Nick’s Walk

Bobby McFerrin was one of those one hit wonders. He released Don’t Worry Be Happy in 1988. It was the first acapella song to hit number one. It’s lyrics were simple. It’s tune and Bobby’s voice was Caribbean. It made you think of a tropical island free of care and worry. It struck a chord with the public because we all really don’t want to worry. We want to be happy. We’re just not very good at it. In America, the luxury that surrounds us breeds distraction and worry. Intellectually, the Christian knows that the answer is to be careful about only one thing, our relationship with the Lord. But we care about so much more. I have been monitoring Amana Prayer Partners since May of 2008. I have copies of hundreds of prayer requests. Maybe one day I’ll write a book. I don’t recall a single prayer request focused on a care about one’s relationship with Christ. We pray about illness, about job security, about the salvation of others. We pray against bad weather or “evil” politicians. It is a good and right thing to bring such petitions to our Father and we have seen miracles in His […]

I tend to make things way too complicated. Periodically I have to do housekeeping on some part of my life. In essence, I have to remove the “extra” stuff that I throw in and get back to basics. As usual, OC says it well:“How are we going to be simple with the simplicity of Jesus? By receiving His Spirit, recognizing and relying on Him, obeying Him as He brings the word of God, and life will become amazingly simple.”So it is with the church website, Amanacf.org. I recognized some weeks ago that it had become too complicated and I have been working for weeks on redoing it. In fact, making it more complicated each time.Finally, I asked myself, “What am I trying to accomplish?” I had to answer I want folks to connect with us and to connect with Jesus. It’s a theme we focused on last year; but I think it is a perpetual theme. Doesn’t that say it all? So I have greatly simplified the website with that theme in mind If you are familiar with the site you will see some things are missing. If you miss something, it’s up to you to get it back. […]

Saints in the Superbowl. Many thought it would never happen. On WWL, the New Orleans news station, once the winning field goal was made, the announcer proclaimed, “Hell has frozen over.” One newspaper called the dramatic win, “Divine Intervention.” With a name like “Saints” it’s inevitable that there will be “spiritual” references when the team is referenced. Some are light hearted; some completely irreverent.I spent Sunday afternoon and evening watching the game with family, frantically texting those who were not physically present. Even Rosemary, my wife and self-proclaimed non-football fan, jumped off the coach and screamed when the last interception occurred. She was in the ladies room for the winning kick. Maybe she really still isn’t a fan.But shouldn’t I have been in church? I wasn’t and I am sure I’m not the only one. I think OC’s words for today deserve consideration:“As workers for God we have to learn to make room for God – to give God “elbow room.” We calculate and estimate, and say that this and that will happen, and we forget to make room for God to come in as Hechooses. Would we be surprised if God came into our meeting or into our […]

I met a great person yesterday. I have known this person since he was born; but I feel like I really met him yesterday. I spent the entire day with him. I watched my grandson Nicky break boards in his Karate class in the morning, we saw Avatar together in the afternoon and watch the Ragin Cajuns play their best game of the season last night. It was a long day but a great day. I have always know he’s a “great kid.” But he is a great person. We love many of the same things like karate, scifi, and basketball. He’s smart, personable and lovable.  He’s a wise person. I thought it was cute to name the little video of his Karate class, “Nicky – The Human Saw.” He got a kick (this is Karate after all) out of it; but pointed out that I should change the name. He advised: “That’s not what the video is about. It’s about a whole class breaking boards; not just about me.” Yesterday I admitted I wasn’t as smart as OC; now I have to say I’m not smarter than a second grader. That’s what Paul found out after persecuting Jesus […]

It’s difficult to keep up with OC. I would like to say that each morning I can review his thoughts for the day and summarize them. It doesn’t sound that complicated; but it is. At best, I can grab one fragment of his musings and comment on it. If you’re not receiving a copy of his entire daily devotional, let me know. If you are not trying to absorb it yourself, you are missing something.I grab these words today: “By being filled with the Spirit we are transformed, and by beholding we become mirrors.” I know that ideally when someone looks at me, they should see Jesus. It’s hard for me to imagine that anyone ever does. I guess the problem is sometimes I try to be like Jesus and for all the admirable effort, failure is guaranteed. Rarely I realize that trying isn’t going to do it. The only way to be a mirror of our Lord is by beholding Him.I know I need to stop trying and focus on beholding. It’s just so much easier to try by doing things. I can be kind. I can assist. Sometimes I can even forgive. When I do these things, […]

As a group we are incredibly gullible people; we are also lazy with short attention spans. I could go on but I’ve already depressed myself. Just a year ago, millions thought, “Now it’s going to be different. Now it’s gonna change. A savior is here” Now, a very different group is saying the same thing. A wise man once said,  “As a group we are incredibly gullible people; we are also lazy with short attention spans.” Oh, yea, that was me. When Group 1 was all aglow a year ago, Group 2 (the ones that are aglow now) were saying, “Government is not your savior.” Don’t forget your own words, Group 2. “Look unto Me” and – not “you will be saved,” but “you are saved.” These words don’t apply to Obama or Brown or to your Daddy, your boy friend or your cat. They apply to Jesus and if you apply them to anyone else you will prove the wisdom of that wise one who said, “As a group we are incredibly gullible people; we are also lazy with short attention spans.” Although that might be great for me, not so good for you. It’s a good thing […]

We are emotional beings. Emotion is an essential part of our make up. We respond emotionally to events past and present. Emotion is not reason; and is not rational. For that reason, we sometimes minimize it’s importance. We can conclude that it’s also not spiritual; but that’s not true. God made ever part of us: our bodies, our minds, our reason, our emotions, our soul and our spirit. For me there is a song that evokes extreme emotion. Okay, let me admit it; it brings tears to my eyes on nearly every hearing. I can’t tell you what it’s about. I don’t know most of the words or the “story” behind it. I catch only brief phrases but those phrases have incredible emotional impact. The song is Held by Natalie Grant.  Here are some snatches of the lyrics: Who told us we’d be rescued?Why should we be saved? This is what it means to be heldHow it feels, when the sacred is torn from your lifeAnd you surviveThis is what it is to be loved and to knowThat the promise was when everything fellWe’d be held. Today, OC calls us to recall what God remembers and he quotes, “I […]

I understand that some people are not morning people. I don’t understand such people. The morning is so fresh. To me there is a daily cycle that begins with the freshness of morning and ends with the satisfied exhaustion of evening –  ideally after having served Him well during the day. “Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed,  for his compassions never fail.They are new every morning;great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:21-23 There is such consolation in these words; because no day is perfect. No morning is perfectly fresh; no evening reveals complete satisfaction in the work accomplished. In fact, for me some mornings are still stale and some evenings disappointing. But I know that the new day will bring another chance, a fresh start.  Some of this cycle is just natural; but for born again children of God it is also evidence of the continuing work of the Holy Spirit. For us, the freshness/exhaustion cycle operates on a spiitual as well as a natural level. O. C. starts with a practical truth: “Sometimes we are fresh for a prayer meeting but not fresh for cleaning […]