When Success is Simply Saying “Yes”

So, I’m doing a final review of a talk I’ll be giving very soon. Suddenly an unexpected wave of concern sweeps over me. I remember that the talk I’ve readied in the quiet will soon be seen and heard by real people.

I’m not alone in that feeling. The bookkeeper who must present her spreadsheets in a board meeting knows it. The mom whose child is suited up for that big game understands it. The runner who trains on the streets of a neighborhood and then takes his place at the starting line battles it. In those many varied moments, we all want assurance of success.

I begin to ask, “How can I make sure this goes well?” And a verse from Proverbs pops into my mind: “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.” (Proverbs 16:3). I pause and consider the words. “Is this a guarantee from God that everything will always go the way I’d like it to? Not so according to my life experience and the rest of God's Word.

Slowly I began to grasp the true meaning: Success isn’t about outcome; it’s about obedience. The “success” this verse talks about is set in motion not when the results are in but as soon as we say, “Yes, God, I give this to You.” He thinks differently than we do. To Him, every obedient “yes” is already a success.

I’ll confess a part of me wishes that verse meant what I want will always happen. But when I look back over my life, I realize there have been many times when what I thought would be best would actually have been a mess. Thank God He didn't answer that prayer the way I was wanting Him to!

And the real relief is that when I commit something to God, I no longer have to carry it. I don’t bear the weight of the fears, expectations, and pressure. I can faithfully do what He’s asked me to and know He will take care of the rest. Whew!

I return to review my talk and all that concern fades with this realization: Who I’m turning this over to matters more than how it all turns out. God’s got this. He’s got me too! And, He's got you!

Would You Be Impeached if You Were President?

Could You Be Impeaced if You Were President?
I'd like to take the credit for this blog today -- meaning, that God had given me this insight. It rang so true for me and I wish I had seen it a couple of days ago when I was defending my President with what he has done for our Country and someone challenged me about him -- in fact, calling him "Satan in the flesh". But, this speaks so much louder to who and whose we are. This is a post from a powerful godly woman, Janet Denison. I hope you get out of it as much as I did:

"I remember seeing the video of President Nixon entering the helicopter and waving at the cameras with his famous two-handed peace sign. It was 1974 and I was a sophomore in high school. I remember when the impeachment proceedings were initiated against President Clinton. It was 1998 and I was trying to steer my two sons away from the ugly descriptions in the television news. My boys were both in elementary school. Last week, I couldn’t help but wonder what my grandkids were hearing. I wondered if my oldest were asking, “Dad, what is impeach?” How would you answer that question?

Impeach is a verb and means “call into question the integrity or validity of (a practice).” The word is used most often in America to “charge (the holder of a public office) with misconduct.” From my limited knowledge of politics, I would ask this question: Who in Washington D.C. isn’t impeachable?

In my memory, integrity has not really been a standard we use to measure our leaders. If that were the case, we wouldn’t have slanderous campaign ads that flood the airwaves and that continue once they are in office—and especially once they campaign for office again. Would we have the problems in Washington today if we had voted for leaders who believed that integrity was a high standard for their campaigns? Can a person of high integrity ever win? Is winning more important than maintaining personal integrity?

It doesn’t matter which teams you root for in this world. Integrity should be a standard we value more than winning. We look for integrity in our preachers, teachers, and medical professionals. We would appreciate integrity in our lawyers, but we demand integrity from the lawyers on the other side of the table. We want integrity in our bankers, but do we require it of our tax accountants? We want the service industries to help us with integrity, but what about the realtor negotiating the sale of our home?

We are angry with the baseball teams that cheat their way to the top. How would we feel if it were our team that had won the trophy? I remember when Tom Brady was suspended for several games after “deflategate.” He won the Super Bowl that year and another two years later. It’s possible, even probable, that deflategate cost his team a title the year Brady was suspended for four games. But, did Brady’s suspension change his sport or just the way footballs are checked on snowy days?

I loved a letter to the Astros franchise that a friend posted on Facebook. He is an avid fan who is greatly disappointed in his team. But, he will still be a fan—if they clean up their standards for winning and return to a place of integrity in their sport. His Facebook post prompted this blog post. Washington DC didn’t change because of Watergate and Brady’s suspension didn’t cause everyone in sports to stop cheating.

If winning matters most, then people will continue to compromise their integrity to win. If God matters most, then people will continue to aim at integrity. Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.”

