I remember it like it was yesterday. The snow began to fall overnight, so by the time I was up, it had gotten a good head start. Dad wanted me to shovel the front porch and the sidewalk out to the road in front of our house. Seems easy enough, right? But this was the blizzard of ’78! Our front walk wasn’t very long but by the time I got to the end of it, I had to turn around and shovel my way back to the house. It seemed like a waste of time to even bother until the snowing and blowing quit.

Fast forward nearly 50 years. I never thought I would live to see that much snow fall in one storm again, at least not in Ohio. So, in my great wisdom I decided, when the snow began to fall, that I would wait to shovel until it stopped. 24 hours later my driveway was covered with between 12 – 18 inches of snow and the temperature had fallen into the single digits. Though the wind wasn’t near as bad, we did break the snowfall record from the blizzard of ’78.

Being snowed in and knowing I needed to go to work the next day, I was waiting for a young man to show up with a shovel wanting to earn extra cash by shoveling my drive. It never happened. Then I waited till it warmed up to 10 degrees and I went outside to brave the elements. I thought I would never finish and wondered if my fingers and toes would fall off from the cold.

I guess my dad had a good idea when he said I shouldn’t wait till the snow piled up. I should shovel often to stay ahead of the accumulation.

There’s another thing we shouldn’t let pile up, and that’s unconfessed sin. Our Heavenly Father has something to say about that in His Word. Look up Psalm 32 and read David’s testimony of what happened to him when he tried to hide his sin. It stole his joy, his fellowship with God; even his health deteriorated because of it.

1 John 1:7 says: If we are living in the light as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other; and the blood of Jesus, His Son cleanses us from all sin. Cleanses us implies a continuous action. When David let his sin pile up and go unconfessed, his body wasted away. When I let my snow pile up and later, tried to shovel, my back wasted away. The same will happen to all of us if we don’t keep short accounts with God and keep our sin from piling up!

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It feels like I spend a lot of time behind the wheel of a car. My family is pretty spread out now so it seems like I’m driving all the time. I don’t mind it for the most part but there is one thing that’s unnerving. If I’m on the interstate and passing a car or truck that is having trouble staying in their own lane. Sometimes the problem is the wind and sometimes just inattention but it tends to stress me out. I have, however, learned a valuable lesson during these times, don’t look at the other vehicle while passing! It’s tempting because if they drift into my lane I need to get out of their way. But I’ve experienced this strange phenomenon, if I focus on them we suddenly get closer, not because they are drifting but because I am. If I look straight ahead I can stay in my lane and safely get past the other car.

I’ve found there is a spiritual application in my own life. If I want to shed an annoying habit or a besetting sin, my typical response is to focus on that behavior asking the Lord to help me get past it. But the more I focus on it, the more I drift toward what I’m trying to avoid. If I don’t look away and fix my eyes on Jesus, I’m headed for a collision!

In Proverbs 4, King Solomon is instructing his children how to avoid getting sidetracked by evil and in verse 25 he says: Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Then in Hebrews 12: 1-2 we read: let us slip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith.

If you or I want to put a bad habit or besetting sin in our rearview mirror, we must stop focusing on that behavior and fix our eyes straight ahead on Jesus. He will give us the victory!

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Mel Blanc, perhaps the most well-known voice actor of all time, was the go-to guy for Warner Brothers. He created and performed Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Tweety Bird, Sylvester the Cat, Foghorn Leghorn, Yosemite Sam, Speedy Gonzales, and the list goes on and on.

Now they say that an actor has to become the person he or she is portraying in order to sell the part, but Mel Blanc took that to the next level. His son Noel described how completely his father disappeared into each character. His face and body would transform with each voice he performed.

This really came to light when Mel was in a terrible car wreck. It was January 24th 1961 and driving around Dead Man’s Curve on Sunset Boulevard, he was hit head on. Mel broke both legs; his pelvis was shattered and he suffered a triple skull fracture. Paramedics had to cut him out of the wreckage and by the time they got to him, he was unconscious. They rushed him to UCLA medical center where he slipped into a coma.

