Author: Addis Andy

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Willing and Able

Here is where I have been all week…

In my personal devotions I have been studying meditation and discipline. The focus for this spiritual exercise has been on the Lord’s Prayer. Each day I have been guided to meditate/focus on a specific line from the prayer in Matthew 6:9-13.

Meditation is not sitting on the floor chanting ooga booga. It’s chewing on, centralizing your heart, continuing to return to a thought over and over again until it is ingrained within you.

Basically, it’s everything bad about worrying, but used for the forces of good. Yeah, that’s about it… meditation is positive worrying… if that’s even possible.

While every line from the prayer is worthy of daily focus, I have not been able to get around the first line. Even though I need to move on, I feel like God isn’t done with me as it relates to these 4 little words:

“Our Father in heaven…”

Here’s what meditation on this sentence fragment is revealing to me: my God is willing and able.

Our Father – As my Father I know He wants to Continue reading “Willing and Able”

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What does tertiary mean anyway?

After nine months of study and filling no less than six hand written journals, today I have completed a spiritual journey.

 

Long ago, I decided to study the book of Romans with more depth than I ever studied a single book. It’s been a blessed, frustrated, beautiful, agonizing endeavor (and, no, I am not being dramatic).

 

But, here, even on the last day as I pour through Paul’s concluding remarks, I am smacked in the face by a lesson I can’t wait to preach. So, let’s blog it!

 

In his 27 verse long conclusion (he sounds like some preachers, I know, I know, yuk yuk), Paul sends his greetings to 26 individuals, two families and three house churches. But, one greeting stands out in an amazing way!

 

Romans 16:22 I Tertius, who wrote this letter, greet you in the Lord.

 

Tertius was a scribe (a secretary if you will) who wrote down the letter as Paul dictated it. For this one brief verse he breaks form and speaks in the first person, to say “Hi” to all the believers in Rome.

 

This is so amazing because Romans is so amazingly Continue reading “What does tertiary mean anyway?”

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The best plan for your life, well, maybe

What if God’s plan for your life is not the best plan for your life?

 

For most of you reading this, that is an absolutely ludicrous question. But, let me ask you to suspend your theological questions for a moment and just ponder whether there is any way it  is possible that God’s plan for your life may not be the best plan.

 

I’m pretty sure at this point I’ve offended 50% of you, 25% of you have already unsubscribed from CrossEyedLife.com and the remaining 25% are praying for my soul. Let me ask you to just hang on, I promise I’ll make a point worth making.

 

For us to seriously ponder the question of whether or not it’s possible for God’s plan for our life to NOT be the best plan for our life, we must define a term or two.

 

When I use the word “best” we almost universally, as individual as we are, define it in the exact same way:

  • the best financial plan for me is to spend less and get more
  • the best time plan for me is to do less and play more
  • the best physical plan for me is to be healthier and suffer less
  • the best emotional plan for me is to be happy and less… everything else

 

I think you see the pattern here; we could go on and on defining what’s best for us in every arena of life based on a single standard:  what will benefit me the most?

 

That’s how we naturally and internally define “best.” The best answer, the best plan and the best Continue reading “The best plan for your life, well, maybe”

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Audio Devotional

Here is a 22 day audio devotional based on Psalm 119.

It’s 22 tracks of daily devotions about 2-4 minutes each. The project is designed to help people start, or restart a regular daily devotion time with God.

I’m calling it the ABC’s of Devotion for several reasons:

1. It’s easy to start and do (easy as ABC)

2. It uses Psalm 119 as it’s content, which has 22 sections; one for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet (their ABCs)

3. Just like singing the ABCs… its a little habit forming. They say (whoever they are) that it takes 21 days to start a habit and with this being a 22 track project there is a good chance we can make daily time with God a new habit in people’s lives.

You can click and listen right here, or right click and download to your desktop. Or, if you want to go big guns, you can download this zip file and get all 22 in a single download: click here

 

Here’s a suggested pattern for your daily time with God using the ABC’s:

  1. Pray and ask that God would speak to you and that you would hear clearly what He’s saying
  2. Read the passage for that day
  3. Listen to that day’s track
  4. Pray again and commit to God some point of application that you can take away from that days devotion

Each day in the 21 day audio devotional journey is available below:

DAY 1

DAY 2

DAY 3

DAY 4

DAY 5

DAY 6

DAY 7

DAY 8

DAY 9

DAY 10

DAY 11

DAY 12

DAY 13

DAY 14

DAY 15

DAY 16

DAY 17

DAY 18

DAY 19

DAY 20

DAY 21

 

DAY 22 

 

 

 

 

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ABCs of Devotion, complete download

A couple of weeks ago I posted a sample day of a new audio devotional project from PSALM 119. I’ve had a lot of requests to make this available. It’s actually a CD project that I offer when I speak at camp and other events. But, I am posting links to each day of the 21 for you in the CrossEyedLife Community.

