Month: June 2023

Today, I’m getting this out a little later than normal. I try to get these done each morning. But today, I had to get around quickly to get to the office to prepare for the Women’s Bible Study. Also, I was meeting personally with a gentleman to do an interview for his show. I had something in mind to talk about when I got time to write this. But today’s activities have changed that. 

During my interview, we talked a lot about how Charlie 22 Outdoors was founded. But more importantly, we talked about why we were founded. What we are trying to do. And how we go about doing it. It was a great conversation. Before we knew it, we had been together almost 2 hours. I can talk forever about the ministry. Why we were founded. How we were founded. Where we were. Where we are. Where we are headed. I can talk your leg off. But, there was a question that he asked me at the very end that really hit home. He asked me this, “What have you learned about yourself through this experience with Charlie 22 Outdoors?“ I was speechless for a moment. I never really have thought about that. What a great question though. Instead of talking about my role with the ministry, he wanted me to do self analysis on what I have learned. Holy cow! 

In this day and age, we watch people go from one thing to the next. Faster, faster, and faster. We live at breakneck speeds. Worried about not getting something done in time, or being someplace in time, or simply missing out on something because of timing. Those of us that live in Missouri, think about I-44 from Joplin to Springfield. Driving on that is now like the Indy 500. If you’re not doing 80 miles an hour now, you’re going slow. With people on your rear bumper. Upset at you, like you’ve ruined their whole day for making them slow down for five seconds. Point being, we are in a hurry. Nothing wrong with a fast paced world. But when we’re in a hurry, we can easily lose sight on what we are doing. And why we are doing it. Now back to the question. I don’t recall what I told him Word-for-Word. But it was something along these lines. I have learned that I need to keep the mission to focus. That I have learned to not place my desires above anything else. That I have learned to serve others. To place their needs above mine. And that’s why the ministry is where it is now. Not because of me. But…because everyone involved believes in the mission. They “get” it. There’s no personal agenda. And God is blessing it. So today, I want you to remember this. Our plans are nothing compared to God‘s plans. Our peace is nothing compared to the peace that God can provide us. What we think our talents are, or nothing compared to the talents that God has given us. Take a moment, and ask yourself what he asked me. Look inside yourself and reevaluate. And make sure when you do so, you place God before everything else. And then watch what happens. It will be glorious.

When my father was stationed at Fort Carson Colorado, we lived in Colorado Springs. I was in 6th grade. I went to Bricker Elementary School. We lived in a house that had split levels. It was four floors. But, they were staggered. It was pretty cool. Outside our window you could see Pikes Peak. I remember enjoying Colorado. All except for my job. Yes I had a job in the 6th grade. I had a paper route. An early morning paper route. Daily, I would wake up around 4:30 AM and go to the garage to roll papers that I then delivered. I would either walk around the neighborhood, or I’d ride my bike, and deliver those things. And I hated every bit of it. It was my first “real” job. And I hated it with a passion. I loved the money. But, I hated the job. I did it for a couple of months. There was one night that we were all watching TV and I fell asleep. I woke up at bedtime and proceeded to go to the garage to start the roll trash. The next day, my mother made me quit the job. Probably a smart decision.

Some of you might be able to relate to this. Not liking the job that you have. And that’s unfortunate. But, I want to talk about some thing here that I feel is important. If you recall, a few weeks ago I mentioned talking to a nurse about God having her right where she supposed to be. And the point of that conversation with her is that I don’t care where it is that you work, you can still serve God. There are ways in all jobs that we can still serve God. And even those of us that are not working anymore, there are ways that you can still serve God. We are called to serve him and all that we do. And if you think about it long enough, I’m sure you can find ways that you can show others who God is. Maybe it’s putting verses on your email signature. Maybe it’s simply hanging a cross on your wall. What would be even cooler is people simply seeing you and knowing that you are a believer. The way you hold yourself.

So today, the beginning of the work week, pray over your efforts. Pray that God blesses what you are doing in order for others to see him. Pray that what you do is for him. And not for people. That may be hard to understand. But pray that you are working for God, and then that will lead to you serving others through God in all that you do. If you do this, and you do as God convicts you, your efforts will be successful. He will bless your efforts. Because that will bring him glory. And maybe, just maybe, for those of you that don’t like what you do, maybe you will begin loving what you do. Because…God will be in it. And that my friends is glorious no matter what it is that we do. How awesome is that!

