Growin' Up Gregory

Tonight, after a long, busy, hectic week, we all went to bed out of routine and a little later than normal.  Britt put Aubree down and Thomas was watching a cartoon until it went off.  Then he joined me in the recliner while I was watching some crime show.  That's when something special happened. I put Thomas to bed each night and we lay down and fall asleep together.  But tonight, for the first time in I don't know how long, he fell asleep laying in my arms.  I wasn't sure if he was totally out or not until I got up because he just went to sleep so calmly, so relaxed, and so peaceful.  As I made my way to bed, my mind was flooded with thoughts. I began to wonder, when was the last time I took a nap in my parents' arms?  Did either of us know that would be the last time?  How happy were each of us in that moment?  What would we have done differently if we knew?  As parents, we yearn to see our children grow up, be successful, be happy, and be good people.  And as par

1.  Adam came before Eve.  My dad has called December 23rd Christmas Adam for as long as I can remember. 2.  As kids, were allowed to open one present on Christmas Adam.  Yes, that was early and maybe not fair.  But a lot of times I think it was a setup so Mom could have us wear our new clothes for Christmas and count it as a gift.  (I'm learning your tricks as I parent lol) Since becoming an adult, I have missed opening that present early.  Don't get me wrong, I love watching Thomas rip into his (and whoever else will let him) gifts and the excitement on his face.  And I love giving a heartfelt gift to someone and seeing their happiness.  But there is something special about opening your own gift that someone felt like you needed.  And I was blessed to open a gift of perspective and joy yesterday. Yesterday Afternoon I had to go to Walmart (I almost asked for prayer requests but refrained). While chit chatting with the cashier I told her I hope she has a Merry Christma

It's not our anniversary, her birthday, or Mother's Day.  And no, I'm not in the doghouse...for anything that I know of anyway.  I know that there are a lot of good wives and mothers out there, and that this is a sort of random day in December to share this, but I just had to share my thoughts and feelings of the past few weeks. My wife is utterly amazing.  If I were a more intelligent man and knew more words I could come up with a better description of her awesomeness but I have a somewhat limited vocabulary.  She may not do dishes, fold laundry, handle money, or be as organized as I would like for my life partner to be all the time.  But she knows and does what is MOST important. She loves me with all my flaws, supports my passions, and reels me in when I begin to allow myself to get carried away and unfocused.  She has a balance of support that is uncanny.  She knows that at times you just have to let me dream without squashing it right then (like when I told her I w

The goal of every singe for-profit business in the world is to generate more income than it has expenses.  This is true for all business structures, be it a sole-proprietor who generates $20,000 or less in gross revenue, a multi-billion dollar corporation with locations all other the world, or anything in between.  The simple rule of business is to make more than you spend.  Period. The United States Government is an extremely large business with a budget that is incomprehensible to many of us.  And yet, given all the revenue sources, power, and influence that it has, it still is not operating profitably.  Why? One reason is income taxes.  In my opinion, the federal income tax system is greatly flawed.  My understanding of the original intent of an income tax refund is basically that you get your "change" from paying in more than you owed at year end.  It should work just like going to the grocery store, spending $30, handing the cashier $40 and getting your $10 back.  Ho

What kind of t-shirts do Christians wear? What kinds of foods do Christians eat? What kind of cars do Christians drive? What kinds of haircuts do Christians get? What kind of tattoos do Christians get? (okay I made that one up and added it in) "While the Bible speaks to these issues to come degree...we are all tempted to say more than the Bible does on certain issues, to impose rules on others based on our personal preferences about how others should act or behave." This was actually a major issue in the early church.  Yes, even before anyone with a computer or smartphone could put their 'words of wisdom' out there for the whole world to read with social media.  The church at Antioch around A.D. 49 had a group of Judaizers basically claiming that recent Gentile converts to Christ would have to become Jewish in all practical ways in order to truly be saved.  This became a cause of strife in the church and led to a meeting in Acts 15 of the church apostles and e

