Labor in the Rain

Written By: Kirk Peterson

The lawn was in dire need and it was time to go to work. I had just got back from a good meeting with my Bible study group.  God was close. He had taught me something and when God speaks to you, it is nothing short of awesome.  Just as I was getting to the end of the yard work, a light drizzle started falling.  I looked up to the heavens and was grateful for the light rain to cool me off.

Now that I was done with the yard work, it was a good time to actually fix the lawn.  My wife loves to garden, it is one of her passions in life and we had some soil brought in to help build up our garden.  Though we finally got the rich soil we needed it came with a cost.  The truck tires sunk into our yard and left some mighty fine tire tracks in its wake. That’s a problem to a dude who wants to have a half way decent yard to live in.

There is a tool called a Tamper you can use to pound out the soil.  Not easy work. Just as I was about to start, the light drizzle the Lord had blessed me with became a solid rain--no better time to put in some work right?

God had fanned a flame in my soul. It came with a simple thought, “I like to be close to the ones I love. Not just in conversation and company but close in person. Our God is so big and so powerful He created everything around us.  The galaxies, the stars, the moon, the sun—He is the one who sends the rain. There are millions of people, yet our Father in heaven is close to us, He knows me personally and is near to me. He abides in those who believe and you can’t get any closer than that!”

“He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries. “His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live and move and exist… (Acts 17:24-28 NLT)

So, there I was out in the pouring rain and I couldn’t be any happier. I labored in the rain and my heart was filled with joy. It felt good to push myself, I was out of breath and drenched in sweat.  The funny thing about the rain is nobody is around. It was quiet and nature was all around me.  It was alone time with God. The rain poured down and I looked up to heaven as the water washed down my face, and I told God how happy I was. How having Him close is all I ever wanted. I heard the thunder in the distance and I was reminded of God’s power. I saw how the rain provided for the earth, the clouds were moving alive with activity and I was toiling in the dirt trying to repair what was broken. It was good times.

My friends remember that God is close. God is as close as you allow Him to be, so go ahead and get drenched in the rain just to spend time with Him.  Do something out of character that has your wife look at you like your crazy and say, “What are you doing out there?” Because it doesn’t matter when you get to spend time alone with the One who sends the rain!

Jesus replied, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them. (John 14:23 NLT)

Come back to Jesus my friends.

See Rhett Walker Band’s “Gonna be Alright” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYANZ0LgTqw

Supernatural

Written By: Kirk Peterson

It was time to test our old tent out for some camping fun with the boys.  Heidi and I hadn’t used the tent from before when our 6 year old son Brody was born.  I asked my wife Heidi where the camping gear was because I couldn’t find it, and as usual it was in the most obvious place possible… “Here it is sweetie,” she said with a smile.

The boys were busy playing as I happily set about getting the tent set up in our backyard.  Both boys were very excited to camp in the backyard together, eating snacks before bedtime and possibly even s’mores from the fire. It all sounded like a mighty fine adventure to them and for us parents too!!!

We had checked the forecast and saw only a small chance of rain. I wanted to include the boys, so I asked them to help me set up the tent and they did a great job of it.  Heidi came in to help me finish, but the boys were very willing to help in any way they could.  As we were unpacking everything, Heidi and I reminisced as we discovered the camping gear still had soot from campfires long gone.  It was crazy, the gear even had a slight hint of campfire smell to them after all these years…  “Can you believe this still has soot from the last time we camped babe?  How long has it been, 8 maybe 10 years?  Do you remember the last time we used this tent, man those were some good times eh?” I asked.

For once the boys were more than willing to go to bed.  They hurried into the tent and dove under their sleeping bags excited to camp for the very first time.  “So boys, we wanted to test out the tent tonight to make sure it doesn’t leak and to make sure it will work for our camping trip in a few weeks. We will get to go fishing, hiking, exploring and just take all of the nature in.  At night, you will get to see stars in the night sky like you have never seen and hopefully get a small taste of some of God’s glory,” I told them.

After the boys got their snacks they had been dreaming of, we took them inside to brush and floss their teeth.  We came back out to finish our evening routine of songs and prayers and with everybody all snuggled in we slowly fell asleep.

That is when the most supernatural experience I have ever had in my life came to me.

