Awesome weekend: Joy and Excitement

Dear Legacy Dads,It has been a while since I posted, not because I do not want to, rather, life has been somewhat busy.  This past weekend was pure excitement and joy for me.  First of all, my son, decided to finally make a profession of Faith and now is a new member at our church.  He really has been saved since about 3 (he truly gets his salvation), but I didn't want to pressure him, instead I wanted him to own his faith.  So he went through our Church Class to become a member and this weekend he brought me joy.

I am not sure about your goals and dreams, but my wife and I have a top priority and that is leading the type of life where our faith is real and our kids really want to own it.  Our prayers have been that they will all come to know the Lord as Savior.  So far, we are two out of three and I couldn't be happier.  The youngest is very smart, and may even be able to comprehend her love toward Jesus, but I am waiting on her (not what I want).

The coolest part of this weekend is just how much he internalized the moment.  I was so excited that he was called to be called a son of God and now to have a community of believers walk around him as he grows in wisdom and discernment.  This was a very humble moment for me and I am still so thankful that the first of three has made a profession of Faith.

My in-laws made the trip out to attend this service and I was just so excited by the Legacy of Faith that was present.  My mother-in-law and father-in-law raised girls that love the Lord, love their husbands and teach their children scripture and purity - it is an amazing thing to watch and I am so thankful that God keeps all of his promises (even when we don't).

He is a God of second and third and so many chances because He loves us so much that He gave us His only Son.  With all this joy in my life that came from this event and the weekend of worship and praise, I didn't think I could get any more excitement until she walked into my room and I paused and took a picture.

I am not sure about you (who have daughters) but I can tell you that I would sacrifice my life and for any one of my kids and that I want them to enjoy their lives and to love their spouses and to love the Lord with all their mind, body, soul and strength.  My middle child walked into my room and showed me a glimpse of my future (Excitement) and to be perfectly honest (as a father) some concerns:

• Am I being the dad/father that I need to be?
• Am I teaching my girls what to look for in a man?
• Am I treating them like I should be (the way that I want their husbands to treat them)?
• How can I be more intentional in my parenting and influence?
• What else do I need to be doing?
• Am I giving them enough of my time (hugs, kisses and quantity of time)?
• Are my wife and I parenting as well as we should be?
• I only have just under 10 years left to truly parent with 100% influence? What's next?How can I get others to help me along this process?

When it is all said and done, I would like to achieve a few things in my life:

1. To lead a humble and content life
2. To leave a legacy for my wife and kids and men that follow
3. To leave a love that can never be replaced (except by my kids spouses and their new lives together)
4. To have my tombstone say that I did it right
5. and most important to hear the words from our Lord, "Well done thou good and faithful servant."

What about you?Blessings,

D

Faith without works...

In Genesis 22, we read the following passage:Genesis 22 New International Version (NIV)

Abraham Tested

22 Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied.

2 Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”

3 Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. 4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. 5 He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”

6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied.

12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”

13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram[a] caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”

15 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring[b] all nations on earth will be blessed,[c] because you have obeyed me.”

19 Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba. And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

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For many of Christians (true Jesus is the only way Christians) we have a hard time with this.  That is, to say, that we believe in Jesus.   We believe that he was born of a virgin, that he fulfilled all the prophesies about him (every one of them), that he was crucified (and died) and that on the third day he was brought back to life and that he now sits at the right hand of God.  Here is where the issue or problem may occur for us as Christians - the without works part of our faith.  Do not misunderstand me here, there is no works that we could possibly do in order to save ourselves - only God can save us through His Son Jesus Christ.  The point being that our bodies are living temples to God's Spirit who resides in our temples.  How can we expect the Holy Spirit (who resides in each follower and believer in Jesus Christ) not to bring good works out of us?