Often times we only see what people do because we aren't patient enough to hear or find out the reason why they did it.  We see it when politicians vote a certain way, when families make difficult choices that seem 'wrong' to us, and when people make life altering decisions that we just don't get.  But sometimes the "what" is actually less important than the "why." You may have a family member who moves away from you and takes their immediate family with them.  You are now placed at a great distance from your brother, sister, nieces, nephews, or whoever moved away.  The WHAT of that hurts.  But we must be patient to hear the WHY.  Maybe they feared losing a job, or found a better one.  Maybe a child was being bullied, or they moved for an educational or some other purpose.  The WHY matters a great deal before you get upset simply over the WHAT. In Acts 14, Paul and Barnabas were preaching in Iconium when they learned of a plot against them to be

I often hear older people talk about the "good old days" or "back in my day" and they wish that things would go back to the way they were back then. That will never happen. And sadly, many of us in the millennial generation may even make the same statements one day, if we haven't already.  A.W. Tozer said this, " Regardless of where you look these days, change is inevitable. Things are not what they once were. I am not one that bemoans the past for the simple reason that the past was not as good as we remember." People, technology, industry, work, laws, morals, relationships, social media, privacy and so many other things will always be changing. If you want to survive the storms of change in your life you must have some constant that holds you on course.  There is only one things that never changes, that has never had to change because He has always been good and perfect - God.  Malachi 3:6 reads, "For I the Lord do not change...&quo

I read something about a month ago that for really ticked me off.  The comment upset me for multiple reasons: - Because of who said it - someone I was previously close to - Because of who they said it about - a group of people I associate with - Because of what they said - a not so polite comment - Because of how they said it - semi-anonymously online After reading it I must admit that I became pretty angry and wanted to call them out on the comment.  But I also knew that was not the right thing to do.  So I took the comment as a challenge, a challenge to become anything but what they predicted.  Anger is one of many emotions that we can experience in life.  If we're not careful, our emotions can take control of us.  Fear can cause us avoid opportunities and potential future successes.  Sadness can often times lead to depression.  But not all emotions are bad.  Joy leads us to happiness, peace, and fulfillment in life.  Anticipation is the hope that keeps us going through d

So North Korea tested another ballistic missile that can supposedly reach anywhere in the mainland United States.  That means you should probably be paying attention to this if you aren't already.  Now I know that many people on each side of politics have differing views concerning how to handle situations like these via war and diplomacy.  There have been many diplomatic attempts to persuade North Korea to cease its nuclear operations, including current requests from the president to China and Japan to handle this diplomatically.  I am far from an expert on international relations, so allow me to attempt to simplify this situation. My family and I live in our home.  It has property lines, walls, and doors.  If you threaten, or even insinuate, that you may harm someone in my family; and show that you have the equipment, ability, and possible intent to do so; I will not wait for you to break in the door to deal with you.  Yes, we can try to work out our differences and talk things

I'm going to say something here that my wife will likely be the first to respond with a "Second" or "Amen!"  I feel that I have been successful in a lot of aspects of my life because I'm better than some people.  Now, I know that sounds cocky so let me explain.  I have a good job, a loving family, a reliable car, health, plenty of food, and secure finances.  Being cocky would mean believing that "I" did all of that.  But I am well aware that each of those things listed could be taken away from me in an instant if God so desires.  And that it is because of His will that anything good (or bad) is even in my life.  So yes, I am proud of the success I've had in certain areas, but I know who it's from too (Galations 6:14). And I honestly believe that any of us as Christians should feel just as confident knowing that God's got our back.  Leviticus 26:3 reads, "If you walk in my statutes and observe my commandments and do them..."

