Chris Vonada's Blog, page 11

The River That Flows Backwards

St. Johns River flowing through Jacksonville at night
Image courtesy of Don Dearing on flickr.com

Did you know the vast majority of rivers in the world flow from north to south? This is almost a freaky weird statistic, molding our distinction about north being on top of the world. King of the hill. For goodness sakes, even Santa lives up there!

I think the misnomer about which way rivers are “supposed” to flow comes about partially because our minds are conditioned to believe, when considering a map, that north is up(hill) and south is down(hill). Kinda like the drip drip drip of the coffee pot.

These north-to-south flowing rivers do follow a basic rule of plumbing. There are actually 3 basic rules of plumbing. Don’t know them? The 3 rules of plumbing: (1) hot’s on the left, cold’s on the right, (2) stuff, like waste, or sewage (a nice way of putting it) doesn’t flow uphill, and (3) payday is Friday. Which rule do the rivers follow? Ummm, it’s #2.

In fact, all rivers follow the second rule of plumbing, even those that flow backward. Of the rivers that flow backward, or south to north, the Nile River is the most famous, the world’s longest an incredible distance of 4,150 miles!

Locally, in Florida, the St. Johns River flows backwards. It’s been long postulated that the St. Johns flows to the north because Georgia sucks, but that’s just hearsay. Curiously, the  source of the St. Johns lies along State Road 60, just west of Vero Beach (where I grew up), and it’s mouth is in Jacksonville, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean. Yep, Jax is where I live now. So this quiet, southern river is somewhat of a metaphor of life to me, you know, like from “As You Like It”…

“All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances” William Shakespeare

And so in many ways on the stage of life, what we project comes back around. Life, I guess, sort of flows backward too – what we cast out, be it love, joy, a pleasant demeanor, or whatever, what we bring to the table comes back to us in many ways just like casting a fishing pole upstream into the river.

This is the chapter of the long-term impact of our decisions and how they help to determine our destiny, the conditioning of our heart, and what’s going to happen here in this life. Have you ever heard of The Butterfly Effect? It basically states that small changes in initial conditions, such as a butterfly flapping its wings, can have global consequences even on weather patterns. In the same way, Andy Andrews showed us specific examples of how the actions of people have shaped history. The scientific community embraced this as “The Law Of Sensitive Dependence Upon Initial Conditions.” This happens in nature, and in life.

The St. Johns River didn’t just up and decide one day that it was going to flow to the north. A long history of sea-level fluctuations carved the shoreline of the Florida peninsula, leaving a trough along the eastern seaboard that sloped ever so slightly in a northerly direction. Within the trough, rainwater collects, and follows that second rule of plumbing – it has to go somewhere, so it flows downhill under the force of gravity.

Can you reflect on a decision in life that had a significant impact on your future? Boy, I surely can. I have 3 adorable grandchildren that stem from a decision that I made decades ago, and that I’m thankful for. Do all of our decisions turn out that way? Not necessarily, there were many painful experiences along the way that also came into play. My faith journey similarly blossomed from a seed that was sown years before, during a storm huddled under a rock with a guy who told me about Jesus that made sense to me for the very first time.

As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart. Proverbs 27:19

We reap what we sow, be it good fruit, and in the choices we make. Our compadres are another great example of those who influence us. They all become embedded in our heart, and reflect out from there. Like the river that flows backwards… it didn’t just decide to be that way, the choices and forces of mother nature made it that way. Could that all change one day? Or, could I make decisions today that will change the future, not just for me, but also for my grandchildren, or even for people far away that I don’t even know? Just as importantly, can I make changes that will have the effect of taking my heart back to a better condition when it is hurting? I think so, as long as we’re still players on Shakespeare’s stage of life, there is hope for good old pitter patter.

Recognizing that many of our choices in life affect our heart, what could you change today to put your heart on a better path for tomorrow?

Are there any rivers near your home that “flow backward?”