You can click and listen right here, or right click and download to your desktop. Or, if you want to go big guns, you can download this zip file and get all 21 in a single download: click here

 

Here’s a suggested pattern for your daily time with God using the ABC’s:

  1. Pray and ask that God would speak to you and that you would hear clearly what He’s saying
  2. Read the passage for that day
  3. Listen to that day’s track
  4. Pray again and commit to God some point of application that you can take away from that days devotion

Each day in the 21 day audio devotional journey is available below: Continue reading “ABCs of Devotion, complete download”

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The Vacation Is Over

Just dropped the boys off for the first day of school… one of them a junior higher for the first time.

 

There was lots of crying, fretting and snot blowing before school, but I should be better by lunch.

 

I’ve been trying to imagine what this day is like for them, and I can visualize several things: trading items off their tray at lunch, bouncing legs under the desk trying to mask a little nervousness, and awkward conversations with kiddos they haven’t seen for three months.

 

I’m sure they are talking about teachers, the coming year and what they did over the summer. We (adults) do the same thing since they are just smaller, slightly less mature versions Continue reading “The Vacation Is Over”

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The ABC’s of daily devotion

I just finished a pretty unique recording project, and I am actually quiet pleased with it!

It’s 22 tracks of daily devotions about 2-4 minutes each. The project is designed to help people start, or restart a regular daily devotion time with God.

I’m calling it the ABC’s of Devotion for several reasons:

1. It’s easy to start and do (easy as ABC)

2. It uses Psalm 119 as it’s content, which has 22 sections; one for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet (their ABCs)

3. Just like singing the ABCs… its a little habit forming. They say (whoever they are) that it takes 21 days to start a habit and with this being a 22 track project there is a good chance we can make daily time with God a new habit in people’s lives.

Anyway, I love the way the project turned out. I love the quality of the recordings. And, I love having a resource that can help people get consistent in their daily walk with the Lord.

So, I thought I’d post Day 1 for the CrossEyedLife community and see what you think. Thanks for checking it out!

[display_podcast]

Here’s a suggested pattern for your daily time with God using the ABC’s:

  1. Pray and ask that God would speak to you and that you would hear clearly what He’s saying
  2. Read the passage for that day
  3. Listen to that day’s track
  4. Pray again and commit to God some point of application that you can take away from that days devotion
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Be B.O.L.D.

I just wanted to share a little bit of camp with you!

I am currently at Riverbend Retreat Center near Glen Rose, Texas for the second week of Kidz@Kamp 2011.

I love camp (in fact, I’ll be at 7 weeks of it this summer), but I really love this one. I have been leading and speaking here since 1997. It’s one of those long term commitments that’s feels like your building a legacy.

In fact, yesterday, a young sponsor came up to me and said, “When I was 10 I came to this camp. You ate lunch at my table one day and that night I gave my heart to Jesus. Thank you.”

After that comment I truly understand the Old Testament phrase “blessings and curses”… She made my day and man I felt old.

Anyway, I just wanted to share a little of camp with you. Below is the message from the first night as we were setting the theme for BOLD from Joshua 1:9.

If you’re a part of the CrossPoint faith community I am sure you’ve heard all the stories, but looking through the eyes of several hundred 3rd-5th graders will still be a fun experience… Enjoy!

Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

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You call that worship?

The following video clip is a teaching/story I have been telling for years (12 to be exact), but I have never captured it on video.

A few nights ago I was asked to speak at the first ever CrossPoint Country worship/concert event. It was more than awesome and hope we can do it again soon.

It was the perfect time to share this thought and I hope it’s an encouragement to you.

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Courage is not the absence of fear…

Courage is not the absence of fear. It is the completed action in the face of it.

We often confuse courage with stupidity. We watch some guys take unnecessary risks, or tackle extreme obstacles for no purpose and exclaim that they are fearless.

I couldn’t disagree more.

Often, the ability of some to do things others can’t simply because they aren’t afraid is not courage, it’s chemical physiological.

  • Some people aren’t afraid of heights… good for them.
  • Some people don’t fret confrontation… kudos.
  • Some people don’t get rattled no matter what… yeah them.

When these folks walk straight into the circumstances that others cringe away from, this is not courage; for them, it’s normal.

Courage is displayed when those who are overcome with fear displace that obstacle and operate in direct opposition to what’s going on inside of them.

That’s courage.

First Timothy chapter 1 verse seven says, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.”

 

Many of the fears we experience are not legitimate. A legit fear is one God has given to keep you safe: fear of big dogs, guys with guns, etc.

Most of the fears we have are  illegitimate, simply obstacles that keep us from moving in a the direction we need to move in order to heal relationships, advance our career, grow in faith, see the miracle!

We are afraid of consequences:

  • What will people say?
  • How much will it cost?
  • What if I fail?

This is the kind of fear we must fight. This is the kind of fear that requires bravery. This is the kind of fear that God said He gave us power, love and discipline to bust through.

You’ve probably already thought of one or two (maybe a dozen) areas that have held you paralyzed with fear.

It’s not going to get any better. It will never be easy. It’s going to take real courage.

It is time to step up…

Courage is not the absence of fear. It is the completed action in the face of it.