Wow, what a Thanksgiving week it's been for 2017!  Monday morning started with a scheduled C-section for Aubree, followed by numerous visitors, days and nights of sleeping for 2 hours at a time, countless prayers, coming home, and finally Thanksgiving with our families on Thursday.  I can proudly say that I have an amazing family, both immediate and extended.  But I must humbly admit that a large part of the reason I am who I am today is because of all of these people.  It's crazy as we stood around yesterday reflecting in my head on a memory and impact that each person there has had on my life.  Sometimes we tend to take family for granted and allow them to slip from being a high priority to falling behind friends, success, and wealth.  But our family has literally done it all for us over the past few days.  They have watched Thomas, cleaned, cooked, brought food, prayed, called, texted, delivered coffee (that I was without for 2 days), and made adjustments to Thanksgiving tra

A lot of people don't like mornings, unless it's a Saturday morning where they can sleep in until lunch when morning is technically over.  Personally, I love mornings.  It's my quiet time, my workout time, and my breakfast time (3 things I enjoy!).  But many mornings by the time I head to work my mood has changed.  I've gone from the peaceful accomplished feeling of quiet devotion with God and a good workout to rushing, hurrying, trying to get out the door without forgetting something and be on time (I prefer early).  I can often tell when I get in my car that morning what kind of day I'm going to have.  But essentially, my morning and my preparation to begin the day, that hour or so from 7-8 sets the tone for the rest of the day. My study over the past couple weeks has been on a similar topic that doesn't always get the glory because we often times don't see what all goes into it, preparation.  In Leviticus 9:1-14, the priest had to make sacrifices for hi

One of the hot political topics right now is tax reform.  And, spoiler alert, there are people on both sides that are for and against the new bill.  The biggest issues I've heard from it so far are: 1.  Tax cuts for low to middle income families. 2.  Tax cuts for the wealthy. 3.  Tax cuts for corporations. so let's look at those. I believe that all politicians want to at least say they will, and hopefully do, make tax cuts for what I consider normal working class people like my family, my friends, and myself who work a regular job with enough money to live off of but not so much that we have no financial stresses in our life.  We all want a break on taxes which means more money in our pocket.  Money that we can use to be charitable, give to our loved ones, save, pay off debt, or even sparingly treat ourselves.  This is also money that we still spend in stores, restaurants, and other businesses which guess what...makes more people money.  So you will be hard pressed to fin

I watched a few NFL football games on Sunday.  At this point with all the protests and boycotts, I'm not sure if that makes people think that I'm an activist, a patriot, or just a guy who likes football.  Oddly enough, I actually enjoy the pregame talks and analysis more than the game itself sometimes.  And for the past few weeks I have tried to tune in early in order to see all of the pregame "activities." I noticed several weeks ago when kneeling in protest during the National Anthem became the "trendy" or "cool" thing to do that the NFL and major networks seemed to buy into that hype and attempt to use it to boost ratings.  I assume they were going with the old adage; "There is no such thing as bad publicity."  However, as ratings, sponsors, advertisers, and eventually money began to decline, the pregame protests became less of a focal point. And finally, this Sunday, November 12th, I believe the NFL and networks finally got it rig

What is worship?  We could spend a lot of time discussing this question to come to a consensus definition of what worship is to us.  Most would like say that worship is praying, singing, going to church, or reading the Bible.  But worship is so much more.  It is God's desire for all of His people to worship Him.  "Simply put, worship is engaging with God, treasuring God, and submitting to God."  How do we do that? In Leviticus 9:15-21 (READ), we read about the first duty of the priest as he offers sacrifices and offerings for the sins of the people.  But before the priest could make sacrifices for the people's sins, he had to make sacrifices for his own sins (Lev 9:1-14).  The Israelites were set apart as God's people and were the only nation commanded to build tabernacles and offer sacrifices.  Aaron first offered a goat as a sin offering for the people.  This was a sacrifice for unintentional sin as many of us often sin without even realizing it.  He then foll

God has recently instructed Moses to lead the people out of Sinai toward the land He has promised them.  But, God has sent them out with an angel and told Moses that He would no longer be with the people.  How would Moses respond when the one who called him to this task at the burning bush and who has led him this entire way was now deserting him?  We will see that Moses' faith and relationship with God had grown so close that he was able to ask the hard questions, the serious questions, about where their relationship stood and if God would continue to lead them or not. Read Exodus 33:12-16. Look at what Moses asked God for in v13: "Show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight."  'Moses had been speaking with God on a more intimate level than anyone in human history save Adam and Eve before the Fall.'  Yet he was still pursuing God's presences, still pursuing getting to know God better.  One day, hopefully you graduate fr

