Ministry for Men

Jerry Hancock was a local radio personality for years here in Charlotte. Take a look at what he has been up to since "retiring".

It is really great when someone makes it okay for men to talk their religious beliefs.

Passing along a Good Word

I had the honor of working at Duke Power (now Duke Energy) in the early part of my career. I call it an honor because I not only learned a great deal from the experience but I also met a number of really wonderful people. People that give of themselves everyday to "keep the lights on" in our homes and businesses. One of those people was Sharon Decker. We were never particularly close but I have always been proud to say that I know her and worked with her at Duke.

As time has passed, careers, families, childern take us all to various places and that was the case with me. I left Duke for a career in market research. God has truly blessed us and while work for Duke was a blessing, moving on has been an equally abundant blessing. But I have always tried to keep up with my former colleagues from my "power company" days.

Earlier today, a fromer colleague sent over a link about a book Sharon has written. Of course, I will have to read it. Not just because Sharon wrote it but because since her departure from Duke, she too has grown in her faith and has even launched her own ministry. Part of her ministry includes a group of women who produce a media product called The Satisfied Life. In this media product (sorry, I can't think of a better way to describe it), Sharon, Pam Stone (from the TV series Coach), and Ramona Halloway (local radio personality) discuss living a satisfited life. One section of their website is a blog. Today, I read a posting that I felt spoke to me. It isn't overtly religous but it just seemed like something I needed to hear.

I've pasted a link to the blog so you can enjoy it and perhaps, contemplate the blessings we have in our own works. Thanks Sharon!

Living in Faith

Not long ago, I wrote about being faithful. What I was discussing was the idea of holding onto your faith and keeping it active in your daily life. Today, I am thinking more about living in faith, which I think is a little bit different. To me, living in faith also takes some effort and we all approach it a little differently.

Personally, I have what I consider a strong faith. What I mean by that is that no matter what happens in my life and what circumstances I am dealing with, I always believe that at the end of the day God is in control and will bring me out in a place where he wants me to be. I live in faith. Yes, I have to navigate life, just like everyone else. And there are times when things don't go my way but I firmly believe that when it is my time to go be with The Lord, I will have arrived at the spot God intended for me, when He intended for me to be there. I don't feel as if I have to be in control every step of the way. As a matter of fact, it is really liberating to not feel like you have to make all of the right decisions. You really only have to make one right decision and that is to have faith in The Lord.

Isn't that nice, I have this all figured out in one paragraph on a blog post. Of course, it isn't that simple but the foundation of that philosophy is exactly that simple. Yes, there are times when I take too much control. Yes, I have made bad decisions by not following God. But I have no doubt that God has a plan for me (faith). I know that God is lining up everything I need (faith). And I know that I will make mistakes and wander off the path from time to time but that I can always turn to my personal GPS (God Pointing System) and get back on track.

Yes, there are times when I find myself in a place or circumstance that is all wrong for me but I don't fret about it and certainly don't blame anyone, especially God for those mistakes. I simply take a deep breath and give it to God and let him reposition me on the right path. I go on living in faith.

At least that is how I think of living in faith. How do you live in faith?

Being Faithful

How do you stay faithful? I'm not talking about staying in faith, which to me is believing and recognizing all of the goodness God gives. No, what I am talking about is giving thanks every morning, thinking about all of the great things God has done, saying my prayers at night, basically exercising your faith throughout the day. Being faithful and really experiencing your faith takes work. I am here to tell you, it is hard for me.

It's not that I don't ever pray or give thanks. I do. What I struggle with is doing the best in my prayers and thankfulness. You see, I often feel that I haven't gone into my prayers prepared. I find a moment here and there, I even put a reminder in my online calendar to remind me to do my morning and evening prayers. But as those reminders pop up, I am no more prepared to pray than when I just pray somewhere on the fly. I know that praying is individual. I also know that my prayers still go to God, even when they are quick and fleeting. What I want to do better and what I believe will give me a greater and stronger relationship with God is learning and executing thoughtful, more heartfelt, and meaningful prayers.

