Walking in God's Woods

  I have read and seen a lot recently about the Biblical relationship between husbands and wives, and I often feel like the people who have a lot to say are too selective in their choice of verses to quote. Too often, I have seen people quote from Ephesians 5, but only use verses 22 through 24--the verses that tell women that they are to submit to their husbands in everything--and stop there. If those are the only verses you reference to talk about the subject of marriage, then I pray that you never get married. To be completely frank, men who only reference verses 22 - 24 disgust me. For me, the only verse I need to remember is verse 25. My job as a husband is not to be Angie's boss. My job is to love her and to give myself for her. Since 2:30 p.m. on October 19, 2002, the goal of every decision I have made should be to do what is best for Angie. I want to be the first to admit that I have failed in that goal on numerous occasions, but even there, I will say there have been times ...

  For some reason, I keep coming back to the last few chapters of the book on Luke on my walks. Maybe it is because the spine of my Bible is creased to land there, or maybe it is because there is something more there that God wants me to learn. Either way, every time I have read Luke 22 recently, a different verse has stood out to me. Throughout my entire life, I have been taught that Jesus is always with me and never changing. I take much comfort in times of stress, knowing that, no matter what I am facing, I am never alone. Jesus still stands by me in all my trials. Today, I read a sentence that I must have read many times before, but today was like the first time I have ever ACTUALLY read it. As Jesus and his disciples had finished their final Passover meal, the disciples got into a dispute about who is greatest among them. Jesus tried to teach them that you must be humble to be great, to serve to be a ruler. Then He reminded them that he has been a servant among them. He follow...

All my life I have been perplexed about asking God for things. Many times, throughout the Bible, I find stories of people asking for things and God providing. Jesus made it pretty clear when he said, "Ask, and it shall be given." In that statement, it seems pretty simple, but I have seen and experienced asking God for things that never came about, which left me confused or even frustrated. James made things a little more clear for me in his statement: "You ask and don't receive because you ask with wrong motives...." (James 4:3) I understand that we have to ask for things that are in God's will, but that has led to another confusion: if the thing I am asking for is already in God's will, then why do I even have to ask Him for it in the first place? If I am truly trusting in God's will, shouldn't I just take whatever God gives me and learn to be satisfied? What is the point of asking? The other thing that really used to bother me was the idea of p...

  When I lost my job and essentially lost access to my son, I felt so lost about what I was supposed to do. Strangely, I had an immediate sense of peace that God would provide for our family, and He has, just like I knew he would. I really never questioned whether we would have money to survive or if I would find another job, but I definitely questioned why God would separate us from Abe. I have been so sure that God brought him into our lives that it just didn't make sense why God would let us be pulled apart. Nearly six months later, I am just as sure today that Abe is still meant to be a permanent part of our family, and even though I don't know why God has allowed us to be separated for now, I am positive that it is only temporary. God told me to make Abe a part of our family and to care for him as my son, and I made a vow to both God and Abe that I would do just that. In December, I spent a lot of time reading and watching videos, looking for answers about what I was suppo...

  One of my biggest struggles over the past several months has been trying to understand why things happen (or don't happen) in life. There are days when I feel such confidence and faith that God is working all things out for my good, and there are days when I question what God is doing. Deep in my heart and soul, I know that my Savior is walking every step of the way with me, but on some of the darkest days, I have a hard time seeing Him. One of my favorite songs over the past few years is a song called "There Was Jesus." Zach Williams and Dolly Parton sing these words: In the waiting, in the searching In the healing and the hurting Like a blessing buried in the broken pieces Every minute, every moment Where I've been and where I'm going Even when I didn't know it or couldn't see it There was Jesus  That song has given me a lot of comfort since the first time I heard it. It reminds me of Psalms 23:4. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of ...

  When I started this blog series, I decided to carry my Bible with me while I take my morning walk in God's woods, unless it is raining like it is today. As I near the end of my walk, I open the Bible to wherever page God leads me. (Again, if it is rainy, I wait until I come back inside.) I read aloud the chapter that begins on that page and listen for the verse that stands out to me. That's how I select the verse as the base for each blog post. Please understand that I am not necessarily trying to interpret that verse when I write. Instead, I am writing about what that verse means to me in the moment. This morning, when I flipped open my Bible, I landed on the first chapter of the book of Daniel for the second time. The first time I read that chapter, I didn't really have any strong feelings toward any of the verses, so I tried again and got another verse. When I landed in the same place again this morning, I immediately knew that God wanted me to see something. I have kn...

So I might as well jump right in. The past five months have been very difficult for me, more difficult than any extended period of my life has ever been. I don't want to go into a lot of the back story, but it is important for me to give enough details for anyone reading to understand the circumstances of this tough period of my life. Last February, I reached out to a student who has been through more in his life than any one person should ever have to go through. He has been abandoned by both of his parents, he was abused in more ways than one, and his younger brother died of a drug overdose just last year. When I first met him, he was living with his aunt and uncle, and from the way he described it, no one has ever loved him. My heart broke for him (and still does), and I felt called by God to take him as my son. In my teaching career, I have been blessed with the ability to connect with several young men who needed a father figure in their lives. I have talked with them, listene...

"Whose woods these are I think I know.." From the first time my class read "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" in ninth grade English, Robert Frost has been one of my favorite poets, and this poem is my favorite. I remember having the discussion in class about the symbolism in the poem, and I have always felt that Frost was referring to God when he said "Whose woods these are I think I know." All the forests in all the world belong to God, and we are just blessed to stop by for a short time. When we bought our property 18 years ago, the back portion of the land had been cleared and only a few scrubby trees were growing. Over time, those scrubby trees have grown and filled in most of the cleared land, and we almost never set foot on half of the land we own. Recently, Angie (my nature loving wife) came up with a plan to clear a walking path through our back woods, and she assumed I would think she was crazy. Since I started working from home a few months ...