If then we are raised by Jesus Christ (from being dead in spirit to life) then why do we not expect to see the fruit of the Spirit?  Sometimes this is difficult in that God lays before us trials and tribulations (tests) that for some can be painful or could stretch us in ways that we never wanted to be stretched.  In sacrifice that we never wanted to make, in works that we never wanted to work out.

Abraham had Isaac at the ripe old age of 100 years.  God then called him to take his son and sacrifice him.  Many of us read this story as blind faith (I don't).  Abraham believed in the Lord and his works (by his faith in God) was counted to him as righteouness).  Abraham believed for years that God would give his barren wife a son (God did).  Abraham believed in the power of the living God (because he witnessed time and time again).  As you read the story in Genesis 22, we see that Abraham did all that the Lord required of him (even binding his one and only son) and he was even going to sacrifice him to the one true God (he trusted God because he knew God and what he did and could do).  Because of this work (Abraham had to work - do the action - that the Lord required of him before the blessing could occur).  Does the Lord have the power to bless us without action (of course), does the Lord bless us with the fruit of His Spirit (of course, he can do as he pleases).

Most of the time God calls us to action (as you read in James 1), in order to build us and strengthen us to who He knows we can become (disciples of His).  I want to end this post with words from the Book of James:

James 2:14-26New International Version (NIV)

Faith and Deeds

14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.

20 You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless[a]? 21 Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,”[b] and he was called God’s friend. 24 You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.

25 In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? 26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

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When it is in our power to do good and we don't - shame on us.

When it is in our power to do good and we do - God smiles on us.

When we can do good to others - it is better for us (not expecting anything in return)

The blessing in this is that we truly get blessed more than the one(s) who we are blessing.

When you give, do not let the left hand see what the right hand is doing (because God knows and watches the actions of our hearts).

Blessings,

D

Are you a good listener?

The old adage of, "I know you can hear me, but are you really listening to me...." seems to be a recurring theme among men that I talk to both in life and in ministry.  The real problem here is that when you strip back the layers it really isn't just one-sided - rather, it takes two sides.Countless relationships find communication problems that start out small but end up monumental.  Others seem to let the little things pass them by and then realize over several years that these "minor problems" have become major and in some cases even ending relationships.

Why?  What is the root cause and how does it happen so quickly (look at the previous blog post and realize that we all have an enemy who roams the earth looking to devour - especially those who walk with God.

How to be a good listener:

• Step 1:  Be a good friend and listen to what the person (wife/husband/friend) is saying without interrupting or hearing what you want to hear and interjecting along the way
• Step 2:  Remember that God gave us 2 ears and only 1 mouth - I really think that this was for a reason:  Don't just hear, but listen to what is being said.
• Step 3:  Do not be quick to judge.  Be slow to speak and slow to become angry
• Step 4:  When you decide to work on being a good listener, then put down the phone, the texts, and turn your eyes upon the one who is talking to you.  This instantly shows them that they have your attention and respect.
• Step 5:  If you have distractions that you cannot control (phone, tv, computers, etc.,) remove them or mute them.
• Step 6:  Body language - make sure that you are giving them every sign and body movement that you are engaged and that the world (at this current juncture) could end and that the only thing that matters is them.
• Step 7:  Along the way, without being rude, cocky, ignorant or whatever could be deemed negative, ask the person to clarify when in doubt, or say something along the line of, "If I am listening to you correctly, I believe that you are saying...., or that you mean.... - and then ask them to clarify and then continue.
• Step 8:  Be intentional with your new-found listening skills and ask relevant and insightful questions in regards to the person, the situation and the subject.  This will have positive impacts for both you and the talker as both are feeling validated.
• Step 9:  Don't force the conversation.  Even if you know that they are holding back or not ready to fully open (and even if you know what could be said next - Don't say anything)  by listening and being a good listener, then you will show that you can be trusted (with listening) and that sooner or later that person may decide to open fully up to you.
• Step 10:  Regardless of the level of conversation, do not devalue it or make it seem like it is not relevant.  Whatever the topic or the issue or the conversation show the person (spouse or friend) that they matter, they are relevant and you do care about what they are saying
• Step 11:  Do not make light of it.  Do not discard it and do not blow it off.  If it is important to them, no matter what the subject, then value that person by valuing what is important to them regardless of your own feelings or knowledge
• Step 12: Pray before you talk, during and after for God to lead you the way that you should go.  Listen for the Spirit to guide you to either encouragement, comfort or urging of that person.

