FOR THE GLORY OF THE EMPIRE

There is a great scene in the movie "Gladiator" that defines the heart and soul of the hero, Maximus. Maximus is asked by Caesar (his king) "Why are we here?" Caesar had been pondering the thought that most of his time had been spent in the battlefield conquering people and territories, but what had it really gained them through all of this.



Maximus (Russell Crowe) gave a quick 6 word answer "for the glory of the empire." Caesar agreed but followed with this statement. "When a man sees his end he wants to see a purpose for his life."



Maximus' purpose was to go home and be with his family after his last battle. He was tired of conquering life and missing what meant most to him, his family.



Ask yourself the following questions:



1. Why are we here?

2. What glory to we live for?

3. What is most important to us?



We are here to make a difference in someone's life. Someone, a child, a coworker, a spouse is watching every move we make. Are we making a difference?



Our glory is to honor our king, God the Father. Someone, is watching every move we make. Are we honoring Him.



Finally, think about what drives you. What is important to you. In 10 years will it still be important. Family is. Faith is.



I've thought about this alot this past weekend. I work 50-60 hours a week and what am I gaining from this. Ten minutes of playing with my 18 month old son is worth far more than any other minute I have. Five minutes alone with God is more important than any minute I could have.



Ask yourself again, "why am I here?"



Jody

S.H.A.R.P.E.N.

The Scottish Claymore Sword is the most well known two-handed sword used in battle. Most recently, it was popularized by the movie Braveheart. Anyone who saw the movie remembers William Wallace holding up the sword on his horse and yelling to the top of his lungs "FREEDOM."

The word claymore referred to "a very big sword." It was feared in the medieval battles because of its size and sheer power it wielded when it was swung by a warrior. The sword usually ran 55" in length with a 14" handle. Thus making it a "two-handed sword."

Throughout history, tales have been told of Scottish Highlanders, faced against incredible odds, who have overcome their enemies with the help of their trusted "two-handed sword." This was achieved because of the faith in their training, as well as the assurance of the sharpness of their sword.

Notice what I said. They first had to know how to fight with their sword. And secondly, they had to keep their weapon sharp. Think about how you fight your daily battles. Yes, daily we are faced with a battle from our enemy the deceiver, Satan himself.

How do you fight him? What is your weapon? Hopefully it is the Word of God. Hebrews 4:12-13 says "the Word of God is living and active. . . sharper than any double-edged sword". We have a powerful sword to fight our enemies. Our weaknesses, to be specific.

Just like the Highlander, we must know how to use our weapon. We must train daily on how to attack and how to defend our ground. But we also must keep our sword sharpened. Proverbs says "as iron sharpens iron, so must a man sharpen each other." We must not fight the battle alone. We need other warriors to practice with to keep us sharp.

Perhaps you are in the midst of a great battle, and feel you are losing ground. Pick up your sword. Pick up the Word of God. Find other warriors to enter the battle with you. Jesus promised in Matthew 18:20 that "if two or more were gathered in his name, he would be gathered with us." That is, he will be in the fight with us.

Once again remember the call from Mel Gibson in Braveheart, "FREEDOM." Pick up you sword and march on. You can have freedom.

Blessings,

Jody

GOD DOES NOT SLEEP

My wife Kim bought me a CD for my birthday this year which featured the song "I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day." I first heard this song as a boy on an Elvis record. I thought it was a good song but never paid much attention to it.

The version on my CD from Casting Crowns was beautifully arranged and I fell immediately in love with the song. But it wasn't until I attended Christmas Eve service this year and heard the story of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow that I truly appreciated the song.

One of America's best known poets, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), contributed to the wealth of carols sung each Christmas season when he composed the words to "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" on December 25, 1864. The poem gave birth to the carol, "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day." When Longfellow penned the words to his poem, America was still months away from the Confederacy surrendering to the Union on April 9, 1865; and, his poem reflected the prior years of the war's despair, while ending with a confident hope of triumphant peace.

Longfellow's despair did not only include the Civil War. As with any writing or song that touches the heart of the hearer, "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day" flowed from the experience of Longfellow-- involving the tragic death of his wife Fanny and the crippling injury of his son Charles from war wounds. Henry married Frances Appleton on July 13, 1843, and they settled down in Cambridge, Massachusetts. They were blessed with the birth of their first child, Charles, on June 9, 1844, and eventually, the Longfellow household numbered five children.

Tragedy struck both the nation and the Longfellow family in 1861. The Civil War began and Fanny Longfellow was fatally burned in an accident. Henry frantically attempted to extinguish the flames with a nearby throw rug. Failing to stop the fire with the rug, he tried to smother the flames by throwing his arms around Frances-- severely burning his face, arms, and hands. Fanny Longfellow died the next morning. Too ill from his burns and grief, Henry did not attend her funeral.