Again, I realize that my insecurities with prayer are mine and mine alone. But I do think that working on my faith skills and continually learning new faith skills, I will keep growing in the love that is what God has in store for all of us. That is my goal and one of the many things I want to achieve in my walk with God.

Having What No One Else Has!

Okay, I'm not sure that is the best way to say it but the message is you have something that can never belong to anyone else. Actually, you have several things that will only ever be yours. What I mean is that God made you the way you are for a reason and no one will ever be like you or have everything you have and that is totally okay and absolutely great.

I admire the singing voice of George Strait, the tall frame of my good friend Kieran, the calm demeanor of my friend Emanuel, and the wit of comedian Craig Ferguson but I cannot remotely envy them. The reason is it isn't in my DNA, literally! You see, I have something that none of them have, the unique gifts, talents, intellect, looks, etc. that God wanted me to have. Other people bring me joy, my friends mean a more to me than many of them know, my wife and family help complete the person I am and the person I will become. But in the end, I am special, I am one-of-a-kind, I am unique in ways that will never be replicated and I have God to thank.

So, what does that mean for you? Exactly the same thing. Sitting around thinking what if you were taller, better looking, smarter, more popular will get you no where. No, you have to realize you are who you are because God knew what you needed and who you needed to be. If He had intended for you to have certain gifts, talents, or skills, believe me, you'd have them. You are perfect the way you are and once you realize that, it is like unlocking something deep down inside, a feeling of purpose and excitement about what you can do.

What a great feeling to know you have something that no one in the world has. Something that the most wealthy and powerful people in the world can never own. Something so special only one was ever made. God is truly great and we are all so very blessed for these wonderful gifts he has given us.

Being the Gift God Intended

Often times, we receive God's gifts. That is certainly what we think of most when we talk about God's gifts. But aren't there times we are God's gift? So today, when I saw this story, it made me think that this is a time when we are the gift. No one will ever know why the tragedy of the Haiti earthquake had to happen. However, amidst the horror, there are gifts from God. People found alive 7, 8, 10, and now 12 days after the quake. Now, we are the gift as we our faith families prepare to send aid and support to the area.

Yes, we think so often about the gifts we receive but this is a reminder that at times, we are the gift.

How Do You Stay in Faith?

Life is busy, hard, fun, and many other things. It's easy, or easier to stay in faith when things are going well. But what do you do things aren't going great? I have reached the point where I find it is easier in the hard times to stay in faith. The reason is that I've learned (often the hard way) that sharing the burden of my troubles with God brings things to a better resolution than I ever seem to come up with on my own. Sure, it is hard to stay in faith when things aren't going well but can you really think your solutions and handling things alone will work out better than when you have someone to share your troubles with?

Share your troubles, share you burden and you will find things are much easier to bare. Staying in faith in the good times is something we all need to do but stay in faith in the difficult times too. Share your troubles with the Lord and stay in faith in the hard times too. You will see how things work out the right way.

I lied

It happened so effortlessly, quickly, and with so little consideration of what I was doing. I said something that wasn't true and didn't give it an second thought. That is I didn't give it a second thought until much later and then it was sitting on me like a ton of bricks. After all that had happened and all that would happen, why would I do it? I don't recall when it started and I don't know why it was something I felt I needed to do. It wasn't a big lie and it wouldn't harm anyone (physically, emotionality, financially, or otherwise). It just happened. But once I realized what that meant, I became really distraught. I couldn't sleep. I thought about it constantly, and then I began thinking about what would happen if someone found out. What would I say? How could I explain it? What would people think of me? How could I make it right? Ah, that last one, how could I make it right? You know how to make something like that right. You do the right thing. Come clean and do what you should have done all along, tell the truth. And so, that is what I did.

No, you can't go back in time. No you can't ever really explain away your mistakes. We all try. God doesn't expect us to be perfect but he isn't looking for us to make out-and-out, bold face mistakes either. You see, sometimes we make mistakes because we don't think. You know the kind, unintentional missteps that you look back and say, that was just dumb. Other times, we make conscience decisions to not do the right thing. Isn't that what an intentional lie is, a conscience decision to NOT tell the truth, to not do the right thing?

