Musings of a Prodigal Son - Open Your Eyes

"When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked.“Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (2 Kings 6:15-17)

“I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by^d the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified." (John 17:13-17)

Ever since Sin entered into the world, there have truly been two realms of dwelling. Prior there was only one. That one, before Sin entered the world, was the dual union of the physical and spiritual. Man, who lived in a physical realm had fellowship and unrestrained communion with God, who is Spirit. Once Sin entered the picture, the gulf between the physical world and the spiritual one became wide. No longer were the Laws of the Spirit applicable in the present world. The two realities separated as man separated from God. Time became the enemy of man. Time is a concept relative to the material (physical world). Physical creation groaned as it was separated from the freedom of the spiritual realm. The physical world became finite while the spiritual retained it's infinite nature. 

The Bible's Old Testament is a picture of man's journey (man being physical) to be at One again with the spiritual and in perfect communion with God. Throughout it's pages, we find glimpses into the spiritual realm. As we look at these various glimpses into the spiritual realm, it becomes apparent that it is a totally different existence on another plane of reality. This is very apparent in the passage above about Elisha and his servant. One walked in the Spirit (Elisha) and his servant was operating in the physical. This happens to all of us when we let the worries of this life, it's trials, and temptations, influence us to walk or live according to the rules of this present world. 

Jesus on numerous occassions told his followers, "He who has ears, let him hear." They must have looked around like, "What?" "What does that mean?" At times he would add, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear what the spirit is saying." 

Many older hymns and songs contain the phrase, "Open our eyes Lord." Most people have their eyes open while they are singing. This must mean something else. It means, open our Spiritual eyes, Lord. The ones we obtained when we became one with you. The ones we have the capacity to live life through now. 

I saw a video on facebook the other day about a special kind of glasses, now available for people who have never been able to distinguish colors that allows them to see what they have never seen. The video was of a middle-age man whose family bought him a pair of these glasses for his birthday. The look of utter wonder and joy on his face as he saw the new "reality" was simply amazing! I would recommend that you search for it and watch. This reminds me of the whole world that opens up to us when we make the decision to "Walk in the Spirit". We open ourselves to a whole new set of laws and realities. Time becomes a non-factor in our lives, obedience and faith become the cornerstones of our existence. 

I've mentioned before that with the advent of the scientific method and what is known as the period of Enlightenment in Western civilization, man has progressively moved toward a more humanistic philosophy and understanding of life. Although advances in technology have had some positive benefits in our daily lives in this physical world, the prevalence of this mindset and philosophy have contributed to our lack of faith in the spiritual and "unexplained." I have often said that Satan's greatest ploy in America has been his ability to hide and work behind the scenes. He hides so easily because, being a spiritual being himself with the ability to operate in the physical, he manipulates the physical and hides in the spiritual. To confront and deal with his devices, we must first fight him where he resides. To fight him, Jesus pointed out in his earthly ministry requires that we choose to live in the spiritual realm and by spiritual laws instead of the physical (logical) ones. To borrow His words, "we are IN this world, but not OF this world." The Apostle Paul said, "The weapons of our warfare are not carnal (physical--of this world) but mighty in God for the pulling down of strongholds."(2 Corinthians 10:4). 

We misunderstand so much of the New Testament because much of it is written to those who LIVE AND WALK IN THE SPIRIT (A totally different realm of existence with different laws and principles). Could it be that much of our frustration comes from living in the carnal but expecting the spiritual promises and realities?. Remember, the Spiritual Realm is timeless. God's promises are spiritual promises. How can we see spiritual promises if we don't choose to live there? We can't. 

It really boils down to two simple concepts: Faith in what God says is true vs. Faith in what we see from our experience and the realities we learn as we walk in our flesh. Our behavior always comes from which one we believe.

An example: Many times in my life I have been afraid to pray for someone to get well because I was wondering whether it was God's Will. Jesus told his disciples, the works that I do, you shall do also and GREATER works shall you do. He also told them to heal the sick. These are SPIRITUAL EXERCISES. If I try them, and even if I "fail" and someone does not get well, I am still conducting a spiritual exercise based on obedience because Jesus told me, as his disciple, to do it. Will I make mistakes, yes. Just as we make mistakes operating by physical laws (carnal), so shall we also make mistakes operating in the Spiritual Ones. However, it is no less important to be obedient and choose to obey the Spiritual Ones anyway. 

