sinking in mediocrity!!

Sorry this is so long, but it has been bottled up in me for a while. If you know me very well you know what has prompted this rant. Enjoy!

Our society in sinking in mediocrity!! We are are surrounded by people who are in a rut and don't want change in their lives. We are surrounded by people who are afraid of striving for excellence. You can see it in our workplaces, in our schools, and even in our churches. As Christians we are called to a higher level of living. We are called to do everything we do to the best of our abilities. Here are two examples from scripture that tells us how we should "strive for excellence" in our lives.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. - Colossians 3:23-24

And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. - Colossians 3:17

You can see mediocrity everyday in the workplace in people who come to work just to get a paycheck. These people do not see the purpose in what they do. God has called us to serve Him in everything we do, which includes our workplace. The bible does not exclude any type of work or activity. We are told to work at "whatever" we do with all our heart. The workplace is a mission field that God brings to us daily.

You can see mediocrity in our schools where students are content with just a passing grade not striving for top marks. You can see mediocrity in our teachers who just teach their students how to take a test in order to make themselves look good. Even school district administrators are striving for mediocrity by preventing teachers from giving zeros to students. What are these students going to learn if we continue to "protect" them from the consequences of their laziness or irresponsibility? What are they going to learn if we only teach to a test? Again, God calls us to serve Him in "whatever" we do, which includes striving for excellence as a student, teacher, and administrator.

You can see mediocrity in churches that are content with methods that used in the 1950's, but do not reach today's society. We see it in churches that are afraid to change because "that's not the way we've done it in the past." We see mediocrity in churches that are afraid to take a stand against immorality in their community and in our world today.

I am well aware that there are many churches that are doing what God has called them to do. If you are part of one of these churches, get plugged in to what is going on and see how God will bless you. However, even in these churches there are Christians who stand back and let others do the work of God's church. The bible does not tell us that God only call us to serve Him if we are pastors, worship leaders, youth ministers, deacons, or sunday school teachers. We are all an integral part the body of the church. God calls ALL OF US to worship and serve Him and to lead others to do the same.

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men...

grace for breakfast

Our former youth minister and good friend came to visit us today at our men's breakfast. He had an awesome message to share with us and he made me think about this verse in Romans.

"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. Romans 8:1-2

There is no condemnation for those that are in Christ! Wow, what an awesome statement! We are no longer condemned by our sin, but forgiven of our sin through Christ Jesus.

I also found this in Romans 6:14 “For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.”

The “law” brings condemnation to us because it points out and condemns sin. However, as Christians we are no longer “under the law”. This does not mean that Christians are free to do whatever we want. It means that we are no longer “under the “law” in the way that God’s people of the Old Testament were “under the law”.

We are free from the law of sin and death. We are forgiven and God's awesome grace frees us from our sin.

Thank you Lord for your awesome and amazing grace!!

summer is finally over!?!?!?

It appears that summer in Texas is finally over. (I hope it is anyways) If you have read my profile, you will notice that I am not too keen on the lack of seasons in Texas. I have been told that if you don't like the weather in Texas, then wait and it will change. Well I have been waiting for a real winter for 8 years.

Hello....Mr. Winter where are you?!?

They should have told me if you don't like the heat and humidity, then wait and it will get worse. I guess the thing that bothers me the most about Texas weather is the fact that my hair gets so frizzy because of the humidity.

Now don't get me wrong I have loved our time in the "Lone Star State". We have made some lifelong friends and had some great experiences, but I would like to migrate north for some cooler weather.......and soon.

Speaking of heading north, I am really excited because we are going to try to go to the Chicago area around Christmas. I love the weather up there and love to visit the city. Now that my sis and her familia live there it gives me a good excuse to visit my favorite city at my favorite time of year.

it's official!!!!!

Friday November 9th will be our last football game.
Our Bulldogs have fought the good fight, but no playoffs this year.

two more games

Only two more football games!!!
Need I say more?