Last week we looked at the story of The Golden Calf and how the people allowed an inanimate object take God's place of priority and worship in their lives.  Now in Exodus 33, the fallout of idolatry and sin continues for the Israelites. The Lord said to Moses, "Depart; go up from here, you and the people whom you have brought up out of the land of Egypt, to the land of which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, 'To your offspring I will give it.' "  God then promised Moses to send an angel before the people to drive out the current inhabitants of the land (Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites).  The Lord continues, "Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; but I will not go among you, lest I consume you on the way, for you are a stiff-necked people."  (Exodus 33:1-3) Following the Israelites idolatry, God sent a plague on the people in Exodus 32:35.  This plague (if in the form of a disease) likely would hav

Here we are.  Moses is up on the mountain getting instruction from the Lord.  Meanwhile, the Israelite people have rebelled and turned their back on God asking Aaron to build them an idol to worship.  They have completely tossed Moses and God to the side and bowed down to a golden calf.  God is furious at the people to say the least and has told Moses that He plans to destroy them and start over and "make a great nation of you (Moses)." (Ex 32:10)  If you are one of these Israelites, you just turned your back on God.  He knows.  He's mad.  What do you want to happen next?  Moses begins to plead with the Lord, "O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?  Why should the Egyptians say, 'With evil intent did he bring them out, to kill them in the mountains and to consume (destroy) them from the face of the earth?'  Turn from your burning anger and relent from

In Moses' absence, we have seen the Israelites quickly turn away from God and begin to form idols to worship instead of remembering the commands and promises of the one true God.  So what happens next?  What happens once we begin to idolize something and place it over God in our life? In Exodus 32:7-10, as the people are worshipping the golden calf at the base of the mountain, the Lord says to Moses, "Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.  They have turned aside quickly out of the way that I commanded them.  They have made for themselves a golden calf and have worshiped and sacrificed to it and said, 'These are your gods, O Israel!' "  The Lord continues, "I have seen this people and behold, it is a stiff-necked people.  Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them, in order that I may make a great nation of you." A lot of times, when Thomas is

Think about your favorite athlete, TV personality, or celebrity.  It could be a Super Bowl winning quarterback, a player with an enviable work ethic, or someone with success and popularity beyond our wildest dreams.  Think about what it would be like to hang out with someone like this.  Now ask yourself, "Do I tend to idolize individuals like this or put them on a pedestal?" It's fine and good to have role models and to appreciate someone's talent and work ethic.  But there is a difference between appreciation and worship.  How do these athletes and celebrities compare to God?  Does he value them more because of their name or position?  Remember that God is the only one deserving of our worship and we need to ask Him to remove any idols from our lives.  Most church people would scoff at the notion that they have an idol.  But how does it start?  Where does it go?  And what are the consequences?  Let's see how this played out for the Israelites in Exodus 32.

We've seen God's Ten Commandments that tell us how to live in relationship with him and observe the Sabbath.  Now let's look at what he says about how we are to live in relationship to each other. 5. "Honor your father and mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you." - Ex 20:12 This is the first commandment given to us regarding our relationships with others.  Why would God place it first?  Because it shows that the family unit is also part of God's creation.  Honoring our parents is a way of showing that we accept and believe in God's design for the family.  Parents are to raise, support, and disciple their children.  But even if they do not, children are still to respect and honor their authority.  We do this by treating our parents with respect now and also by caring for them when the roles are reversed and they are in need of care in their elderly years.  This is also the only command with a promise of God