Choose you this day whom ye will serve, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord (Spiritual). Are we perfect? No. Will we make spiritual mistakes as we are obedient? Sure. Does it excuse us from being obedient? No.

As I live out the remainder of my life, I have two choices. I can live in the Spiritual or I can live in the physical (carnal). The concept of carnal (fleshy) in and of itself is not bad. It is a term that denotes which system you are a "citizen" of. Humanism or Monotheism? Flesh or Spirit? Spiritual or Carnal?

As the world begins this"shaking" (sifting), the two existences will become more and more apparent. There will be less opportunity to "straddle the fence" and a more definitive decision will have to be made. Much of the confusion faced by followers of Christ today have resulted in the attempts of many of us to "harmonize" the humanistic ideas of the flesh with the Spiritual Laws of God. The two realities were never meant to be harmonized`. To escape one is to embrace the other. To embrace one is to reject the other. 

A question that may be pertinent to me: Am I willing to give up many of my comforts in order to forsake all and follow Christ as I did at one point in my life if giving those comforts up becomes necessary to fulfill my God-Given Purpose?

What questions may be pertinent for you?

Musings of a Prodigal Son - Voicing My Own Humor - What Little Bit There Is

Please allow me to briefly diverge into my sarcasm:


People are unique---just when you think you have one of us figured out, we surprise you. Not always in a good way.


It is now football season and it is time once again to pull for the Crimson Tide. If you're me, you also pull for the Auburn Tigers WHEN they are not playing the Crimson Tide. Some people I know say that is impossible. The only requirement is that you must live in Florida to be able to do it. :)


If life was a race, some people would expect all of us to be like formula one racers. In reality most of us are like a neighborhood race of ford pintos.


Most of the time I have found that God's Will to me is what I didn't do yesterday, have no intention of doing today, but plan to do tomorrow. Until today becomes tomorrow, which of course I have no intention of doing today. In reality though, it is simply being obedient. Man, I have missed that sooooooooooo many times!


On the recent cruise I had no internet and very little television.  I spent a lot of quality time with my wife and made memories. I examined myself and found myself lacking. Maybe there is a lesson in this for me?


Sometimes, if you have to go to the bathroom and you hold it long enough, you find that you don't have to go anymore. Where does it go? Also sometimes, if you have to go to the bathroom and you hold it long enough, no one wants to be around you anymore because they know where it goes.


I didn't get sea sick this time on the cruise. However, since I have been back, I feel that I am going up and down on a boat. I must be getting "land-sick".


Many people have told me that I should write a book. Most of those people don't know me. Strangely, none of them were my English teachers.


When you apply for a job, most people want experience. Experience means you can do the job. Why aren't most of our marriage experts people who have been married at least three times? We have the experience. With multiple companies.


Credibility is being able to keenly allow people to see enough of you to believe they see all of you while deftly hiding most of you.


I have found that most people really do not crave honesty but merely the appearance of honesty. However, when people are in pain or crisis, most desire and crave REAL honesty.


Our views on things are often determined by our selfish desires rather than our God-Given Purpose.


The only way to know that you don't know is for someone who may not know themselves to challenge you because they don't know the rules of what you know.


There is an elephant in EVERYONE'S living room. We should invite the elephant to church or to our homes to pray and talk so that he/she can see the rest of the elephants. Oh, I forgot. We often like to hide the elephants in places where they need to be seen the most.

Musings of a Prodigal Son - Memories

This entry may seem a little strange to some. It is only me rambling about my thoughts. No outline. No lesson. Just thoughts. I was blessed to spend time with my wife last week to celebrate our anniversary. She arranges at least one cruise a year for us if possible and I am more than glad to come along. This particular cruise was interesting because of Hurricane Irma. We left approximately one week before so there was no way to know that Irma would become the monster that it became. Our seven-day cruise became an eleven-day cruise. We were blessed to be out of the storms path as we went south and west of the storm and once it had passed came around behind it (there is a sermon in there somewhere?) As I said, we were blessed. Calm seas. I could not help but think that although we were out of the storms reach, so many were affected directly by it. Many lost their homes in the Florida Keys.

