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“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God” Psalm 20:7 The holidays are over. The resolutions made. It’s time to get back to work. It’s time to plant our feet firmly on the ground and see where we are.  All the aspirations expressed in our resolutions and all the “Peace on Earth” felt in our holiday celebrations must now give way to grinding it out on a daily basis.  This is where the rubber meets the road. This is where we demonstrate who we really are. The politicians have “fixed” the fiscal cliff. Get ready to pay more and have less. All the bills for Christmas you put on your credit cards is about to come due. All that stuff you put off until, “after the First of the Year” has just moved to the top of your stack of to dos.  It’s time to really act like our trust is in the Name of the LORD our God. That’s easy to do when we are on holiday. It’s not a challenge when we are sitting at home watching football. It’s a bit tougher when we have to […]

Some days change your life forever. They form  the way  you look at things, your hopes and your blessings for the rest of  your days. On December 31, 1969, a pretty young red head was excitingly preparing to go out for New Years Eve. She had a new boy friend and a brand new outfit. She was looking forward to a great night out. She was pretty disappointed when the boy friend showed up at the door dressed very casually and obviously with a less spectacular agenda for the evening. It turned out to be a very important night nonetheless. The boyfriend decided that night that he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life without the red head in it.  Rose and I have ever since celebrated New Years Eve by staying home. It was easy when the kids were young. It was tough getting babysitters on that big night out. When the kids got older, it was tougher as we stayed home and prayed, while they went out and partied. We developed other New Year traditions. I usually make the cabbage and black eyes. This year we will probably just eat out. Only she and I will […]

1 Peter 3:15 New International Version (NIV) 15 But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, The time of transition from old to new is a good time to focus on where we are, where we have been and where we are going. We should all have our Life Story ready to give. It may end up being a blockbuster best seller, a Broadway hit or a made for tv movie; but it should start out as three simple paragraphs. 1. Me BC. What was I like before Christ? Be careful it’s tempting to juice up this section with too many gory details. The bottom line for us all is that we were lost. The unique part is exactly how we were lost.  2. Me, After Jesus. What a difference He has made in our lives? This is the good part, the easy part. We need to make clear that we haven’t been made perfect, just forgiven. Everything didn’t change instantaneously, mainly our direction. It’s important here to be honest and simple. 3. His Vision for us. If we are still here, we are […]

Yesterday we discussed resolving to encourage each other through prayer,  principally through connect groups. That’s the best way to connect, but there are others. If you aren’t part of a connect group, but you have a prayer concern, you can get others to start praying for you almost immediately. Send an email to me at nick@nicksigur.com or send an email to amanaprayerpartners@googlegroups.com. Each request is briefly reviewed to avoid spammers, but very shortly after being sent there will be folks praying for you. We try to follow up in a few days to find out how you are dong. Be more proactive about connecting at church. Before service starts, approach at least two folks, introduce yourself and start a conversation. If your memory for names is as bad as mine, take notes on the persons you meet and end the conversation by promising to keep them in your prayers.  Consider inviting someone to lunch with you after church. That’s a great way to connect. Don’t take the easy route of inviting someone you are already comfortable with. Invite a stranger and really be blessed. One simple way to connect is to choose a different spot to sit during services. […]

Pray constantly for your friends and then let them know you are doing so, so that you may always serve as an encouragement. The time between Christmas and New Years is typically spent trying to extend the Christmas Season, watch some football and considering some resolutions for the New Year. I came upon the above quote on Twitter and it made me consider just how self-centered we start each year. We look to improve us. Consider how we can be better or make our lives better. I think it might work better if focus less on self-improvement and more on encouraging others.  I would like to consider starting this New Year with a more outward view. Wouldn’t it be great to resolve to “pray constantly for our friends as an encouragement.” I can almost guarantee that it would lead to a better year than resolving to lose weight or exercise more or to quit some crude habit. When I think of it, most of my problems have their origin in my self-focus. When I focus on others, things are always better.  Perhaps more importantly, when I engage in a prayer relationship I connect. I connect first because as trust […]

Christmas was great at our house: lots of family, food and fun. There were lots of gifts as well. I guess my great granddaughter was the best at opening hers. She said, “Just what I asked for.” and “Just what I wanted.” for just about every gift. After the eating and gift giving, the television was on most of the day repeating showings of the movie with the kid who is desperate to get a bb gun for Christmas. That film has some great classic scenes. The main theme, of course, is the kid is determined to do all that he can to assure that he gets the gift he really wants. The commercials during the movie seemed to back up that theme. They painted the days between Christmas and New Years as like a great adjustment period. It’s the time you trade in what you got for what you wanted. In some cases, you “upgrade” what you got for something a bit better and, of course, a bit more expensive. I get the whole gift giving thing. It’s such a tradition that it will likely continue until Christ comes back. But it just seems to me that Christmas […]

This may be my favorite time on Christmas Day. It’s still that “not a creature was stirring” time. I’m the only one awake and it’s the time for delicious anticipation. Soon enough our home will be filled with my favorite people. I know the weather will be horrible. I know that everyone won’t be staying all day. But for a few hours those I love will gather around. A year filled with challenges and fear and pain will be just a memory and a new one filled with hope will nearly begin. The One who came 2000  years ago to replace fear with joy will do so again. We will open presents and laugh and eat. My Kaydence will sit on my lap and play with my ipad. Nicky and Sam will be full of wonder and wonderful stories. It will be fun and noisy. It will be great. By mid-afternoon, Rose and I may be left to our own devices and piles of paper and dishes, but that will be just fine. For a few short hours, another Christmas of memories will happen. This one will meld with all the ones in the past and promise more in […]

[8] And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. [9] An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. [10] But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Luke 2The Hope of Joy is the promise of Christmas. Joy is certainly a theme of Christmas. There is much confusion about joy which may lead to much of the disappointment at Christmas. We try to create joy. Joy isn’t something we can make nor is it instantaneous. We can get a glimpse of true joy, but it doesn’t come because of a holiday celebration alone.Joy is the gospel’s replacement for fear. Fear arises from uncertainty, uncertainty about events, who we are, and who God is. For the Christian, a life dominated by fear is gradually replaced with a life of joy. It is a gradual process because joy comes from a developed certainty. It arises from relationship, not an instantaneous miracle. As our relationship with the Lord develops, we learn that He is […]