Page 34 was a Friday which means my workday started early and will end late so tomorrow can be a day to spend with my family.  After the early morning cleaning and building prep, I spent a good part of the first half of the day working on the sermon for Sunday.  As I worked on the sermon, I would take a break once in a while to take care of some maintenance tasks and keep my blood circulating.  My activity tracker that I wear buzzes if I go for an hour without it registering a certain level of movement.  Sometimes I’m in the middle of something and I just ignore it, but most of the time I get up and and stretch my legs as I walk through the building making sure the building systems are operating as they should and that there aren’t any issues that need attention.  Many days I am active enough that it never goes off, but when I’m working on a sermon, that’s a different story. 🙂  

Eventually it buzzed and I realized it was two o’clock and I had been at work for eight hours.  Knowing I would have the end of the week cleaning to do yet, I headed out for a break to get some lunch.  The sun was out bright today with hardly a cloud in the sky so even though the wind chill was making it feel very cold outside, I decided to head down to Potato Creek for a hike before returning to work to finish up the week.  When I got to the park, I decided to do something I hadn’t done for quite a while — walk all the way around the lake.  This ends up being a hike that is just under eight miles and covers a variety of trails and roads in order to make a complete loop around the lake.  As I walked past the beach area, it was full of geese that were on the beach, in the water, and on the patches of ice that have formed on the lake.  With all of the activity taking place on the waterfront, today’s photo is of a group of geese who appear like they would rather be spectators than participants.  We all know people like that, right?  In fact, we’ve all probably been people like that at some point in our life, maybe more often than we care to admit.  The next time a plea is made for help — financial help, labor help, teaching help, childcare help, etc — make note of how long it takes you to respond, if you respond.  Sometimes our first reaction is to be a spectator and see if perhaps someone else will take care of whatever the need is.  Unfortunately, many have become so accustomed to the spectator response that it has been very difficult for them to move down off the wall and get involved.

After my hike, I headed back to work where I began doing the cleaning and prep necessary to have the building ready for Sunday.  After getting one end of the building ready it was time for a short snack break, so I sat down at my desk with a bag of Doritos as I wrote out today’s page.  Now that the page is mostly written, I will soon post it so I can finish cleaning the other end of the building and head home.

As I reflect on the day, here are some thoughts/lessons that stand out to me:

• It is much easier to wake up early and head into work for a long day when you know there is a balance between the long days and the days of rest.
• If there was such a thing as a wrist-worn spiritual activity tracker, I wonder how often it would buzz from a lack of meaningful activity?  I’m not talking about activity for the sake of activity, I’m talking about spiritual activity that actually draws us and/or others closer to God.
• Sometimes we need a reminder to pray, give, serve, love, and seek God as we ought.
• Studying and meditating on God’s Word should capture our attention so much that we can easily lose track of time doing so.
• Sometimes it is easy to talk ourselves out of doing something that we know would be good for us, yet pushing through and accomplishing the good can be very rewarding in so many ways.
• We’re not all called to do everything, or even the same things, but we are all called to do something.  Spectator Christianity is a contradiction in terms.
• Because we’re not all called to do the same thing, you not doing what I’m doing doesn’t make you a spectator any more then my not doing what you’re doing makes me a spectator.  The defining question is, “Am I doing what God wants me to be doing?”

After a late night of work on Wednesday, page 33 was a day to sleep in and catch up on some rest before Friday arrives with another extended length workday.  Once I was awake, I started the day trying to get hotel reservations made for the International Conference on Missions that will take place in Peoria, Illinois this fall.  Today was the first day that the conference housing blocks opened up in the hotels and once announced the ICOM website went down — I suppose from too much traffic trying to get to the hotel links.  I kept trying to get to the online site that I needed and eventually I made it on and was able to get my housing arranged for the conference.  I’m glad I kept at it because by early afternoon the report from ICOM was that all the rooms in the hotel I’m booked at, and wanted to be at, were filled.

With that task complete and the sun finally shining brightly, I pulled the pellet grill out of the garage and began the process of slow-cooking some pork chops and potatoes.  While it was still cold outside, I found that by setting the temperature control one setting higher than usual, it kept the temperature in the grill about the same as my normal cooking temp.  After lunch, we decided to brave the cold wind chills and set off on a family adventure to shoot some photos along the shoreline of Lake Michigan.  The sun shining brightly made it appear as if it should be warmer than what it was, but the beauty to be found was worth the temporary discomfort of the cold.  Today’s photo was taken through a picket fence set up on the beach in an attempt to slow down the drifting sand.  Without the fence, the wind coming off the lake tends to move the sand from the beach onto the nearby parking lots and roadways.  Sometimes we create so much wind as we talk about and promote our own ideas that God has to come along with some version of a picket fence to slow our wind down before we displace the good that He has in store for us.  