One man's blessing is often accompanied by another man's trial. So it is with life.

One thing that comes out of these unexpected blessings is often time to think, to ponder over one's life and go over things. Feel some of the pains of past regrets, smile at some of the remembrances of people and circumstances, frown at others. It is a time to see yourself from the "third" person point of view.

Please permit me to add a disclaimer here. I have been blessed with a wife who loves me and whom I love very much. I am thankful that I have time to have the thoughts that prompt what I write here today due to the peace she helps foster in my life. And before I make another statement let me just clarify that "I know whom I have believed and know that He is able to keep that which I have committed to Him against that day." Now that my disclaimer is done, let me continue my musings,

September --I think about this time often and it is a bittersweet time of year for me. Around this time of year, 20 years ago, I lost a friend. I also married Michelle during this week four years ago. My oldest daughter was born  during this week as well 29 years ago.  When my friend passed away 20 years ago, I also lost alot of my theology. Highs and Lows. The theology and belief system I had up until the time that my friend passed away was not working for me. I missed something along the way. When I think about it from hind sight, maybe I expected too much. Maybe I expected too little. Maybe I was only looking at the "short game" when I should have been focusing on the "long" one. I knew these things at that time in my mind but I guess that it took time for my heart to catch up. It is amazing to think that God helped me to help others during that time of my life. I helped many to sort out their own "stones" while dropping many of my own rocks on my feet.

This week, as I thought about many things, I missed alot of people who I haven't spent alot of time with in years, realizing once again that life is a series of brief encounters that are fleeting and slip past us swiftly. The encounters we have with others today means much in the grand scheme of things. Lasting memories are made, lives are influenced and made a little different by that interaction.

I have shared previously in another blog that life is short. As Solomon referred to it as a "vapor" (here today gone tomorrow). The life expectancy for a male living today who is 50 years of age (which I am by the way) is 79. That means on average, someone my age may live to be 79. Some less, some more. That means that most of my life has already been lived. Only 29 more years to go to meet the average. That's not long and for some of you that are older, I'm told time tends to speed up even more. Last time I checked, I was on the "front" side of life---but here I am on the "backside" in a flash. Some of you also need to check cause you were sitting in a desk next to me at school!

What I remember the most are the intimate conversations. Not sexual but intimate. That moment when my vulnerability and honest need meets yours. That moment when the person that God created me to be meets that person that God created you to be. Those times when all the vices of this world and the enemy of this world are stripped away. Sometimes that vulnerability is brought about by pain and sometimes by joy. Oftentimes, it has happened in bouts of uncontrolled laughter. That could be fishing by a lake, swimming in a pool, playing basketball in someone's yard, after a church service, in a parking lot, and myriad other places. Sounds almost sexual doesn't it? I'm not talking about relationships between just husbands and wives but relationships between friends and others whom God allowed in our lives at that moment. Nothing inappropriate or lewd---intimacy that mirrors the love and understanding of God! Those are the memories that make me long to see so many of you.

Musings of a Prodigal Son - Jesus, Simply Jesus

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^k neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39)

Someone I love very much prayed the other day and something that she said struck a cord in me that I would like to share with you. During her prayer, she said, "Lord, don't give up on us." Friends, this is an important concern. It is far more important than how much money we have in retirement, what kind of jobs we perform, what others think about us, how long we live, or what we leave behind. It is a concern that transcends every hurt, every pain of loss, every tear that has ever fallen, every heart that has ever been crushed.

Let me say here that I am not consistent. My moods fluctuate and I sometimes waver in the wind. Some days I find it easy to trust, some days I do not. Sometimes I get it right, sometimes I get it wrong. Don't depend on me, I will disappoint you. It may take awhile but it will happen. Don't model your faith after mine because you will falter too. I am not who you think I am. I am not who I think I am. I am sometimes more, sometimes less.

There is a truth, however, that transcends you and I. This I know of a surety because I believe HIM. Jesus will never falter. He will never disappoint. He will never give up on you! When I was a young person growing up in Reeltown, Alabama, our youth group would often sing a song, "Jesus is My Rock." As time has gone on, I think I understand more what that means. Have you ever tried to bite a rock? (laugh). I would not recommend it. It will break your teeth. I would venture to guess if I were to dig up a rock in your yard, it would be the same as it was years ago. Vehicles may have passed over it, storms pelted it, but it probably remains very much the same. Jesus told a parable about a wise man who built his house upon a rock......