Lost people will always act lost. The real point of this blog post is to ask us: Will Christians act saved? We need to choose to love God most and be called to his purpose, especially this week. Like it or not, Christians are the light in this culture. We tend to get angry at lost people who act lost more than saved people who act lost. We have grace for the saved because, after all, that’s our team.

Americans are all part of the fallen human race and therefore we are all flawed. But there are a lot of us who are also part of God’s eternal family. When King Solomon was commissioning God’s children, he spoke for God, saying, “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).

King Solomon was a faithful, strong, and flawed leader. Maybe that’s why God chose him to deliver some of the most important words in Scripture. The key to 2 Chronicles 7:14 is found in the first three words of the verse: “If my people . . . .” The integrity of our culture is not the fault of, nor the responsibility of, the lost. God’s people are supposed to be “the light of the world.” We are supposed to humble ourselves, turn from our mistakes, and pray and seek God’s face.

God’s promise of blessing was not contingent upon the lost people doing the right things; it was contingent upon God’s people doing the right things. Whatever “team” you are on in politics, remember that you are there to love God and serve his purpose. Romans 8:28 is the responsibility of every Christian so that God can redeem all things to his great and perfect purpose.

Will we humble ourselves, pray, and seek God’s face? We are God’s people, and 2 Chronicles 7:14 explains that his blessings are a direct response to our obedience. Christians are the light of the world because the light of the world indwells us. Don’t let the world shove your light under a basket. This is an important time to shine. Humble yourself, seek God’s face, and turn from the wrong words and ways that will be easy to slip into this week. Please God if you want to win.

God can and will redeem anything for his good, if his people are called to his ways. That is our role in the impeachment proceeding.

Happy 2020! Let's Be Front-Liners!

I am amped up about this new year! I share these words that I texted my children yesterday. Since I’ve attained the “wiser, older” status with all these years under my belt, I get to pour it on -- believing they are words straight from heaven-central:

“Praise God. I am so excited for 2020. I see it as a year of overcoming, many victories won, and what the enemy meant for evil, God is going to bring about so much good (Genesis 50:20). I see dreams and visions coming true for my family. I see above and beyond all we can ask or think according to the power that works (God’s power) in us (Ephesians 3:20). So, let’s power-up! Miracles upon miracles, blessings upon blessings, I decree and declare over my family in Jesus’ name. I have something stirring inside me that believes and sees it for all of my family – from the youngest (Bryson) to me, the oldest. There is an anticipation building inside me that this is going to be a miraculous year for our family. God is setting up His people for a powerful, mighty move of God. Let’s agree together to not settle for less than His power working in us this year – being instruments of His peace everywhere we go and we see others through the lens of Jesus and we encourage them, give them words of life and peace. They will leave our presence with new hope and expectation for their lives. I decree and declare it so, in Jesus mighty name. Amen. I love you so, so much!”

I encourage you to stand up strong and take faith-filled words and declare them with fervent belief over your families. Display and live out holy, righteous boldness in faith this year.

Some of us are skeptical about 2020 because 2019 was such a rough year. We can take the woe-is-me approach to this new year OR we can be a front-liner on God’s team and we can let Him strategically position us for a major harvest of blessings – and while we’re being blessed – we’re positioned in His army for bringing in an army of lost souls to His saving grace, too! We’ve been in boot camp, so to speak, and we graduated with flying colors. I have holy butterflies fluttering inside me because I'm determined to be on that "front-liner" team.

I sense, for those who are willing, that God is opening our eyes with 20/20 vision for our assignments this year -- having depth of perception, skills that discern the enemy with the ability to take him out with precision. I'm believing for now-moments where God will download breakthrough strategies for this year.

I sense that radical faithfulness to standing strong in the heat of the battle in 2019 was seen by God. Despite what we went through, we trusted God. He was and is watching us TODAY – this first day of the new year. I believe He has been singling out front-liners and I'm raising my hand! Pick me, Lord!

I sincerely believe this will be a new year of such closeness to God that we’ll hear His heartbeat and we'll see through His lens for His people. He is giving us 20/20 vision and we shouldn’t be afraid to step out boldly in faith. Remember Moses and his fears? “Then Moses said to the Lord, "O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither before nor since You have spoken to Your servant. But I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue." The Lord said to him, "Who has made man's mouth? Or who made the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? Have not I, the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you must say" (Exodus. 4:10-12).