This post is an excerpt from my forthcoming book, “The Wellspring Of Life.” You can read more about this book and my other titles by clicking this link.

The Most Powerful Story You’ll Ever Tell (And Why You Should Practice Telling It)

It all started upon this rock…
Image courtesy of VernsPics on flickr.com

“The only thing you can take with you to heaven is some more people” Joby Martin

The most important part of our journey here in this life may be summed up as:

- Being in a growing relationship with Jesus.

- Making disciples along the way.

How do we do this? Well, being in a growing relationship with Jesus is a big part of a story we get to share called our faith story. This is the part about how things have changed since we put our faith in Him. And telling our faith story to other people is quite often how we bring other people along with us to heaven. Grab a megaphone and belt it out, the most powerful story you’ll ever tell!

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:16-20

These verses are commonly referred to as The Great Commission, Jesus telling the disciples to go and make more disciples. The most powerful tool that each of us has to carry out The Great Commission is our faith story. This story is going to be different for each of us. You know your faith story better than anyone and are uniquely qualified to share it. This is one of the easiest stories that you will ever tell, just be open and transparent. In fact, Jesus is asking that of each of us, that we share our story with other people. Getting to heaven isn’t like being accepted into a tacky social club, it’s an open invitation for everybody. Why wouldn’t we want to bring every person on planet earth along with us to this place called heaven? So please share your faith story, often.

Every faith story has the following 3 basic parts:

This is where I was before I met Jesus.


This is how I was introduced to Him.


This is how my life is now.

My faith story started decades ago. If I think about it there are a number of events that brought me to know Jesus, the one that I share the most is called “The Journey Home” here at I’m Just Thinkin’. That one encounter as a college student with a believer huddled up under a rock in the wilderness during a gully washer changed everything for me.  It was years later that I actually accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior, and there have been many times since then that I’ve fallen off the path, but that’s the one event I can point to that indeed changed my life. My faith is still growing (a good thing), so my story is alive like a fruit tree. If you are interested in reading a part of my faith story please click this link to “The Journey Home.” It remains very dear to my heart, written on the tablet if you will. I share it often with anyone who will listen.

They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, but the best fruit comes from the soil that is fertile, when the weather is favorable, and with strong branches, vine, and root stock… and most importantly under the direct care of an attentive gardener. Yep, it’s in the Bible, check out John Chapter 15.

Do you have your faith story well rehearsed, so that you can share it with the next person who needs to hear it?

The Enduring Value Of A Water Well

Image courtesy of thewaterproject.org

This post is an excerpt from my forthcoming book, “The Wellspring Of Life.” You can read more about this book and my other titles by clicking this link.

Value. Whenever I think of value, I think of something that is a good investment. Some of my friends poke fun at me for wearing clothes that have seen better days. A few are tattered, some even frayed, and maybe one or two with holes in them. They’re comfortable to me, I guess that’s why I pull them out of the closet and keep wearing them so frequently. I figure the threads I wear should be durable. Some of my brands in clothing are that way too, a better value for the price because they last longer. I think that’s a good choice. Is throwing that penny into the wishing well a good investment, or of value? lol… not sure about that, but it is also a choice we can make. And you may just end up beating a well grooved path to that one.

When it comes right down to it though there are some things that are necessities in life, and having a supply of potable water to drink is a need right at the top of the list.

Vast bodies of water stored in our environment are typically in underground reservoirs called aquifers, or in natural or man-made lakes or surface bodies of water. And while there are some environmental variables, generally speaking when we identify a body of water sufficient to supply the needs of a community we call it a resource. It will provide for their needs over a long period of time. These significant resources are replenished by mother nature in the form of precipitation that either runs off the land surface into the surface water body that we’re tapping, or infiltrates into the ground to the underground aquifer.

A water well, properly planned, located and constructed in the right place, drilled to the right depth and tapping an extensive aquifer, adds value. Generations can enjoy fresh drinking water from that well. There is a long-term residual effect of our efforts. We could say there is a reason to hold that source in high regard, protecting it from pollution or depletion.