A zoning ordinance that would allow a bar or tavern to open on Main Street has been in the news for Union recently.  There has been a significant amount of both strong support and strong opposition to this considered amendment.  I am still attempting myself to figure out and comprehend ALL of the facts but here is what I have come to so far. 1.  It my current understand that the present ordinance ALLOWS a restaurant to open on Main Street and serve alcohol.  This misconception is being passed around that alcohol sales are not permitted at all in the City of Union.  You may open a restaurant (key part first) that is focused on food yet serves alcohol.  You may not open a bar or tavern whose primary purpose is the sale and consumption of alcohol.  I have not read all 80 pages of the City's zoning ordinance book online but based on conversations I have had with people that is what I currently understand to be the law.  If I am wrong in that, several of my points must change as well

We saw that the first three of the Ten Commandments centered on our view and relationship with God.  In His fourth commandment, He gives us instruction that has been preached, debated, practiced, and discussed for centuries. 4.  "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.  Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.  On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant." - Ex 20:8-10 God established the rhythm of life at creation by working the first six days and then resting on the seventh.  No, God did not need to rest, but He rested in order to show us that is necessary for both functionality and enjoyment.  This day of rest also serves as a reminder for both the people of Israel and for us that we are not sustained by our works, but by the mighty hand of God. The question is often asked, 'Is the Sabbath still a command that God expects of us today?

We have all probably wondered what it would be like to be able to live a life doing anything we wanted with no rules and no consequences.  But the fact of the matter is that the rules and laws that we live under are actually there to protect us, not restrict us from enjoying life.  While they may rule out some things, they actually can lead us to much better.  As we look at the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17), we will see that rules are good.  And God's rules don't just tell us what to do and not to do, they reveal to us who He is, his character, and they should shape our actions and our worship. In the first couple verses (Ex 20:1-2), God reminds the people of who He is and what He's done for them.  The law was never intended to establish a relationship with God.  God prefaced his law by reminding the people of what He had done for them and showing us that who God is serves as the motivation to follow the law.  And the people of Israel would need multiple reminders thr

For several days now God has provided bread for the Israelites to eat, delivering on His promise to Moses earlier in the week and satisfying their grumblings about hunger.  He has provided for His chosen people in miraculous fashion yet again. In today's verses, Exodus 16:22-26, it is now the sixth day and the people have gathered twice as much food.  So much so that the leaders felt it necessary to report this to Moses.  Moses responded telling the people, "This is what the Lord has said: 'Tomorrow is a day of complete rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord.  Bake what you want to bake, and boil what you want to boil, and set aside everything left over to be kept until morning.' "  So the people did as Moses commanded and set the leftover food aside until morning, and it did not stink or have maggots in it.  Then Moses told them, "Eat it today because today is a Sabbath to the Lord.  Today you won't find any in the field.  For six days you will gather it, bu

The Israelites, now free, still managed to find something to complain about to God, their hunger in the wilderness.  But God doing what He does, provided for them.  In Exodus 16:11-16, we see how God chooses to respond to these rather ungrateful people.  The Lord tells Moses, "I have heard the complaints of the Israelites.  Tell them: At twilight you will eat meat, and in the morning you will eat bread until you are full.  Then you will know that I am the Lord your God."  In the evening, quail came and covered the camp.  And in the morning, a layer of dew surrounded the camp.  When the dew evaporated, there was a fine flake-like thing on the ground.  When the Israelites saw it, they asked, "What is it?" because they didn't know what it was.  And Moses answered them, "It is the bread the Lord has given you to eat.  This is what the Lord has commanded - 'Gather as much of it as each person needs to eat.  You may take a couple quarts per individual, acco

How do you tend to respond to complainers?  Or when people complain about you, how do you tend to respond?  Are we quick to help someone who's complained about us, or not so much?  Let's be honest, no one likes a complainer.  And we have all have our limits of how much complaining we can take before we lose our patience (and most likely our temper) with someone complaining about us.  If you're like me and someone complains about how I do something, I have no problem simply not doing it at all and allowing them to handle it themselves.   Leading up to this story in Exodus 16, God has protected, provided for, and guided the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt.  And yet somehow through all of that, they begin to complain.  Thankfully, God is not like us and He did not give up on His people.  He is patient, kind, and slow to anger (Psalm 145:8).  A month and half departed from Egypt, the Israelites find themselves between Elim and Sinai in the wilderness of Sin.  In the wilder