I woke up in the middle of the night and was completely paralyzed.  I was wide awake but I couldn’t move anything on my whole body. My strength was gone and I was not even able to open my eyes. I heard audible sounds coming from outside the tent and my mind raced as I heard what sounded like 4-5 people outside.  A strong fear was present

I became very aware of a constant sound in my mind.  It sounded just like two iron swords clashing together over and over with almost no space between the clashing. Also, there was a lower pitch sound…something like a sharpening stone used to sharpen blades that continued throughout the hyper clashing of iron.

I prayed to God. Was this the enemy I thought? I cried out to the Lord for help, I asked Him to send His angels down from heaven to protect my family.  I prayed for God to take me instead of them, if He would only just keep them safe…Then, as if God answered me, I was suddenly able to move. The noises outside disappeared but the wind continued to blow.

I sat awake trying to process all that happened.  After a couple of minutes I woke my wife Heidi up and told her what happened.

A couple of days after, I wanted to pray about what happened.  I wanted to see if God had anything to tell me.  I tried to get quiet and listen.  My impressions were simply this: that it was indeed supernatural what happened to me and that I should trust my initial instincts during the experience.  Because of the sound in my mind, I immediately thought of God’s angels wearing armor and swords.  I asked some of my friends and family about what happened too, but I do not think it was the enemy.

One of my family members told me to read Daniel 10, here is some of what the chapter says:

1In the third year of the reign of King Cyrus of Persia, Daniel (also known as Belteshazzar) had another vision. He understood that the vision concerned events certain to happen in the future—times of war and great hardship. 2When this vision came to me, I, Daniel, had been in mourning for three whole weeks. 3All that time I had eaten no rich food. No meat or wine crossed my lips, and I used no fragrant lotions until those three weeks had passed. 4On April 23, as I was standing on the bank of the great Tigris River, 5I looked up and saw a man dressed in linen clothing, with a belt of pure gold around his waist. 6His body looked like a precious gem. His face flashed like lightning, and his eyes flamed like torches. His arms and feet shone like polished bronze, and his voice roared like a vast multitude of people. 7Only I, Daniel, saw this vision. The men with me saw nothing, but they were suddenly terrified and ran away to hide. 8So I was left there all alone to see this amazing vision. My strength left me, my face grew deathly pale, and I felt very weak. 9Then I heard the man speak, and when I heard the sound of his voice, I fainted and lay there with my face to the ground. (Daniel 10:1-9 NLT)

For now, the rest of the experience is a mystery.  I believe God uses experiences to strengthen our faith. Shortly after this, I felt as close to God as I have in a long time. If I could share anything about that with you now it would be simply this: Pray. 

Pray and speak to God as if he was a close friend, for our God in heaven already knows our heart.

Come back to Jesus my friends!

See Francesca Battistelli’s “Holy Spirt” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SS5S8Unvm48

A Worthy Pursuit

Written By: Kirk Peterson

Sadness had found me.  I was lost to one of my most precious treasures.  For once, I had no answer--I couldn’t figure it out.  I had tried so many different things, yet that which I pursued availed me.  I had prayed almost every day and yet my struggle continued.  I had even came to the place of accepting that this was my new life and somehow I would have to find peace.

Then, from out of nowhere God spoke to my heart. He answered my prayer and showed me how to restore that which was broken. My answer was hidden in a mist that nothing could penetrate but Jesus.  It is a simple truth, but one that I have begun to pursue with each and every person I have in my life.

I watched as my relationship with my oldest son Brody took a turn.  Looking back, it is almost hard to put into words.  Where once there was this vibrant, joyful and strong bond between father and son--now had started to wither. It had come to the point, that no matter what I tried to do, somehow I couldn’t get back to that sweet spot of the way things used to be between us.

Then when I was on vacation with my family, God’s Holy Spirit spoke to me.  He guided me and showed me that the abundant life that Jesus promised includes fun, a whole lot of fun!

[Jesus speaking] The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. (John 10:10 ESV)

There is a balance to everything in life.  I think back to when I was my son Brody’s age and life was all about having fun.  As you grow older you discover that life can’t always be about fun, real life and responsibility all too quickly start to clamp down on our spirit of fun.  But it seems as though I lost that childlike desire of pursing fun somewhere along the way…I still had joy and peace and happiness in my life, but the virtue of fun wasn’t something I was striving for each and every day.