As we traveled along the Lake Michigan shoreline, a variety of clouds began to form in the sky with the sun dancing in and out from among them.  While the bright sun in a clear blue sky was great to see after so many cloudy days, the clouds that had gathered in the sky added texture and color to the scene as the sun began to set.  Once the sun set and photo opportunities had dissipated, we left the beach area and headed home after a stop for dinner.  When we arrived home, the clouds had once again disappeared and now the crystal clear sky was filled with the moon and stars.

As I reflect on the day, here are some thoughts/lessons that stand out to me:

• My mind and body usually let me know when I need to rest.  Sometimes I listen and the other times I end up wishing I had listened.
• While I had some temporary frustration in trying to make conference housing reservations this morning, it is great to know that the interest in the International Conference on Missions is enough to overwhelm a website server.
• Ideal conditions in life seem to be rather rare.
• The secret to surviving less than ideal conditions is to learn to adapt and adjust by implementing the wisdom that comes from God.
• Spending time with my family is never time wasted.  None of us know how much time our family members will be with us or how much time we will be with them.
• We can create a lot of wind in self-promoting our ideas, plans, and self.  When what we are trying to accomplish stalls out, perhaps we should consider if God is trying to throttle back the wind of pride that flows from us.
• Sometimes the things in life that we view as “clouds” actually serve to add beauty and variety to what might otherwise be a perfectly dull life.

Page 32 began with the usual cleaning and building prep, but as I was cleaning, what could best be described as snow pellets began falling from the sky.  While not a significant accumulation, they had enough substance to them to make the sidewalks slippery as they were walked on, so I took a break from the cleaning to spread some ice melt.  Once the inside and outside work had been done to get the building ready for the day, I checked on the boiler system and then settled in to work on a sermon to share at the North Wayne Mennonite Church on Sunday.  As I spent time with God in His Word working on the sermon, the repair tech showed up with the rebuilt pump he had taken off the system on Monday.  This called for a break in my sermon prep as I shifted to my maintenance responsibilities as this rebuilt pump was installed and the second one that was leaking was taken off to have it rebuilt as well.

After the service work was done as much as it could be today, I returned to the sermon prep.  As I preach once a month in Dowagiac, Michigan, I continue to work on a sermon series which I’ve titled, “Living As the Lord’s Servant”.  Each message in the series looks at some characteristics of a person from the Bible that is described as the Lord’s servant.  The objective is to understand some common characteristics that we would do well to cultivate in our life so that we can live as the Lord’s servant.  In this next sermon I will be looking at some characteristics that God wanted Joshua to have so that he could be “strong and courageous” in leading the people of Israel under God’s command.

By mid-afternoon it was time to give my mind and body a break, so after a quick lunch I headed down to Potato Creek to take some photos and do some walking.  Today’s photo shares a glimpse of the beauty that I was surrounded with during my 4+ mile walk.  While the wind was a little brisk yet today, the sun was a welcome visitor after being hidden from sight for so long.  After my walk I headed back to work where I took out trash and made sure the building was ready for our Wednesday evening Bible classes.  Once the building clears out after the classes, I will do the cleaning and prep for tomorrow before calling it a day.

As I reflect on the day, here are some thoughts/lessons that stand out to me:

• I often start the day with a plan but I try to remain flexible in it as I allow the Lord to direct my steps.
• Every time I see a Christian friend of mine like or share a social media post that deliberately mocks a person, I cringe.  If my wrist-worn activity tracker could track “cringing”, I think most days the count would be higher than my step count — that is a sad commentary on what Christians think are acceptable ways to treat people that they likely don’t even know.
• When preparing a sermon on living as the Lord’s servant, actually serving has almost as much to do with the preparation as the Bible study and prayer time.
• When God repeats the command to be strong and courageous multiple times in the first chapter of Joshua, I have to suspect that either these weren’t natural characteristics for Joshua and the people of Israel or that their strength and courage were about to be tested . . . or some combination of the two.
• A little light can be a very welcome sight after a period of darkness.  “Let your light so shine that people will see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

As I walked out the door early this morning to head to work, it almost felt like spring as yesterday’s snow had turned to a light rain overnight.  With the air temperature above freezing, there was no snow or ice to worry about so page 31 began with the inside cleaning and building prep.  As I’m waiting for the repair of some of the boiler system parts, I continue to keep a fairly close eye on the heating system as I work on other projects throughout the day.  Once the building was ready for the day and the trash was taken out, I turned my attention to taking care of some missions and prayer ministry correspondence and record-keeping.  

