Growin' Up Gregory

If you could live anywhere in the world right now, where would it be? In these times, it's a tougher question than usual right?  We could pick a tropical destination, somewhere with a good job, somewhere close to family, or wherever you heart may desire.  But no matter where you chose right now, one thing remains true about all places - no matter how 'perfect' we may think it to be, problems will still arise there. It's nearly impossible to escape pollution, evil, and the virus that plaguing our land right now.  But there is a location with none of these problems - Heaven.  In John 14:3, Jesus said, "And if  I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself."  None of us enjoy talking about death.  But it is an impending reality for all of us.  It may be today, tomorrow, next year, or decades from now.  But you don't have to fear death if you know the next step. What's it like? In Revelation 21, John offe...

I'm not a doctor...but I do share a bed with a former medical assistant so that counts for something right?  Bad dad joke, sorry.  But for real, I don't know how serious we should be taking all the news and hype around COVID-19 aka the Coronavirus.  That being said, here are my thoughts and opinions based on the current outbreak and medical situation in my community. First, I wanted to keep from commenting too much on this publicly.  If it gets bad and people die, I look like a jerk who needed to be more compassionate.  If it's not bad and we cancel events and people stop living their life out of fear over something that doesn't materialize, we all look silly - and miss days, weeks, months, and for some, seasons that we'll never get back. Our church, like many, has recently asked the question, "Should we have services?  Abbreviated services?  Online services?  Just one? etc."  I didn't plan this verse for my daily devotional: "And let u...

What do you lose more than anything else?  For most of us, it's probably car keys, the remote control for the TV, or possibly our phones - they've have an app for that now.  Heck, I've even threatened to cancel our TV services and make a rule that only adults could touch the remote controls we've lost ours so bad before (yeah, I get a little angry at times).  And while all of us have most likely either lost something, or been lost ourselves, most of these objects have ultimately been found...or replaced.  And the same is true for us - we don't have to stay lost. Jesus tells a story of lostness in Luke 15:11-24.  Many have probably heard the story of the Prodigal Son before.  If not, give it a quick read. Going Astray In the story, the younger son did like many of us have done in our younger years - he had it all (life) figured out.  He knew that if he could have his share of the inheritance now that he could go live lavishly and do as he pleased....

Holy Defined What do you think of when you hear the word holy? For me, when I hear 'holy' I tend to think of being very quiet, almost solemn, and to be honest, kind of boring.  But holy is actually better defined as 'set apart.'  It means that something or someone is on a whole different level.  You wouldn't compare the Kansas City Chiefs to a stinger football team.  The only thing they have in common is that they play on the same size field, they don't even use the same ball. The same is true with God.  When we say that God is holy, we need to be sure that we're not just saying it because we've heard it before.  We need to remember that He is on a different level from us in power, wisdom, and oh boy especially grace. Think about it - when God, the Creator, made the world, He didn't even have to gather materials for it.  He literally spoke it into existence.  For comparison, have you ever cooked a meal that you didn't search the pantry or ...

We all have a desire for justice.  We like to see justice served to criminals, for good people to receive their rewards, and we often wish for fair outcomes in our dealings.  But what happens when life's not fair, when bad things happen to good people (or good things thigs to bad people) and no one is giving us any answers? We all love the stories where great injustices or crimes are committed and all wrongs are made right and those who were powerless come out top.  But life doesn't always work out that way.  Far too often, the 'good guy' doesn't win and the 'bad guys' continue to prevail and advance.  What do we do then? We stand up. "Injustice is the unfair treatment of others - especially those in a weaker position - and we have all experienced it in one form or another.  We've been on the receiving end of injustice, and sadly, we also have inflicted injustice on other."  Injustice may be seen in many forms - racism, sexism, religious ...

Most of us have seen a movie or commercial where a child stumbles through the house on Christmas Eve and discovers Santa Claus carefully placing presents under their Christmas tree.  Upon this shocking discovery, the child becomes fully enlightened by Santa's existence and exclaims, "You do exist!"  The child has heard the stories and seen the presents before, but prior to having this proof for himself, he didn't quite believe.  But now, he knows that Santa is real. If you know God, think back to before you knew who He was.  You likely had heard stories about creation, burning bushes, floods, and many other miracles.  But until you saw the proof and the facts really got into your head and your heart, they likely still didn't seem real.  It's almost like that little boy before he saw Santa - you had heard about him, you had seen some evidence, but you didn't really believe. Thankfully, God has given us significant proof that He does exist.  Psalm ...

Reading the instructions - it's not what most men are known for.  It's also not what I expected to take over my prayers this week.  Our opening question for this week's Sunday school lesson is, "When have you really needed clear instructions?"  Over the past 6 days, my answer has gone from needing the specifics I need from my wife when caring for our children her way (she's the way better parent of us by the way) to truly asking God for specifics about upcoming opportunities in my life. Look, prayer works.  Forgive me for not earlier sharing this observation - "When I pray, things just go smoother."  Try it.  Maybe things actually work themselves out better.  Or maybe I just have a greater sense of peace because I'm more in line with God.  Either way, I'll take it.  Back to my original point. Like the writer of the lesson, I am not the most 'handy' or 'craftsman' inclined guy in the room.  If you laid a pile of wood, metal...