[Jesus speaking] Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. (Matthew 18:3-4 NLT)

As God’ Spirit spoke to me, I smiled at what He showed me. Could this be the answer to restoring my relationship with my son, one of my most precious treasures?  From that moment on I have begun to pursue having a whole lot of fun with my son.  I don’t know many people who would call having fun a virtue, something worthy of striving for in each and every relationship…but God has showed me that is exactly what I should be doing.

Jesus has redeemed my relationship with my son Brody and I am so grateful!  Joy comes from the Lord and he has given me a new song to sing.  Though the wave can’t last forever, I’m going to ride this one for as long as I can.

See Mercy Me’s music video “Shake” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJFA5Bitv7w

Brevity of Life

Written By: Kirk Peterson

As we arrived at the beach, that feeling of excitement filled my soul.  As we stepped into the sand on our journey, anticipation of fun and adventure filled my mind. I looked up and watched as the ocean came more and more into view over the sand as we drew closer.  Just as we were about to step off the boardwalk onto the beach, a lonely beach ball came rolling by--blowing in the wind.  I ran after it, hoping to catch it for the person who lost it.  The ball was too fast for me, but got caught in the weeds.  There it was, a larger than life baseball textured ball waiting to be rescued. I picked it up and looked around for the person who must have been running after it, but there wasn’t anyone in sight.  I waited and looked further in the direction that the ball had come from, until I realized that it must have come from someone far away. Lost to the wind.

I gave the ball to young Cole to carry for us to the beach.  After all, the rest of us had too much to carry as it was.  The ball was slippery and it didn’t take Cole very long to lose it back into the wind.  I ran as fast as I could after that ball.  I heard my wife Heidi laughing in the background.  Even as fast as I was running, the ball was faster.  Again, it found itself caught in the weeds on the outskirts of the beach.  I picked it up and jogged back to the family.  I fumbled with trying to hold on to the slippery ball and the beach umbrella as we searched for a place to get set up.

As we got set up, it didn’t take very long to see that the beach ball wasn’t going to fit into any bag we brought.  I thought, this is what must have happened to the person who brought it.  I watched as the wind tugged at the ball I had wedged behind our bags. I moved on to setting up the umbrella and I heard my wife say, “There it goes again…”  I watched as the ball went rolling away.

Teach us to realize the brevity of life,

so that we may grow in wisdom. (Psalms 90:12 NLT)

Brevity is an interesting word.  But I think it captures what Moses was trying to teach us.  The truth from God that we need to understand our own mortality. Time is something that never stops moving forward.  It is a river that doesn’t stop flowing.  There are all these moments found in the rushing waters of life and far too often we forget to open our eyes and experience them.  I think the routine of life can dull our experiences.

So here is the principle of why I’m writing this blog, here is what I want you to take to heart from these words: Life is beautiful. Enjoy it! Open your eyes and embrace each moment as they are.

To use a metaphor: If we are trees, then the sap is our lifeblood.  God is the source of life and any truth without God is like bitter fruit. It may look good on the outside and pleasing to the eye, but without the Almighty, you will find that when you bite into the fruit, its inside is bitter and not what it’s supposed to be.

I looked down and found a little hermit crab swimming in the waters.  I pointed it out to the family and to my surprise, my wife Heidi courageously reached down and put the crab in the palm of her hand.  She pulled it up out of the waters with a smile on her face as she saw the wonder in our young boys faces.  Brody and Cole gathered around as Heidi showed off our discovery.  We all touched the crab and watched as its little tentacles and legs came in and out of the shell. Brody kept asking if he could keep the hermit crab as a pet.  That was when Heidi told me the story of her free spirited aunt who kept some hermit crabs as pets.  Yes pets….can you believe it?

As I looked back in the opposite direction from where the ocean was, I looked up to the heavens and got this amazing view of the clouds and sky.  I thought to myself, hunh…here I am turning the wrong way from where I’m supposed to be looking, and yet I still get to see something beautiful.

God remains the strength of my heart, He is mine forever. (Psalms 73:26 NLT)

Come back to Jesus my friends.

See Kari Jobe’s – “Forever” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huFra1mnIVE

Lens of Faith

Written By: Kirk Peterson

Lens of Faith

I want to tell you a story. Recently my wife’s family had a beach house vacation planned.  All of us kids set off from our respective homes out to the promise of adventure together. We did not have a real specific time that we were going to meet at the beach house. One of the groups of kids was setting out from Texas, and had a 26 hour drive ahead of them.  The other two of us groups of kids had a 3.5 hour drive and 7 hour drive respectively.  Yet, somehow we all ended meeting on the trip up to the beach house, man what are the odds of that happening???

