Audience of One

Audience Of One

Talent. Everyone has it. Life circumstances and our surroundings will sometimes tell us that we can't do something. We are just not good enough. For most of us, we are our biggest critic. Sometimes feeling that our best is not good enough. Yea, we have some talent but compared to others, we tend to feel that what we have is just not good enough. This typically happens because we forget WHO we should be doing it for. Whether it's your job, your family, your children, or what ever else there may be, when you do it as if the Lord Jesus Christ is your only audience in attendance, it is Great and Perfect. Outside distraction can not and should not define who you are or what you do. Doing everything to an Audience Of One. People will always tell you that you can't do something but with Christ all things are possible.  #AO1

Eric

Good Friday: It is Well with My Soul

It Is Well With My Soul

A good friend of mine told me about the story behind this song...


Horatio Spafford (1828-1888) was a wealthy Chicago lawyer with a thriving legal practice, a beautiful home, a wife, four daughters and a son. He was also a devout Christian and faithful student of the Scriptures.

At the very height of his financial and professional success, Horatio and his wife Anna suffered the tragic loss of their young son. Shortly thereafter on October 8, 1871, the Great Chicago Fire destroyed almost every real estate investment that Spafford had.

In 1873, Spafford scheduled a boat trip to Europe in order to give his wife and daughters a much needed vacation and time to recover from the tragedy. Spafford sent his wife and daughters ahead of him while he remained in Chicago to take care of some unexpected last minute business. Several days later he received notice that his family's ship had encountered a collision. All four of his daughters drowned; only his wife had survived.

With a heavy heart, Spafford boarded a boat that would take him to his grieving Anna in England. It was on this trip that he penned those now famous words, When sorrow like sea billows roll; it is well, it is well with my soul.


Today is "Good Friday". Symbolizing the day Jesus died on the cross. I imagine as He looked down on Mary, John, and others grieving at his feet, I imagine Him saying, "IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL"
And boy, it sure was well.


It Is Well With My Soul

 When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.

 It is well (it is well),
with my soul (with my soul),
It is well, it is well with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ hath regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

 My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to His cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

 For me, be it Christ, be it Christ hence to live:
If Jordan above me shall roll,
No pang shall be mine, for in death as in life
Thou wilt whisper Thy peace to my soul.

 And Lord haste the day, when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Letter to my boys

I read this today and all I could do is think of you two. My boys. Please keep this letter. Re-read it every so often. Love you both !!!

There is a lot going on out there and you are going to be involved in tough and difficult situations. You are making and will continue to make important choices pretty much every day. That’s okay. That’s our reality. It can even be very good to be put in different circumstances. To make it right, you are going to have to grow up fast. Probably faster than many of your friends and family.

Please remember to…

Lead in your home. Take care of Your Family and Yourself every single day. Think about who you are and where you are going, and what you stand for. Look after one another. Only then can you be your most effective on the job and in every area of your life.

Please consider your actions and choices. There are always consequences. Choose who you allow to advise you. Consider the quality of the council you take. Put yourself in positions to succeed. Turn away from unnecessary and risky behavior. Take care of your physical well-being. Live a healthy lifestyle. Pursue those things that make you better. Rest well. Eat well. Laugh with those who you love and love you. Fulfil your obligations effectively.

Be your own best friend. Do not be an enemy onto yourself. Turn away from trouble and harm. Walk away from foolish behavior. Ignore silly and unwise advice – You’ll know it when you see it.

Get to know those people in your life who manage to walk free from the weight of self-created obstacles. Get close to those who have gone where you want to go, and have accomplished what you want to accomplish. Grow Spiritually. Think about what and who you want to become.

I am asking you to consider what is at stake in your life. Consider what your thoughts, actions and choices mean to those around you. Live your life fully and with purpose. Have fun and share your happiness. Find Your Faith, and allow God to Grow Your Faith.

Let’s look out for one another. Be a great brother and friend. Inquire. Listen. Ask. Investigate. Reach out. Be There. Take a Step. Go For It.

