Steve Jobs had it right!

My Belief

Last week when Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple and designer of the iPhone/iPod, past away I heard a very interesting speech that he had given. He was the key note speaker at a Yale graduation ceremony a few years ago and the clip the news played was intriguing. Mr. Jobs conveyed the idea to the Yale grads that the reason he was so successful was because he had found a way to focus and drowned out all fear and criticism. Steve knew he was sick and would not live a long life. He knew his years were numbered and that he wanted to do the most with the time he had left. Jobs said that when he compares everything against the reality of death, every bit of doubt fades. He was not afraid to DO because he did not want to waste what time he had left.

As a follower of Jesus I want to have a perspective very similar to this. I know that time on this earth is short. I will either die or be raptured by Christ in the next 50 years or so. Maybe even sooner. I know that God wants me to give him my all with the short amount of time I have left. I know that I am rapidly racing toward a departure from this earth into a glorious existence with God. When I step foot into the presence of Jesus my hope is to hear “Well done good and faithful servant”. In this context I know death is coming, but I am not afraid of it at all. I want to be focused here and now to take any opportunity to share Jesus with who ever God brings in my path. I want to be a servant to my wife, family and friends. While Steve Jobs did not know Jesus and was only motivated by his coming end, I look forward to an amazing hope after this life. All of the noise and criticism fades away in the reality of Jesus not only in death. Who cares what people think of me or say about me. Soon my time will end and I only care about what Jesus says about me.

Scripture

^{2Cor 5:8-10}

⁶ Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. ⁷ For we live by faith, not by sight. ⁸ We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. ⁹ So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it. ¹⁰ For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each of us may receive what is due us for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

Application for Life

One of my favorite quotes from pastor Lon Solomon is, “When your not afraid to die, then your not afraid to live”! Wow…think about that. If you are in Jesus, nothing can ever hurt you. Even if someone took my life, my situation only gets better. I desire to pray HARD that the Holy Spirit may fill me up and use me for God’s Glory. That I can be a light in a dark world. That I can speak boldly about Jesus. My heart aches for people who don’t have Jesus when time is up. Please Lord let me have a perspective that is urgent like Steve Jobs. Not because of death, but because of a life that has conquered death. Let me focus because time is short, and let me rejoice because my end is near!

Intermittent at best

My Belief

Do you know what an intermittent problem is? In my experience and my line of work it usually deals with electrical or communication problem. It is a problem that is not there all the time. The problem is usually caused by a faulty relay or switch. There is a connection there that is making contact, but it is not a good contact. Or perhaps it is a wire that is frayed and shorting out sometimes.

This is me in my walk with Jesus. I really want to walk with the Lord and I really try hard to wake up each morning and devote myself that day to the Lords work, but I do not always make “good contact”. There are days that I am tired or having a hard day and I let my old sin nature get the best of me. My walk with Jesus shorts out! I get fed up with people around me that don’t use a little common sense or I do what I do best and let my big mouth shoot itself off. I honestly in my heart wish and want to walk every minute of my day with Jesus. I feel the best when I am understanding some part of God’s Word or I get to share my hope in Jesus with another. I realize something though. Even though I am saved by the grace of Jesus Christ, I am not Jesus Christ. I am incapable of walking a perfect life of righteousness with our Lord. This is frustrating to me at times, but it helps me to remember that it is not about me, it is about Jesus. I know he is using me to impact peoples lives even in spite of my short comings. I continue to be willing and prayerfully hopeful that God continues to finish the refining work in me that He has started. I know that one day through my death or in His return He will completely refine me to a perfect state of righteousness and I will dwell with him forever. Until then I will continue to be a faulty contact for God, A bad wire for Jesus, and a loose connection spreading the Word of Christ. I am far from perfect, but God can use my weakness for His Glory.

Scripture

2 Timothy 2:13

¹³ if we are faithless,
   he remains faithful,
   for he cannot disown himself.

Application for Life

I have a Bible sitting on my desk at home that was given to me by a good friend who feels that God used me to help Him in his finding Jesus. Inside that Bible is a wonderful note of friendship from him and a thank-you note from another friend who feels the same way. I love that God has given me these two tokens from these two men. When I feel that I am broken and have fallen on my face again, I remember that even in my brokenness God is using me. Even when I do not feel faithful to the Lord, I am His and He will use me to accomplish His work.