Jesus is our Rock.....the rock of our salvation......my joy, my strength, my all.....

If you've placed your faith in the Rock, JESUS, don't worry. He will never give up on you. NOTHING can separate you from Him.

That's why Heaven will be a celebration of HIM. That's why HE deserves ALL the praise and glory. That is why He is the Alpha (Beginning) and Omega (the End). That is why He is the Author and Finisher of our faith. He's the Finisher, not you. It's His Life, Let Him Drive!

I'm glad I don't have to depend on me to obtain it or to keep it. Jesus takes care of that.

Musings of a Prodigal Son - Thoughts on the Search for Significance

"Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher. "Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless." (Ecclesiastes 1:2)


For now we see through a glass, darkly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; but then shall I know, even as also I am known. (1 Corinthians 13:12)




I am writing today from a position of unbalance. Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the pace of life and it's meaning. We are told to work hard and to invest in those that we love and that a reward will be gained as a result. Many people work to give good things to their children only to have that wealth squandered by a wayward child or grandchild. Many build up good reputations over a lifetime only to be forgotten within one generation. Many pay studious attention to their credit rating, acceptance by others, hiding their faults only to find out in the end that they did not truly live. The very foundations on which we often place our anchors, gives way and we find ourselves adrift once again.


I had a friend tell me many years ago that if he knew that he could just die and there be nothing after, he would not want to go through the struggle. He stated that a fear of what is on the other side keeps him in the struggle. As I am reflecting on this a question comes to mind. Does God want us to live in fear of what is on the other side? Should fear be our motivator for living well in the hopes that one day our lives will be weighed in some great cosmic scale and found worthy to enter peace?


Many would say that what comes after is a "re-entry" into this world to live out all of the lessons that we somehow missed in the last entry. Many would say that this cycle repeats itself. But repeats itself to what? Even if one holds to that view, once all the lessons have been "learned", what comes next?


We often look at each other and say, "Oh it's God will." We often say this carelessly about someone else who may be struggling or who has had their life turned upside down. When we are at a loss to make sense of something in this present world, we just flippantly say, "Oh, it must be God's will."


If it must be God's Will, are we living in a scripted world? Has everything been predetermined based on choices that God knew in advance we were going to make? If so, why the struggle?


I know that reading these thoughts may be unsettling but these are things that are thought by many, believed by many, but seldom spoken. Occasionally, when a person is frustrated enough, some of these things "seep" out in one way or another.


We often approach the Word of God from a standpoint of "logic." To borrow from philosophy and even mathematics, we approach understanding from an "if--then" perspective. We expect to come up with some orderly system. But.....life is NOT orderly. It is not fair. It is not logical.


Herein lies the difficulty. Life is pictured by God in the Bible in very simplistic terms. There are two ways to approach life. 1) By Faith 2)By Sight (our senses, logic, natural laws) . If we live life by faith which is believing what is unseen and what God has explicitly said or implicitly implied, we can rest in the assurance that He is in control and we don't have to see the end to trust that our benevolent creator will bring things to a joyous conclusion. Or if we live by "sight" (our senses, logic, natural laws) we go about feeling lost, uncertain, unable to cope, unable to reconcile the many irreconcilable "realities" of this world.


It is at times like these that we each have to clarify how we will live.


Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1)

Musings of a Prodigal Son - A Kingdom of Priests

But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; (1 Peter 2:9)

...and made us a kingdom, priests to His God and Father-to Him be the glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. (Revelation 1:6)
...With his own blood [the blood of Jesus Christ]--not the blood of goats and calves--he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever (Hebrews 9:12)
In the Old Testament, the High Priest could only go into the presence of God one time per year and only then after an extensive ritual cleansing. If he did not follow the cleansing ritual, he was not pure and could not be in the presence of God without experiencing death. If you remember, when the Ark of the Covenant, where the presence of God dwelt, was being transported from one place to another, some of the priests stumbled and a man (Uzzah) stepped up to keep the Ark from falling. Since he was not qualified to touch the Ark where the presence of God dwelt, he fell dead. Later, 70 men died because they looked inside the Ark. The holiness of God separates Him from humanity. This separation was the end result of Sin entering the world in the Garden of Eden. That separation has been the subject of creation since the beginning. The quest of life is to bridge that separation so that humanity (us) can be in the presence of God again. The Old Testament is a story of God's desire to have fellowship (allow man into his presence again).