One of the website writers, Thomas Casale, that I read on fantasy football shared these thoughts this past week...pretty spot on. Everyone is protesting something. I got a text from someone I know telling me we need to protest against ESPN because they didn’t fire a particular host. Here’s the thing: I don’t care. I’m too d@#! old. I’m just trying to survive the week. I’ve had Type I diabetes for 34 years. I have two kids. I just want to make it to the weekend. I’m not going to protest against ESPN. I’m not going to protest against the NFL. I’m not going to protest against Obama. I’m not going to protest against Trump. You know what I’m going to do? I’m going to try to keep my blood sugar under control. I’m going to try to raise my kids the best I can. I’m going to wonder why Jerry Jones can win three playoff games in 20 years and not face more criticism for being the worst GM in the history of the NFL. I’m going to work my butt off. I’m going to root against the New York Y

The Israelites have had a difficult time.  They were oppressed for many years in slavery, finally set free, only to be chased by the Egyptian army and cornered at the Red Sea.  They questioned Moses and God.  But God, doing as He always does, responded to their fears and rescued them. The Israelites have cried, complained, and grumbled to God.  They have faced difficult circumstances and at times even lost hope.  But God has delivered yet again.  In the midst of the people's feat and questioning, God provides an escape.  In Exodus 14:29, "The people of Israel walk on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left."  The Lord saved the Israelites that day and the people saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore as God brought the waters back together through Moses (Ex 14:26-28). God has once again set his people apart.  "By saving His people and judging their enemies, God demonstrated that He can be trusted."  G

We have now seen the Israelites trapped between the Red Sea on one side and the pursuing Egyptian army on the other.  They began to become filled with fear and think irrationally and responded by questioning their leader Moses, and even God himself.  Let's look at how God responded to their fear, and how he responds to our fear today. God's response to the troubled Israelites was not one that we imagine of the typical loving and king Father.  However, his response was quite fair and just.  The Lord said to Moses, "Why do you cry to me?  Tell the people of Israel to go forward" (Ex 14:15).  God was not ignoring the cry of his people, nor was He turning his back on them.  God had already promised to deliver them and He had shown them his power over nature, Pharaoh, and all the false gods of Egypt.  The cry of the Israelites at this juncture demonstrated their lack of faith.  This is the same God who in Exodus 2:23-24 heard the cries of the people groaning because of t

In the previous post, we saw where Moses and the Israelites we seemingly trapped.  They had the Red Sea on one side and were being pursued by the Egyptian army with all its horses and chariots on the other.  The people were fearful, and one could argue rightly so given their circumstances.  But they fear revealed a deeper problem, a lack of faith in God, their deliverer. As the people cried out to Moses saying that it would have been better to live in slavery in Egypt than to die in the wilderness (Ex 14:12), Moses was once again looked upon to lead.  How would he respond in these desperate times?  Moses did what we need more leaders to do today, he pointed them back towards God.  In Exodus 14:13, Moses said, "Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today."  Moses reminded the people of God's pending deliverance.  God had not brought the people this far from slavery in Egypt and now heading towards freedom to let them down now

Have you ever found yourself in a dilemma that seemed to have no way out?  Every way you looked had signs of danger.  Any choice you considered risked hurting someone you care about and had great risk with no reward in sight.  Many of us have found ourselves in this sort of pickle, trapped between a rock and a hard place. In Exodus 14, the Israelites found themselves in such a situation.  They were fleeing Egypt on foot in pursuit of freedom after Pharaoh had set them free.  But God hardened Pharaoh's heart (Ex 14:4) and he began to pursue the people with his army of horses, chariots, and horsemen.  The Egyptians caught up with the Israelites between Migdol and the Red Sea.  When the Israelites saw the army coming, they cried out to the Lord and questioned Moses, "Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness?"  (Ex 14:10-11). The Israelites had just witnessed God's infinite power by inflicting ten plagues (Ex 7-12