I believe that in this new year and new decade, we will respond to God's nudges and His whispers to stepping up and going where He sends us. We will conquer because He goes before us. He is our Father and will not leave or forsake us. So, won’t you join me and be a front-liner this year?

Living With an All-You-Can-Eat Mindset

What happened to all those all-you-can-eat buffets like Furr's, Luby's, and Golden Corral where we could indulge in every variety and choice of meats, veggies, salads and desserts? Maybe it's the health conscious living that we have these days, but I loved the whole notion of paying a nominal price for any and everything that laid before us. The whole thing was ours for the taking, after paying a nominal price for all that food. We could go back as many times as we wanted – even if we only ate one bite of any one item.

An old gospel song I remember well goes: “Jesus has a table spread / Where the saints of God are fed / He invites his chosen people, come and dine.” Somehow, I think the “table spread” doesn’t mean a petite size portion. Since God’s storehouse is overflowing with abundance, why would we settle for a snack? GOD lays out in front of us a buffet line of blessings. He gives us unconditional love, amazing grace, everlasting peace. He is so creative, loving and generous. Imagine how many beautiful fruit trees must have been in the Garden of Eden! He said “No” to only one tree in the entire orchard. All the other trees were “Yes” options. Simple obedience is the nominal price for enjoying all the blessings we could ever hope for.

God has a Blessing Buffet just waiting for us to enjoy. He makes it so easy to love Him, draw close to Him and please Him. We forget that the very God who created this entire universe, Who holds the stars in place, and knows the exact number of hairs on our head, also knows our way. His favor rests on us as we seek after Him with our whole hearts. He holds the power to cause things to happen in just a moment that would take us years to do. He can line up our pathways to cross with others He wants us to meet. He can open doors that leave us surprised at how they open. He can close doors that He knows are not the best for us. He has a plan, in the good and every hard thing we face. And often the greatest blessings come after the greatest times of testing.

God will not allow any circumstance, or any person, to hold
us back from His blessing, favor, and purpose for our lives. We don't have to worry because we belong to Him. He is more than able to turn the toughest, darkest times, around for good. He will not waste our pain, but will use the difficulty of what we walk through for good and to bring blessing and freedom to others. His presence is with us and we can be assured in whatever we face, His plans for us are good. I'm taking all-I-can-get AND eat at this table spread with so many blessings! How about you?

Controlling What I Can and Cannot

I felt a tug at the edge of my shirt and looked down to identify the perpetrator. He’s black and white with horns that could really hurt if he chose to wallop e." me with them. His name is Oreo and he has a personality of grit and determination and lets his peers know he’s the boss. I smile at him, and sometimes use my parental voice with him because he’s being way too possessive of his “stuff”. I give him a handful of feed, “Okay, Oreo, here’s a snack.” He gobbles straight from my hand, slobbery and delighted. He is one of five very tame and sometimes ornery goats at the Wuerch ranch.

Later, outside the domain of the longhorn, Vamanos, I toss him some hay over the fence and scoot his bowl of feed under the fence. I imagine the beast on the other side of that fence grabbing the edge of my clothing too. The scene that unfolds in my mind is entirely different. I shiver and salute him with respect as I think: “You stay there and I’ll stay right here!"

In many ways, this is how we define control. We are unafraid of what we believe we can control. The pushy goat. The Facebook posts we have done a thousand times. A conversation with close friends. Saying “No” to the third “Oreo” cookie. But our hearts speed up at the prospect of what we cannot control. The longhorn that swings those 6-feet horns. A recent health diagnosis. The weather and the outdoor wedding that is planned. The success of the fundraiser we are heading up.

Here is what scripture says about control. Proverbs 16:32 “Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city.” I discovered that the only type of control we are given is quite possibly the most challenging. It’s self-control. Yikes! Controlling ourselves is often harder to control than the goat OR the longhorn. Here’s how to explain self-control. We can’t control our friendships, but we can control what kind of friend we will be. We can’t control our marriage but we can control what kind of wife or husband we are. We can’t control our children but we can control what kind of parent we will be. We can’t control our career but we can control the sort of employee we are to our company.

When we actually start living this way, the fear starts to diminish. In other words, taking the next step of obedience is the equivalent of putting the fence between us and the longhorn. What we fear might still be present, but it can no longer smack us with his horns. (And, I know what that feels like! Been there – felt that, and got the bruise!)

