"I'm Going Fishing..."

"I'm going fishing..." John 21:3

I love to read these words in the scriptures because I don't know how many times I have uttered these exact words from Peter. These words are usually heard when hard times hit. In the text Peter has denied knowing Christ. Jesus has been beat, battered, and crucified. I don't think Peter is having a very good day. Some of the other disciples holler out to him and he basically says, "I need to get away." Often when I need to get away from everyone and/or everything after a stressful day or week, I respond like Peter. "I'm going fishing...", I think this will become my new life verse. The funny thing is that if you keep reading the story you find that some others went with him. If you read more the story turns out like my fishing trip. Jesus appears on the shore and asks, "have you caught any fish?" Their answer is very much like mine, "no". They had been out all night fishing and had caught nothing...I've been there before!
Fishing is a funny sport in so many ways. Fishermen will spend thousands of dollars to try to outsmart an animal that has a brain the size of a pea. I've learned that it's not really about fishing, but rather it's about your surrounding. It's about solitude, it's about nature, it's about man vs. fish, but for me it's about becoming one with God. We all have that special place where we feel closest to God. As we prepare for this Christmas season I want to challenge you to remember what we are celebrating. Let's get to that special place as often as we can. I pray that I not go fishing, but that I go catching...God Bless...
Tony

How Big...

"Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness, come before him with joyful songs. Know that the Lord is God." Psalm 100:1-3

I recently heard the story of a student who was in seminary. Having all this knowledge he had learned in his last semester, he approached his pastor and asked, "Pastor do you think there's other life out there on other planets?" His pastor looked at him and simply said, "no". The student was astonished with the answer and began to plead with his pastor, "if there isn't other life out there, why would God spend all that time and effort to create all these other planets and galaxies?" The pastor looked at him and smiled and said, "what time and effort..." I love the response because our God is so big and awesome that He just shakes His hands and galaxies are created! My mind cannot begin to fathom how big God is. I have reached a point in my life where I don't really care to read books or memorize verses or even want to read my Bible, but I want to know God! I want to know more about God, who is God, how can I hear God, how can I know God better? I know how important it is for me to read my Bible, and memorize scripture, and sing His praises, but sometimes I have to get away and just be silent for a bit. Have you ever been scared to be alone with God? Have you ever had an uncomfortable silence with God? I have. It's weird, scary, and yet it's exciting to hear what He is going to say. How big is God? Look at the sky and try to wrap your mind around how big He is...Blessings to all of you and let Him be big in your life this week! God Bless...
Tony

Worship

Psalm 24:3,4 "Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart..."

Worship...what do we think about when we hear the word worship? For some it's a car, or a girl/boyfriend, a certain food item, or even a place they have visited. I have been thinking really hard about this thing that we Christians call WORSHIP. What exactly is it? According to the dictionary the word can be a noun or a verb. I am not going to bore you with a secular view of Worship, but I am gonna share with you about my experience with worship.
Worship is something that happens to me when I quit trying to serve God and let God take over. Sometimes I'm driving and see something majestic and I just have to Worship God right there. By the way if you're driving and decide to worship, please don't raise both hands and close your eyes! Sorry, safety first! Sometimes my girls are screaming at the top of their lungs and my wife is cooking dinner and as I am trying to piece everything together, I worship God and thank Him for what I have. Let me stop for just a moment and let you respond. When was the last time you worshipped our Lord and Saviour. I don't mean just thanked Him, I mean when was the last time you let God take control to the point that you had to snap out of it? When was the last time you asked God to become real in your life, in your home, in your family? It's been too long. The photograph today is a picture of the Old Guerrero Church on the Mexico side of Lake Falcon. This picture was taken two years ago before all the pirate turmoil began. It was taken by a great photographer named Mae, who owns House of Mae photography in the Metroplex. What a great picture of a place I could go to worship! Can you imagine pulling up in your bass boat to worship Jesus...WORSHIP...what does it mean to you...God bless you this week.

Tony