Eric Suddoth's Blog, page 13

Trust – What Does It Even Mean?

This morning I was listening to my Bible app and it read Luke 8 to me. This chapter stood out to me in a different way this morning.

The Chapter begins with Jesus healing a possessed man. Then Jesus is begged by Jairus to save his daughter. Then on the way to Jairus’ home the bleeding woman touched Jesus and was healed. Along the way Jairus’ daughter dies and someone says Jesus isn’t needed anymore since she died. Jesus still goes to Jairus’ home and brings her back to life.

A verse in the Message translation stood out:

“Jesus overheard and said, “Don’t be upset. Just trust me and everything will be all right.” Going into the house, he wouldn’t let anyone enter with him except Peter, John, James, and the child’s parents.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭8:50-51‬ ‭MSG‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/97/luk.8.50-51.MSG

How do you feel when your world is crashing around you and someone says to trust them?

Is it easy? No.

How do you feel when you have 10 things to do and only have time for 5, but then someone says to trust them.

Can you?

We live in a word where trust is earned. We don’t give it out freely like charity. We don’t delve it out willy-nilly. We hold onto it like a precious commodity.

Because trust is very precious.

We all have been burned by mistakes and bad relationships. Some of us may still have the wounds from jilted words and back stabs.

Once you feel your trust being compromised it’s so hard to show it again.

What I love about this verse is the trust that is displayed on various levels.

The possessed man doesn’t do anything, yet is healed. He didn’t trust Jesus. He didn’t beg him for healing. He didn’t do anything, yet Jesus showed compassion as He passed by.

So often I see people hurting and it seems the world passes them by. I sometimes wonder if they feel God passing them by as well? That is a hard question, but when you’re hurting, you can feel that pit of doom in a split second when nothing changes day after day.

Then we see the man who trusted and begged Jesus to save his daughter.

I wonder how he was feeling as the crowds surrounded? I wonder if he was begging Jesus to hurry up. To stop talking to the crowd. To focus on him and his daughter.

Then the bleeding woman stopped Jesus in his tracks.

“Who touched me?”

Jesus could have moved on, but He stopped.

I bet Jairus didn’t stop. I bet he was pleading with Jesus to keep walking, jogging, running to his daughter. I bet Jairus was pleading with the crowd to stop shoving because every second is priceless.

I bet the bleeding woman stopped in fear. She trusted with her whole heart and reached out and touched Jesus’ clothes and now she is being sought out for touching. Because being touched by an unclean woman in Jewish custom is a big no-no. She wasn’t just dirty, but in Jewish custom she just dirtied Jesus.

I bet she was trembling. I bet she was shaking. I bet the crowd parted from her like the plague when they realized who it was in their midst.

I can see the woman falling to the ground. I can see her trembling in shame of the last decade of downcast looks. I can see her ready to be punished for her selfishness of healing. I can see her look of regret even though she felt healing for the first time.

But Jesus didn’t look down on her in disgust. He called her daughter. He called her a term of endearment. He lifted up her name among the people who shunned her moments before.

And once again He stopped. He stopped and healed her physically, emotionally, spiritually. He stopped and focused all His attention on the trembling woman and just like He stilled the storms days before, He stilled her fragile heart.

But once again, I can pictures Jairus begging Jesus to move. I can see him pointing in the direction of his home. “It’s just over there! It’s just over the hill! Come on Jesus! Move!”

But Jesus doesn’t.

Jairus’ trust was probably stolen when someone rushed to him and said his daughter was dead. I bet he stopped breathing. I bet he stopped pleading. I bet his stopped seeing Jesus as a healer. I bet his eyes darted to the healed woman thinking, “You stole my miracle! You took my daughter from me! You killed her with your bleeding!”

It’s not recorded how Jesus sounded when he heard the news. We just know what he said, “Just trust me.”

Did Jairus trust him after he heard the news of his daughter? Did he trust Jesus to perform another miracle? We don’t hear anything else from Jairus on the walk home. We don’t know if it was a short walk or a days long journey. We don’t know what Jesus was saying. Was He repeating to Jairus to trust Him? Was He teaching to the crowd? Was He silent?

But no matter how Jairus was feeling, his daughter was raised to life again.

Sometimes God uses our faith to heal. Sometimes He uses His mastery to show us who He is. Sometimes He waits until we are at our lowest to rescue us.

After being rescued it doesn’t matter when it happened. We don’t tell God after the cancer disappears, “You could have done that months ago?” We don’t scorn God when his mercy is shown, “I needed your touch back then.” We don’t dismiss his goodness when we finally feel it.

