Eric Nordhoff - The Eternal Optimist

Dedication Video for our Daughter

The song was written specifically for our girl, Anthem, and recorded by my wife as a demo. It's called "You Could Only Come From Heaven".

Joy

I have a couple of guys I meet with on a regular basis. We've been checking in lately with each other with an emotion that we're feeling right then.  The emotion choices are: Fear, Joy, Anger and Sadness.  We have to pick one and explain why.  We get right to the heart of the issues of our lives.  Needless to say, I'm grateful for these guys and the conversations we have usually impact me for hours or days afterwards. 

Today, I felt joy.  When you say 'joy', usually not much more needs to be said after that.  This time the guys asked me why I felt joy?  I said I was joyful because I was happy with the decisions I had been making lately.  I went on to describe that I felt joyful also because I was letting more things go and not putting too much pressure on myself.  I have fewer goals and that's helped me. 

As I thought about it later in the car on the way home, I began to ask myself.  What is real joy? Is it the joy we feel about ourselves?  Or is it the Joy of the Lord, as mentioned in the bible?  What is true joy?  I can't say that I've felt true joy very often.  Rare.  When I do, it's usually full of love, not a care in the world and an overall burdenless or light feeling.  I can say what I'm feeling is on the path to true joy though.  On the way to joy.  I'd rather be on the way to joy than anger, sadness or fear. 

Nobody's Got It All Together

Every now and then (almost daily) I need to be reminded that nobody else has it all together - why should I?

NOBODY'S GOT IT ALL TOGETHER
By Jill Phillips and Andy Gullahorn

Working hard to tie up the loose ends
So hard to decide who you let in
Put your best foot forward with a grin

I can see the fear behind your eyes
Wondering if someone will recognize
You’ve grown tired of keeping up the lies

Don’t whitewash the truth about yourself ‘cause
Nobody’s got it all together
If you want to be like everyone else well
Nobody’s got it all together

I have seen the darkness of my heart
And found a love that taught me its too hard
To walk through life and not let down my guard

What good is it to say please savior come
If there is nothing you need rescue from
Life is something no one has a corner on

Don’t whitewash the truth about yourself ‘cause
Nobody’s got it all together
If you want to be like everyone else well
Nobody’s got it all together

When the parts that are self righteous
Start to disappear
Every other life is
Just another mirror
And life is way too short to run and hide

Don’t whitewash the truth about yourself ‘cause
Nobody’s got it all together
If you want to be like everyone else well
Nobody’s got it all together

(c) 2004 Juvintud Music / St. Jerome Music (ASCAP)

The Ministry of the Unnoticed

Taken from My Utmost For His Highest by Oswald Chambers

August 21, 2009

"Blessed are the poor in spirit..." - Matthew 5:3

The New Testament notices things that do not seem worthy of notice by our standards. "Blessed are the poor in spirit . . . ." This literally means, "Blessed are the paupers." Paupers are remarkably commonplace! The preaching of today tends to point out a person’s strength of will or the beauty of his character— things that are easily noticed. The statement we so often hear, "Make a decision for Jesus Christ," places the emphasis on something our Lord never trusted. He never asks us to decide for Him, but to yield to Him— something very different. At the foundation of Jesus Christ’s kingdom is the genuine loveliness of those who are commonplace. I am truly blessed in my poverty. If I have no strength of will and a nature without worth or excellence, then Jesus says to me, "Blessed are you, because it is through your poverty that you can enter My kingdom." I cannot enter His kingdom by virtue of my goodness— I can only enter it as an absolute pauper.

The true character of the loveliness that speaks for God is always unnoticed by the one possessing that quality. Conscious influence is prideful and unchristian. If I wonder if I am being of any use to God, I instantly lose the beauty and the freshness of the touch of the Lord. "He who believes in Me . . . out of his heart will flow rivers of living water" ( John 7:38 ). And if I examine the outflow, I lose the touch of the Lord.

Who are the people who have influenced us most? Certainly not the ones who thought they did, but those who did not have even the slightest idea that they were influencing us. In the Christian life, godly influence is never conscious of itself. If we are conscious of our influence, it ceases to have the genuine loveliness which is characteristic of the touch of Jesus. We always know when Jesus is at work because He produces in the commonplace something that is inspiring.

Wisdom From Above

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.

James 3:17

Sometimes we question if we can discern what is of God and what isn't. If you question whether or not something originates from the wisdom and heart of God, measure it by the descriptors in this passage - pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy, good fruits and sincere. Pretty straight-forward.

This is from The Daily Verse. 

Get in the Game

Trained for War

TGIF Today God Is First Volume 2 by Os Hillman

Tuesday, May 19 2009

"Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers 

for battle" (Psalm 144:1)

You'll never experience God in powerful ways by acquiring Bible knowledge

alone. It is only when that knowledge is used in the heat of battle that

you will know the reality of what you've learned intellectually. Otherwise,

it remains only an exercise in spiritual gymnastics that yields little

fruit.

David became a great warrior and leader of a nation at an early age. His

training ground was his job as a shepherd in the open fields. When bears

and lions sought to take his sheep, he personally fought them. This was 

his early preparation for future battles. Goliath was the real competition

amongst a discerning audience to reveal how well his training prepared 

him.

Today, our local churches often look more like luxury cruise liners

designed to tickle the ears, entertain its members and make them feel good

instead of a battleship designed to train an army for war. The average

member still watches from the sideline.