Men, whether we like it or not, God has intended us to be the Spiritual leaders.  That is a big necessity that is lacking in a lot of cultures.  Where are the men with integrity, honor, valor and the like?  Imagine if we all worked on being a better listener at home, school, work and community (and church) - what would that look like to those around us?  How do you think people would respond?

What are some of your steps?

Let's hear from you,

Dante

When we get this, the rest makes sense

In John Chapter 8, we read about Jesus talking to leader of their time, those who did not know Him and accept Him as Messiah, and we understand Jesus' very point in what is wrong in society today:   Galatians 5:¹⁹ Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, ²¹ envy,^[d] drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God."

John 8:42-4

English Standard Version (ESV)

⁴² Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. ⁴³ Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. ⁴⁴ You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies."

Understand this:

• The Devil is a liar
• The Devil is a murderer
• The Devil does not understand truth
• When he lies he is speaking his native tongue
• The Devil is a liar
• The Devil is the father of all lies

No matter what we think, say or do, we have to convince ourselves that Jesus truly means what he says about one of His Angels - the fallen Angel Lucifer - he is a liar.  Therefore, anything that is of God's plan, Satan wants to destroy.  God said to us in Genesis - Be fruitful and multiply!  The devil says divorce, quite, hate (murder) those that you know you should really love.  God says that we are to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, mind, soul, body and strength and the second is like the first:  Love our neighbor as ourselves.  The Devil says that we are to love self and hate others.  He wants us to gossip, slander, malign and be captured by our very lusts and pleasures in life (after all society tells us so greatly how much we need it).

Sometimes we hear people say things like:

• I cannot wait to die and go to hell and be with my friends who love the world
• You Christians are boring, what do you know about pleasure
• Don't be so rigid, live a little
• How can a God of love cast people into Hell and the Lake of Fire?  I don't want to serve a God like that...

Sometimes we hear and see Christians shrink behind God's truth and our freedoms that our forefathers understood what is so important to us in this Country of ours the United States of America:

THE BILL OF RIGHTS

The first ten amendments to the Constitution, or the Bill of Rights, set forth the priceless rights or freedoms that all Americans may enjoy. A brief summary of these great freedoms is given here.

FREEDOM OF RELIGION

The first right, or freedom, guaranteed in the Bill of Rights is freedom of religion. This right is guaranteed in the First Amendment. Freedom of religion guarantees to all Americans the right to practice any religion they choose, or to practice no religion at all.

Congress is forbidden to establish any religion as our nation's official religion. Congress cannot favor any one religion over others or tax citizens in order to support any one religion.

FREEDOM OF SPEECH

The right to express your ideas and opinions when you speak is called freedom of speech. Freedom of speech also means the right to listen to the thoughts and opinions of others. This freedom guarantees that Americans are free to express their thoughts and ideas about anything. They may talk freely to their friends and neighbours or speak in public to a group of people. Of course, no one may use his freedom of speech to injure others. If a person knowingly says things that are false about another, he may be sued in court by the person or persons who believe they have been harmed by what he said.

Americans are free to express opinions about their government or anything else. They are free to criticize the actions of the government and of government officials. In a dictatorship, where the nation's government has all the powers, the people have no right to speak like this. They do not dare to criticize the actions of the government. If they do, they may be imprisoned. But all Americans enjoy the freedom of speech, which is guaranteed in the First Amendment.

FREEDOM OF THE PRESS

The freedom to express your ideas and opinions in writing is known as freedom of the press. This freedom is closely related to freedom of speech and is also guaranteed by the First Amendment.