Enter Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. He entered the Holy Place once for all and made an eternal sacrifice for all of humanity. To secure that sacrifice for ourselves, we must put our faith in Him as our Lord and Savior. As evidence that Jesus' sacrifice was sufficient to bridge the gap between the holiness of God and the sinfulness of man, when Jesus died, the curtain in the temple (again where the presence of God dwelt), was torn from top to bottom, signifying that it now was unnecessary to separate the holiness of God from sinful man. A NEW way had been established. In fact, the Bible refers to those who put their faith in Jesus as a "Kingdom of Priests." Not just any priest, but a cleansed priest able to enter the Holy presence of God because of the cleansing of the cross.

Praise God for making us a Kingdom of Priests. As priests we can bring the needs of the people to God and ask for His intervention and forgiveness. We can fellowship with Him, embrace Him, and come into His Presence.

Help Us Lord to Operate in Our Place as Priests in this present world.

Musings of a Prodigal Son: Spirit and Truth

John 4 (The Samaritan Woman at the Well)

Much is said today about proclaiming the truth. How does that look in our modern world? If telling people the truth looks (and often is stated from a judgmental point of view), how do we do it the right way? How do we proclaim the goodness of God and what He has to offer humanity in humility that comes from knowing that we have just as much of a need for Him as the person with whom we are speaking. A good place to begin our search is to look at how Jesus approached controversial topics of the day. If we can follow His method, maybe we can avoid judging others but still proclaim the truth.

In the beginning of this encounter, notice that Jesus was tired. So.....wait for it....wait for it......he sat down. Imagine that. We expect Him to rip into this woman with the zeal of evangelism fire....instead he sat down because He was tired. The best type of witness is an HONEST one. The best encounters happen as we do life. When we are congruent with the situations that life presents, we encounter moments to help people SEE JESUS. He was thirsty so he ASKED HER for a drink of water. She had the bucket. He had no bucket. Sometimes we think that we have the bucket that everyone needs to drink from. No so. He wanted to drink from HER BUCKET. This is significant because she was a Samaritan. She was an outcast to Jewish society of which Jesus belonged as a Jew himself. He cut through the judgmental stereo-types of His time. It was perfectly acceptable to "shun" a Samaritan. After all, they were "less than" in the eyes of the religion of the day. But He took a more HUMBLE position than her in a sense setting her up in the encounter to be greater than Him (after all...she had the bucket). He asked her for water. Sometimes, we need learn something from those that we encounter. Sometimes, we are the one with the need and we don't even acknowledge it.  What they know is important. Sometimes it's more important than what we know. When we approach life as a "learner" and a "giver", we are often surprised by the wisdom and insight of others. When Jesus broke the "Samaritan" barrier, the woman also acknowledged the situation by saying, "But I am a Samaritan.....you don't want water from me." Then Jesus talked to her about her situation. Most witnessing "programs" that I have been involved with focus on telling who He IS but we miss the part that leads to that. We miss the part of meeting people where they are. Jesus talked to her about her current situation and need, then he revealed who HE IS. So often we focus on the sensational and the dramatic when so much of the life-changing encounters are very subtle and "quiet." I remember when I attended Bible college, I had several classmates whom I admired very much. They just wanted to go out and "witness". They were excited and they wanted to share their excitement. Oftentimes, this excitement translated into the following "testimony": "You are on your way to Hell and Jesus wants to save you. Will you turn to Him as Savior today?"
Notice that Jesus did not walk up to this woman, tell her she was living in Sin and on her way to Hell, and then tell her that he was the only way to heaven. Instead he met her where she was. He approached the conversation with her in terms she could understand. Then and only then did He tell her who HE IS.
This encounter at a simple well with a simple witness presented an opportunity for this woman to change her entire life. Notice we are not told what happened subsequently. Did she trust what Jesus said about being the Messiah? Did she go home and make changes that demonstrated true repentance? We don't know. We only know that she was presented with the authentic Jesus. What happened next is a private matter between her and God.