I don't know if anyone else has ever had a car where your tires weren't properly aligned.  But if you have, you probably noticed that the car had a tendency to veer off course without constant attention to the steering wheel to make necessary adjustments.  You also likely noticed that even if you forced the car to take the path you had chosen, the misalignment of those tires caused extra, and often uneven, wear and tear on your vehicle's tires.  I'll be honest, I didn't notice that part until after it happened when the problem got expensive and time consuming in having to buy new tires and pull away from other duties to stop and have them replaced. But how often in our lives, do we spends weeks, months, or even years living in our will instead of God's?  We decide where we want to go to college.  We decide who we want to marry.  We decide what career path we want to take.  We decide what house to buy.  We make these major decisions without ...

So many of use things on a daily basis and trust them to function properly even though we are completely clueless about how they work.  I know very little about internal combustion engines, but I trust my car to crank and drive me to town every day.  I know even less about amps, volts, and watts of electricity, but I know that if I flip the switch my lights should turn on.  And I don't understand how wireless technology and data is communicated, but I trust that if I send a text out that it will make to wherever in the world it is intended to go.  When the angel came to Mary, she likely didn't fully understand what was about to take place in her life either, but she trusted. Read Luke 1:26 - 38 Trust God's Grace and Presence By choosing Mary to be Jesus' mother, God had bestowed His grace on her.  Sometimes we certainly feel like our calling or purpose in life is nowhere near as significant as Mary's.  And sadly, it isn't since the Savior is alre...

I have done a lot of observing over the past few years of my life.  Experience is a great teacher, but I believe that if I can learn from the experiences of others that I may be able to avoid some of the 'hard' lessons of life.  The lessons I've learned from watching others have certainly helped me grow and shaped some of my thoughts and beliefs.  A few of those have changed how I believed I could change the world and those thoughts are below. 1.  I used to believe that in order for me to change the world, I would need a fancy title or high ranking position.  I thought that I would have to become an executive officer, start a successful business, or make lots of money before I would have enough clout to influence those around me.  Guess what, the people I thought I needed that status to influence are often so set in their ways that nothing's going to change them.  Remember the saying, "It's hard to teach an old dog new tricks." Through my current m...

This week's session on prayer is focused on what is a favorite topic for most of us - ourselves.  While it is important to pray to honor God, for His kingdom, and seeking His will, part of the Model Prayer has a line where we pray for our personal daily needs.  But part of discerning what those needs should be is in seeking God's will first so that we can better understand our true needs. One such story of a prayer like this is found in Isaiah 38.  The prophet Isaiah delivered the news to King Hezekiah that he was dying and had only a short time to live.  Hezekiah did what many of us would do, immediately turned to God in prayer.  Why?  Because he wanted to live!  And he understood that the greatest need any of us have is for life itself. And look at how God answered Hezekiah's prayers - Isaiah received a word from the Lord to tell the king, "I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears.  Look, I am going to add fifteen years to your life....

This week in our Sunday school class, I asked the question:  "What's a name you associate with greatness?"  Instantly, one young guy responds, LeBron!  You can tell he's younger because even my much younger (brownie points!) wife spoke up and said that when she thinks of 23, she thinks of Michael Jordan.  We stopped the debate there in the interest of getting into the lesson as well as not starting an argument in church. While we all likely have different names that we associate with greatness, we all recognize the importance of having an honorable name.  "Without question, one name above all others deserves honor:  the name of God.  Jesus taught us to honor the name of God when we pray." The Point:  Our prayers are driven by the desire to honor God. This week's primary verse was Matthew 6:9b, "Hallowed be your name," as well as Psalm 96:1-9. Part 1 - Praise thru Proclamation In the Model Prayer, Jesus directs us to place praise at t...

If you've been following along, you've seen what authentic joy is and the foundation that it comes from.  But what does it look like in our everyday lives?  How do we live our lives in such a way that others can't help but see our joy and faith? Read 1 Thessalonians 1:7-10 True authentic joy is infectious.  People can spot someone who has true passion, true care, and true desire to be doing what they're doing.  This goes from the girl waiting on you at the fast food restaurant to the boy bagging your groceries.  If they are joyful in what they're doing, you can tell it because real joy is set apart. True joy does not ebb and flow with the environment around us.  It doesn't matter if your team won, your new car got a dent in it, or your favorite show got cancelled.  True joy goes beyond the trivial things that make us "happy" to the point that we are joyful in what God has given us - nothing else is needed.  The people in Thessalonica saw t...

