Do You Like Oranges

How many of you like oranges, I know I do. In fact my favorite Juice is tropicana with lots of pulp. Its almost like drinking a solid orange I love it. Let me ask you another question how many of you like hot humid weather. I don't ethier in fact I hate it. Its funny though oranges grow best in hot and humid weather.

I was taking a walk and saying my morning prayers. The first thing I did was thank God for the beautiful weather. I sure that I am not the only one, we all thank God for beautiful days. But the cool 75 tempatures do not bring florida oranges. The same is true with green grass, everybody likes green grass but how many of us curse the rainy day.

My point is this thank God for the good days, thank him also for the bad days because of the good things they bring. Live the Adventure.

Soldierz

I wanted to discuss the idea of soldiers. While within a given army all soldiers are belong to the same army, and that army has one collective mission. Each soldier generally has a individual mission that he must do in order that the army as a whole can complete its objective.

While I was in the army there where are a few different groups of soldiers. There are those which us combat guys deemed as Pougs. Pougs we said sat in the rear with the gear. These are typically your admin guys, supply guys, and your techies. These types of Soldiers you usually stay in the back far from battle, very far. They may be in the same country but they are miles from a gunshot. Often times they will be in air conditioned buildings, they are always nearby supply chains, having quick access to food, water, showers, beds. They lead the most comfortable and safe life that can be lead by a soldier.

Then there are you combat arms guys or your front line soldier, these are the guys who are always near the battle, Where ever a gun shot is fired they are there. They are typically not close to any supplies. They often have poor food, no showers, and get little sleep. They are very uncomfortable and rarely safe.

Then you have the roughest of all soldiers, your special forces. These guys never sleep, they go into the roughest climates on earth, for days at a times, often with a small ruck sack. They bring no rain gear, no sleeping gear, very little food. There ruck sacks have room for mainly ammo and equipment. They are in small teams with little support, at the drop of a hat they are asked to go to the far corners of the earth and not tell friends or families where they are going or when they are coming back. They are elite and highly favored by their commanders, they are however rarely honored what they do is done is secret, if they get a medal their not allowed to tell you why or how they got it. Their great deeds and hard lives are lived in secret.

Who are you and where do you want to be. I must tell you that all soldiers no matter how rough or dangerous their role is play a vital part in the army, with out one of their missions the army as a whole would not survive, the army's mission would fail. I also must mention that no one is truly safe and that all units in the army face danger, some just more than others. I must say the army of God is set up the same way. There are those who's lives may be a little easier that doesn't mean their less spiritual or less saved or not as holy . It also doesn't mean that there better or more favored than you it just means there mission is different. We all have different missions and different burdens to bear. We must remember we are a team serving one purpose heading towards one goal, the kingdom of heaven. What ever mission God has chosen you for whether very easy, or very difficult it is your mission, bear it with pride. That's what soldiers do. Soldiers of God...Live the adventure.

Where else would you rather be

This is a special post as I write to you today from the E.R. room my wife is being treated in. Relax, its not serious. At 12:20 in the morning a day of pregnancy nausea where she couldn't hold anything down had taken its toll on the girl and she requested to go to hospital. I must admit that as I lay my hand on my wife's stomach to pray for her as we took the long sleepy drive to E.R. I became a little discouraged. Its 12:20 at night I know the hospital stay with will take us to at least three if not four. I loath aproaching the check in desk and telling them that I don't have insurance, I loath even more the exorbant hospital bill that will follow. A voice in the back of my mind says "have faith". Another voice quickly retorts; I am tired of having faith, tired of praying tired of believing when will I just get a brake, I always feel like I am ice skating up hill in a snowstorm, can't I do something, can't I go somwhere else.

Then I hear the voice of God, its always different from the thoughts in head, its louder yet more serene and it always speaks sense that you can't deny. He said "where else would you rather be" it took me but a second to realize I love this stuff. Don't get me wrong I am not looking forward to another bill nor a sleepless night but I look forward to what it brings. At the end of this there will be a child and God only knows how awesome he/she will become, the mighty things they will do. Its the same with life yes its hard especially right now but where else would I rather be. I am in the midst of the adventure God has sent me on how cool is that. What do I want to retire, sit on the porch and experience the easy life? You have got to be kidding me I want the adventure I want to see it and do it all, but no adventure comes without peril and sacrifice, child birth will be no different, nethier will the life I live. The greater the adventure, the more awesome the story, the more difficult the circumstance one must endure. There is only thing left to say...Live the Adventure.

Legacy

I have been thinking alot about what I want to be rememebered for. I remember a man that died while I was in Iraq. When he his fellow soldiers stood up to give testimony about him they all said one thing. "He was pretty good a sports". I do not want the defintive memory people have about me to be "he is good at sports". The fact is I am terrible at sports so I don't have to worry, but the point I am trying to get at is I want to be remembered for something deep, something that will impact lives, not something superficial. I want to be remembered for how I handled adveristy in my life, my reactions and responses to difficult times, I want my memory not to be an example in good times, but for what to do when times are not so good.
It is this desire that allows me to perserve some days.when I get frustrated or discouraged and just want to quit, or when the godly life seems to tiring and I want to go astray, there is always the nagging thought in the back of my brain when people hear my story and they hear this part what will they hear; how I perservered or how I quit, will they hear how godly I acted or will the hear how selfish I was? I must remember that every day and every moment even the difficult ones is my legacy in the making. I must ask with every decision I make how do I want to be remembered.
What do you want your legacy to be, remember every moment of every day is your legagcy in the making, how do you want to be remembered. Live the adventure.