Remember, We are Brothers in Arms. And, again, take care of each other.


Dad. 

Don't Look Back

I remember January 2003, Kim and I were engaged to be married. Our wedding day was May 30. I remember how nervous I was. Both her and I had lots of pain in our past. Fears, tears, and broken promises filled both of our past. I remember our conversation about how this marriage was going to be different. 13 years later, it's better than what we imagined. God surpassed all of our expectations for our marriage. So what's the secret? I'd say there is no secret. Only these few things: 1. God is FIRST in all we do. From the beginning, we both knew that we could not make it with the Lord in the center of our marriage. We recognized that without Him to guide us and our family, we could not succeed. 2. "Fear Not says the Lord". Fear will paralyze people. Sometimes fear creeps in a relationship. It being our second marriage, sometimes there was reason for fear. But what we've learned is holding on to this promise... Psalms 46;10 "Be still and know that I am Lord". Sometimes with fear, just stay still and He will remove all fear. 3. Don't look back. Our past pains and fears can cripple us. When the Lord saved Lot and his family. As they were running away, there was only one thing that God asked, DON'T LOOK BACK! Seemed simple enough. But his wife looked back and she never saw what God had for her. As we pressed forward in our marriage, we both constantly remind ourselves to try to remember not to look back. I say "try" because sometimes we have and it usually results in tears and pain. 4. Jeremiah 29;11. This has been my life verse since May 2003. He had plans for us. Plans for us to proper. And man, has He taken us to places that we would have never imagined. I thank God every day, every moment, that He helped us find each other. She's the angel that God sent to me in my most desperate time.

God Bless, E

No Way Out !

Have you ever been in a situation where you just feel like there is no way out. May it be money, relationships, marriage, work, etc.  There's is no way to escape. You try to climb out but there is nothing to grab on to. You're in this hole but the more you struggle to get out to more deeper you feel. In Genesis 37; we find Joseph in a similar situation. His brothers had plotted to kill him because of jealousy. So they throw him into this "cistern".

Gen. 37;17-20 So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. ¹⁸ But they saw him in the distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him.
¹⁹ “Here comes that dreamer!” they said to each other. ²⁰ “Come now, let’s kill him and throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then we’ll see what comes of his dream.


A cistern is a deep hole in the ground. Dark and cold place. No way to escape without someone's help. I am sure that there are places like this in everyone's life that have scratch marks from us try to craw our way out. So here is the Good News, there is a way out. The last thing that Joseph thought was that God was there with him in that hole. As you read the next few chapters, you will see that the Lord not only lifted him from that place, but put Joseph in a place that he never imaged he would be in. The Lord lifted him up high for everyone to see God's Glory. In the middle of your darkest hour, know that you are not alone and there is ALWAYS a way out. That way is JESUS.


God Bless,
E

Thoughts of Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day
I heard on the radio that the American spends on an average of $150 in gifts on this day. It is estimated that in America, we will spend up to 9 BILLION dollars on this day. I must confess that I was one of those guys. In my 20's and 30's, I would spend way more than $150. Balloons, candies, hotel rooms, Flowers, etc. I recently looked up on Flowers.com and the average price for a bouquet of roses ranges anywhere from $125 and up. This is the Valentines Day SPECIAL. On any other day, they range from $35- $55. OUCH!


In our 40's, Kim and I got married. I remember buying roses for her on Valentines Day. They were $75. She looked me in my eyes and said "As much as I appreciate this, don't buy roses on Valentines. The prices are ridiculous." I remember saying, "Oh wow, but I always do that". But she said, "On this day, don't try to show me how much you love me, I see it all year round." I want to make it clear, I am not saying not to buy your spouses flowers. (Because, I will!) Just keep everything in proper perspective.