Our western society sort of takes water for granted. Less so than in the past as alternative supply is more costly, but in comparison to many third world countries or crisis areas, indeed, it remains true today. I was just reading a story yesterday, it seems the primary dilemma for survivors of Super Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines is water supply. One man reportedly is hiking 3 hours round trip every day to the nearby mountains to collect water from a stream, hoping that it is safe for his family. There are surely many others like him. No doubt safer than what he can find near his home at this time. Humanitarian efforts continue globally in our day and time to reach out to impoverished third world countries and their people, providing water and wells that often mean life to them, or significantly extend their life expectancy. Once we identify the reservoirs, civilizations can form around them, becoming dependent on them, sort of like an oasis in the desert.

Some of our choices are just that way too. When we make a choice to head down a path we should be thinking about added value. Value to continue, or move in a forward direction. Like a quality of life thing. Value like the well. How will this decision effect my future? How will it affect my family, and their lives? What are the implications? Maybe these are residual effects then of our choices.

Consider the Doppler Effect. This wave phenomena is most easily recognized in hearing, as is the case when we hear a train approach and then pass. The sound waves in front of the train become more condensed, while those trailing the locomotive are spread out. The same thing happens in the transmission of fluids, like the water in a well and, yep, even the flow of blood through our heart and the rest of our body. In fluids, we can measure the movement of particles that are within the liquid to determine velocity, and to show the Doppler Effect. Pretty cool how the residual frequency of a wave gets more and more dispersed after the source passes, like the waning of the full moon until the time of the new moon.

The vestigial presence and value of our choices, directly and through the vision of the Doppler Effect. For our generation, making choices that bring goodness and abundance. All good stuff that we can then pass on to the next, and the one after that. The pleasing comfort like a well-worn pair of pajamas that you can’t wait to feel against your skin again as they spin in the dryer. The brand you know you can order online because you know the maker. And our Maker who we know we can go to, like going to the well in prayer. It just keeps adding value. Like the enduring value of a water well.

Like doing things right.

And doing the right thing.

Where does the water supply come from in your community?

What are some of the choices that you’re making today that you hope will impact future generations in a positive way?

The 4 Necessities To Leading A More Meaningful Life

All of the answers are out there…

How do we lead a more meaningful life? A good question to ponder. If you haven’t figured it out completely you’re in good company. We’ve been working our way through the book of Acts in the Bible and talking a lot about goals and the journey itself in our Disciple Group. I shared my thoughts on developing a personal mission statement a couple of weeks ago here at I’m Just Thinkin’. This topic is mondo.  Without being too wordy I wanted to share with you today what I feel are the 4 necessities to leading a more meaningful life:

Identify with your maker. We are left with a gaping hole in our heart and in our soul without identifying with a greater power. I don’t think you’ll find the meaning of life without identifying with your maker. The script for the bigger picture has already been written… where will you be at the end of the story?


Develop a giving spirit. For it is in giving that we receive. It’s about people and not about the stuff. Zig put it this way: “If we don’t feel grateful for what we already have, what makes us think we’d be happy with more?” Yep, it’s all about giving. If you find joy in the shopping mall there is a greater feeling that lasts in your heart, it’s found in helping other people.


Make time for the most important priorities. Our world is more fast paced than ever, and the stream of information can sometimes be overwhelming. Don’t spend time on senseless controversy. I bypass much of the daily news for just that reason. In many respects, the journey is the goal, in this life. We can make the most of it by focusing on our most important priorities.


Forgive. Forgiving feels like we’re folding our hand at times. Jesus said, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.” Luke 6:27-28. Need help getting this part done? Here’s a forgiveness prayer. It works!

There have been excellent books written on leading a more meaningful life, and on these 4 necessities individually. This is a brief blog post, with some links to some other blog posts that I’ve shared. All good stuff, if you want to dig in deeper. I’m not planning a book of my own on this, just something that God has laid on my heart to think about, to try to wrap my arms around, and to share here today.