In sports you discover how well you handle pressure by competing. You can

practice all you want but never know how you will do until you enter the

game and test what you've learned and practiced when there is pressure

added to the equation. In battle you discover how well you are trained by

what you actually do on the battlefield.

Have you ever prayed with someone in public? Have you ever personally led

someone to Christ? Have you ever served others for the sake of the Gospel?

Have you ever taught a Bible study? If you said no to these questions, you

are not engaged in the game. Today, why not ask God to give you the grace

to step onto the battlefield.

Plans of Tomorrow

The Plans of Tomorrow

By Os Hillman, May 13, 2009

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You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. - James 4:14b

A group of workplace believers meet at my office every week for fellowship, study, and prayer. One man attended our group for several years. Jim was well liked and in good health. One Thursday he showed up as usual. The next morning I received a call, "Jim is dead! He died in his easy chair last night!" Jim had no prior problems and there was no indication he was about to go be with the Lord. Naturally, it came as a shock to us all.

Whenever things like this happen close to home, it brings us face to face with our mortality. A friend of mine said he was challenged by someone to do an experiment. He challenged him to live his life for one year as if it were the last year he would live. He responded to the challenge and did as proposed. It changed his life forever. He began to focus on different priorities and people when he viewed life in these terms.

James gives us a perspective on viewing tomorrow.

Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that" (James 4:13-15).

Life is fragile. Consider where you are investing your time and energies. Someone once said they had never heard anyone on his deathbed say that he wished he had made more money in his lifetime or he wished he had made a certain deal. Usually it is something like, "I wish I had spent more time with my kids." Ask the Lord to give you His priorities for your life.

A Fleeting Shadow

A Fleeting Shadow

By Os Hillman, May 12, 2009

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Man is like a breath; his days are like a fleeting shadow. - Psalm 144:4

Every time I fly over a large body of water, I imagine opening the window of the jet and pouring out my coffee into the immense body of water below. I imagine the time that I spend on this earth compared to eternity is no more than that cup of coffee. The incredible size of the ocean compared to one small cup of coffee is what our life is like compared to eternity. Why then do we invest so much in temporal pursuits when we know that our investment here can have so much impact on our eternity? It is the great paradox of human behavior, especially for Christians.

Does your business life have an overall ministry objective to it? This does not mean we must be constantly involved in "Christian activity." It only means that we should be about what God has called us to do with the motive of being obedient to this mission. Do not let the worries and cares of this life keep you from having an eternal impact on the lives of those you meet each day. Satan has a way of keeping our focus on the problems of today rather than the spiritual opportunities before us. He is master of the urgent, not the important.

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58).

Change Habits for 10 Bucks

Changing Besetting Habits-The $10 Challenge

By Os Hillman, May 7, 2009

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Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin." - John 8:34

"I hate being late," my friend lamented. "It has been a problem for me all my life."

"Do you really want to change that?" I asked.

"Yes, I do."

"All right. Every time you are late to work or anywhere else where you have committed to be at a particular time you must give me $25."

"No way!" my friend responded. "I would go broke! But I will do $10."

"All right, $10 it is. It has to be a large enough amount of money for it to hurt your pocketbook."

"Believe me, that will hurt," my friend said. About a month later my friend found great motivation to be on time to every place she had to be. In the first week, I got only $10 from my friend. The next week, $20. The third week, nothing. By the fifth week, my friend had changed a lifelong habit that had hindered her all her life. In order for my friend not to be resentful of me for the money she had to give, we put it in a jar to be given to some other Christian cause. This ensured my motive was only for her best interest.

Some might be reading this now and say it is legalism. For my friend it was freedom. For the first time she had some means of changing a behavior that had caused her problems in relationships and her own work habits. Psychologists tell us that it takes 21 days to form a habit. So, if you need to change some habit, you need to be actively engaged in that new behavior at least 21 days. My friend needed help to change a habit she didn't like about herself. It took another individual to hold her accountable, and it took a potential loss of something to provide the added incentive.

A successful businessman was experiencing a difficult marriage. When counseling the couple over dinner one night, a friend of mine noticed that the man often criticized his wife. After further counsel it was determined the man simply could not love his wife. My friend asked him if he truly wanted to see change in his marriage. When the man said he did, my friend said, "Every time you criticize your wife you must agree to give me $100." This man was well-off and needed substantial incentive to change his behavior. After the man rebelled and retorted, he agreed in front of his wife. A few weeks later a report came back that things were changing. This man did not want to write any checks to my friend. Although it was a competitive game to the man, it was also yielding some positive changes in his marriage. He began to acquire the habit of avoiding criticism of his wife, which was killing her spirit.

What are the habits that keep you from becoming all that God may want you to become? Do you desire change enough to be accountable in a way that it costs you something when you fail? Ask a friend to hold you accountable in an area that needs change. You will find new freedom as you conquer old besetting habits.

 

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For God is not a God of confusion but of peace

From "The Daily Verse"...

"For God is not a God of confusion but of peace."

- 1 Corinthians 14:33a

If you're looking for God to show you something clearly, don't over-pollute what He's showing you with the thoughts and reasoning of your own mind. God has given you a mind to use, and at the same time, He has given you the Holy Spirit to help, guide and discern what is of Him and what is of the flesh. Use both, but rely most on the unchanging nature of God to ultimately guide you in the way that you should go.