caught by the wind

The wind has pretty awesome. But I am sure you know that.

One of the first times I remember learning this was when I was a teenager. A friend from church took my fishing on a local lake in his small boat. He was a pretty awesome guy. Same guy who sold me my first truck, taught me how to duck hunt and even hired me to stack tires in his warehouse.

Any one it was a beautiful day, or we thought it was. It began pretty calm as we were fishing for stripers. If I remember correctly, it was a special season. You put two or three hooks in line and would troll catching fish. It was cool.

That was until the wind picked up. It was a big lake near Tulsa, Oklahoma, and as the wind picked up our little boat was being pushed further and further across the lake. We ended up a long way from where we put in the water and were not able to get back across the lake. He tried hard.

A nice fellow took us the many miles back to the truck and boat trailer. But wow. The wind surprised him and me. It was calm, and all the sudden the wind was pushing up, waves got bigger and the fight was harder.

That story reminds me of some verses I have read lately.

James 1:6 NLT

But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.

Ecclesiastes 1:14 NLT

I observed everything going on under the sun, and really, it is all meaningless—like chasing the wind.

The wind can push you in places you do not want to go. The world does that.

Chasing the wind is useless and meaningless and hard. The world is like that.

Any time we are on our own, missing the truth of God and struggling, it might be because we chasing the wrong things or even be blown around by the wrong things.

Be careful to not let the wind take you where you do not want to go. It might be just a bad day on the lake, or it could end up a horrible life. There is an opportunity, or a warning from the Bible, that tells us to be grounded in our faith, hold on the wind starts to blow and understand what is going on.

The wind can be hazardous to our lives. Be careful out there!

Catalyst ticket arrived

My ticket to the Catalyst Conference, in Atlanta Oct 8-10, just arrived. I'm excited!

Have you heard of EDITH BURNS?

Edith Burns was a wonderful Christian who lived in San Antonio, Texas . She was the patient of a doctor by the name of Will Phillips. Dr. Phillips was a gentle doctor who saw patients as people. His favorite patient was Edith Burns. One morning he went to his office with a heavy heart and it was because of Edith Burns. When he walked into that waiting room, there sat Edith with her big black Bible in her lap earnestly talking to a young mother sitting beside her. Edith Burns had a habit of introducing herself in this way: "Hello, my name is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?" Then she would explain the meaning of Easter, and many times people would be saved. Dr. Phillips walked into that office and there he saw the head nurse, Beverly. Beverly had first met Edith when she was taking her blood pressure. Edith began by saying,"My name is Edith Burns. Do you believe in Easter?" Beverly said, "Why yes I do." Edith said, "Well, what do you ...

wash feet, sharing hope

John 13:4-5,14 NLT So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him… 14 And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. Jesus set the example we follow. He served. He valued and gave value to others. That is why we choose to serve. For 18 years our church has shared an outreach called back2school, and for 16 of those years we have chosen to give students brand new shoes and socks as well as washing their feet. It is one of the most important parts of this event. Washing feet is a humbling experience where both the give and the receiver learn how to share some moments that might change their lives. Jesus said we should do this. See the verse above. Follow His example, do what He did, and give far more than you will ever know....

Michael Harrison's e-devotion

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