Freedom of the press gives all Americans the right to express their ideas and thoughts freely in writing. This writing may be in newspapers, books, magazines, or any other printed or written form. Americans are also free to read what others write. They may read any newspaper, book or magazine they want. Because they are free to read a variety of facts and opinions, Americans can become better-informed citizens.

FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY

Another priceless freedom guaranteed by the First Amendment is freedom of assembly, or freedom to hold meetings. Americans are free to meet together to discuss problems and to plan their actions. Of course, such meetings must be carried on in a peaceful way.

FREEDOM OF PETITION

The freedom of petition is the right to ask your government to do something or to refrain from doing something. The First Amendment contains this guarantee, also. The freedom of petition gives you the right to write to your Congressman and request him to work for the passage of laws you favor. You are free to ask him to change laws that you do not like. The right of petition also helps government officials to know what Americans think and what actions they want the government to take.

THE RIGHT TO BEAR ARMS

The Second Amendment to the Constitution guarantees Americans the right to bear arms. In the early years of our nation, Americans needed weapons in order to serve in the militia, or volunteer armies, that were established to defend our states. The militia provided protection during emergencies, too. Many Americans also believed that without weapons they would be powerless if the government tried to overstep its powers and rule by force.

"NO-QUARTERING" RIGHT

The Third Amendment states, "No soldier shall, in times of peace, be quartered in any house. . . ." Under British rule, the colonists sometimes had to feed and house British soldiers against their will. As a result, Americans wanted this practice forbidden under the Bill of Rights.

THE RIGHT TO EQUAL JUSTICE

The Bill of Rights contains many rights that are guaranteed to persons accused of a crime. Amendments Five, Six, Seven, and Eight are all concerned with these rights. Our nation places great importance on these rights in order to guarantee equal justice for all Americans.

A person must be indicted, or formally accused of a crime, by a group of citizens called a "grand jury" before he can be brought into court for trial.

A person accused of a crime is guaranteed the right to know what law he is accused of breaking.

A person accused of a crime has a right to a prompt public trial by a jury of his fellow citizens.

An accused person cannot be put into prison and kept there for weeks or months while awaiting a trial. He has the right to leave jail, in most cases, if he can raise a certain sum of money, or bail, as a pledge that he will appear at his trial.

An accused person has a right to a lawyer to represent him in court.

All the testimony and evidence against an accused person must be presented publicly in court.

The accused person has the right to call any witnesses to appear if their testimony will help him.

The accused person cannot be forced to testify or give evidence against himself.

If the accused person is found guilty, he cannot be given cruel or unusual punishment. If the accused person is found not guilty of a serious crime, he cannot be tried a second time for this same crime.

THE RIGHT TO OWN PRIVATE PROPERTY

The Fifth Amendment guarantees Americans the right to own private property. No person may take away anything that we own. Nor can the government seize our land, money, or other forms of property without cause, or without paying for it. The right to own private property is one of America's basic freedoms. Our free economic system is based upon this right.

THE RIGHT TO ENJOY MANY OTHER FREEDOMS

To make doubly sure that Americans should enjoy every right and freedom possible, Amendment Nine was added to the Constitution. This amendment states that the list of rights contained in the Bill of Rights is not complete. There are many other rights that all Americans have and will continue to have even though they are not mentioned in the Bill of Rights. Among them are the following.

Freedom to live or travel anywhere in our nation

Freedom to work at any job for which we can qualify

Freedom to marry and raise a family

Freedom to receive a free education in good public schools

Freedom to join a political party, a union, and other legal groups

As a final guarantee of our rights, the Tenth Amendment set aside many powers of government for the states. This Amendment says that all powers not given to the federal government by the Constitution, nor forbidden to the states, are set aside for the states, or for the people. This provision leaves with the states the power to act in many ways to guarantee the rights of their citizens.

