Making a Bad Decision Worse

Today I was at Wal Mart. While I was taking our cart back to a cart corral, I noticed a gal in a mini-van who was headed down the lane the wrong way. Normally this wouldn't be too big of a deal, but she had gone so far in that she was committed now to going all the way through the lane. People were getting mad and giving her the horn and mean stares.

As she drove by me, her window was down and I felt really bad for her because she was saying, "I'm sorry! I know I'm going the wrong way! There's nothing I can do now." I really did feel bad for her. I could tell she was exasperated.

When she finally made it to the end of the lane, she was so out of sorts that she made the very next turn (I believe just to get out of the situation she was in), but the problem was it was a turn taking her down another lane THE WRONG WAY. I just stood there at the cart corral taking it all in.

In her desperation to get out of the situation she was in, she made it worse by making another bad decision.

That made me think. I was reading Malachi 3:8-10 the other day and I thought about that passage again after seeing the drama in the Wal Mart parking lot.

A lot of people start to face difficulties in their finances and they are kind of like that lady going down the lane the wrong way. They are flustered and exasperated by their circumstances. But sometimes they make a bad situation worse by choosing to not give their tithe until times get better. Talk about making it much, much worse!

That kind of a decision will only lead to more problems. It's like the lady who finally gets out of the lane going the wrong way, and in her confused state she makes the easiest choice she can...she turns down the nearest lane. Well...that lane is only taking her down another path of wrong-wayness. It is a bad, bad decision to not tithe.

God is not as nice. He calls it robbery. Don't make the wrong choice with your finances...even when times get tough in the economy. Don't rob God. If you do, you will only be going in the wrong direction and you will experience intense frustration and exasperation!

Trusting Him with your finances, even through tough times, is like waiting for that right lane to turn into. Once you are there, you will be better off for having waited.

White and Nerdy

It has always been something that I have wanted to do. I have sincerely always wanted to ride a Segway. I got my opportunity. They are incredibly cool. In just a matter of seconds I had it down. Check out these shots...


It was really cool. After the brief little tutorial, I was off down a huge hallway at Union Station in Kansas City. I only was able to ride for five minutes, but it was really fun. Something I have always wanted to try. Now I can cross that off my Bucket List.

Vacation Shots

Yesterday was a trip to Worlds Of Fun. It was exhausting, honestly. Here are a couple of shots of us having some wild fun...

This ride was called "The Ripcord." We were raised 20 stories in the air and then Jacob (our ripcord man) pulled the ripcord and we dropped all that way. It was actually one of the coolest things I have ever experienced. Next time you see Jacob, call him "Ripcord Demastus."

Here is my normal pose for a roller coaster ride! We had a lot of fun there. Today we're off to the zoo and to a Royals game tonight!

Family Get Away

We are off to Kansas City! We are looking forward to some time away. Pray for us while we are gone. I might get a blog post in and maybe not...we'll see how much computer time I am allotted. I am allowed to take my laptop...but I won't be on the net very much!

You'll hear from me either way later in the week.

Take Your Dog To Work Day!

Well, The Fort wasn't the same today. It was Take Your Dog To Work Day today. So Bessie came with me to help me get ready for Sunday. Her input on any sermon prep was minimal...although she did leave a nice present in the church library! Here she is with her Daddy!

I'm Back From Camp!

Wow! What an amazing experience. I had the opportunity to speak to over 70 Sr. High students at Central Iowa Bible Camp. It was really great and these were an awesome group of students.

On the first evening I spoke at campfire, at the conclusion of my message we challenged the young people to make a decision for Christ themselves, to rededicate their lives to Christ or to get courage to share their faith with someone who needs Christ.

As they quietly left campfire, they were each handed an unlit glowstick. Then they went out and sat quietly by themselves on a dark hillside. When they had come to a decision, they were to light their glowstick and bring it to a cross and hang it there. That was a really cool thing to see. Here's what the cross looked like that night...




Another very cool part of the experience was that on the campground there had been placed a very old Ford F-150 Pick-up Truck. The youth were challenged all week to write their sins anywhere on that truck with Sharpie pens. They did. They shared things like struggles with sex and smoking pot and cutting themselves and suicidal thoughts...anything and everything you can imagine, they wrote it. It was pretty cool.

They didn't know what was going to happen to the vehicle though. Well, on Thursday night, they saw what it is that God does with our sins in the most dramatic of illustrations. Look at the next few pictures in succession and you will see what they witnessed.


After this, the kids all came forward and picked up pieces of the truck to take home as a momento...something I am sure they are never going to forget. God takes our sins from us as far as the east is to the west. He literally crushes it out of our life! That was a lot of fun!

I told them I would post their picture here on my blog. Here they are, this picture was taken just before I began speaking to them the second time.

Central Iowa Bible Camp

Later today I head out to Central Iowa Bible Camp to speak at Sr. High Camp. I will speak at campfire tonight and then during morning worship tomorrow morning and again at campfire tomorrow night.

I love speaking to high schoolers. They are at a great stage in life. I hope to encourage them.

I will take a few pictures and put them up for you to see. Pray for me!