crisis

December 17, 2018 Jfuglerwriter Comments Off on Faith and Tests

Faith and Tests

“Jon, it appears that our website isn’t loading. I wonder if we got hacked.”

That’s the text that started my day this morning. As you can imagine, it woke me up in a hurry.  Indeed, our website was down. And still is.

I’m a spiritual superstar and a man of great faith, so I took it all in stride. Right? The truth is, I went into panic mode. Not crazy panic mode, but semi-panic. 

For the next hour and a half, I was in the middle of several text conversations with experts and colleagues, trying to solve the crisis. Considering I have no web talents, I was helpless.

Then it hit me. God is here. Now that’s pretty obvious, isn’t it?

Why is it when crisis hits, we usually turn to ourselves first, rather than to God? Where’s our faith?

I was at that crossroads this morning. Eventually, I stopped and called on Jesus, praying that he would step in. He is bigger than website crashes and unknown hackers. In fact, he’s bigger than the whole internet! Again,an obvious reality that gets lost in crisis.

God tests our faith and it’s almost always a pop quiz. You’ve rarely seen tests of faith coming, have you? Yet, you need to know the answer.

And that answer is Jesus. 

Oh, how liberating it is to know that this Jesus, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, is always the answer. He is the Creator of the Universe, the One who set things in motion. He is the Almighty, All-knowing and Eternal God. He is the Savior worthy of my trust. 

When I put my faith in that Lord, my crises diminish in size and intensity. My spirit is calmed.  My hope grows. My faith is stronger.

I’m still the helpless webmaster, but Jesus is walking with me.

How do you handle tests of faith? Do you turn to Jesus right away or do you exhaust your own solutions first?

Let this passage run through your mind in preparation for your next pop quiz . . . which could come at any time.

“The Son is the image of the invisible God,the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him…” (Colossians 1:15-19 NIV)

From my new devotional, Your Life With God: 30 Days of Faith, releasing in January on Amazon.

August 28, 2018 Jfuglerwriter Comments Off on Joy and Rest

Joy and Rest

The alarm goes off in the morning and the race is on.  You crawl out of bed at a turtle’s pace and make it to the shower.  As you run the upcoming day through your mind, your senses come alive. In fact, it becomes intense as you think about it.

Kids to school, Jamie to the dentist appointment, report due today for my boss, meeting where I’m presenting, two after-school practices for soccer in two different places, get dinner done tonight in time for Bobby’s lessons… just pick up burgers…

It’s no wonder that joy has escaped the average Christian.  There’s no room for it in the schedule.

But the problem is deeper than that. You don’t rest.  You’re chasing life, whether it be a full schedule with kids or activities of your own.

The truth is that anxiety, fear, rushing and striving take the place of joy.

Instead of kicking yourself and being disappointed in your lifestyle, here’s a suggestion.

Rest.

Yes. Rest.

“But I don’t have time!” you say. “You just described my life to a “t”.

Not a good excuse.  Jesus had one of the most demanding schedules I can think of and he found time to rest.  Even in crisis.

“On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side.’ And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’”  (Mark 4:35-38 ESV)

Can you rest when the constant winds and waves of life smack you around?

I think it’s time to change your schedule so there’s room for rest.  You’’ have margin in your life to recuperate, refresh and rejuvenate.  You must find the time.

Start today and carve out 20 minutes to rest.  It may come at lunch, where you simply go to your car and sit there, emptying your heart to the Lord.  Or even taking a nap.

Jesus invites you.  “”Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28 ESV)

Give yourself permission to rest today.  And tomorrow.  And the next day.

We are finite creatures and we need the replenishing practice of rest. Without feeling guilty for enjoying it.

If you practice rest on a daily basis, I know that the joy of the Christian life will seep back into your life.

(Experience more joy when you read my devotional Your Life With God: 30 Days of Joy).

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