The first Christmas after Fanny's death, Longfellow wrote, "How inexpressibly sad are all holidays." A year after the incident, he wrote, "I can make no record of these days. Better leave them wrapped in silence. Perhaps someday God will give me peace." Longfellow's journal entry for December 25,1862 reads: "'A merry Christmas' say the children, but that is no more for me." Almost a year later, Longfellow received word that his oldest son Charles, a lieutenant in the Army of the Potomac, had been severely wounded with a bullet passing under his shoulder blades and taking off one of the spinal processes. The Christmas of 1863 was silent in Longfellow's journal.

Finally, on Christmas Day of 1864, he wrote the words of the poem, "Christmas Bells." The reelection of Abraham Lincoln or the possible end of the terrible war may have been the occasion for the poem.
Longfellow's Christmas bells loudly proclaimed, "God is not dead." Even more, the bells announced, "Nor doth He sleep." Longfellow wrote: "The wrong shall fail, the right prevail." The message that the Living God is a God of Peace is proclaimed in the close of the carol: "Of peace on Earth, good will to men."

The year 2009 was one of the toughest years of my life. Losing a job, downsizing a house and being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease made me at times want to say there is no peace. But God is so great and faithful.

That is why the words from Longfellow have taken hold of my heart. God is not asleep, He is with me. God will prevail over sin, over disease and over wrong. The Word of God tells us in John 16:33 "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 the world."

My prayer for 2010 is that no matter how bad things could get, God is on His throne and watching over us ever step of the way. Ring bells ring.

Blessings,

Jody

PRACTICAL BELIEF

"You can live opposite of what you profess,
but you cannot live opposite of what you believe.”- Dallas Willard

Recently, a teenage boy introduced his new "girlfriend" to his parents. A little awkwardness occurred during the meeting but all went well. A day later the son tells his parents that he most likely will break up with the girl because she was rumored to be using drugs. The dad asked the son if he knew about this before he introduced her and the son said yes he did, but didn't want to "upset" the girl about breaking up with her. What's wrong with this picture?

What happened to saying no to the girl in the first place and standing up for your beliefs? What happened to letting our "light" shine so that others may see Christ in us? The Word of God says this about our living out our faith:

^14-16"Here's another way to put it: You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We're going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don't think I'm going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I'm putting you on a light stand. Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16 (The Message)

Christians for the most part are not practicing their faith BEFORE they act. We would rather not "upset" the world instead of standing up for what we believe. This is "practical atheism." We are not acting or practicing our faith. It is no different than what an atheist does.

We, (Christianity) are on this earth to make a difference and enlarge the Kingdom of Heaven. Do we practice what we believe? Hows bright is your light?

Blessings,

Jody

STORMS AND RAINBOWS

"Dear brothers and sisters, when trouble comes your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing . . . God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to them who love him." James 1:2-4;12.

I've been thinking about these verses since Sunday. Jack Graham, Senior Pastor of Prestonwood preached these verses and I must say, it's the best sermon I've ever heard him preach. He spoke of enduring "in the rain." He spoke of how God produces "rainbows" at the end of a storm. He spoke of his father being bludgeoned to death 38 years ago. He spoke of the storm that came upon his family after his father was murdered and how God brought him through it. Allow me to borrow his outline if i may. Based on the scripture above, God proves three things in a storm of life:

1. Life storms prove how genuine our faith is.
2. Life storms provide stability.
3. Life storms perfect the maturity of our faith.

This stirred a major emotion in me Sunday. As I endure this new life storm of Parkinson's Disease I relate to the three points explicitly. But the scripture, which I have preached on and studied so many times before, speaks new life into me every time it is read.

Life storms will come to all believers. It doesn't say "if trouble comes" does it? It say "when troubles come your way." We all will face difficulties, some more than others. But the scripture gives us promise and hope. Look at the words that follow: opportunity, growth, endurance, perfect, complete, wisdom. How cool is that.

Your strength and endurance may be getting a test right now. Remember the three points from Pastor Graham; proving, providing and perfecting our faith. Please note, this is from a man who recently publicly stated that he is fighting cancer. How encouraging is it to hear him stand strong on the promises of God.

You can be just as strong. Don't doubt God during a crisis. Talk to Him, trust in Him, read and meditate on His Word and believe your "rainbow" is right around the corner. In closing an unknown author put it very simply about the promise of God:

Rainbows appear after mighty storms,
When things look their very worst.
Just when skies are darkest gray,
Look for the rainbow first.

