Last Chance?

Baseball brings out the best and worst in the fans that follow it. The Cubs series against the Brewers is coming to a close and my nails are nearly non-existent. Virtually ANYTHING can happen at any moment for the losing team to sneak ahead of the other.

 In the case of this specific series, three of the four games went into the tenth inning. Two of the three clinched by the Cubs. If you've been following this season, there was a lot riding on this series, and the one to come against the cardinals. One of the best parts of baseball is seeing if the losing team can make a comeback. It's better if it's the team you're rooting for, but usually you can nod your head and say "That was a great play."
During this series people keep saying, "This is playoff baseball for the Brewers." They're putting in everything they have right now because they know the end of the season is coming. And they're only a few games shy of the wild card right now. They're putting in everything they have to keep it from being their last game. At the beginning of the season it's easy to say " We'll get the next one" and it's almost taken for granted. However, every game in baseball eventually leads to who makes the playoffs.

What if we lived as if each decision or interaction could cause the world to plunge out of orbit and change the way of life for all as we know it? A little dramatic? Maybe. So let's look at it this way. If you learned that today would be your friend's last day, how would you treat him/her? You'd do everything within you're ability to make this day memorable right? Maybe you'd be careful with what you say and treat this person to ice cream or maybe an amusement park? What if you treated each day, each interaction with anybody, as if that could directly impact their next moment? I know that's heavy. Each moment and interaction we have is a chance to show God's love. All this is temporary. The next moment isn't guaranteed. James 4:14 compares our life to being a mist. Appearing only for a moment and then vanishing. Life is as unpredictable as Cubs baseball. You never really know what could be coming, so treating each moment like it's precious is our best option.

I wrote most of this yesterday. So as I was typing it, I was keeping tabs on the final game in the series against the Brewers. 3rd inning no outs, 0-0. Next moment? one guy singles, another doubles and SCORE!!! Cubs lead 1-0 top of the 4th inning, nobody out. The players were giving it their all to win the game. (The Cubs won by the way!) As they move into the next series against the cardinals, they're preparing physically and mentally to give it their all. Are we giving it our all, to live each moment to make an impact for the kingdom?

Dreams and Darkness

Wow it's hard to believe that a month and a half has passed since my last post... Just been keeping busy I suppose. A lot has floated through my mind for a post, lately but I haven't taken the time. Hopefully it'll all flow together.

It isn't often that I can actually remember my dreams. There's only a couple that a can remember, either because they really made me think, or they scared me awake. The ones that make me think, include thinking about what might happen next or if I would actually do that in real life. I've had two dreams lately that fit into that category.

Dream 1: Hijacked at Gunpoint
I looked out the window and watched as my Dad put gas into my van, on a typical day. As I watched him go inside to pay, two ladies appeared and ordered us to get out of the vehicle one getting in the driver seat. The rest of thee passengers obeyed, but I remained inside.They continued arguing with me, but the others were calling the police so they didn't have much time. Surprisingly they didn't shoot me but instead drove away with me still inside. I began talking with the ladies that stole my vehicle, trying to understand why they were doing this. They insisted they needed the vehicle as a mode of transportation to get to work. When I asked why they couldn't ask a friend to give them a ride, they insisted that city folk don't care enough about each other to do that. (Then I woke up)

How I imagined the rest of the scene would play out: I tried to reason with them, and offered to drive them myself. This caught them off guard. They couldn't understand why someone would offer to do that for someone who had just kidnapped and stolen a vehicle. I explained that Jesus loves us so much and in the same way I love on others to show his love to the world. At this point the ladies kicked me out and drove away. But the police were scouring the area so it wasn't long till I and my vehicle was found.

Dream 2: Stolen Books
I was making a trip to my car to unload some books out of the trunk, but it seemed my trunk was already open, and being unloaded. I ran towards it and tried to stop the crooks but they were faster than me. They were busy switching their license plates. I tried to grab the old one but it was made of paper and tore into pieces. As they drove away I collected the pieces, and was determined to find them. Not for revenge or to put them away, but to tell them I forgave them and offer them the stack of books they left in the trunk and to have a chance to tell them about Jesus.

Unfortunately I can't actually assume that it's what I'd do in real life. You never know what you'd do in situations like that until it happens. But I recently finished a book by Francis Chan, Crazy Love that talks about loving on others, doing "whatever it takes" to show a sample of God's love to others. It's an awesome book and I recommend it.

Disney World Light Bulb: While at Disney a couple weeks ago something occurred to me while I was on the rides. There was a dino ride we went on and at one point it got completely dark. The words "it's a trap" came to mind, and a second later a Dino tried to bite my head off. I saw this theme in other rides too. Darkness was often used to set you up for a fall, or to scare you with something jumping out at you. In the same way, if we drift into the darkness of this world we can fall, or get caught by the evils of this world. The darkness hides what we can't see. Temptation often hides the consequences. We must cling to the light, because light and darkness don't exist together. As long as we let God fight for us, our light will protect us from the darkness.

Thats about all I have right now. Until next time, continue to make ripples from pebbles!

Creating Ripples

Friends! I know I've tried doing the blog thing in the past a couple times... But I'm bringing it back! Not promising anything, but hoping to update somewhat regularly.



A ripple is something unusual in the pattern of the ocean. If you drop a pebble into an area of water, it'll disrupt the water sending little waves out in all directions. Otherwise the water is completely still. Creating ripples is a common metaphor within the church, along with spreading like a wild fire or planting seeds. Creating ripples is something I aim to do with my life, and this blog. Loving God often creates ripples because often enough our love for him prompts us to do things that don't go with the normal flow of water.

My devotions yesterday was on Jeremiah 29:13 - You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

When I read this verse it reminded me of the game hide and seek. Lets say one of the hiders take off his jacket, hat and shoes and arranges them in the closet, then goes and hides under the bed. A good seeker won't believe the jacket, hat and shoes are the hider. Someone wanting to win the game will be determined to find the hider, opening doors and cupboards, looking in thee darkest and dustiest places in an effort to find the hider. The seeker won't settle for first appearances. In our world, there are all sorts of things cluttering our lives and begging for our attention. We can't just settle for glimpses of God here and there, we have to seek him first and constantly seek him. Then out of our love for him, he'll guide our lives from there. I'm reading a book called Crazy Love by Francis Chan. It's about falling in love with God and stepping away from being a lukewarm Christian. I'll probably write more about that later. Such a great read.

I'll  try to write again soon, hope you come back to see more of my ripples as I continue to throw pebbles.