SUMMARY

Government is the authority or power that people establish to help them run their affairs.

Governments serve many important purposes, but the most important one is that government makes it possible for people to live and work together. Government provides us with rules of conduct we can follow. Government makes it possible for people to live by known laws, and helps provide many services that citizens acting alone could not perform themselves.

Our nation's government is based on the American Constitution. This Constitution, together with its Bill of Rights and other amendments, provides us with a workable plan of government. The Constitution also guarantees to all Americans many priceless rights and freedoms.

Our nation's government is based upon the approval, or consent, of the people who are governed. It is a federal system in which certain powers are given to the national government and other powers are left to the states and to the people. Certain powers are shared by both federal and state governments. In both federal and state governments, powers are separated and balanced among three branches of government.

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Understand this:  The Devil wants to destroy the very essence of God's will for our lives - to have an abundant life and to be saved by His Son - Jesus Christ.

• Love the Lord
• Let Go and Let God
• Repent, turn and serve God
• Seek first the Kingdom of God
• Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.

Don't forget, the devil wants to destroy every good and righteous things in your life.

Blessings,

D

Time flies by...

[youtube id="F2bk_9T482g"]As my family and I drove home from a parade in the town next to ours, I was flooded with childhood memories from when my mom and dad took my sister and I to parades in our hometown.  I love how my dad really did the little things that meant so much to me.  As I reflect on these things, my father is 86 years old and lives in assisted living near my sister nine hours away from me.  He is Parkinson's Disease and is slipping daily both literally and figuratively.   My mom went home (to Heaven) in March of 2011 and I cannot believe how time flies by.

I posted this video from the movie UP as my family and I watched the end of this movie right before bedtime for the girls.  I YouTube'd the video and found the beginning of their relationship until the end.  There is a great secular book called, Tuesday's with Maurie, and there is a line from the book that says, "Death ends and life but not a friendship".  That is so true both in the secular world and in the spiritual world.  There is so much of my parents good in me that I cannot even begin to count the blessings.  Of course, there are things that I wished that I could have had throughout my childhood that I didn't and things that I wished that I could have avoided and didn't - the pain that came with it but wasn't prepared spiritually by my dad (he wasn't a Christian at those times).

I think when we treat each day as a gift rather than a burden we can begin to move toward a posture of gratitude and respect for the One who gives it to us each and every day.   Life is a gift and our breaths are numbered by the Creator who knows when each of us have an appointment to die.  There are simple truths in life that no matter what we do cannot be avoided - death and taxes and the Judgement of God.  With all this being said, time flies by.  1 Peter 3:7, "As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace."  James 4:14, "Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring.  What is your life?  For you are  a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes."

I remember when I was a boy there was a lady friend who was very affluent and she took kindly to me and my education.  Her nickname was Miss Lee (that is what all the kids called her when she was a teacher).  She was also an antique dealer who was doing work for my parents and she made me promise that I would finish college and also pursue my Masters Degree (which I did) and in turn of this promise she ended up gifting me my room with some collectibles that she gave to me free of charge.  My wife and I to this day use that Clerk's Desk in our family room.  Miss Lee said one thing very provocative to me, "Dante, make the best use of your time, because when you blink, you will be my age."  I always took that comment at a glance, but the older I get, the taller my children become and the gray in my hair are constant reminders of her truth.

What does this mean for our legacy dads?  What is this post saying to you?  For me, it is simple, there are things that have been slapping me upside the head this week that have become almost comical in my life and it is forcing me to practice what I preach on this blog.

For Starters:

I will...

• ...play more with my children
• ...read more with my children
• ...read more with my wife (more devotions and conversations)
• ...be more active in leading both physically and spiritually
• ...make the best use of my time through work, chores, playtime and rest

I will not...