What do you feel are the necessities to leading a more meaningful life?

Do you believe in the concept that “the journey is the goal,” in this life?

What We Can Learn About Connectedness From The Digital Natives

Image courtesy of Florian Seroussi at flickr.com

Does LOL mean that you’re happy? Maybe when accompanied by a winky face. All caps means more than (lol) so I guess that gives us a clue to the tone. How about the body language of the chuckle? Sarcasm? Ummm, can’t really tell. And perchance you’re just trying to massage or persuade me? Ugh, now I’m confused.

Without aural clues, communicating by text and the like can be extremely superficial, lacking in depth or perspective. Ok, and your point is?

The digital natives are growing up in a different world of connectedness, all of which is not bad or misplaced. I think of being able to communicate with a  tweet or in text as another excellent way to convey a thought or influence.

While it’s true that I may be missing tone and inflection in this medium, do I really need all of that to let someone know that I’m running 10 minutes late? A simple “good grief… running late!” would suffice, I don’t really need to chat on the tele for 5 more minutes just to add the feeling of sorrow, right? Hats off to etymology, Shakespeare and the #hashtag…

Being different or communicating in a different way doesn’t always mean abominable. Consider the arrival of the telephone. Don’t remember the advent of the string and 2 cans? LOL… not likely, since it was in the late 1800′s! Interestingly, Alexander Graham Bell’s first successful spoken words to his assistant Thomas Watson over the early telephone, “Mr. Watson, come here, I want to see you!” Soon enough there was wire strung on poles connecting people everywhere… and with those famous words the average teenager responded to their parents by not answering their cell phone and learned the art of mastering ambiguity, preferring the form of exchange now commonly known as text.

I think when we become self-absorbed or resistant to change we LOSE connectedness.

Marcia Eckerd, Ph.D., states “I think learning about how others feel, social connectedness, and moral responsibility are related.”

Indeed, consider the cyber bullying issue. I applaud the laws targeting this as a criminal act. Here in Florida, that’s mainly directed at juveniles in schools. And what about adults? Surely they wouldn’t partake in such an immature act, right? Well, have you ever seen a parody profile on Twitter? Someone took the liberty of creating one for me, and a MySpace site too (btw, I’ve never done MySpace). I’m sure it was just some juveniles. I guess it comes with the territory and the notoriety of having a presence, making a positive difference and trying to change the world. Heck, even the pastor at our church has pundits!

Leslie Postal of the Orlando Sentinel says, “Actions that could get students in trouble include creating webpages in which they pretend to be someone else, posting bullying messages on sites or sending them to others via phones or computers.”

Yep, the things we can learn about connectedness from the digital natives…

My thought is this: being responsibly present in the moment, in whatever that entails, could prove to have the greatest positive impact. Simple, direct and personal interaction will always be better than any fancy ecard or digital message. Call texting the medium of misunderstanding if you will, but I believe it has a place and purpose, and short transactional bits are here to stay. Something else to be thankful for. I expect we will continue to learn from younger generations as well as nurture them from our experiences. That’s disciples making disciples, across the board.

Do you ever feel “left behind” when culture changes, or when the next generation views the world differently?

What have you learned from the younger set recently in your daily walk?

Developing A Personal Mission Statement

Image courtesy of Ammon Beckstrom on flickr.com

A personal mission statement. Do you have one for you, and/or for your family? I never did. It came up at church a couple of weeks ago. We were studying Acts Chapter 20, where Paul was on the move in an intentional way, he was moving and grooving on his way back to Jerusalem in time for Pentecost.

When I think of Paul, I envision a real hero. He was a true servant, focused on his mission to spread the Gospel. Here today, on to the next stop tomorrow. Sometimes he would stay for months in one place, other times he was gone in a flash. He did this knowing that he would face prison and hardships in every city. How did he know all of that? The Holy Spirit told him. He went anyway.