The rainbow is a sign of God's promise,
That He will guide us through any storm.
That He will see us through all our troubles,
No matter what their form.

When you feel battered by Life's storms,
And you are filled with doubt and dismay,
Just remember God's rainbow will come,
For it's only a prayer away.

Blessings,

Jody

BE LIKE DADDY

Every morning I awake to the sounds of a baby monitor and Luke stirring to awake himself. It's such a joy because I can't wait to see his smile. Usually it's the same routine. I hold him until Mommy gets his bottle. I turn on the Disney Channel and we watch Special Agent Oso or The Mickey Mouse Club together while Mommy gives him his bottle.

But this morning, Mommy had to get the older girls out the door so Daddy had Luke duty. I was under the covers and Luke wanted to be just like his Dad this morning. I can't tell you how cool that was to have my 1o month old trying to really imitate me for the first time.

You see this all the time. I've seen my nephew mowing behind my brother-in-law, little boys dressed like their dads, and little girls trying to help their mommies around the house. Watching children attempt to imitate their parents is the essence of joy.

It is also pretty scary. Our kids watch every move we make. The good ones, but also the not so good moves. They hear what we say, and see what we do. We get upset when our kids yell at others, or us but where did they learn to yell? Our kids cut corners or tell little white lies, but where did they learn to act like that? Our kids want to watch “R” rated movies . . . you get the point.

The Word of God gives us instructions on what to say and do in Ephesians 5:1:

“Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ has also loved us and given Himself for us.”

In other words, we are to imitate the goodness of God just like we would want our children to imitate our good points at all times. Two key points come out of this verse:

1) We are to walk in love, just as God loves us.

2) We are to be givers and not selfish because of this love.

If we keep reading the passage it gives us the behaviors we are to stay away from; uncleanliness (dirty thoughts), selfishness, filthy or foolish speaking (cursing, dirty jokes, yelling) and coarse jesting (sexually explicit actions).

These are all acts that our kids watch closely. Think about it, are you leading your kids towards God or away from Him? Imitating your Heavenly Daddy must happen so that your children can imitate Him also.

There is nothing better than a child wanting to be like their parents. There is nothing sadder than when our kids act out our bad actions. This is not how you want to be imitated. If you don’t have kids, someone else is watching you (i.e. a friend, a classmate or coworker).

They say that imitation is the biggest form of flattery. I can only imagine how proud a Daddy God is when we imitate Him and show others His grace, love and mercy.

Blessings,

Jody Hinkle

NO MORE DING DONGS . . .

Recently, I was reading a blog on the top stress relievers. Activities such as reading, meditation, exercise and yoga were mentioned as possible stress relievers. Unfortunately, it didn't give what most people do to relieve stress. Drinking, taking medicines, and eating are probably more common to the average human being. Psychologists call this "self-medicating." These acts of "self-medicating" are the easiest way out. It's a way of covering the issue rather than dealing with it.

I know what I am speaking of. I have "self-medicated" with junk food and sweets for years. This is not healthy mentally, emotionally and of course physically (especially for a diabetic). And the funny thing about all of us, we know we are doing wrong. But why then is it so hard to change our behavior.

One area we don't turn to as much as we should when relieving stress is getting into the Word of God. Isn't it much easier to take a drink or eat a Ding Dong rather than diving into the Psalms?

During this stressful time of my life, I opened the Word of God this morning and ran across Psalm 19:7-9. It reminded me that the best medicine I could ever take is God's Word. Let me illustrate this breaking down the text:

• "The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul"

God's Word is perfect, i.e., complete and without fault. It also converts my soul, in other words restores me to a good place.

• "The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple"

God's Word is sure, i.e., without variable and movement. It is consistent and gives wisdom to simple minds in time of crisis and stress.

• "The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart"

God's Word is right, i.e., straight and never wrong. It gives my heart rejoicing and joy in times of crisis and stress.

• "The commandments of the Lord are pure, enlightening the eyes"

God's Word is pure, without any blemish or error. It gives me sight when I need direction.

• "The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever."

God's Word is clean, once again without impurities so that it can be totally trusted.

• "The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether"

God's Word is true and righteous, i.e., utterly dependable.

Let me put it this way, if someone, a friend or a counselor, told you that there was a book that was perfect for you, without any errors, and it built you up and gave you wisdom and direction, you would buy it without any regard for the price.

That's God's Word. If you are stressed or going through a tough time, turn to it. Pray for God to show you which chapter to turn to. He will guide you.

It's better than eating a Ding Dong. I promise it.

Blessings,

Jody Hinkle