Dave Burchett's Blog, page 5

Social Media Is Fueled By Fear But There Is A Better Path

Many historians believe that 1968 was one of the most turbulent years in American history. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy were assassinated. Race riots and Vietnam war protests created massive unrest. International peace was unsettled as the USSR invaded Czechoslovakia. A bestselling book by entomologist Paul Ehrlich called the Population Bomb predicted that overpopulation would lead to hundreds of millions of people starving and there was nothing we could do about it.  In the Christian world a movie called Thief in the Night came out with a frightening story about the rapture and tribulation. I didn’t sleep well for weeks because I did not want to get left behind. My parents thought the end was near. I was 15 years old. The news was terrifying. I was a new Christian and I had virtually no discipling for what faith in God meant when confronting fears. I didn’t know if I would get a chance to drive, vote, get married, have children, have

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Spiritual Growth Can Be Found in the Roots of Redwoods

Real growth in relationships, faith, and maturity doesn’t just happen. I have to be intentional about confronting my own heart and shortcomings. Change is hard. Sharing my need to change with others is even harder.  Several years ago I took the risk to trust three men with everything about me. We called ourselves the Redwood Brothers based on a unique characteristic of the Coastal California redwood trees. A redwood alone in a forest might look magnificent but the first strong wind could destroy it. The Coastal Redwoods have shallow root systems and cannot survive a storm alone. Their roots extend over one hundred feet from the base but just broadening the root base is not what makes these beautiful trees capable of surviving the worst storms. They stand strong by intertwining their roots with the roots of other redwoods. The winds are now taking on an entire stand of trees and not a single redwood. No matter how majestic those

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Jesus Showed Us Why a Room Full of Bobbleheads Doesn’t Work

We often wonder how to get along with a group of people who have very different personalities and backgrounds. Should we surround ourselves with people just like us so we can feel safe and unchallenged? Many leaders choose only those who agree with them. My friend Clint Hurdle shared why you must have different voices in the room or every meeting is a narcissistic waste of time. Here is Clint’s comment. “I would tell my staff that I could simply surround my desk with bobbleheads and tap their heads if I wanted blind agreement in the room. I would offer my plan and the bobbleheads would nod yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I’ve been that guy nodding while my heart shouted no! I’ve also had colleagues agree with me hoping to gain my favor instead of helping me make the best decision. I can’t be surrounded by bobbleheads. I need people who are going to tell me the truth.

The post Jesus Showed Us Why a Room Full of Bobbleheads Doesn’t Work first appeared on Charisa Stories.

How Can We Apply Jesus’ Healing Promises In Our Lives Today?

I love this story from the Gospel written by Mark. “A man with leprosy came and knelt in front of Jesus, begging to be healed.” The suffering man approached Jesus in such an honest way. He begged Him to be healed. I can relate to that. How many times have I begged God for something without trusting His sovereignty in the process? The answer is too many times. I should respond more like this man who understood Jesus was able to heal but He had to be willing. Here is that exchange. “If you are willing, you can heal me and make me clean,” he said. Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out and touched him. “I am willing,” he said. “Be healed!” Instantly the leprosy disappeared, and the man was healed.” (Mark‬ ‭1‬:‭40‬-‭42‬ ‭NLT)‬‬ Jesus was moved by the sincere and trusting heart of the leper. Jesus responded with deep tenderness. The leper believed Jesus had the power to heal.

The post How Can We Apply Jesus’ Healing Promises In Our Lives Today? first appeared on Charisa Stories.

Wait! Don’t Pack Away Your Joy in the Attic!

This is the week we finish one of my least favorite tasks of the year. Taking down the Christmas decorations always fills me with melancholy. I love Christmas and the message of hope and joy it brings. That God entered human form and gave us hope in a Savior who understands our struggles. We packed up a treasured Nativity creche that has been a part of our family tradition for decades. That miracle in a Bethlehem stable is where I place my joy as I head into a very unstable New Year. I find my joy in the Messiah, the Lord – who was born in the city of David. It is so easy to remember the reason for hope during Christmas. It also easy to forget that when things turn dark.  We also packed away a decoration that spells out JOY. Now that we are past this wonderful season it would be easy to pack away joy in the attic and concentrate on

The post Wait! Don’t Pack Away Your Joy in the Attic! first appeared on Charisa Stories.