We don’t distrust Him when He shows us He is trustworthy.

But He is trustworthy. So why are you not trusting?

Are you like the possessed man and not even looking for Him? Are you like Jairus and begging Him? Are you like the bleeding woman and reaching out for Him?

God doesn’t need our trust to perform His miracles.

But trusting Him makes it easier in the waiting.

May you rest in the waiting…because He is here with you now. He is singing over you, “Just trust me.”

So, please trust Him. He’s proven Himself so many times before. And He will always show His goodness and trustworthy nature.

Peace

Dream Chasers – Podcast

I started a podcast last year in hopes of having another mode of encouraging others to chase the dreams God has given them.

This week I have decided to read Chapter 1 from my book, Dream Chasers. If this goes well, I am planning in turning this book into my first audio book that I will hopefully release later this year. I may not have the best reading voice, but I think it adds a nice touch to hear the authors voice reading their own book. Helping others pursue their dreams is a lifelong passion of mine.

I hope you take the time to listen to this and find some encouragement in the words.

May you have a blessed day and know that with God anything is possible!

Peace

To listen on Anchor

https://anchor.fm/eric-suddoth5/episodes/Chapter-1-of-Dream-Chasers—A-Journey-of-Faith-e1cedfv

To listen on Apple Podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dream-chasers-the-dreamer-in-all-of-us/id1598037433?i=1000547156724

You can also find my podcast on Spotify

Everyone has a dream – everyone has a purpose. It’s time to use your dream to fulfill your purpose

No Resolutions

If you don’t feel like reading, check out my podcast with additional thoughts.

https://anchor.fm/eric-suddoth5/episodes/No-Resolutions-e1cdi1t

I woke up this morning and realized I didn’t make a resolution. And I am okay.

In the past I have had resolutions of cutting out sugar, going meatless, giving up junk food. But this year, this year is different.

I’m not going to focus on cutting things out from my life, but the opposite. I’m going to focus on the positive side of getting healthier physically, emotionally and spiritually.

You may think that is the same thing, but is it really?

Instead of saying I’m giving up sugar, I’m going to say I’m eating more fruits and healthy snacks. Instead of being a vegetarian, I’m going to eat more veggies and healthy meats. Instead of giving up my love of cookies and ice cream, I’m going to find nutritious substitutes.

I may be giving up some bad things, but if I train my mind to looking at it differently, then I’m not really giving anything up.

Instead of saying I’m going to read the Bible more, I’m going to look at it as growing closer to a good friend. Because life is better with relationships. But good relationships.

I say this all the time, but life is all about perspective.

You can look out your window and see a rainy January 1st, or you can see the water is helping with the upcoming springtime plants.

You can see your lack of promotions as a defeat, but what if you aim to do the best job at the level you currently are in? Be the go to person with your title. Be the best person for no other reason than encouraging yourself to be a better you.

You may see your single status as a sign no one wants you, but if you want yourself for who you truly are, isn’t that better than pretending to be someone else to keep that relationship?

Life is all about perspectives.

What perspective are you seeing?

You can choose how you see the world. Are you going to choose to see a world in crisis or will you see its potential?

When you look in the mirror do you see your flaws or do you see your potential?

You may say, isn’t that the same thing?

But it isn’t.

If you look in the mirror and see your flaws, you’re seeing the worst part of you. You see the flab, wrinkles, gray hairs, clogged pores, crooked teeth. But if you see your potential, you are giving yourself grace and love.

An unkind person will point out your shortcomings with judgmental gazes. But a kind soul will point you to a better you.

How are you pointing to yourself?

So, it’s 2022. The bad decisions, the awful mistakes, the regrettable turns from the past is just that. The past.

It’s time to start the journey of 2022.

If you want to get healthier, it starts with a change in the right direction. Today is the day.

If you want to get stronger emotionally, it begins with a positive outlook. Today is a great day to begin.

If you want to be more in tune with God, the reconnection and communion is available if you are willing to bend. Today is the perfect day to humble yourself to His plan.

May 2022 lead you to a better you. Not because your mirror or the world is telling you you need it, but because a better you is reward enough.

It is possible. Believe it. Keeping telling yourself you are able. And just keep moving forward.

Here to 2022!

Peace

https://anchor.fm/eric-suddoth5/episodes/No-Resolutions-e1cdi1t

Reflection – Year 2021 in Review

It is hard to believe 2021 is coming to a close tomorrow. Can you believe it? Because I can’t.

This year started out with confusion whether it be political, financial, or COVID.