None of us will ever be perfect but we can all try harder to follow God and his word. I admit I lied and I didn't like the way it made me feel. It is impossible for me to think that telling the truth, even when I know it will not be well received can feel any worse.

Give it to God

I'm a pretty head strong guy. Not in a really bad way but it takes me a while to realize that I may not have the answer or solution to a problem and so I waste time thinking I can figure it out. For example, earlier this week, I was traveling when I got an email about a personal issue I have been dealing with. I thought the problem had been resolved and was a closed subject but then the email brought it back into focus. The fact that I had to dredge things back up and give it more consideration made me that much more upset about it. Add to this, I had just landed at the airport, made the trek to my car in freezing weather, and had a 30+ minute drive in near rush hour traffic ahead of me.

As I drove home, I was playing various scenarios over in my mind and trying to think of how I would respond. Nothing was helping and I wasn't feeling good about any of "MY" options. Then, out of the blue, I remembered that I wasn't alone. I had someone, a higher power to ask for guidance. And so, right then and there, on the beltway, I said a prayer, I gave it to God and asked for the right words, the right answer, and His will in making my reply. Immediately, I came to peace with the situation and a solution that made perfect sense.

Yes, we must thank God for everything in our lives. Often, I feel like I forget many of the blessings to be thankful for. In all honesty, there are so many that I can't always remember each one. But we can also go to God with our concerns and troubles. While this wasn't an issue that was life threatening or even in the grand scheme of things life altering but it was a pressing and very real concern. I wanted it put behind me so I could be open to more of God's blessing and with His help, I was able to do just that. Now, the problem is still there and I will deal with it but the response I had to give was what troubled me and God took that response and took care of it for me in a way that was right for Him and for me.

When was the last time you gave something to God? When you find you don't have a self-created solution, offer it to God and see what wonderful things happen. Hey, isn't that another blessing to be thankful for? Yeah, I thought so!

If You Can See It, You Can Achieve It

Are you limiting what God has in store for you by putting limits on how you see yourself?

God is waiting to bless you indeed but you have to be ready and willing to accept it. Start expanding your vision of what God has planned for you.

What are You Doing About Your Faith?

You know you have to exercise and eat right to stay healthy. If you want to play a musical instrument, you have to learn and practice. And if you want to play a sport well, you have to stay in shape and also practice. Are you doing similar things for your faith? I will admit I don't play a sport, so I don't work on those skills. As for a musical instrument, I love to sing but don't practice that either and I haven't picked up my trumpet in a few years. As for eating healthy and getting regular exercise, let's say there is lots of room for improvement.

Now, your faith is really no different but it's not just heading to the weekly Sunday service. Did you eat a healthy breakfast? What about a morning prayer of thanks? Have you practiced your piano scales? What about doing a good deed or turning the other cheek? What I am saying is that we all have to work on being better. Sometimes it is working on things to improve our health or a skill but sometimes it is to improve our relationship with God.

So, I'll ask again, what are you doing about your faith? It's not too late to start doing something.

My 2010 Resolution

Every year, I vow not to make a New Years Resolution. Not because I don't believe in resolutions but because I believe I should be working on becoming better person all year long, not just at the first of the new year. But this year, as I continue My Everyday Faith journey, I decided to commit to daily morning and evening prayers. It's not that I don't pray but admittedly I'm not regular with my prayer.

Now, being the "list" kind of guy that I am, I am making a list of the things that I want to pray over. I know, I know, that is a bit structured but I know myself well enough that if I don't write things down, they don't get done. So, I figured that if it was good enough for my to do list and work related items, why not prayer? With that in mind, I'm making my prayer list and committing to daily morning and evening prayers. This isn't to say I won't have prayers throughout the day but I will be more focused on these times of day as well.

What resolutions of Faith will you make in 2010?