The last day of our vacation came and we all planned different times to leave that morning.  “There will be breakfast ready for you to grab on your way out.” Again, we did not plan on all coming together, but that is what happened.  We all sat down to one last meal together before the end of our vacation.  It was a special time of reflection on the memories that we shared and our special time together.  Then, all of the sudden off in the distance I yelled, “Oh my gosh guys look…come see--there are dolphins out there!”  Right outside on this beautiful view of the beach from our beach house, dolphins came to send us off!

Some might say that these events were all random…I believe that God was shining His face down on our family.  He untied us on the way up to vacation, and He sent us off with a special gift of the experience with the dolphins and fellowship together, God loves fellowship!

So I encourage you my friends, start to view your world through the lens of our faith.

Reflection

We studied Deuteronomy this week, wow what a rich book in the Bible!  If you haven’t read Deuteronomy, I strongly encourage you to dig into it because it is amazing. This is the last book that Moses wrote.  The book starts out with God’s special possession the Israelites about to embark into the Promised Land that God had promised them and their ancestors.

7For the LORD your God has blessed you in everything you have done. He has watched your every step through this great wilderness. During these forty years, the LORD your God has been with you, and you have lacked nothing.”’ (Deuteronomy 2:7 NLT)

It would have been so easy for Moses to tell the people that God is a God of wrath.  That He wiped out an entire generation, and speak to his people about all of the pain and suffering that they had to endure.  Yet Moses didn’t look to the struggle or the pain, rather he spoke of all that God had done for them.  He said that their journey in the desert was to build their faith. In fact we see in the story of the Israelites journey, faith in action in the world. Moses said that God provided all they needed!  He gave them water from a rock when they were thirsty, He gave them manna from heaven to eat—a food that had never been seen in the world, and from all I know that has never been seen since!

We see in this story so many things.  But what I want to speak about is how Moses, one of the greatest leaders in all of history, viewed his world. I see Moses looking through the lens of his faith at everything that God’s people were going through.  Indeed Moses had a very special relationship with God, He saw Him face to face. But he was just a man like the rest of us.

Moses knew that his time was at an end, God had told him that he would die up on the mountain looking out into the Promised Land, never to enter it after leading God’s people so faithfully.  What did this great man of faith do?  What would you do if God told you that you only had 1 week to live?  Moses choose to encourage his people.  He built them up by pouring out all that he had into them to send them off into the Promised Land equipped to handle everything before them by bringing them back to God.

9“But watch out! Be careful never to forget what you yourself have seen. Do not let these memories escape from your mind as long as you live! And be sure to pass them on to your children and grandchildren. 10Never forget the day when you stood before the LORD your God at Mount Sinai, where he told me, ‘Summon the people before me, and I will personally instruct them. Then they will learn to fear me as long as they live, and they will teach their children to fear me also.’ 11“You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while flames from the mountain shot into the sky. The mountain was shrouded in black clouds and deep darkness. 12And the LORD spoke to you from the heart of the fire. You heard the sound of his words but didn’t see his form; there was only a voice. 13He proclaimed his covenant—the Ten Commandments—which he commanded you to keep, and which he wrote on two stone tablets. 14It was at that time that the LORD commanded me to teach you his decrees and regulations so you would obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy. (Deuteronomy 4:9-14 NLT)

Reflection is such an important part of our faith, it is who we are. Remember all that God has done!  Do not only remember what God has done for his people in the Bible, but remember what God has done for you.  What was it like when you came to faith?  Why did you become saved?  What caused you to believe? What emotions did you feel? For you see in reflection we remember the special moments in our life we got to share with God. It forges a fire in our faith and causes us to boldly step forward into God’s ways.

6“So obey the commands of the LORD your God by walking in his ways and fearing him. (Deuteronomy 8:6 NLT)

As my teaching leader in bible study said, “Loving God with all of your heart means obeying Him with all of your strength.”

The secret of life does not live in what man can do, but only in what God can do. When you rely on God, you will have victory every time!

May God shine his light and love into your heart and draw you into His Kingdom. 

Come back to Jesus my friends.

See Need to Breath’s video for “Brother” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61Wm_qlVD4Q