On this day, I hope we are not trying to go out of your way to make her feel special. Because this should just be another day that we make our wives feel special because they are. EVERYDAY! So here is some advice, have flowers delivered the day before or the week after Valentine's Day to your spouse. The note should say "I don't need a holiday made up by man, to tell me when to send you flowers." Thank goodness God doesn't wait for a day to show us how much he loves us. Because he show us His love EVERYDAY!
John 3;16


God Bless,
E

Treading Water

June 5, 2014

Passion thoughts:

As non-believer, it's like drowning in water. You're swimming and everything seems to be ok. Then the water gets deep and you start treading water. But after a while the water rises and it begins to over take you. You quickly realize that you could drown. You find a buoy in the water and now you feel that all will be ok. But how do you get back on dry land? So you jump back in the water, you start panicking and try desperately to reach for a life preserver. No buoy in sight. No life preserver in sight. "You can only tread water for so long...."

As a believer, we live a Christ lead life. But we get comfortable. Life is good. God is good. You feel like "YOU" have everything in control. But you don't realize you're in quick sand. Quick sand is a slow death. You could be standing on it and not realize that it's slowly pulling you down. Days, months, and sometimes years go by and you slowly keep slipping down. Then one day you realize that your shoulders deep in quick sand. Bankruptcy, divorce, problems at work, they all seem to over power you. Yea, it seems like this came out of the blue but you never realize that you've been in quick sand for a very long time. The more you struggle the quicker it seems to take you down.

Both instances are the same for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He is our life preserver. He saves you from the rushing waters of life and puts you on safe ground He reaches deep into the quick sand and pulls you out of the sinking sands. In both instances, it is up to us to realize that without HIM we can't survive the struggles of this life.

"Acknowledge HIM in all your ways and HE will direct your path."

Hope

Hope

On this Christmas Eve, I remind all my Facebook friends that it is all about Hope. Thousands of years ago, we were given the the best present. That ONE present brought us HOPE. This coming year Kim and I pray to our Lord and Savior that He fulfills some of our hopes. For Ryan and Monica, HOPE for a beautiful and healthy Katalina. For Eric, Jenn and Lil E, HOPE for a foundation to a bright future that his new position will bring. To Erik, Jess, Chloe and Cailyn, HOPE for a bright and safe new year and.... For our good friends Steve and Angie Colkett, HOPE for a promising and prosperous year that their new jobs (FAITH) will bring. To all our family and friends in Pa and Fla, that we all cling to our blessed HOPE. Growing up, my beautiful mother, constantly reminded us of the HOPE of the return of our Savior. So I finish this be wishing everyone a Merry CHRISTmas. Because He is the reason for the season.

Fatherhood

Thoughts from the sky....

Being a dad is very fulfilling but also very challenging. 15 years ago, I was presented with the biggest decision of my life. I remember being torn and ripped inside and out. As I placed the boys on the plane to go back to PA without me, I remember thinking what kind of father does this to his boys. For years I had to learn to deal with my pain and guilt (at times, I still do). Throughout all those years, I never knew what to say. I never knew how to feel. All I could say was, "Jesus, help me get though this." For years, I made weekly trips, weekend trips, and even day trips just to see the boys. Eric's football games, Eric's prom, Ryan's basketball championship, Ryan's football games, Ryan's prom, Ryan's ski trip for his birthday, Ryan's graduation... I tried to stay close to the boys. We flew them to Florida for holidays, weddings, and summers. Somehow, I survived those years and so did they. 

Friends

Thoughts from the sky...
James 2;23. Is there a person or persons that you'd like to meet. In my life, there are a few. Michael Jackson: I always thought he needed a sincere friend and I could be that friend. Marc Anthony: In my 30's, I was told that I looked like him. I thought it'd be cool to meet him one day. We could become friends. In my "more wiser" years, now I look at someone like Denzel Washington. I get the impression that he is a very wise and insightful person. These are people that I would probably never get close enough to meet. Never get close enough to know let alone be a friend. But in Christ we have a friend. Think about it, the Creator of the Universe, considers me to be his friend. It leads me to think about "who am I that He would be mindful of me. That He would hear me when I call." "That He is always thinking of me." IN SPITE OF ALL I HAVE DONE. Simple AMAZING! James 2;23. I am truly a friend of God!