Month: August 2023

Last day of August. Hard to believe that September starts tomorrow. But here we are. It’s been almost a week since the banquet. And I’ve heard from several people about how much the night meant to them. How much it moved them. How much more they want to be involved. And that is awesome. Because that’s the Holy Spirit. What we told everybody Saturday night is that all the things that we have accomplished have nothing to do with us. Yes…I understand we are the hands and feet. I get that. But the Holy Spirit is what makes all this possible. Because the Holy Spirit is moving in people’s lives.

People might question how powerful the Holy Spirit is. They might question just what is it that the Holy Spirit can do. Here’s the answer: It just takes one encounter with the Holy Spirit for your life to change forever. Read that again. It takes just one encounter with the Holy Spirit for your life to change forever. Pretty powerful if you ask me. How many other things, how many other experiences, how many other encounters, do you know of that could change your life forever? Not many that I can think of. And that’s why the ministry is doing what it’s doing. Because the Holy Spirit is guiding people. 

Yesterday I was talking with one of our supporters. We communicate a lot through email and texting. But every now and then we get a moment where we get to talk on the phone. And we were discussing this very topic. The Holy Spirit moving in people. It may seem like we repeat this point to death. But why not. We talk about it all the time because it’s the truth. It’s the plain truth. And people need to hear it. We need to hear it in order to serve like we are supposed to. If you go into one of our events with a servants heart, serving others, as the Holy Spirit leads us, you come out of the event more blessed than you gave to others. And that my friends is the Holy Spirit. And remember this. Jesus can change your life. He loves you. Always has. Always will. 

Yesterday I mentioned that the memory on my Facebook page was of our daughter, Anna, in ICU. Then today, the memory is of her still in ICU, but getting to eat food. And then being sent home. I remember that being so confusing. How does somebody go straight from ICU to home. Well, we found out that later on that she should not have been sent home. Because, she ended up back at the doctor getting treatment that she should have received by the hospital. Either way, doesn’t matter now. Because she has moved forward.

As we stated, that was a tough time. A very difficult few days to say the least. But that comes from being part of this world. Because in this life, we are going to face hardships. We are going to face trouble. And there are a couple of reasons for this. The first one may be hard for us to accept. But it’s true. We have a sinful nature. Something that we must battle daily. Something that’s not going to go away. It’s through God’s grace that we can overcome it. But it’s there. Second, the snake. The enemy. The evil one. Always scheming against us. Doing what he can to hold us down. And to keep us down. Because that’s how he operates.

Now, if you remember, Jesus warned us about troubles coming and going. He did so to prepare us. Because he loves us. And sometimes the truth hurts. Another reason why he warned us of troubles, is so there is no doubt on who to turn to when those times come. We might become fearful. And that is human nature. But he can help us overcome our fear. And let’s also remember the example he set for us in times of trouble. Let’s remember how humble and obedient he was. He remained steadfast. Never wavered. Even staring death in the face. So, as we face difficult times, or our family faces difficult times, let’s remember this. We can get through those. Because we have a Lord and Savior who cares. Who cares enough to tell us that these times would come. But also, who cares enough to be here for us when they do. 

This morning when I woke up, my phone sent me a memory on Facebook from last year. For those of you that remember, Anna was in ICU. Pneumonia and Type-1 diabetes were attacking her. That was a very helpless feeling for me. As much as I hated to watch her go through that, I actually felt sorry for myself somewhat. I know that’s selfish. But as a father, the helpless feeling was terrible. Yes, I definitely prayed. And I am aware of just how powerful that is. But when a moment like that comes, you never know how you’re going to react. Not being able to help her physically rocked me. As a father, we are supposed to protect our children. Keep them safe. Keep them out of harms way. And I felt like I had failed her.

Now, let’s fast forward. A year later Anna is thriving. She is living back at home. She’s a junior in college. Dating a solid Christian man. Pursuing a social work degree. She wants to do something in the medical world with it. She had a social worker when she was diagnosed five years ago. I had a social worker 33 years ago when I was at Craig Hospital in Colorado. We both were blessed to have them in our lives. Because they did all they could to make our transitions back to life out of the hospital as smooth as possible. Now, Anna is considering doing something very similar. That is awesome. She’s always had the heart capable of serving others. Sometimes as a teenager, that wasn’t her first priority. But now you can see it coming back. And as much as I hated being helpless last year, I am more than that humbled, watching her, become the woman that she is. Watching her let the Holy Spirit guide her. Nothing better as a father.