3 Common Errors

My Belief

I am a few years removed from teaching young pilots the basics of flying in the clouds. This type of flying is also known as flying “IFR” (Instrument Flight Rules) and after thousands of hours of flying it comes as naturally to me now as walking. Even as such, I still remember the common errors that pilots make when doing this type of flying. These errors are labeled as 1. Fixation, 2. Emphasis 3. and Omission.

Traditionally cockpit flight instrument panels have been laid out in a “6 pack” format. Instruments that display Airspeed, Altitude, Attitude, Heading, Vertical speed, and Bank Angle have been placed in front of the pilot in a way that looks similar to a 6 pack of drinks. These instruments are what gives the pilot all the information that he needs when he is unable to see outside the aircraft. The previously mentioned errors are what pilots must continuously evaluate while he scans all of these instruments. He cannot let himself fixate on any one instrument because he will miss what the others are telling him. For a similar reason he can not let himself place any particular emphasis any individual instrument. And obviously it would be detrimental to the flight if he were to completely omit any of the instruments during his scan.

I was speaking with a buddy of mine who is also an airline pilot. We were chatting about how both of us put special emphasis to the point of fixation on our budgets. In this bad economy it is a hot topic for everyone. We both feel that we want to honor God with our money by being good stewards of it and debtors to no one. We both agreed that fiscal discipline is important, but it is not the only thing God called us to do. For us especially, we must not omit all the other things God has called us to do in this life. He also called us to be God fearing men and women that live a life of service and sacrifice to our family and friends. He called us to do the work of an evangelist and spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to everyone on earth. As we talked we both admitted that it is easy for us particularly to become fixated on this one thing and omit all the other responsibilities the Lord has given us. There is only so much time and energy in a day and it is my prayer that God would help me multi-task to accomplish all that He has set before me.

Scripture

Eph 2:10

¹⁰ For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Application for Life

I believe the keys to life are organization and discipline. There are so few hours in a day and for me to live the life that God has set for me I must utilize all of them. The only way I can do this, is if I rise in the morning and plan out my day. I know that I want to devote time in the morning to my relationship with Jesus. I know that I want to devote time to paying my bills and continuously evaluating our budget. I know that I want to spend time being a godly father and husband to my daughter and wife after school and work. I know when I go to work, the gym, or to play that I want to preserve my testimony and look for opportunities to speak about Jesus. Once I have organized my schedule, I pray the Lord gives me the discipline to stick to it. With God’s help, I will accomplish all that he has for me and not just get stuck or one or two things.

Never Happened!

My Belief

As we approach the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, something has started standing out in my mind. You would not believe the number of people who have told me that it “Never Happened”. What am I talking about, you say… I have flown with several people and sat next countless others in airports that all say things like that. They say the entire thing is a Bush White House cover up. The wing tip vortices when the planes hit the tower are not there or don’t look right. The planes were digitally superimposed on the TV and it was missiles that hit the buildings. The trajectory for the plane that hit the ground in Pennsylvania was wrong and to small, it was a missile too. The plane that hit the pentagon was a bomb set by the U.S. military. The entire thing was a hoax and a conspiracy devised by our own government.

Have you ever noticed that they say the same thing about the moon landing… There are tons of people and books that say that we never went to the moon, but instead the entire thing was a fake again set up by the U.S. government to inspire or motivate a nation. Why do people do this?!?! 9/11 was only 10 years ago! I fly out of New York! It happened! We have the moon rocks from the Apollo missions! You can see the trash we left on the moon with high powered telescopes. If people are willing to lie to themselves about things that we have all witnessed in recent history IS IT ANY WONDER THAT PEOPLE ARE WILLING LIE ABOUT SOMETHING THAT HAPPENED 2000 YEARS AGO BY SAYING THE THE LORD JESUS IS NOT GOD, NEVER CAME TO EARTH AND NEVER DIED ON A CROSS FOR YOU AND ME!!!