It is hard to believe people are still debating the presidential election results. But no matter where you lie on the spectrum, you have an opinion on it. The country is somewhat divided still on this matter that happened over a year ago. Some people haven’t moved on and others haven’t stopped rubbing it in.

The ups and downs of the stock market, laced with economic stimulus payments, a new round of Paycheck Protection Program Loans and the tax law changes caused turmoil in the financial world. Each day had new changes to try to understand and relay the information to others.

Then there was COVID. Who would have thought we would still be dealing with this sickness? Cases continue to rise, countries teeter on shutting down, families have their own internal civil disagreements on vaccinations. And it seems like it’s going to steamroll into 2022.

It looks as if very little has changed in 12 months. But even though there is still confusion and hands are up in the air, we at least made it through.

But don’t let the craziness of a few situations diminish the good things that happened.

I have many things that happened in the last year that will forever bring a smile to my face.

Despite the world being closed on January 1, it opened up. I was able to travel to Italy with my family in August and show them the beauty of Venice, as we all got to experience the wonder of the Cinque Terra, the quaintness of Lucca, the overlooked Verona, the Alpy Bolzano, and the metropolitan stylings of Milan.

Even though we missed trains, got lost a few times, pigged out on gelato and pasta, this trip will be one that I will forever cherish. The nights of sitting around and laughing in the park in Verona, the early morning sunrise in Cinque Terra waiting for the train, the vineyard dinner in Lucca, and the gondola rides in Bolzano and Venice. We saw a lot. But mostly, we spent it together.

This year should remind us to slow down. The people in our lives today may not be in them tomorrow. People get older and graduate. People move out and get married. The little children from 10 years ago, are now fully grown adults with children of their own.

Time doesn’t slow down, so we need to slow ourselves down and enjoy what we have.

Enjoy the midday walks with your friend or mother. Sit down with your loved ones for a meal more often than holidays. Play a game with the people close to you. Take a spur of the moment trip not for the flashy notoriety, but for the whimsy of making memories.

We don’t always have all the time in the world, but we do have the time we have. How are you using it?

Yes, 2021 had some ups and downs, but the ups and downs are easier when you have loved ones nearby.

You may have experienced a health crisis, lost job, financial downturn, a sudden death, and 2021 may leave a bad taste in your mouth. I am truly sorry.

But one of my favorite lines from one of favorite shows sums up this time of year.

“If you think back and replay your year, if it doesn’t bring you tears, either of joy or sadness, consider the year wasted.”

John Cage from Ally McBeal

2021 wasn’t wasted. We all have either had some high highs or some low lows. You may have had both. But remember your tears were not wasted.

You may wish 2021 never happened, but it did. May you use the ups and downs of 2021 to lead you into 2022 with a new perspective.

And tears will probably happen in 2022. And when they do, I hope you remember John Cage’s line. Because they are not wasted.

Peace and God bless

Check out my podcast

https://anchor.fm/eric-suddoth5/episodes/Reflection—A-Look-Back-at-2021-e1cbe0v

Animals in Heaven?

My pet has been feeling under the weather for the last week. He is getting better, but not back to his old self yet. People may say, he’s just an animal, but I think animals are some of God’s greatest creations.

Have you ever seen a group of dolphins jumping out in the open water? Wasn’t that a sight?

Or what about gazing at the beauty of a horse with its beautiful coat? Or how about seeing a bear or elk in the wild.

We take photographs and post them on our social media. We have magazines that cater to natures creatures. We even have channels that suck people in with its “Shark Week.”

Today as I was working a thought popped into my head. “Why won’t animals be in Heaven?”

We’ve seen the movie “All Dogs Go to Heaven,” or seen the pictures of animals with halos and wings.

I’m not saying your pet will become a saint, but I’m also not saying there isn’t a loophole with animals either.

Just consider.

God created everything in this world. He created animals for enjoyment. Is it outlandish to think Heaven will be animal free? He created them for Earth to inhabit so why not Heaven as well? Why would He create these beautiful creatures to not enjoy for eternity?

The Bible mentions crystal seas. Just consider, are fish in this beautiful sea?

If God is going to create similar things in Heaven as on Earth such as seas, why would He not also create animals in Heaven?

Some may say that when John mentioned crystal seas that it’s not really a body of water. What John saw could only be described with our human eyes as a sea.

But once again, I ask you to just consider. To ponder. To wonder. To question. To imagine.

Who knows what Heaven is going to be like, but if Heaven is going to be more beautiful than Earth, it has to have things that will amaze us.