Now, let’s think about this for a minute. Let’s think about God in heaven. Our father in heaven. Our Lord and Savior. What is it you think that he wants for us? What is it you think that he wants for our lives? Do you think he wants it to be easy for us? If you do, I’m going to tell you that I believe you’re wrong. And I may be wrong in this thought, but I believe God wants to guide us in all that we do. He wants the Holy Spirit to take hold. He wants us to “allow” the Holy Spirit to take hold. Sending Jesus to die for our sins wasn’t just because. That purpose was for us to not be slaves to our sins. Which intern allows us to seek the Holy Spirit. And then, if we let him take control, what we do will be blessed. Plain and simple. As Anna is finding out now. Letting the Holy Spirit guide her will bless her efforts. Something that we all should do.

Saturday night was our annual dinner banquet. This is our fifth time hosting this event. And it just simply keeps getting better, and better, and better. And that is because of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is making an impact on people’s lives. And they want to contribute somehow. They want to be a part of something. They want to be a part of the Charlie 22 Outdoors family. Because they believe in the mission and they want to support the cause. Everyone has a role in making the events that we do successful. Including the banquet. Nobody has any more important role than another. Because it takes all of us to make it work. From contributing items. To working in the kitchen. To taking out trash. To being on stage. Doesn’t matter. We all have our roles.

As I look back on what took place two evenings ago, there are a couple of things that stand out to me. First, the interaction took place between the guests and the volunteers. You could just see it and feel it. Handshakes. Hugs. Laughter. Tears. The interactions were all over the place. Something else that stands out to me is watching the audience. I often hear how much things sell for above their true value. It really is amazing. Here’s what I think is happening. And it goes back to what I was saying a minute ago. I think the Holy Spirit is moving and people want to contribute. So they are spending money towards something that they want. And then above the value of the item they are contributing to the ministry.

What does any of this have to do with the devotion? What does any of this have to do with God’s grace? I waited two days to write this, because I wanted to give a clear answer to these questions. When the Holy Spirit moves in peoples lives, great things happen. And I don’t mean just the banquet. I’m talking about every day. When someone experiences the Holy Spirit, it’s very moving. And what took place on Saturday, on, and off stage, was very moving. When we are talking about veteran suicide, we’re talking about a very dark topic. It’s a hard topic to talk about. But, when we are talking about the Holy Spirit moving and lives changing, we’re talking about a very bright topic. Nothing dark about it. When I hear a veteran say that an event they came to changed their life, I let them know that was the Holy Spirit moving in them. Not me. Not us. Not the event. It was the Holy Spirit. And that’s the point of the devotion. When the Holy Spirit moves, lives are blessed. Because God loves us. He always has. He always will.

Last night really was pretty incredible. All the work put into the evening really showed. The volunteers prepared for and ran one of the best banquets we have had yet. The food we served was delicious. The items up for bid were gorgeous. The auctioneers finished the live auction right at 9 PM. Which is always our goal. Pretty incredible considering we had 41 items auctioned. But what we want to make sure everyone remembers the most is the night’s purpose. The whole reason we did it was to support the cause of the ministry. To push the mission forward. And that is to always show God’s grace.

The president of the ministry said something at the end of the evening that hit home. The point he was making is that now the real work begins. The banquet brought everyone together. We celebrated. We laughed. We ate. We cried. But now it’s time for us to regroup and the focus on each event coming up. To make sure that the mission is being followed. And in order to do so, we must make sure that Jesus is first in all that we are doing. Because that is what God wants. He wants Jesus to be the focus. Preeminent. Most important. Our number one. Before everything else. And if we keep it this way, God will bless our efforts. And that will mean more people being served.

The Bible is full of stories that are examples for us to learn from. Stories where people kept their eyes on God. Where their efforts were blessed. Stories were people took their eyes off of God. And those stories didn’t end so well. Think about Noah. Could you imagine what everyone must’ve thought about what he was doing. Go back to that time in your mind. I’m sure the ridicule was crazy. But he never wavered. Think about Daniel. Think about David. When they kept their eyes on God, he blessed them. And then there is Saul. Quite literally his eyes were part of his story. And when he finally turned to God, he was blessed. Today let’s all remember this. No matter what we are doing. No matter where we are going. Let’s always keep our eyes on God. Let’s keep our focus on God. And he will bless our efforts.