My nephew, Jess Hettinger, works for the local water and electric department. Yesterday, we were talking about different things going on in the city. And also about our personal lives. It’s really one of the only adult conversations that I have ever had with him. It was a real blessing for me. Getting to hear him talk about work, his wife, his kids, just life in general, was pretty cool. But what really stuck out to me was him talking about his faith. How he has grown in that area over the last couple years. How he is trying to lead his family as well. Just so very cool. Made me proud of him.

One thing that stuck out to me about our conversation, was hearing him talk about listening to God. When he first really heard God talk to him. How God had been convicting him. For example, he is on the security team at his church. A few months ago he was outside the sanctuary. Keeping watch. And he felt God tell him to go in. So he went in and he felt a presence like never before. I told him that was the Holy Spirit. Well, let’s just say that the Holy Spirit took hold. And his relationship with God changed then. He began to understand what having faith is really about. What having a relationship with our Lord and Savior is really about. And that’s what happens when somebody opens their hearts and lets God in. Their lives change. Just as Jess’s did. 

I gave him a piece of advice. Something that he probably already knew. But we all need to hear it every now and then anyways. God is going to convict everyone of us. And he’s not going to stop convicting us until we act. We can choose how we act. Our decision is our decision. Some of us choose to not follow the conviction. And often times, those choices lead to bad results. I know from experience. And I also know this, if we do follow what God is convicting us of, good things will happen. He will bless our actions. Because they are what he wants us to do. Does not mean they are going to be easy. Sometimes very difficult. But they are part of the plan for us. We must listen to God. We must open our hearts and truly listen to what he’s telling us. And remember, his plan for us is good. And it will bring him glory. And that is exactly what we should do. 

Recently, we have talked a lot about distractions. Trying to avoid those and keeping our focus on Jesus. We have talked about how we are viewing sin as being ok. How things that are so completely wrong…have become so completely right in our eyes. Because, those that we trust say that they are right. We have talked about how easy it is to lose sight of what we are called to do, because we are constantly pursuing what we “think” we are called to do. These are all ways that our hearts can be clouded. These are all ways that we can fall away from God. Without even realizing it. 

In the Bible, Jesus warned us about this. The parable of the sower. This is the parable where some of the seeds that the farmer sowed ends up among thorns. As the seeds grow, the thorns take hold. They can choke the seeds. They can choke out the fruitful growth. And that’s what happens when we get distracted. Our growth in God can be slowed down. Even stopped if not careful. And that is dangerous. Because, then we can begin to really slip into an area where we allow things to happen because they seem right. Where we believe that evil is good. And good is evil. Where we believe that wrong is right. And right is wrong. These thorns we are talking about can include anxiety. Personal desires. Worldly ideals. And so much more. Remember, God and keep us from sin, or sin can keep us from God.

But there is a remedy. There’s a way to avoid this. If we intentionally work on building a relationship with God, we can remove these thorns. When we allow God to control our hearts, we can thrive in his grace. We can stay connected to him. Our hearts will grow in him. How awesome is that! So today, try to place your focus on God. Really place your focus on God. Remove the distractions. Determine what the thorns are and remove them. Go to your knees and pray for guidance. Read the Bible. Do these things, and watch your life change. Watch your life change because God loves you.

Well, it happened again. Barbara and I were watching another episode of America’s Got Talent and a performance really touched our hearts. We just can’t help ourselves. A country singer name Mitch Rossell performed. But what caught our attention wasn’t so much his singing, as much as it was his story. Basically, he lost his father and other members of his family in a horrific car accident when he was 10 years old. A drunk driver caused it. 

As he told his story, he talked about his father wanting him to learn how to play music. That they spent time together singing and listening to music. At a young age though, his interests were in sports. Didn’t really want to learn how to play music. Let alone play the guitar. As he grew, he wanted to continue a connection with his father. So he took up guitar lessons. And researching him a little more, we found out that he has written several songs for some major headliners. Garth Brooks being one. But never has really pursued his singing career until recently. The song he sang was an original. It’s call “Son”. I don’t want to give too much away. But the essence of the song was talking about losing his father. And then being a father of his own son. You can tell there was a genuine love between him and his father. Now a genuine love for his own son. You should Google it: Mitch Rossell America’s Got Talent. Have your Kleenex ready though. 

After watching it, it made me think about writing this devotion. You see, we have a father. If father who calls us his children. And he sent his son to be with us. He sent Jesus to be with us. He did so because he loves us. And His love for us will never end. So today, let’s make sure God knows that we love him as well. Let’s make sure he knows that he is in our hearts. That we are following him. Just as that fateful night years ago when Mitch lost his family, it can happen to us in an instance as well. Without warning. Without notice. It can happen in the blink of an eye. So let’s not be too late in seeking our Lord and Savior. Let’s not be too late letting him know that we love him.