For two weeks his wife, his son and the nurses and doctors talked with him and called his name, they tried everything to reach him but there was no response. Finally, one of his Neurologists came into his room and said “Hey Bugs can you hear me?” Then came his most famous line, in Bugs Bunny’s voice Mel responded with “eh…what’s up doc?” Mel Blanc inhabited his characters so completely that when his own identity was unreachable in that coma, his character remained!

This is something I want to aspire to. Not to become like cartoon characters but to become like my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! How would I be different if my voice was like that of Christ, my expressions were like Christ, my actions and reactions and my responses were like Christ? What if I spent so much time with Jesus and knew Him so well that others would hear and see Him instead of me?

In First Corinthians 2:16, the Apostle Paul tells us that as believers, we can have the mind of Christ. Then, in Second Corinthians 5:17, he tells us that anyone who belongs to Christ, has become a new person. The old life has gone, a new life has begun.

Just imagine what God could do through you and me if we claimed those promises as our own and began to sound and look like Jesus to a hurting world!

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When I’m driving down the road in a hurry, which is typically the case, and someone pulls right out in front of me and goes two (mph), I get angry. I like to think of it as righteous indignation but my wife reminds me, it’s much closer to road rage! The term “righteous anger” is found once in the Bible, Romans 12:19 but it is only associated with God. So, what is righteous indignation or anger? It’s not selfish anger or anger due to inconvenience, like I experience in the car.

But according to scripture, it is possible for Christians to practice it. In Ephesians 4:26 we read: And don’t sin by letting anger control you. Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry. Then James 1:20 states: Human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.

It seems like the key to righteous indignation is found in my motives. Why am I angry? And the object of my anger. Is it something that makes God angry as well? In the Ephesians 4 passage, I find that it is possible to be angry without sinning but I can’t hold on to that anger.

We know that God is angry at evil! Often times it destroys the people that He created and loves. So, when I look at the object of my anger, is it the people who are doing evil or is it the source of that evil?

The comedian Flip Wilson coined the phrase “the devil made me do it” and while that statement may be true, Flip said it to avoid accountability. I am accountable for what I say and do but, if I’m going to be angry with evil I need to focus that anger on the source, and sometimes I can forget that.

Ephesians 6:12 reminds me; For we are not fighting against flesh and blood enemies. But against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

Satan loves it when we believe that another person is the enemy. Then we fight with each other and he can stoke the anger from the shadows. I want to quit doing that and expose him as the source of the evil actions and the true enemy of God and His children.

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It was late. I had been helping a friend an hour away and it was time to head home. I knew where I was going; in fact, I’ve made this trek so many times, I could do it in my sleep. Judging from how tired I was, tonight that was a possibility!

When I got to the part of my journey where I had to decide whether to take the most direct route or the Interstate, I figured I was too tired to go through the small towns with all the stop lights, so I jumped on the interstate. Things were going well and I was making good time but up ahead I saw all the flashing lights of construction. One mile away from where I was to exit onto another interstate, the big neon sign came into view alerting me that the exit ramp was closed! No warning, no detour signs, just exit ramp closed.

Now, I was in unknown territory. Oh, I knew this interstate but not how to get home this way without that exit. I decided to take the next exit and turn around. Unfortunately, the next exit was 6 or 7 miles away in the wrong direction of home and still, no detour signs. When I finally got off the Interstate, I thought briefly about getting back on and going the other direction, but I had no idea if the exit ramp on the other side of the Interstate would be open or not. So, I used my sense of direction and started going the way that seemed right. The real problem was now I didn’t recognize any of my surroundings and it got worse with every turn in the darkness. Then a joke came to mind; you know, about the man who was tired of the female voice on his GPS giving him orders so he changed it to a male voice? But the male voice over and over just said; “Keep on driving, it’s around here somewhere!”