Two years ago we lost 13 soldiers at an explosion near the Kabul airport. These were soldiers younger than my children. They knew very well when they signed that line there was a possibility that they may be put into harms way. And for that, I am forever grateful. Because, when they signed that line, they signed it to serve our country. And that means that they signed that line to serve me. They signed that line to serve my family. My friends. Without even knowing me. They did so. And for that, I am forever grateful. Signing that line was the beginning of their military careers. And those careers ended with their deaths. I am not grateful that they died. But I am thankful for their service. And I will forever be thankful.

At our banquet two years ago, we took time out to honor of them. To show their face is on the screen. To remember them by name. And I believe that’s something that we should all do. To honor them. And to remember them by name. Their deaths are the ultimate example of serving others. We hear words like paying the ultimate price. We have words like the ultimate sacrifice. And those words should not be taken lightly. Because saying those words also honors them. But, I would like to suggest that we do something else. That we find ways to serve others. Not necessarily to our deaths. But, we should serve others without hesitation. 

This final point that I want to make I have made several times. And I continue coming back to it because it is the “ultimate” reminder of serving others for us. And that is the example that Jesus left for us all on that final night. So it’s worthy to read over, and over, and over. It’s worthy for us to learn from. It’s worthy for us to teach others. That last night, Jesus washed feet. He did so to show the disciples how to serve others. He did so knowing what was coming ahead. He did so knowing he was fulfilling his purpose here on earth. He lowered himself. He lifted up others. And then he washed their feet. Let’s think about ourselves for a moment. And be honest with ourselves. Would we have done the same thing? That is a challenging question. But no matter how we answer it, we should all look for opportunities now to serve others.

The devotion is late today. That’s because when I woke up this morning things took a different turn. It never stops to amaze me how when we’re preparing for an event, Satan does all he can to keep it from happening. Sometimes he uses the tactic of things not going just as you plan. Other times he uses illnesses of those you are close to. He even stoops so low that he tries to damage what you’re doing. Or even hurt those you care about. 

Now, what never ceases to amaze me, is how God completely destroys Satan‘s tactics. Because no matter what it is he’s doing, God steps up even bigger. Today is an amazing example. Immediately I caught myself behind in the schedule. I had to play catch-up. Not just with preparing for the banquet. But there were office matters I had to deal with. Then, some of our key volunteers had some health issues come up. People who were going to help me today. So nothing really terrible happened, just things that were inconveniences that made it all take longer to do. Which is always hard on those who are trying to time their days with you. But as the day progressed, I didn’t focus on what it was the “snake” was doing. I focused on the blessing of getting to do what I was doing. And God totally came through.

I was able to pick up several of the items that we’re going to have tomorrow. And I was blown away by the quality of the work that went into them. And I got to see the people who did them. And they were so thrilled about being able to be a part of it. Talk about a blessing. Incredible. Then tonight, we literally only took right about three hours to get the entire church set up. That’s because the volunteers stepped in and got to work. Like clockwork. Everyone doing their job. And the church looks awesome. Talk about another blessing. Amazing. And then we prayed as a group as we began to close up. Prayed over the event. Keeping the mission the focus. That tomorrow night is about bringing people together to do God’s work. To ultimately show grace. That my friends, was the most amazing blessing of the day. So let’s remember that. And remember that no matter what it is that Satan tries to do, he fails. Every time. If we let God take control.

One of the most incredible things that God has done for us was to send his son to earth to be with us. When he did so, God became human. He took on complete human form. That meant that he was something “tangible” that people could see. People could touch him. Because he lived among other humans. Even though he was still fully, 100%…GOD. Now when he died and was resurrected, the only thing that changed was him being in human form. That’s it. He was then, and still is now, and will always be GOD. Even though we can’t see him physically now, we can still see his impact. We can see lives changed because of him. We can see the Holy Spirit moving in people because of him.