I can see the place where the twin towers once stood! I have seen the videos of the pilots that could have flown those planes! I know people who designed the Apollo missions! AND I can see the BIBLE is TRUE! I can see that it matches up perfectly with history and everything that archeologist pull out of the ground is talked about within its pages! I see the world around me and can see that our selfish, sinful world matches perfectly with the human condition described in the Bible. I know that when I put my faith in the Lord Jesus that I became very aware of my sinful human condition. When I walk with Him I feel comfort and joy and when I disobey I feel disgusting about myself. I see the “coincidences” that have led me to where I am in my life and I know it is the Hand of the Living God working in my life!

Scripture

Isaiah 45:5-7

⁵ I am the LORD, and there is no other;
   apart from me there is no God.
I will strengthen you,
   though you have not acknowledged me,
⁶ so that from the rising of the sun
   to the place of its setting
people may know there is none besides me.
   I am the LORD, and there is no other.
⁷ I form the light and create darkness,
   I bring prosperity and create disaster;
   I, the LORD, do all these things.

Application for Life

I did not witness with my own eyes the 9/11 disaster, but I saw the videos, I witnessed the evidence and have felt the pain that it has caused our nation - I KNOW IT HAPPENED! I was not there when Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon, but I have seen him talk, watched the footage, and held the moon rocks – I KNOW IT HAPPENED. I was not there when the Lord Jesus was beaten and died on a cross only to rise again for my salvation, but I have studied the history, been unable to disprove one word of God’s WORD and I have witnessed the change in my very own life – I KNOW JESUS IS WHO HE SAID HE IS AND HE HAS SAVED ME!

Created

My Belief

Recently I was marveling at the incredible feats of human ingenuity. As I fly around the country and different parts of the world it is amazing to see the accomplishments of man in many of these large cities. When I stop and think of where man has been and where we are today, it is truly mind boggling to think of what has been created. Man has created incredible ways to travel and communicate. We have created vehicles that transport us quickly through town, out of town, across the world, to the bottom of this world or out of this world. With the internet we are a truly connected people. We know about everything, everywhere, instantly at the touch of a finger. Shoot, we even created machines that create new things. Man has done all of this.

Another interesting fact to think about is that nothing else on the planet has done any of this. There are no other animals that create like we create. Termites build impressive structures to live in, but lets be honest, that is just stacking up dirt and spit. As people we have incredible ideas that we plan out, DESIGN, and then execute there construction.

This is exactly what the Bible describes. The Bible says that we are CREATED! We are created to be the apex of creation and we are created in the image of the Creator. We are designed to be like the Designer. I feel as a people we look forward at everything that we have made, but we don’t look backward to see who has made us. Even if you want to take all of the FAITH out of it, just look at it logically. Everything works in a well organized system. We build well organized systems, so who built the entire system. In Romans Chapter 1 the Lord declares that everyone can see Him if they will just look at what He has made. We create amazing things because an amazing Creator created us first.

Scripture

Genesis 1:26-27

²⁶ Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals,^[a] and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

²⁷ So God created mankind in his own image,
   in the image of God he created them;
   male and female he created them.

Application for life

This is a powerful reminder for me in my walk with the Lord. I look at what we have created as a people. We have manipulated elements and materials to build amazing things, but look at the incredible creation of the elements themselves. We have placed rockets in the sky, but look at the sky itself that the Lord has made. We design amazing things, but we will never design a Sun or Moon to rise in such perfect order. I look forward to seeing the amazing things we will do as people, but I stand in awe of the amazing things that GOD has already done.

Don’t knock it until you try it

My belief

I grew up with a great intense love for playing sports. Most sports that is. I liked tough sports. Sports like baseball, football, and basketball. It was great to get in there and hit hard, run fast, or even get a little physical with the other players. This is what I spent a large part of my child and teen years doing. However, there was one sport that I had absolutely no desire to try. That was GOLF! There was not one bone in my body that though it was cool to stroll around in preppy clothes and hit some sissy little ball with some sissy little stick. Then walk up to the same sissy little ball and Do it again!