A school of colorful fish, a celebration of polar bears, a waddle of tux wearing penguins, or a pride of lions. These things amaze me.

God is a God of creation.

He formed the mysteries of the universe that has caused everyone to stand underneath the stars and gaze in wonder.

He breathed out the sun and moon with mere words and caused light.

He painted the beauty of this land with flowery bushes, radiant greenery, colorful mountains, and etched bleached canyons with His hands.

I bet He smiled when he saw two kittens chasing each other in the Garden. I bet He laughed watching chimpanzees swinging from limb to limb in acrobatic feats. I wonder if He sat amazed when He created the colors on the first peacocks tail or butterflies wing.

God is such a creative God.

So why would Heaven not have some of His best handiwork? If nature displays the glory of Him, wouldn’t Heaven be filled with His reflections in all forms?

Just consider it.

I may be wrong. I may be right. But either way, I bet Heaven is going to be a sight to see.

Animals or not.

Peace

Christmas Is Coming

Can you believe Christmas is in one week?

Where did the time go? It seems like last week it was thanksgiving and a few weeks before that it was summer. Time goes by too quickly.

We only have a limited amount of time on this spinning planet – how are you using it?

Are you spending your time rehashing the past? Regretting mistakes? Reliving histories failures?

Well, stop.

Time may be passing you by too fast because you’re still living in yesteryears and you aren’t truly living in the now.

I understand time going fast. There are moments that I don’t want to end because my heart is full.

But there is a difference between those two speeds of time.

If life is passing you by because you are living each minute to the fullest, then you are living at the speed of life.

But if life is passing you by because you are sitting on the sidelines, then you are watching time pass you by.

It’s time to stop watching and start living.

Living your life to the fullest. Taking those chances that seem impossible. Daring to dream of the endless possibilities. Taking life by its horns and enjoying the ride.

If you mess up, time is flying and most people won’t remember. If you fail, at least you tried and won’t have that regret. If you fall, hopefully you learned that it didn’t kill you.

If you fall, fail, mess up, it’s not the end of the world. Time didn’t stop because of your short comings. It kept going.

And so can you!

So, this Christmas what are you looking forward too? A lot can happen in a week. Love ones may pass. You may even fall victim to mortality, so why are we waiting for Christmas to enjoy our family, friends and everything else that is good in this world?

We are not guaranteed our next breath, so what is stealing yours?

Are you stressed out? Are you worrying? Are you scared of the uncertainty? Are you anxious about the unknown tomorrows? Are you fearing something that you shouldn’t fear?

If you are letting the outside circumstances that you cannot control to control your life, then you need to stop.

When you give power to your fears you become the slave and they become the master. If you give strength to your worries you become weak and they just keep getting stronger.

If you are watching life pass you by, it’s time to stop allowing the world to dictate your future. It’s time to write your next chapter.

Who knows…it could become a best seller.

If not to the world, at least to you.

Merry Christmas

Latest Podcast – Where Do You Dwell?

The Christmas season has caused me to reflect a little more this week of the possibilities that God can do. I love a line from one of Emily Dickinson’s poem, “I dwell in possibility…”

So, take a listen of this podcast on Spotify, Anchor and eventually Apple.

Peace

Anchor

https://anchor.fm/eric-suddoth5/episodes/Possible-or-Impossible—Where-Do-You-Dwell-e1bmadl

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/episode/7pJzbJTWBra1n5M4FKeuyV?si=pdxC5HyVSqWCoPab2I_hng

Apple Podcasts

Latest Podcast – Are you Brave Enough?

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dream-chasers-the-dreamer-in-all-of-us/id1598037433?i=1000544625032

Here is my latest encouraging podcast episode for The Dreamer in All of Us. It is available on Apple, Spotify and Anchor.

If you need a little encouragement to pursue your dreams, check it out.

Peace

You Can Lead, but You Can’t Make Them Drink

Last night I went out with a few students. We laughed, they rapped, I listened, and then we went out to eat.

There is something special that happens around a dinner table in a Mexican restaurant with students.

We talked some more over bowls of chips and salsa. Laughed at each other…many times at me at my expense. And that is okay.

The night before some of us were talking about Jesus’ relationship with others. His family, his friends, his enemies.

The question went out, “Do you think Jesus cut up with people.”

Do you think Jesus told jokes? Laughed like a normal teenage boy? Played gags on his parents? Do you believe Jesus was 100% man and 100% God. Do you believe Jesus was at one time a teenage boy?

I do. He was still sinless, but I can see Jesus being a typical teenager, just the perfect one.