At the next light, I pulled out my phone and asked Siri to take me to the town next to mine, certain I knew the way from there, but with each turn I seemed more lost. Then I told Siri to take me to my city, but again, where I was going didn’t make any sense. Finally, exhausted and exasperated I said “Siri, Take Me Home!” When she told me my street address, I knew she would get me there. Looking down now at my GPS, it said I would arrive in 45 minutes! Wow, was I ever lost!

It’s hard to admit that I don’t know where I’m going. Proverbs 14:12 tells us: “There is a way that seems right to a man, but it’s end is the way of death.” As long as I was in unfamiliar territory, I couldn’t trust my sense of direction. I needed the voice of one who knew where I was and where I wanted to go. On the road that voice might be a GPS, but in life, it’s Jesus! He told us this in John 10:27: “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”

Have you found yourself in unfamiliar territory? Not sure where to turn or what to do? Have you lost confidence in your ability to get out of your mess? If so, then you need to pray. Pray to the only one who knows exactly where you are and exactly where you need to go. His name is Jesus!

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In 1799, 12-year-old Conrad Reed was playing in the section of Little Meadow Creek that ran through his family’s land, when he spotted a shimmering stone in the stream. Captivated by its shimmer, he picked it up and carried it home to his father, John Reed. John used the rock as a doorstop for the next three years.

In 1802, he sought the advice of a Fayetteville jeweler about the large rock he used to prop open the door. The jeweler revealed the rock was no ordinary stone. It was a 17-pound gold nugget – the first documented discovery of gold in the U.S. John Reed, formerly a poor man, died wealthy after his family started their very own mining company.

Isn’t that story remarkable?? The Reed Family walked past a piece of gold, with extreme worth for years, thinking it was nothing more than a handy doorstop. How often does the same thing happen to us? We walk past valuable relationships, opportunities, moments thinking they are merely a door prop in this life versus something or someone who can add tremendous value to our days.

I think of the Jeremy Camp song “Keep Me In The Moment”! Lord help us not to miss one thing along the way that can impact our lives for the good, for the better… times we can beautifully be the hands of feet of Jesus to those around us.

Gold is priceless in this world, but lives have eternal weight that lasts forever. Maybe today we can stop and be intentional about asking the Lord to open our eyes to treasures we are casually walking past in our living room or kitchen, not noticing the gem right at our feet.

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I can smell it before I even get in the front door. The aroma makes my mouth water and I grow impatient for dinner. When I finally take that first bite, it practically melts in my mouth. It is so tender and delicious and so worth the wait. As I savor every bite, I wonder why I ever prepare it any other way. What is it, you ask? Anything slow cooked in a crock pot!

I’m usually in a big hurry and the microwave will have to do, but the smell, taste and texture in the microwave leave a lot to be desired. Often times, our life is like this. I’m in too big of a hurry to realize what I’m missing because I’m always looking for a short cut. We may be in an age of break neck speed and we may be microwave people, but I’m pretty sure we have a crock pot God.

In Ecclesiastes 3:11 Solomon tells us: “He has made everything beautiful in its time.” Then in Psalm 27:14 we read: “Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” I hate waiting! But when I run ahead of God, when I use the microwave instead of the crock pot, I’m always disappointed with the results!

And I’m not alone. When we go back to the first book of the Bible, we learn that God promised Abram he would have descendants more in number than the sands of the sea and the stars in the sky. But Sarai, his wife was not able to have children yet. We read in Genesis 16, she decided they could not wait any longer. She ran ahead of God, giving Abram her Egyptian maidservant Hagar to conceive an heir. As you can imagine, that didn’t turn out well. And still to this day, the child of promise is at war with her microwave solution, Ishmael!

I love what Dr. Charles Stanley once said about waiting; “There is one thing worse than waiting on the Lord and that is…wishing that you had!”

Ever been there? Abram and Sarai were, and I have been many times. It’s really hard not to get ahead of God, but I’m trying to learn that when you wait on the Lord and His best for you, it always tastes much better!