And so we were challenged to come up with a personal mission statement. I thought about it for a week or so, and one morning after a discussion in our disciple group here is what I came up with for mine:

Bring Glory to God and Honor Him through Obedience, Passionately Serving, Sharing the Gospel, and Loving Everyone.

How do we come up with a personal mission statement?

Try answering these 4 questions:

Who am I?
What is important to me?
What are my core values?
What legacy do I want to leave behind?

Writing a mission statement for yourself and/or with your family should be exciting. If it seems stressful, relax and take your time. Remember to be honest with yourself. And, remember that this exercise can be a work in progress. Likewise, it may change through time. Think of this mission statement as your guiding light. It’s something that you have to help keep you focused and grounded. Write it down on the tablet of your heart. Carry it around on a business card. Keep it handy so it’s there whenever you need it. And keep putting oil into the lamp.

Do you have a personal mission statement?

What suggestions could you offer to someone trying to develop a personal mission statement?

Learning To Be An Everyday Hero

Ben The Avalanche Rescue Dog.
Photo courtesy of dafuriousd on flickr.com

As I’m wading through my email last week and I ran across this one, from About.com, “The Psychology Of Heroism.” I never realized that being a hero was all that complicated. Doesn’t it usually go something like this: Clark Kent finds a telephone booth, pops the buttons off his broadcloth double Tattersall dress shirt, and whoosh, off he flies into the night sky to save some damsel from an everyday thug.

So I read about it and sure enough, there is substance to this mindset, you know, of being a hero.

Contrary to what this make look like at first glance, there is substance to this notion, and these everyday heroes are a step out of the ordinary. Here’s what they look like:

Heroes are servants, they have compassion and empathy for other people.
When a challenge arises, heroes have confidence in their ability to handle the situation.
Heroes have a strong moral compass. They are willing to sacrifice their own personal comfort for the sake of doing what is right.
Heroes are positive thinkers who take action. They are blessed with the ability to look past fear and danger, and foresee a positive outcome.

Does this sound just like Jesus? Yep, I thought so too!

I found out that we can actually learn heroism, and there are initiatives underway to help teach it. The Heroic Imagination Project is one, a non-profit that teaches people how to effectively take action in challenging situations. HIP believes that heroism is a mindset or set of habits that anyone can achieve.

Through the Psychology of Change, HIP empowers individuals to “transform situations by building skills and awareness around five universal, socially based tendencies that are a part of our shared evolutionary and cultural heritage. They are our default mode for good reasons, as these tendencies are normally helpful and adaptive. Yet, when we find ourselves in challenging or stressful situations, uncritically relying on these tendencies can limit our options, hold us back, and lead to poor decision-making.  They can also divert our attention away from important aspects of what is going on immediately around us – our social environment and the psychological dynamics that govern the various situations we encounter on a daily basis. These powerfully influential dynamics are so pervasive that they affect us all, but can be hard to spot without training, and thus are “hidden in plain view.”  That is the bad news. But there is good news.  Recent research in social and educational psychology has uncovered tools and techniques we can put to good use in understanding and changing our reactions to these social forces.  These tools can help us to loosen the grip of our unconscious tendencies and can free us up to exercise leadership and help us to be a positive influence in such situations and in the lives of the people around us.”

So here are the 5 factors, or tendencies that HIP identifies:

- Tendency #1: to react automatically to the things we are not paying close attention to. This tendency states that since we have a limited attention span, we often react automatically out of routine or habit to some situations. We limit our choices in doing this, and also miss key information. To react differently, we have to pay closer attention to our internal and external world.

- Tendency #2: to rely on labels and categories in making judgments about ourselves and others.  T #2 says we often make hasty assumptions about others and the groups we think they belong to, and we use negative labels for ourselves when things don’t go well.

- Tendency #3: to depend on those around us for our own interpretation of what’s going on. This natural social tendency can cause us to miss opportunities to act on behalf of another when we feel less personally responsible or more inclined to misinterpretation.