At our farm house there is a hawk. We call her the resident hawk. We don’t know where her nest is. But, she has definitely taken up residency in the area. We’ve had the property now for nine years. Going on 10. And she has been out there for over half of that time. Unless I’m seeing more than one bird and I don’t realize it. Which is possible. Either way, there is a hawk out there. We even have a bald eagle that flies around. So majestic. You can very clearly see the white head and tail. I love it. Every now and then I can hear the shriek that they make. And that catches my attention. So then I watch as they sore in the sky. So completely free. Sometimes I wonder if they are just flying to be flying. I would if I could. What a feeling it would be like to be able to do so.

Also, near our property is a radio tower that stands several hundred feet in the air. And the hawk likes to land on it very near to the top of it. I’m guessing she’s doing so to take a look around. To see what she might be able to capture for her next meal. Or maybe she’s taking a break. I don’t know. All I know is that she is way up in the air sitting up there. Once again, so completely free. And once again, I would do so if I could. 

This freedom I’m talking about reminds me of us having the ability to be spiritually free. To be spiritually free in the hope that comes from Jesus. Which is so incredible. And it is something that all of us can experience. But requires action on our part. First, we must trust God. We must love God. We must let him have control. Second, we must talk to Our Lord and Savior. Praying to him. Asking him for guidance. I think we should pray daily. Finally, we must continually practice walking in faith. We must continually work on keeping our hearts pure. We must continually control our thoughts. Trying to keep our focus on God. If we do these things, God will bless us. I’m not saying God will make life easier. I’m not saying God will take all of our troubles away. Our difficulties. What I am saying is, God will see us through. And therein lies the blessing. Therein lies the freedom.

There are so many things that I love about Charlie 22 Outdoors. The fellowship. The camaraderie. The words of encouragement. The events. The meals. And so on, and so on, and so on. The list is lengthy. One thing I especially love is having veterans, that were guests at previous events, returning to other events. To make sure that those that are there as new guests, get the same or better experience that they had. That truly amazes me. Such a blessing to watch happen. The Charlie 22 Outdoors family has grown. It includes people all across the country. And I’m confident enough to say, it includes people from other countries as well.

Something else that I love about the family is accountability. Being held accountable by others is important to me. Very important to me. Yesterday it happened. After my devotion yesterday, I received a message from someone that I dearly love and respect. He was commenting on this part of what I had said yesterday: “And there are people that we know that are not going to heaven because of the way they choose to live.” What he said reminded me, God‘s grace is bigger than anything we can imagine. The way to heaven is through him. And if we choose to live in sin, we miss out on so many blessings on earth. And God will punish those for doing so. And that is unfortunate. Believe me, I know that from experience. But we must remember, he will welcome us if we turn to him.

My prayer for you today, actually for all of us today, is that we can have people in our lives that love us enough to hold us accountable. To correct us. To convict us. Not out of spite. Not out of malice. But…out of love. I am blessed to have a circle like this. And I don’t take that lightly. Yesterday, I also talked about how God can free us. Can show us hope. Those are weapons against Satan. I would like to add to the list this. Having people in your lives, that are in your corner to the point that they call you out, is also part of our arsenal against Satan. Having people in our lives, to help us make sure that we see things clearly, is part of our arsenal against Satan. And that’s very clearly one of the reasons why Charlie 22 Outdoors works. Because the people in this family, love each other enough, to hold each other accountable. And that glorifies God big time. 

Today is going to step on toes. Mine included. But, we all need to hear this. So here we go. There are two teams that we can play on in life. There is God‘s team and Satan’s team. And they are at battle. A very real battle. It’s happening all around us, all the time. I don’t think people realize just exactly how much of a battle is taking place. It’s become normal just to watch things happen. It’s become normal to let things just slide. If they don’t affect us, we don’t pay particular attention to them. But the battle is real. And there are people that we know that are not going to heaven because of the way they choose to live. They choose to live in sin denying God exists. They choose the ways of this world. And that is so unfortunate. It’s an ugly truth. But it’s as real as the battle that’s taking place is real. I have said this before. And, I’ll say it again. And, I’m not proud to say this. But…I have played on both teams.