• ...surrender time to my IPAD or Desktop or Computer
• ...waste time for lazy pleasure
• ...settle for mediocrity
• ...turn away from God by wasting my time

When I think of how fast things are moving by me, I can choose to be a reactive parent or a proactive parent, husband and leader of my family.  The only regret that I want on my tombstone is that my loved ones say that they wish more people would have gotten to know the influence I had in their lives.  The more people that could have looked a my life and instead of seeing me - they see the love of Jesus.

For me and my house, we choose to serve the Lord with all of our time, talent and treasure!!!

What is your choice today?

Blessings,

Dante

Perspective on the Stewardship of Time

 

Psalm 90:12

New International Version (NIV)

¹² Teach us to number our days,that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

For kicks, I took a life expectancy test on the internet and here are the results that I received:

Life Expectancy Results

Life Expectancy: 86.90 yearsLower Quartile: 79.03 years (75% chance you will live longer than this)Median Lifetime: 88.41 years (50% chance you will live longer than this)Upper Quartile: 96.23 years (25% chance you will live longer than this).

That being said,  I am currently age 46, which means according to this, I am over half the age that I have till I die.  According the the calculators, I have 41 years left before I go home.  In other words, I have 14,975 days, or (if I am calculating this right), 21 million 464 thousand minutes before I am gone baby gone.  As I am typing this I have a son who is 10 years old and two daughters (ages 9 and 7, respectively).

Psalm 39:4-5

New International Version (NIV)

⁴ “Show me, Lord, my life’s endand the number of my days;let me know how fleeting my life is.⁵ You have made my days a mere handbreadth;the span of my years is as nothing before you.Everyone is but a breath,even those who seem secure.

This past month, I have come to realize how important time is in my life as Prophet, Priest and King of my household.   Scripture clearly tells me as husband and father that I have these roles and that I am to die to self to serve others that I am responsible for.  Thereby, my son and two daughters, my wife and so on - those that I have immediate impact on.

Just thinking about this can be very humbling and intimidating knowing this plate that I have.  All of a sudden, if you are like me, a wave of emotions and thoughts come to mind:

What are my priorities:

• Are my priorities aligned with God's will for my life
• I need to prioritize those things that matter most
• I need to give both quantity and quality to those things that DO MATTER most and let go of the things that do not.
• Do I possess the gifts and attributes to prioritize those things?  If not, who do I know that does
• If I were to look at my IPhone, DayPlanner, Checkbook, would my answers correlate with these three things?  If not, why not

Let's take some inventory:

• How many hours of sleep do you get a night
• How many hours do you work in a day, a week and a year
• How many minutes, hours, days do you give your wife and children
• How much time do you give God
• Are my priorities in line with God's
• Who is my g/God (myself or God)
• Looking at my checkbook, is my stewardship in line with God's plan for stewardship

Let's take a moment to be honest:

• I am not being an effective steward of time:  True or False
• I am wasting more time than I am using the way God wants me to:  True or False
• I need to get sound wisdom on this topic and need to seek a mentor and scripture and God's will for my life:  True or False
• I am not sure where to find this (even in Scripture):  True or False

After reading through this again (for the third time), I find myself lacking in some key areas of my life.  I need to take stock of the "to-do" lists and the demand of time and how quickly it passes.  As I study myself in the mirror I notice a little hint of grey hairs and a hairline that has been receding.  I realize that my kids are almost all halfway out the door and I have so much more work and instruction for them - the beginning of wisdom is to fear the Lord.

The next few posts I will be walking through the Stewardship of time and where I am at in making what matters most - the priority of being a good steward with the time that God has given me.

What about you?  Where are you at on this so valuable of a topic?

Let me know,

Dante

Be careful with the "ISM's" in your lives

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Why not sex before marriage (nor outside of marriage) part 1

[youtube id="9K1M5mNEe8s"]1 Corinthians 7

New International Version (NIV)

Concerning Married Life

7 Now for the matters you wrote about: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” 2 But since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband. 3 The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. 4 The wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife. 5 Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.