What is Christmas All About? Linus Had The Best Response!

A familiar song popped up on a Christmas music station from the original soundtrack of A Charlie Brown Christmas. Jazz musician Vince Guaraldi’s score is simple and brilliant. Listening to the vocal version of “Christmas Time Is Here” brought back some wonderful Christmas memories. Christmas time is hereHappiness and cheerFun for all that children callTheir favorite time of the year A Charlie Brown Christmas is one of my annual delights. In many ways Christmas has become an economic and not a religious holiday. One of the most powerful reminders of the message of Christmas came from the genius of the late Charles Schultz. One simple and elegant scene captures it all. Charlie Brown has failed miserably in his attempt to find the true meaning of Christmas. But then Linus recites the following passage from the King James version of the Bible. “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the

The post What is Christmas All About? Linus Had The Best Response! first appeared on Charisa Stories.

A Wartime Miracle Spawned From a Silent Night

One of my favorite Christmas stories happened during the horrors of war. The Christmas carol “Silent Night” was actually responsible for a wartime Christmas truce. The year was 1914 and soldiers were having to spend Christmas Eve night on the World War I battlefields of Belgium. After only four months of fighting, more than a million men had already perished in the bloody conflict. The bodies of dead soldiers were scattered between the trenches. Enemy troops were dug-in so close that they could easily exchange shouts. On December 24, 1914, in the middle of a freezing battlefield in France, a miracle happened. The British troops watched in amazement as candle-lit Christmas trees began to appear above the German trenches. The glowing trees soon appeared along the length of the German front. Henry Williamson, a young soldier with the London Regiment wrote in his diary: “From the German parapet, a rich baritone voice had begun to sing a song I remembered my German nurse singing to me…. The grave and tender voice rose

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A Guilt Free Gift to Open Before Christmas Day

Every follower of Jesus is offered the gifts of grace without any strings (or ribbons) attached. All of us have full access to these gifts. Paul writes that we are brought into right relationship with God entirely as a gift of His radical and amazing love.  When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace he made us right in his sight and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life. (Titus 3:5-7, NLT) Grace is the best deal ever offered and yet we often resist opening this gift from our Lord. We can’t believe it is true. We fear it can’t be possible that we can be loved,

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The Island of Grace Welcomes Misfits!

Christmas really is the most wonderful time of the year. I love the music, the memories, the traditions, and the chance to annually think about Burl Ives. His memory returns with the annual airing of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Ives is the voice of Sam the Snowman who narrates the “enhanced” story of Rudolph. Rudolph and his elf buddy Hermey don’t fit in with the others. Rudolph looks different than his peers. Hermey is not interested in making toys. In an odd plot twist, Hermey wants to be a dentist. Not surprisingly, his elf supervisor is upset with the unproductive Hermey. So the two outcasts set off to find their purpose and a place to be accepted. The part of the story that resonates with me these days is when Hermey and Rudolph find their way to the Island of Misfit Toys. All of the toys on this island are castoffs because they are flawed and deemed worthless. There is a “Charlie

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What I Would Love to Give You This Christmas

Amy Grant recorded “My Grown-up Christmas List” for her “Home For Christmas” album. The lyrics imagine an adult going back to Santa with a different perspective on what matters most in life. Instead of material things the writer now asks for good things for others. I love the sentiment of the song. No more lives torn apartThat wars would never startAnd time would heal all heartsEveryone would have a friendAnd right would always winAnd love would never endThis is my grown-up Christmas list I thought about my “grown-up” Christmas list. I would love for all of the things in the lyrics above to come true. But I have lived enough to know they likely will not. Every day some lives are torn apart. Wars start too frequently. Time does not heal every heart. Some who are reading this are lonely. Right seems to lose way too often and love ends heartbreakingly for many. So what could I wish for that would

The post What I Would Love to Give You This Christmas first appeared on Charisa Stories.