As I worked in the office, it would alternate between period of rain and snow outside with a few breaks in the precipitation from time to time.  I suppose the weather had them all seeking cover deeper in the woods, but none of the usual wildlife made their appearance for photos today.  Instead, today’s photo is one I took yesterday of a red-bellied woodpecker feasting on a sumac seed-head.  I was surprised by the result when I looked up this bird to identify it because there appeared to be nothing red at all about its belly.  Many of the descriptions however, did talk about a red belly that is often hidden by the outer feathers.  It made me think about how often we wear a name that makes people wonder why we are called that.  When we take on the name of Christian, do people look at us and wonder why the Christ in us isn’t visible?  Are we satisfied with “putting on Christ” for our own good and benefit, but then walk out into the world with a cloak over us to keep Him from being seen in us?  I pray that the name Christian would be more noticeable in its appropriateness for us than the name red-bellied woodpecker is for this bird.

By mid-afternoon, my office work had reached a point that a break was needed.  I headed out to take care of some banking and get some lunch before making my way home.  With a day focused on finances and record-keeping, I guess it only seemed fitting to work on my taxes even though April 15 is a long way off. 🙂  While I’m generally a procrastinator when it comes to filing my taxes, every few years I surprise myself and those around me by getting them done early.

As I reflect on the day, here are some thoughts/lessons that stand out to me:

• Although more work, I prefer 28 degrees and a few inches of sparkling snow to 34 degrees and a dark, rainy day.
• Sometimes the routines of life can teach us much about faithfulness if we pay attention to the results of doing what needs done day after day.
• Who we say we are and who we actually are ought to be the same thing — that’s integrity.
• Wearing a name that doesn’t reflect who we are is deceitful and often hypocritical.
• Hypocrisy is not the unforgivable sin.  If it were, we would all be permanently lost — there is none that do right all the time, no not one.
• Integrity and maturity are traits that we continually grow into as we deal appropriately with the times when we don’t “practice what we preach” or preach what we ought.
• Humility is a necessary ingredient in owning our hypocrisy in a way that leads us to repentance that will lead us to integrity.

The snow finally arrived, so page 30 began early to get the walks cleared before I could start the usual Monday morning cleaning and building prep.  Yesterday I discovered a boiler pump leaking, so after the building was ready for the day I called our building mechanical contractor to schedule a visit to look at it.  He thought he could be out later in the morning, so I settled into my Monday morning routine while I waited.  As I spent time with God considering a topic for the next prayer guide, my mind thought about the political divide in this nation I live in and how the Christian component on each side likes to loudly proclaim that you can’t be a Christian if you are a part of the other side.  It makes me glad that God is in charge of who belongs to Him because otherwise we would all be in trouble.  

As I thought about the animosity in so many of the social media posts being shared and liked by Christians, it seems that many have little interest in leading a peaceful and quiet life — at least not until everyone comes into full agreement with their viewpoints.  It made me think of the words God gave us through the writer of the book of Hebrews about leaving the elementary teachings of Christ and moving on to maturity.  In context, he is not talking about leaving the teachings as in rejecting them, but rather leaving them in the sense we have fully learned and implemented them and are ready for lessons of greater maturity.  As I considered an apparent lack of maturity among many Christians in their public representation of Jesus, the next prayer guide began to form around the basics of the elementary teachings that are listed in the Hebrews 6 passage.

As I worked on the prayer guide, the service man came to work on the boiler issues so I took a break to work with him on the maintenance issues.  When we had done what we could and I came back to the office, the woods was active with a variety of wildlife.  I got my camera out and kept it nearby and ready as I spent time with God writing the prayer guide and taking pictures of the beautiful birds and deer He brought past my window.  By mid-afternoon I had put in a full workday and the prayer guide was finished so I headed out to get some lunch.  By the time I finished lunch, the sunny morning had turned into another gray, cloudy afternoon but I decided to head to Potato Creek for a walk even without the sunshine.  When I arrived at the park, a pair of bald eagles were perched in a tree along the shoreline on the other side of the lake inlet channel.  They were barely noticeable, but my ultra-zoom camera was able to capture some photos of them as if they were perched right next to me.  Today’s photo was taken as I could hear some type of movement in the woods about 50 yards to my left on my side of the lake.  Both of them turned to stare down whatever was making the noise, which allowed me to shoot some good profile pictures of them.  Eventually they flew off, so I headed to the other end of the lake to get my walk in.  