- Tendency #4: to seek acceptance and avoid rejection. Yikes. We all want to be liked and accepted, right? Maybe following that moral compass is more essential than heading down the wrong path for the sake of fitting in and promoting what is actually a false sense of harmony or unity.

- Tendency #5: to assume that certain aspects of ourselves and others can’t be changed. Ouch, this one is pretty tough for a change agent to read! The assumptions that we make about certain aspects being unchangeable are mostly wrong.

Well, with all that said, HIP leads us to a key change-making strategy: the power of pause. When we hit the pause button, we have time to choose our response, instead of acting on the fly and in autopilot more to a stimuli.

HIP says in the moment of mindfulness we have the opportunity to change our behavior by:

1)  Bringing Yourself Fully into the Present Moment
2) Checking for Automatic Behavior
3)  Considering Alternative Options
4)  Selecting a Preferred Response

That’s it, the power of pause, one path to becoming an everyday hero.

“True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.” – Arthur Ashe

Is there anyone in your community that you see as an everyday hero?

Can you identify with “the power of pause” – where taking a moment to reflect on a situation could change your response to a challenging situation?

Ode To The Wishing Well

Allentown Rose Garden and Wishing Well.
Photo courtesy of Lehigh Valley, Pa. on flickr.com

The wishing well… that fixture from folklore that people approach like a god. Water wells are commonly used to provide potable water for our consumption. The mythical type that we throw money into along with our requests? Yep they’re still around too, typically they have a fountain and are located in the center of shopping malls. We throw coins into them with our kids, making a wish… to? All in good fun.

The idea of wishing to a well or body of water says something about how important water is to our existence. When we toss money in, it may be something seemingly trivial or of little value, like a penny, but we attached a glimmer of hope along with it. We make light of it, sometimes joking about it and what not, but in our heart, at least some of the time, there is something more – call it a feeling, or desire, or just a wish. So while we may have just thrown in a penny, we really gave the water “god” a piece of our heart, and our hope. I guess in that regard, wishing at the well is sort of like what we do when we pray sometimes if we ask God to make something happen. The big difference being that we are worshiping a false god at the wishing well.

Why do I bring all of this up?

Well, I wanted to take a moment to think about the importance of water, because without it there would be no life here on earth. Yea, it’s that fundamental to life on our planet. Both science and the Bible agree on this point: the water came first.

Remember the phrase, “going to the well” – it’s from the 14th century. If you go to the well once too often it means your luck may have been depleted. Yep, you’ve pushed your luck a bit too far. As an athlete in high school, we used to go to the well – pushing hard when we were hungry for results. Pushing too hard can deplete your reserves, or empty the well. The same would be true if you approached that mythical wishing well too often, your luck would plain run out.

“Guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” That’s our verse from Proverbs, 4:23. Life flows from our heart, like water flows from the well. This is the deal that links the heart to the well, and life to water. So we can either learn to guard our heart through having a relationship with Jesus and learning from Him, or we can sing an ode to the wishing well.

Visiting the wishing well to satisfy the thirst in our heart is just like coming to Jesus…

“Come, all you who are thirsty,

come to the waters;

and you who have no money,

come, buy and eat!

Come, buy wine and milk

without money and without cost.

Why spend money on what is not bread,

and your labor on what does not satisfy?

Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,

and your soul will delight in the richest of fare.

Give ear and come to me;

hear me, that your soul may live.

I will make an everlasting covenant with you,

my faithful love promised to David.

See, I have made him a witness to the peoples,

a leader and commander of the peoples.

Surely you will summon nations you know not,

and nations that do not know you will hasten to you,

because of the Lord your God,

the Holy One of Israel,

for he has endowed you with splendor.” Isaiah 55: 1-6

When we approach our true God, like we approach the wishing well, we come, listen, seek and call out to Him. He hears our voice and considers what we have to say. And, He always answers us with love. You see, God’s love is the same today as it was yesterday. It will be the same tomorrow, too. The love that God offers us is free. His love doesn’t run out, we can’t approach Him too often. I think that’s the well that I want to go to.