I have made many mistakes in my life.  I have gotten a lot of things wrong, missed opportunities, missed chances, made bad choices, and done harmful and hurtful things.  But tonight, I saw fruit of at least something I'm getting right in this life. Each night, when I take Thomas to bed, we read a short Bible story and then after lights out we say our prayers.  I usually say the "first one" where I pray a typical adult prayer thanking God for what He's given us and asking Him to be with those we love.  And then Thomas will finish it up by saying his "second one" which will have a familiar ring to many: "Now I lay me down to sleep.  I pray the Lord my soul to keep.  If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take." But tonight he told me that he had a different one.  I'm slightly fearful at this point given his mouth sometimes but at least no one in public will hear it lol.  He then proceeds to talk to God.  Let that...

I hope that everyone had at least one opportunity to enjoy a firework show to celebrate Independence Day over the past week.  I think it's amazing that nearly every small town in America seems to have some sort of festival and firework show to celebrate our nation's freedom; a freedom that many have fought and died for which is so vital to our way of life in this country and we should all be deeply grateful for those who have sacrificed their time, energy, and lives to defend our nation. But back to the fireworks.  Depending on where you're watching and who you're watching with, the best part of a firework show is either the first BOOM and flash of light when the kids sit down and start to be still and quiet for a minute; or it's the final climax when the exhibitors show you their best, brightest, and loudest - the grand finale!  For those seconds the sky lights up like the middle of the day, the booms don't seem too loud anymore, and it creates an almost magi...

Happy Father's Day to all of the amazing dads, daddies, fathers, and as Thomas says sometimes, "diddy" out there.  I hope that we all are planning something today to show our dads how much we love them and how much they mean to us (this includes your Grandpa, Uncle, Brother, or Mom is they were also your Dad too).  Go eat a meal with them, sit and talk a little while, buy them a gift or a card.  Just do something to let them know you're thinking about them and what they mean to you, especially today. I don't know that my Dad and I talk more now than we used to, but it seems like it sometimes because I actually listen more.  I've learned that he really does know a good bit about work, family, business, and just life in general (unlike the way I thought I knew everything during my high school years).  So as part of my gift to him and others, here are a few things I've learned from my Dad. 1.  We make choices everyday - what to wear, what to eat, etc. but...

This topic has been in my studies and on my mind for several weeks now.  I talked about it on Mother's Day at church with a friend who was party to some of the stories I could tell (don't worry I won't call you out here lol), had the pleasure of teaching it in Sunday School and even sharing with our older crowd at a Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting. It's a story that many of us have lived, admittedly or not, proudly or not, but nevertheless we have lived it.  It's a story of transformation and renewal.  If you ask people who know me about the 2018 John Gregory, they will likely tell you many good things.  I have a successful career, a happy family, well educated, kind, polite, and serve in various roles in an effort to give back to my community. But that wasn't always me.  Yes, I was one of the "good" kids in high school, college, and even shortly thereafter to some extent.  I never committed any major crimes and stayed out of trouble for the ...

I recently did something that I never thought would happen...or at least not any time soon.  I cut my workout days back from 5 days per week to 4.  Now I know for some people who aren't as into working out as I am, that doesn't sound like a big deal.  But excluding vacations and days to rest before races, I have honestly worked out at 5AM (or earlier) almost every weekday since February 2010.  My fitness and training was, and probably still is, an addiction.  And I honestly wasn't sure how I would handle not training that one day of the week.  I assumed that I would be sluggish, that it would mean I was lazy, and that I would instantly get weaker and fatter.  But none of that happened.  Actually, I feel more refreshed throughout the entire week and haven't noticed any drastic changes in my strength or size so far.   For someone who had always lived by the mantra that the more effort and work you put in, the more results you will get ...

How many of us who either have, or have raised, small children, remember those early morning walks through the house.  The sun hasn't risen yet and there are still no lights on.  You're tip-toeing through the house because you want to enjoy a few minutes of silence and hopefully a cup of coffee before your tornado of a toddler wakes up.  Then as you round the corner to enter the kitchen it happens - you step on something that feels at the time like broken glass on top of hot coals with jagged metal stuck in there somehow as well.  In all reality it's probably a leggo or some other small toy, but man that hurts! I think that happens to us in real life as well.  Even when we are in the safety of God's will, trusting His guidance, following His path, just like walking through the general safety of our own homes - sometimes we step on a stone.  Perhaps there is a trial that we didn't see coming, or we didn't want to face.  Sometimes we are reluctant to a...

I read a good article this morning titled, "Why Pray if God is in Control?" There were several good points but the closing line sums it up.  Michael Horton once said, "People ask me, 'Why pray if God is sovereign?' I respond, 'Why pray if He isn't?'" Sometimes we neglect prayer feeling like it won't do much, won't give us the answers we need, or we won't see the results we desire.  But we need to remember that prayer does change things.  It's an active tool calling out to the Creator.  Prayer may not always change what God has determined to happen, but it will strengthen our faith in Him, and that's always a good thing. I meet with someone most Thursdays to pray.  I've gotten there before in the midst of a stressful day and a million things going on.  But I can't tell you how much those few minutes of quiet time, of tuning out all the junk of the world help me weekly to focus on prayin...