As I reflect on the day, here are some thoughts/lessons that stand out to me:

• While the snow creates extra work, there is great beauty to be seen in a fresh blanket of snow covering the dingy gray of winter.
• The sacrifice of Jesus was enough to cover all of our unrighteousness with His beauty if we choose to accept it.
• All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  
• If our determination of who is a Christian is based on who always makes choices that agree with the ones we have made, we are all in trouble.
• I am thankful for a God that has not only chosen me, but has equipped and empowered me with the ability to grow and mature.
• When I attack others publicly about differences we might have, rather than going to them privately, the problem soon becomes me rather than them regardless of what the issue is.
• God wants us to graduate elementary school and go on to maturity in Christ as we continue to hold onto and practice the things we first learned.
• God puts within each of His creations, including you and I, just what is needed. 

After some mid-January spring-like weather, winter has returned with snow in the forecast for the next several days.  The alarm was set for early this morning to head into work to finish the cleaning for the day and take care of any potential snowfall.  While there had been some light snow flurries overnight, the snow did not accumulate so my morning work was all inside.  As I cleaned the building to get ready for Sunday services, I prayed for each aspect of the morning gatherings and for those who would respond to God’s call to gather together.  

After the building was cleaned and the trash taken out, it was time for the morning Bible School class where we are studying the book of Colossians.  While not a lengthy letter, Paul packs a lot of content into it as he expresses his thankfulness for them and warns them of attitudes and practices that would get in the way of living a life of faithfulness to God.  As the foundation for all of their belief and action, Paul weaves throughout the letter many clear reminders of both the supremacy and deity of Jesus.  If our desire is to fully follow Christ, it is imperative that we know Him as our complete authority — and as God.  

After the Bible class, I stopped by my office and a deer was standing at the window.  I had not brought a camera with me, so I pulled out my cell phone and shot a quick photo before he decided to move on.  It wasn’t long before two more walked past my office but they didn’t stay around long as it appeared they noticed the activity in the other rooms along that side of the building.

After the Bible study hour, we had a great worship gathering as we sang praises to God, shared in communion, and received a message from God’s Word.  CJ Powell brought the message this morning from Luke 5 as we looked at the call of the first disciples to become “fishers of men”.  While it appears that Simon, James, and John were fishermen by trade, I always find it fascinating that they never seem to have much luck catching fish until Jesus shows up and gives them instructions on how and where to fish.  So, I’m not sure if those Galilean fishermen would have been considered average or advanced, but either way Jesus made them able to not only catch fish, but to catch people for His kingdom.  I suppose that when it comes to making disciples, most of us would consider ourselves average at best but a few may think of themselves as advanced.  The good news is that God can, and desires to, make us able to be “fishers of men”.  While disciple-making does require our involvement, the transformation of those being discipled is the work of God’s Spirit through us and in them.  Average or advanced, we are able because we have a God who is able.

As I reflect on the day, here are some thoughts/lessons that stand out to me:

• Anger is contagious but prayer has a way of dissolving the anger of others that has crept into your life.
• Peace can have a contagious element to it as well, but it seems it takes more effort on our part as a peacemaker before it spreads to others.
• The encouragement and warnings that Paul wrote to the Colossians were not just for them — they are for us as well.
• Instead of “yelling” at each other about our political and social positions, God wants us to pray for and love one another.
• Our view of how average or advanced we are doesn’t make that much difference when we look to God to make us able to do what He has called us to do.

After a week of early mornings and late nights, it felt good to sleep in today.  Once I finally got up and had my morning coffee, page 28 was a relaxing day spent going through the photos I took last week as I did some minor editing/adjusting to them.  Each photo was a reminder of a moment in time.  Today’s photo is one of those moments.  I was on my way through Cades Cove to spend some time in prayer and worship when I stopped along the road to shoot this photo.  The day’s forecast was for 100% chance of rain and while the dark clouds in the distance definitely looked like rain was falling from them, the sun was shining brightly across the cove where I was.  It was a perfect setting to spend some time in prayer and worship — while all settings really should be perfect for prayer and worship, some places tend to draw me to a natural response of worship more than others.