What are the hopes that bring you to sing to the well? How often do you typically go to God in prayer?

“Ode To The Wishing Well” is an excerpt from my forthcoming book, “The Wellspring Of Life.” You can read more about this book and my other titles by clicking this link.

Throwing Down The God Card

Image courtesy of Thomas van de Weerd on flickr.com

My grandparents taught me how to play cards. We played a game called rummy 500. My brother and I would play this and a few other games with them for hours. It was a bonding sort of experience, this card game was for us.

I’ve played some other card games, like most people, but was never much of a gambler. I like pinochle. Trouble is, nobody knows how to play. It’s complicated, taking a long time to learn and play as well. The deck isn’t even a normal deck of cards, it’s a combination of parts of 4 different decks, that’s the 80-card version. Yep, kinda strange alright. I guess I found other fruitful activities and ways to connect with people than playing cards.

Most card games involve holding something in your hand that is of great value, and using that card or combination at the appropriate time to win the hand. For instance, if you get tossed a 2 of diamonds, and it goes with nothing else in your hand, it is probably pretty meaningless… unless you’re a diamond collector. Boom Choco Boom!! (that’s Wal-Mart lingo for a win – I LOVE Wal-Mart because my church is in a former Wal-Mart. Well, we think that’s pretty cool, praise God).

In life we are sometimes dealt “the God card.” What’s that? The God card may be an epiphany ahh haa moment, a blessing or prayer answered, or instructions from Him to do something. In whatever form we receive it, and whatever it is, we now have something that requires an action, communication, a change or shift. It requires us to make a play. The good Lord is showing us His will, or ready to make something happen.

With cards, there is a certain amount of chance or luck, and there is also quite a bit of skill in knowing the odds of different combinations, and memorization of cards that may have already been played, etc. So, that can make it fun and interesting, if you’re into math and probabilities. Being dealt the God card has nothing to do with luck or skill. We can pray about it and see what happens, that’s a good thing. We may also draw close to Him and receive His blessing. There are many more combinations here than there are cards, even in the Pinochle deck!

When we play cards only one person wins a hand, or maybe two people win if you’re playing partners. When we throw down the God card, it’s a win for everyone. This is something that impacts a person’s life, and while it may be good or bad in the temporary sense, often there is a shift that happens immediately afterward that is like shuffling the deck and getting ready for another hand of cards.

Throwing down the God card usually means the future looks completely different that it did before. Everything changes. When you throw down the God card you’re all in. There is no bluffing it with the God card. The information stems from truth and is so meaningful that our outlook and vision changes. Everything changes. It can be extremely personal, or go viral in a hot second.

If you’ve ever been dealt the God card there is no doubt about how to play it. You’ll know exactly what needs to happen and how to proceed. Maybe you’ve been dealt the God card before and didn’t play it… what? Yep, it happens. Why? Well, lets just say that our game plan doesn’t always match up to God’s will. Hey, if you ever get dealt the God card, I would encourage you to play it. Even if you don’t think it’s in your best interest, it is. Could you imagine being dealt a royal flush in poker and folding? It just doesn’t happen, right? Just saying…

Take note: when you throw down the God card, lives change. Mountains move. The earth speaks, and the angels and demons take note. You’re playing a heavy hand that is omnipotent. Things are going to change.

Finally, a word to the wise: if you’re throwing a wild card and calling it a God card, beware. This bluff isn’t going to fly. Tsunami alert! Find the nearest tornado shelter. Batten down the hatches. Katie bar the door, because there’s no tellin’ how that will all shake out.

Whatever happens, you can rest assured that it will be good, and to His glory when we play the God card.

Have you ever been dealt the God card? How did you play it?

Cooling Your Jets In The Conflict Of Two Ages

Cool Your Jets!!

