them things to try and keep them. For those of us who belong to JESUS, he wants to beat us down, beat us up, and cause us to become discouraged. All we have to do is remember that our treasures are in heaven, and, one day, we will all receive our just rewards. For those who are not saved, this world is as good as it will ever get. For those of us who are saved, this world is as bad as it will ever get.

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

Ask GOD to show you

Alright, you will have to excuse me while I wax sappy for a moment. Today is Trishia's birthday! I am so blessed to have her in my life, to be able to share this life with here. She is absolutely the best mate any man could have. I am grateful for her every day, not just her birthday. However, today, being her birthday, is a good day to acknowledge all that she does.

I get credit for tons of things that I have absolutely NO idea that we did. Someone will come up to me and say, "Hey, thanks for the card," or, "Hey, thanks for the gift basket," or, "Hey, thanks for the...". I always mutter the usual, "Oh, absolutely." I have no idea what they are talking about but Trish has sent them something, she was thinking of them, praying for them. And, I get credit just because I am married to her. Trish really knows why she is here.

Today's word is a quote from William Barclay that says, "There are two great days in a person's life - the day we are born and the day we discover why."

Now, of course, the greatest day is when we receive CHRIST as our SAVIOR and LORD, which is usually the day we discover why we are here. Trish knows why she is here - to serve GOD and to make others' lives better. She does it well. She does it humbly. She does it without expecting anything in return. She does it because that is what GOD has called her to do.

In honor of Trishia's birthday, my question for us all is, "Do you know why you are here?" We have all been called WITH a purpose. We have something to do. We have some tangible way to serve GOD, by serving others. You have experienced a great day - you were born. If you know JESUS as your LORD and SAVIOR, you have experienced the greatest day you ever will on this earth. Have you had the other great day? Do you know why you are here? If not, ask GOD to show you.

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

JESUS is enough

Have you ever thought about what would be enough? I mean, I have been so blessed, in ways that I could never explain or express. I have had so many good things happen in my life that I don't deserve. I have the greatest wife, the greatest kids, a great job, work with good people, a great church family, a great family, and the list goes on and on. BUT...

But, there are still those times when I find myself wanting more. Not, that I am willing to do something immoral or illegal but just more. How much is enough for retirement? When we get a little something saved, it doesn't seem to be enough. How much is enough life insurance? When we think about what we have, we wonder is it enough. It just seems that we are always looking for enough, whatever that is.

Today's word is a passages where the disciple Philip was looking for enough. John 14:8, NIV, reads, "Philip said, 'LORD, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."

Philip and the other disciples had been walking and talking with JESUS for three and a half years. They had been learning from GOD, Himself. Yet, Philip wanted a little more. He is with JESUS, GOD in the flesh but he wants JESUS to show him the Father. Why? Because that would be enough. We seem to always want more but we don't know what enough is.

JESUS goes on to tell Philip and the disciples that if they had seen Him, which they had, they had seen the Father. In other words, He is enough. When I find myself wondering about how much more we need to accumulate, how much more we "need", I remind myself that JESUS is enough.

Be Blessed,
Mickey T

The Spirit intercedes

Have you ever had someone in your life that didn't speak well and were difficult to understand? I am sure that I was that someone in my younger days. I had problems making the sounds when a "r" followed a letter, such as "brain", "train", "drain". While I thought I pronounced them correctly, they came out as "bwain", "twain", and "dwain". Thankfully, I had some assistance with proper enunciation and pronunciation.

Little children, first learning to talk, can be difficult to understand, too. It's not their fault, they are just learning. But, they will say something that I don't understand, and it happened with our two, and one of the parents will have to interpret what was said. They intercede for them by conveying what they are saying.

Today's word is Romans 8:26, ESV, which reads, "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit, Himself, intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words."

Do you pray? Have you ever had a time when there was something overwhelming to pray about but you just didn't even know where to begin? Have you ever been at a lose for words when trying to ask GOD to help with a situation or a circumstance? Have you ever wondered if GOD knew what you were trying to express, though no expression was forthcoming? He does.

We all have those times in our lives that the situation is so desperate, so dire, that we don't even know how to pray. I can tell you that GOD knows what we need, He knows what is in our heart, even if we can't get it to come out of our mouths, even if what proceeds from our mouths makes no sense. The Spirit intercedes.

Be Blessed,
Mickey T