This all changed for me a few years ago. I was on vacation with a few friends and they wanted to go play golf. I was not that excited but I said what the heck. I will try it once. I could not believe how hard it was to hit that little ball, to speak nothing of making it go where I wanted it to go. There is an insane amount of precision and fundamental mechanics to correctly controlling a golf swing. Then the scenery on the course was awesome in real life. Golf courses are some of the most beautiful places you can ever hangout. I am now an enthusiastic golfer that loves to play whenever I have the chance. I can’t get enough of my continued improvement, the strategy, and again the wonderful scenery of the course. And it is all because I let go of my preconceived notions and gave it one chance.

I bring this up because I have a friend and colleague that is at the end of his rope. He feels broken, empty, and with no point to his life. I have been telling him over and over again that Jesus is the answer to fix all of those problems. At times I think he is so close to making a decision for Christ. He has never been into “religion” and is insanely skeptical. I continue to pray for him that he will give Jesus a chance in his life. I am 100% certain that when he comes into a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus that he will find JOY, PURPOSE, CONTENTMENT, and ANSWERS for life. As a rough and tumble sports guy, I didn’t see how there was anyway in the world I was going to ever like golf. But once I gave it a chance there is nothing else that I would rather play. I am sure my friend knows that I am talking about him and I promise you that when you give Jesus a try there is nothing else that you will ever want either. Every question will be answered! Every worry will be solved! You will finally have a GUARENTEE in life! It does not matter what happens to you in this life because Jesus is the best insurance policy there will ever be. Give Jesus a fair shot in your life and HE WILL PROVE IT!

Scripture

Matthew 11:28

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Application for Life

If you don’t feel there is any point to life or you think we just do the same old routine things in life and then fade to black. I beg you to reconsider. Look around you at all of the DESIGN that surrounds us. We are not alone. There is an awesome Creator that wants you to find Him. He has placed his Word here with us to explain where we come from, what our purpose is, and where we are headed. What does it hurt to check it out? Put the Bible to the test and give Jesus a chance to give you the life you need.

Xtreme Jesus!

My Belief

We have just seen the USA lose it’s AAA credit rating and our economy be even more significantly weakened. We have a very divided government and nation. It is almost 50/50 split against itself toward two different ideologies. As a result, there are a few “Buzz” words that are being thrown around like crazy. They are extremist and compromise. Both sides of government and both halves of this country have people with very dug in extreme views and all of the national media screams that there must be compromise between the two sides.

With such a wide gap between beliefs in this country it makes me ponder what I should do as a follower of Jesus. What would Jesus do? Is Jesus an extremist or a God of compromise? Well, I think anyone that studies the Bible will say that Jesus has a very EXTREME point of view punctuated with an incredible offer of love an mercy. I can’t think of any of the economic and social issues that divide us where Jesus does not draw a hard line in the sand. The Bible talks more about money than any other single topic. It speaks of how we are not to serve or love money and how we are to be excellent stewards of what God has given us. This financial responsibility is also to be accompanied by an attitude of charity and serving those in need. On most social issues Jesus also takes an uncompromising position. God clearly indicates that abortion is murder, homosexuality is an unnatural detestable sin in His eyes, and to replace God with anything is a down right offence to God. So in my opinion there is no ability to compromise on any of these issues as a follower of Christ. God blesses those who obey and curses those who turn to their own way. While God takes this unwavering position He also offers an unbelievable gift of mercy. Anyone who has compromised these issues may come humbly before Him and ask for forgiveness. He will grant it to all those that seek Him and desire a personal relationship with Him threw His Son, Jesus.

Scripture

2 Tim 3:12-14

¹² In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, ¹³ while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. ¹⁴ But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it,

Application for Life.

God does not compromise on His Word and as His Children we may not either. We must stand firm on the Word of God and as Paul said to Timothy, “Men will go from Bad to worse, but you Timothy CONTINUE”. We are to be salt and light to this world and that is guaranteed to make us unpopular with the majority of people. We are to stand firm even if it cost us everything. All of this is to be done with the absolute punctuation of Jesus’ Extreme Love for the world. We will not compromise with the unforgiven sinner, but we must offer them the same love that Jesus would offer us.