The key to self-control is not inward, but upward. Because if God is in us, self-control causes us to be braver, stronger, and wiser than what we ever feared. I read this quote: "If you could kick the person responsible for most of your troubles, you wouldn’t be able to sit down for weeks." So let’s start with ourselves. The whole issue of self-control starts with self, so let's shoulder up and say: “Self, we can do this with God’s help!”

LET IT BE

LET IT BE
And, Mary said "'Let it be'...unto me according to your word." In essence, she said "YES". Such a simple word -- only three little letters. but that "YES" changed everything for us. By her humble obedience to trust in what God was asking, the course of human history was changed. It wasn't just a simple request either. God was asking for her ALL. She said yes to the call God had for her life. She embraced His words and said yes to be a part of God's mission on earth.

Last Sunday, I heard Pastor Ryan Mauloff speak about Zechariah's hesitancy to believe the angel, Gabriel's, message that he and his wife (an old guy and gal) would conceive a son. His lack of belief caused him the inability to speak until their son, John (the Baptist), was born. He had been programmed to doubt. On the other hand, a very young (maybe only 13 years old) girl (child) Mary, was visited also by Gabriel but her response was in faith instead of doubt. I don’t know . . . if I were in her sandals, I probably would have been like, “What? Umm, just a minute here. I have a lot of questions!” But her beautiful and humble response . . was "LET IT BE to me according to your word.” {Luke 1:38}. This is a perfect example of why Jesus said we should be like little children. Little children just believe. Little children just say yes.

Remember that Paul McCartney song, "Let it Be"? Paul McCartney of The Beatles wrote that song about his own Mother Mary, and the comfort she brought him during his toughest times. Yesterday, while I was pondering the "Let it Be" mindset, I looked at the lyrics and I thought about Jesus' Mother Mary and how if we would apply her heart and wisdom to our lives, we may be used, also, in the comfort and strength of those around us:

When I find myself in times of trouble
Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of wisdom, LET IT BE.
And in my hour of darkness
She is standing right in front of me
Speaking words of wisdom, LET IT BE.
Let it be, let it be
Let it be, let it be.
Whisper words of wisdom, LET IT BE.

Wow. That is just so inspiring and encouraging to me. I want to respond to God's call with the same willingness and wisdom that Mary had! YES, LET IT BE unto me. It can be too easy to to come up with excuses or brush things off as being unimportant. But God can do anything with anyone who is willing. He is our strength. We need to remember that even one person can change history with one YES.

When we let God work in and through us, without questioning all the details and understanding everything, we are saying "LET IT BE". We don’t need to see what He is doing with our lives to know we are part of His plan. No list of excuses. No doubting. No thinking we aren’t important enough to make a difference.

Yes, in spite of our weaknesses. Yes with all the bumps and frustrations that might come along. Yes. LET IT BE!!

We Walk by Faith, Not by Sight

Day 8 of 365 Photo Inspirations:
I have the joy of still being at my daughter's home in Texas for a few more days. until after our Leadership Summit in East Texas this weekend. What a priviIege it is to stay in their beautiful Guest Room. The first time I visited them here, Staci asked me to let her know if there was anything that was missing for a guest to have everything they need for a restful and peaceful experience. The only thing missing was a hair dryer. This time, it's there, as well as this stencil drawing just above the closet door, and directly across from the comfy and cozy bed. When I wake up, there it is....."We walk by faith, not by sight." 2 Corinthians 5:7.

What perfect words to see, meditate on, and embrace throughout my day -- especially knowing, that "walking by faith" is a journey of tremendous blessing and reward. It is a journey that is exciting, often, life-altering, and mind-boggling.

Walking by faith and not by sight requires us to go to a place we don't know, but one that God will reveal as we walk in obedience to Him.

Walking by faith means that we continue to cling to the dreams God has planted in our heart, even though it seems those dreams are risky and it's taking a long time for them to come true.

Walking by faith requires a strong determination to follow God’s plan regardless what life throws our way.

Walking by faith means we may have to do some pretty crazy things. Think about Noah building an ark for a flood when it had never even rained on earth. Think about Abraham clinging to the promise that he would be the father of many nations even though he was childless at the age of 100.

Choosing the "walking by faith" life, means we get out of our comfort zone, willing to let God take our world and turn it upside down, shake it up, and start all over again. And, in doing so, we let God out of the neat little box that we have put Him in, and let Him show up when He's good and ready -- with his PERFECT timing.

I don’t know where you are on this journey of walking by faith, but I encourage you to take the first step of the walk. That first step is the first step to success. It's a decision we'll never regret!