Well last night a topic I had never experienced was brought up, “I bet Jesus was a pimp and slept around a lot.”

I took in the sentence and then calmly said, “No. Jesus wasn’t like that. Jesus didn’t sleep around. He was perfect.”

“Well, they said He had many sons and daughters.”

Once again I didn’t react, but I saw for the first time how someone could think that if they didn’t understand the meaning of the verses. “They don’t mean in a physical sense. More like believers who follow him.”

“Who’s to say that’s what that meant? And who says sex before marriage is wrong?”

I listen as I keep eating my chips. “The Bible says.”

“Who says that’s right?”

I just smile, “I believe the Bible’s all right.”

“Well, I don’t know about it.”

The topic was dropped, but it was a discussion that just sprung out of nowhere. Who knows if I got through, but it’s not my job to force people to drink of His grace.

It’s my job to point people to the free cup that is offered to everyone.

Offered to the outcasts, the thieves, murderers, addicted, confused, scarlet women and men, wanna be players, and backstabbers.

His cup is deep enough to cover all the blemishes we expose or try to hide.

His mercy is endless like the universe that will never cease to forgive and forget.

His love is unfathomable like imaginary numbers.

His peace is constant like the waves in the ocean.

He is real. He is true. He is love.

So, who knows what will be discussed over your next lunch of chips and salsa?

It may not change the situation or it may change someone’s world forever.

Just be willing. Just be present. Just be. He can be the rest.

Peace

The Left Hand Ignorance

I’m not talking about the hokey pokey.

At Christmas time it seems that good tidings are all around. We sing about them in the carols, we watch them in holiday movies, we embrace them through greeting card lines and sentimental memories.

It is the season of giving to those in need. It is the time of year we count our blessings a little more often. It is like charity is an aroma in the air like evergreen and cinnamon.

But has our giving that used to come from the heart just become a thing we do because we have leftover blessings?

It is interesting the motives people give to charities. When a natural disaster strikes we hear of the ultra rich giving a million dollars to the hurricane fund, to the flood relief, to the earthquake victims. And it seems they turn their donation into some kind of publicity and advertising for their latest album or movie.

But it’s not just the Hollywood celebrities that fall prey to the luster of their name being headlined in the newspaper for their donation.

How many schools, hospitals, libraries, churches have wings named after their donors. They will be forever remembered (or until renovations are needed) for their wallet size of possibly that one time gift.

But it even goes on in the small scale. It seems like charities broadcast their donors through ads, thanking them for their generous gift as they list everyone’s donation.

Is this what we’ve become?

A society of people using our wealth to bring a little more attention to ourselves? But we don’t pat ourselves on the back anymore. No, we expect someone else to give us the accolade and an encouraging tap.

I wonder what God thinks of the showy charity donations? Would He be wowed with the large dollar amount or would He shake His head?

And Jesus sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
‭‭Mark‬ ‭12:41-44‬ ‭ESV‬‬

We tend to applaud the big donors, but not God. God doesn’t care of the size of the donation. He cares about the meaning behind it. God can do more miracles with a penny from a widow than He will ever do from a millionaires petty cash fund. We humans think we can probably do more with the millions than a measly penny, but God doesn’t.

The creator of the universe doesn’t need our scraps that we call a treasure. He has all the treasures of the world. He has it all.

He just wants us. All of us. Not bits and pieces of our checkbook or stock portfolio. He deserves much more than what we have.

And God doesn’t want a show. He doesn’t want a flashy, look at me mentality. He wants a genuine heart that gives not to be seen by the world, but seen by only Him.

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6:1-4 ESV‬‬

May we all give not because it’s Christmas, not because we have some extra money, not to be recognized, not out of guilt. May we give so we can be in communion with the One who gave it all.

God knows the blessings He has given to each one of us. He sees how we squander and waste it. He sees our bad choices and foolish mistakes. He sees our selfish ways and greedy hearts.

Yet He still loves us despite our shortcomings. He loves us so our flaws can be fixed. He loves us so our eyes can be opened. He loves us so we can become His hands and feet to someone who needs His touch.

His love doesn’t cost a thing. But when He gives so much, surely we should want to give it all back to Him. He doesn’t beg for our treasures (since He was the one who ultimately gave it to us to have) but He demonstrated His lovingly sacrifice not just in words, but in actions.

May we learn to give with a pure heart. Give in a way that our next door neighbor, our coworker, our family and friends, our God-loving pew buddy, and even our left hand doesn’t know what we are giving. Give in such a way that it pleases God and God alone.

Peace