We had a revival at our church recently and one of the pastors who shared was Right Reverend Bishop Dr. Van Gayton. He’s stopped by before, an amazing man who is gifted in his ability to share the gospel. You can tell he’s also one of those people who is connected to the Holy Spirit. I mean, it’s like really obvious. When he says the Spirit told him something, I listen without wondering.

Our revival lasted 21 days, culminating in nightly worship during the last 5 days. Bishop Van Gayton spoke about the Holy Spirit, and explained a nugget more clearly than I’ve ever heard it before, he called it “the conflict of two ages.” I didn’t take a lot of notes as I was mesmerized by his teaching, but here’s my take on it, and why understanding this concept is so vitally important.

Have you ever wondered about the meaning of life? I have, and I don’t have all of the answers. I’m ok with that as my faith has grown stronger than the questions. I do feel like understanding the conflict of two ages is an important piece in the puzzle. The meaning of life… like I’m referring to this life or the time that we live in now. Why do we live here in a fallen world?

Recall the duality and social ills at the time of the French Revolution in Charles Dickens’ “A Tale Of Two Cities”…

“It was the best of times,

it was the worst of times,

it was the age of wisdom,

it was the age of foolishness,

it was the epoch of belief,

it was the epoch of incredulity,

it was the season of Light,

it was the season of darkness,

it was the spring of hope,

it was the winter of dispair,

we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going directly to Heaven, we were all going directly the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”

I’ve been reading this book. Probably no coincidence, right? SparkNotes says of the novel, “With A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens asserts his belief in the possibility of resurrection and transformation, both on a personal level and on a societal level.” I always thought of this time we live in as a tug of war between good and evil. I guess that is sort of what Dickens is saying here too.

Why is the conflict of our times happening?

Well, I believe it’s because God doesn’t want a bunch of puppets on strings. It’s here that we have the OPPORTUNITY to become connected to God through Jesus and with the backing of the Holy Spirit. We live in an age between when Jesus, wholly God, came and walked as a man, and the time when we (hopefully) enter the Life of the ages, the eternal life. Remember, He is The Way, The Truth and The Life. In saying that, we can think of Him as the Way to the Life of the ages. If you believe in Jesus, heaven and eternity, our life here, in this life, is but a wink. Trusting in Jesus will take you to the Father. We can and do live the Life of the ages now, too, through our connection to the Holy Spirit.

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment” Ralph Waldo Emerson

Why is this so important? Why are we here in this age?

What our God and Jesus accomplished at the Cross opened the door for us. It is our calling to live life here in this age according to the order of an age to come, to live the Life of the ages here in the present life. It’s all about the fellowship of sufferings of Jesus. Simply put, His life has to become our own. This is EVERYTHING the Christian life is all about. Thankfully we have a comforter in this effort and world, the Holy Spirit.

Are you with me so far? Good, I’m glad if you are.

Here’s the really hard part to deal with: Jesus made it perfectly clear that living this way, that living our lives here in this world, for and like Him, was going to cause us great trouble. It’s going to mean trouble because if you do this, you will be in direct conflict with this world. Yikes.

Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome this world.” John 16:33

So cool your jets and take heart in knowing the ultimate victory has already been won. That happened at the Cross. Good and evil stood ready for Jesus, they strove for control and worship. Jesus worshiped and bowed His head to our Heavenly Father in the desert, and on the Cross until the very end. Game over. And some wonder why the Gospel is so important? Well, I know I can take peace even in the most troubling of times. That’s Good News!

Once we realize that life, for us, is always in terms of the bigger picture of things we find the peace, joy and happiness that our souls yearn for. That, to me, is how I’m learning to deal with living in the conflict of two ages. We’re in the place we are for a very specific reason: To give us an opportunity to live in fellowship with Jesus, and for the opportunity to have eternal life.

Yep, you could say it was an epiphany moment…

How do you find comfort living in the crazy world we live in? Have you heard of this “conflict of two ages” before? If so, what is your understanding of it?

Photo courtesy of “scanlime” on flickr.com