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It’s Monday, July 16, 1945. It’s 5:30 in the morning. A blinding flash suddenly awakens the sleepy village of Carrizozo, New Mexico. Two minutes later there is a deafening roar. The first atomic bomb has been detonated 35 miles away, and a new age has been ushered in.

Less than a month later, on August 6, President Harry Truman announced to the nation that an atomic bomb had been dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Oddly enough, the code name for the atomic bomb project was Trinity. I’d like to think Harry Truman knew the power behind that name.

I mean, think about it, we carry that same atomic power Jesus gave to the disciples, all those many years ago, to go out into all four corners and touch a hurting, dying world, to truly be His hands and feet. Tragically, we seem to overlook or forget this tremendous calling on our lives from the moment we accept Jesus as our Savior. From the instant that glorious relationship begins, the enemy does all he can to drive us away from understanding the tremendous power we carry. His mantra becomes: “If I can’t win their souls, I’ll pull every trick out of my hat to make sure they are totally ineffective.” I mean, he’ll come at us with everything under the sun possible. He’ll try to waylay us in the midnight hour as an individual. He doesn’t play.

But, in this rough and tumble, never ending battle, our sanity comes from knowing he is fully defeated in the end. We’ve read the back of The Book and we win!  So thankful today for beloved souls who have taken time to remind me of this truth when I couldn’t see the forest for the trees. Here’s the beautiful hope, dear ones. In all this muck & mire, Jesus has ushered in the power to trample on the enemy’s head with the strength of the Cross. There is nothing, not one thing we can’t overcome with the Holy Spirit living and dwelling in our souls.

You, my friend, are an atomic bomb for the Kingdom! Now that’s something to shout about today!!

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When my children were young, one of the phrases we often heard around our house was: “That’s not fair!” Almost from the time they could talk, it seemed they had radar that could detect unequal treatment. Now that my kids are grown, I see it in my grandchildren. “She did this and got away with it!’ or “I got punished and he didn’t!” It seems as though the little ones have an overly developed sense of fairness. Of course, the adult in the room has to break up the fight and remind the little immature humans that life isn’t always fair.

Since more often than not, I was that adult, today I wonder why I didn’t learn that lesson. Oh, for me it’s no longer about sibling rivalry but I realize that I’m still greatly bothered by the unfair! Whether it’s the child who is mistreated by a bully, the godly person who is marginalized for their faith, or the helpless who are cast aside. I’m an adult now. Why does it still bother me when truth is maligned and deception lauded or when good is called evil and evil called good? Maybe as believers, God made us to have that sensitivity. And I know I’m in good company.

Asaph was a musician who wrote a few of the Psalms. My favorite is Psalm 73. It’s worth the read. He starts out very transparent about his feelings with these words:

“Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled, my steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”

Asaph goes on to lament that the wicked don’t suffer pain but continually grow fat. They aren’t in trouble but are constantly causing it. They are proud and covered with violence. They don’t believe Heaven sees or will hold them accountable. That description from an ancient psalmist sounds like it could have been in this morning’s paper.

So, what do we as adults do with this frustrating feeling? May I suggest that we do what Asaph did? Get a Heavenly perspective. We pick up his thoughts with verse 16:

“But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end. Truly you set them in slippery places; you make them fall to ruin.”

Our God promises to make all things right one day. Chances are though, it won’t be in our preferred timing. But it is a promise we can hold on to and until that day, we can regain our Lord’s perspective on all that is going on around us by spending time in prayer, in His Word and in His House!

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When I think of my Dad, the first word that comes to mind is patient. How many times did I run out of gas in the wee hours of the morning, run up his credit card bill on polo shirts, or bring way too many friends on vacation? I really think any other man would have gladly traded me in for a better daughter model any day of the week.

Dad was a beautiful picture of Jesus and I know, now, that is so rare. He made it easy for me to believe God was good and true and loving. My dad was born a champion. You know, one of those “one in a million” people that just came here good.