Missouri is known as The Show Me State. A lot of people I know use that as a joke about how they need to see it before they believe it happened. Actually, a lot of people I know say that quite often. For some reason, there’s a thought that if we don’t see it it didn’t happen. It’s all in fun. But there is some truth in it. There’s a reason why video footage is used to prove that something happened or did not happen. How often do you see someone grab their phone and video what is taking place? That’s because people want to see it. Point we’re making here is, it’s easier for us to believe something if we actually get to see it with our own eyes. Whether in person or on video.

There’s a lot to be said about how our faith is strengthened by what we see as well. It’s not difficult to look around and see evidence of God. He’s everywhere if we just luck. And if we don’t see him, it is because we are not looking. When you watch the sun rise and set. When a child is born. Each day we wake up. Those are all beautiful signs of God. But what about during difficult times? Where is he when we are struggling? Where is he when those that we love are struggling? Just as it is easy for us to see him when times are going well, it is easy for us to ask where God is during those moments that are not going so well. But I would like to suggest this: Maybe during those times, God is more present than we realize. He is there giving us the strength we need. He is there providing the love we need. Maybe we are so focused on what we are going through, we just don’t realize it. But he is there. Even through those times that don’t end well at all. Like the death of a loved one. But God’s presence is always evident, and we will feel it if we allow ourselves to do so.

Recently, we’ve talked a lot about things that we deal with. Anxiety. Issues with family and friends. Personal struggles. Failing others. And so on. And these are all very real. Just as our veterans deal with PTSD and other issues. All very real things. And just as they are all very real, they happen to us because we are all human. And we live in a human world. And it all began with what took place in the Garden of Eden. We must face what we face because of what happened back then.

On the other side of the coin is something that we can celebrate. It’s something that we should honor. Something that we should cherish. Something that we should respect and do what we can to teach others about it. Even though we go through what we go through, we have the one thing that can get us through everything. And that is the fact that Jesus Christ paved the way for us. His sacrifice overcomes everything that we deal with. Every sin that we commit. His sacrifice gives us the tools. It’s redemption. It’s power. It’s strength. And greatest of all, it’s love. 

Dying on the cross is what it took for us to be redeemed. That’s what Jesus did for us. Now there is action that we must take. Things that we must do. To begin with, we must accept Jesus. If we do this, we then live in Jesus. We must let him take control. This gives us the ability to face what we face daily. And we must tell others about Jesus. We must share this gift. We must talk about the sacrifice. Talk about the path. Talk about redemption. Talk about salvation. As we do these things, let’s be aware of the fact that the world is going to resist. As stated, the world is human. And humans want what humans want. But let’s not let that stop us from sharing Jesus with others. And if you don’t know Jesus, make today of the day that you get to know him. Make today the day you accept him and let him take control.

This is one of those devotions that’s going to step on toes and ruffle some feathers. Because it’s pointed right at certain things. Certain things that a lot of us might find personal. And we should. Because, as Christians, we are failing in these areas. 

First, there’s a meme going around on Facebook right now. Some of you may have seen it. Basically, it is talking about us telling those that lost loved ones that they are no longer suffering. And that is true for many people who are believers. But unfortunately, it’s not true for those that do not know Jesus. Or did not know Jesus. It’s up to us to make sure they hear about him. We can’t make anybody accept Christ. But we can let them know who he is and that the path to heaven is through him. Second, a buddy of mine sent me a link to a pastor’s message yesterday. About defeating the dragons. The dragons that he is referring to is Christians condoning sin now. Sexual immorality. Selfishness. Hate. Etc. There are so many more. But Christians are saying that it is ok. It’s acceptable now. It’s almost as if the thoughts are that as long as you are a good person, sin is fine. Oh, how wrong that is.

Here’s what I know. Here’s what I believe. Here’s what the word tells us. When we accept Jesus into our lives, we are no longer slaves to sin. We are now God’s servants. There’s gonna be a time that every knee is going to bow down. There’s gonna be a time that every tongue is going to confess. And I’m pretty sure that the word “every” quite literally means every. So that means all of us. Being in God’s kingdom, means that we are to let him rule our life. And that we should work to show others the same thing. Being part of the kingdom means that we are separated from worldly things. Or at least that we should be. We should have our mind set on things that come from Christ. We should always acknowledge who our Lord and Savior is. And that means, we should tell others who he is. So they can rest in peace. And that means that we should not condone sin. It’s all around us. And we sin as well. But saying that it is fine is where we cross the line. So today, let’s work on telling others about Jesus. Let’s work on not condoning sin.