Eventually I took a break from the photo editing to go to the store with my family.  When we got back home, I returned to the task of going through the photos.  I ended up taking over 700 photos during my trip to the CCL conference so there are a lot of moments in time to go through.  I usually try to limit the number of photos I take and look for a scene that really captures my attention, yet I guess there are a lot of those because I am almost always surprised at how many pictures I have at the end of a day.

With today mostly being a day of rest, I guess today’s written page will be a little shorter than most but there are still some lessons to be learned.  🙂

As I reflect on the day, here are some thoughts/lessons that stand out to me:

• While we can capture a moment in a photograph, we can’t actually go back to it except as a memory.
• What we do in our immediate moment will influence the memories we hold onto in the future.
• My mind seems to have an easier time holding onto bad memories than to good ones.  For me, photos help to tip the scales in the other direction.
• What we take into our mind will influence our daily attitude.  That is why it is critical that we daily guard our heart and mind in Christ Jesus.
• It doesn’t matter how often and loudly they say it, someone saying you can’t be a Christian if you do or don’t do so and so, doesn’t make it so.
• God says that perfect love casts out all fear.  It would appear that all sides of our greatly divided nation could use a healthy dose of perfect love.
• Prayer and worship needs to be a lifestyle no matter the circumstances of life.  When we live in that manner, we find joy when a particular setting draws us even closer to God.
• When I allow the angry voices of social media to fill my mind, I find myself becoming angry.  When I allow the peace of God to dwell richly within me, I find that I am more peaceful toward others.

After a great busy week representing the prayer ministry at a conference, page 27 was a dive back into the deep end of work.  It was snowing when I went to bed last night so I set the alarm early to be ready for whatever needed done in the morning.  While it only ended up being a dusting of snow overnight, much of it melted as it fell and then froze onto the sidewalks and other surfaces creating a hazardous condition.  With a little ice melt put down as soon as I got to work, it wasn’t long before the sidewalks were in good shape for the day.  After doing some cleaning and taking out trash, I dug into the mail and messages that had accumulated during the week.

As I considered the feedback given by people who had picked up my latest book, I began to spend some time in prayer seeking direction for what God would have me to write next — if anything.  Eventually, the idea of writing another set of daily devotions in this “Devotions For Those Who Serve” series settled in my mind.  God calls all of us to serve one another but often we have great difficulty in serving with the attitude, and in the manner, that Jesus set the example for us to do.  As I continued my prayer time, I began to collect potential topics for the next thirteen weeks of daily devotions in this series.  When I came up for air, I found that I had nineteen topics selected for consideration so I guess I can select the thirteen I will use this time and have six already selected for the third volume.  Some of the topics being considered are “Serving With Compassion”, “Serving With Endurance”, and “Serving With Wisdom”.  

As I worked in the office, a number of birds eventually showed up in the brush outside my office window.  Today’s photo is of one of the birds as it was snacking on some of the berries still available in the underbrush.  The beauty and variety of the wildlife seen from my office is astounding at times and I am in awe of the creativity of my God.  By mid-afternoon it was time to get some lunch before starting the Friday evening cleaning to get the building ready for Sunday.  As I worked on one end of the building, the long days of the week caught up with me.  I was too tired to be very productive, so I finished up the areas I was working on and decided I would come back to work sometime tomorrow or early Sunday to finish up the cleaning. 

As I reflect on the day, here are some thoughts/lessons that stand out to me:

• It is better to be prepared for bad weather that doesn’t materialize than to be unprepared when it does come.
• As much as I don’t like ice melt tracked into the building; I dislike dangerous, slippery sidewalks even more.
• Life can become slippery in ways that cause many to fall.  
• Many times when we fall, it is because we have not taken appropriate measures to reduce the “slipperiness” of life.
• The longer we put things off, for whatever reason, the more work it takes for us to “catch up”.
• If we’re not serving on a daily basis, we need to spend time with God seriously examining why not.
• Serving begins with our heart and our attitude before it ever presents itself in action.
• God’s creativity extends beyond the wildlife and into the beauty of mankind.
• It is good to recognize there are times when it is wise to stop what we’re doing and rest so we can be more productive in accomplishing the work that needs done.