He was smack dab in the middle of a passel of boys. He started carrying a paper route when he was 10, rising up at the crack of dawn every morning with his older brother, to deliver the daily news to one and all. After a full morning, even in the Summer, they came home to a yummy breakfast, then went about their day. This paper route money, saved for 8 years, would go on to pay for dad’s college education.

My dad often told me unbelievable stories, which I have written on the fibers of my heart. One time, while serving in the Air Force, he was flying with his battalion when their plane started to break apart. In an instant, the pilot realized Dad was the only one with no parachute, so he decided to try to steady the plane a wee bit longer and then things began to settle down. That very day, Dad learned the power of prayer. After they settled safely on the ground, the pilot shouted back to Dad as they walked from the tarmac. “Hey Kitchens, you must be a praying man.” Indeed, he was and continued to be until his roll was beautifully called up yonder 70 years later.

Dad was one of those rare gems that could put everyone at ease instantly. He was a dentist for 40 years and people loved him. Most people dread a visit to the dentist, but not his patients. He would make people laugh, with his demure sense of humor, and even distract them from an impending shot. When he retired, it was a sad local community. I remember vividly coming home for some occasion or another and Dad had sweetly placed an adorable teddy bear in a dress and hair bow on my bed with a sign that read, “Welcome Home!” signed Tessie. I still have that bear to this day.

I had the honor of being there when my dad took his last breath on this earth. Not long before, he had asked for a good ole cup of coffee, one of his favorite things. Days before in the hospital, he would drift in and out and often stroke the invisible pets that I know he was seeing on the other side. I wish I could have only seen a glimpse of the grand reunion they had in glory as he was tenderly and jubilantly welcomed home.

I have often asked the Lord why I was so blessed to have one of the most amazing men on the planet as my Dad. I feel the Lord sweetly replies, “So you can take that love to those around you everywhere you go.” And I am determined to do just that!!

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Lately, my wife Vicki and I have been trying to declutter our home. We’ve been going through all the closets and finding things that we’ve had for years, from when our children were little. In that process, I noticed something I guess I hadn’t thought about before. Little children’s play things tend to be very colorful and shiny! I’m sure that’s helpful in getting and keeping a young child’s attention. The bright and shiny catches their eye and they want it.

Unfortunately, as adults, we haven’t outgrown that fascination for the bright and shiny and the enemy of our souls knows that very well. He can dress up sin in some of the brightest colors and make it sparkle so it catches our eye and makes us want to have it. What he will never let us see is the ugly, destructive nature of that sin. If we saw that, we would never be tempted.

A number of years ago there was a popular gospel song whose chorus shed light on this:

Sin will take you farther than you want to go, slowly but wholly taking control.

Sin will leave you longer than you want to stay. Sin will cost you far more than you want to pay!

The Apostle Paul also addresses this progression of sin as he warns the Christians at Thessalonica in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-15:

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

This passage gives us hope because there are several steps that happen before we fall headlong into sin and each of those steps gives us opportunity to turn away; an opportunity to recognize that what we see might not be all there is. With God’s help, we can see what’s behind all the glitz and glitter before it’s too late!

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Most of us are okay, when everything is going good. However, it can get a little sticky, when we are working through some conflict. And you know what I found out from the book, Help! I Work with People? It’s all about us, our attitudes, our strengths and our healthy emotions and allowing God to really reveal them to us. Talk about pain…ful! The truth revealed is like pulling back layers of onion. But, oh how sweet to come to the point where you realize you need help and it’s the help that only God can give. He wants to work – it – out. Whatever “it” may be. And instead of looking at the other person – as if THEY have the problem or ARE the problem – with God’s help, we have a truthful look at our hearts, our attitudes and even our motives.

I’m so glad God looks within and gives us the opportunity to change our hearts, like in Ezekiel 36: 26-27, where it says, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you, your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you to be careful to keep my laws.” God’s Spirit leading our hearts, and we find out, it’s really NOT ABOUT us. It’s all about Him – and He’s the One that can truly make the difference when we say, HELP! I work with people.

Joy Ware Miller – Development Director | Strong Tower Christian Media

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