Being blinded by the devil happens. When we see things on the media that approve and say that sin is right, it’s easy to start to agree. And that’s because many believe that if they see it on tv, well then it must be right. And that’s a weapon that the devil uses. Normalizing sin on TV. Normalizing it through people that we trust and that we watch on TV. On Facebook. Or the radio. Or wherever. The devil is real. Very real. And he is very skilled at what he does. He divides us from God. One moment at a time. Maybe one day at a time. But most definitely, one sin at a time. And dividing us from God, can divide us from those that we love. Our wives or our husbands. Our children. Our grandkids. Friends. Whoever. Or whatever. Anything that is important to us, he will attack. In a very sneaky way.

So today remember this, we cannot win this battle on our own. We need God to lead us. Remember that the war has already been won. Victory has been declared. The crucifixion did that for us. The resurrection did that for us. Our faith in God helps us resist Satan. And he knows that. He will run if he sees us glorifying God. Let’s work to be under the grace of God. And not under the influence of Satan. Jesus will heal you. Jesus will provide you hope. Jesus will free you from sin. But you must let him in to do so. 

I told you this before. And I tell you again. Barbara and I really enjoy watching the television show America’s Got Talent. We look forward to it every year. It’s amazing to us watching the talents that many people have been blessed with. They come from all across the world to be on that show. Hoping for that one break. One thing that they like to tell the guests is that the next three minutes can change their lives. And it’s so true. Many people have went from being unknown to mega stars. Well, last night we got to catch the first episode of this year‘s season. And once again, it did not disappoint.

The Mzansi Youth Choir performed on the season opener. They came all the way from South Africa to do so. Their talent is indisputable. But, that’s not what caught everyone’s attention. They sang the song “It’s Ok” by Jane “Nightbirde” Marczweski. It was an original that she performed a couple years ago on AGT. She had written it to talk about her story battling cancer. And just as the choir’s talent is indisputable, Jane’s was also. Her performance was pretty incredible. I say that in past tense because she passed away last year. February 2022. She was 31 years old. When you have time, you should look up both performances. They will be worth you doing do. 

Jane inspired many people with her strength. She had many quotes that people still use today. One that stands out to me is this: “I’m so much more than the bad things that happen to me.” She was spot on with this. She chose to face her challenges and move forward. She had a strength the only God can give. And I know many of you may not believe this, but we all have this strength inside of us. Or at least…we can have that strength inside of us. If we choose to have God in our hearts. We are all going to face bad things. We are all going to have bad things come into our lives. Disrupt our lives. They are inevitable. But, we can all be so much more than those bad things. And just as the choir sang in Jane’s song, ”It’s ok.” Because, God will make it Ok. 

Have you ever had a time when things didn’t go your way? For example, ever not get a job, or a promotion, that you thought you had coming your way? I’ve been there. Ever get a flat tire when traveling hours from home? I have. What about an appliance breaking that you were using? Our dishwasher did that one time in the middle of the wash cycle. Water flooded the kitchen. Then there are the much more serious things that can happen. Illnesses. Natural disasters. Death. The list of frustrations can be really long. None of us are immune to things happening that can disrupt what we are doing. And none of us are immune to discouragement. It’s easy for us to be discouraged. Especially when things don’t go our way. That’s part of being in this world. Facing things like this.

When we face times of despair and discouragement, it’s easy to wonder why. We begin questioning. Where is God? Is God watching? Does God see? Does God care? Will God act? Does God hear my prayers? Some of us may even question if God exists when moments like these come. Once again, I say it’s easy for us to wonder. After all, wouldn’t it be easier if life was easier. Wouldn’t be easier if God made sure times like these didn’t come. Wouldn’t it be! Well yes. Sure it would. But life doesn’t work like that. Life isn’t always fair. In fact, many of us might be constantly facing difficulties. Living a life that never seams easy. 

Today, we passed out Bibles to our guests at Operation Black Rain. We try to do this at every event. We told them that for every question that they have in life, the answers can be found in the Bible. And I mean every question. There’s no question about it. And the questions I mentioned earlier are addressed in the Bible. We read that God does in fact hear our prayers. We read that God does in fact care. We read that God will act. And know this, these truths are not limited to those we find in the pages of the Good Book. They are for all of us. And that includes you. And that includes your family. Your friends. So today, no matter how bad today looks, or how bad life seems, know that God is at work. His plan is unfolding. No matter how painful. No matter how discouraging. No matter how difficult. His plan is unfolding. He will make it right. Maybe not in our time. Actually, most often it’s not in our time. His timing is perfect though. It’s beautiful and perfect. So hold fast. Stay the course. Keep praying. God has you. He always has. He always will.