Reminissing About the Past

Posted on September 21, 2015 by James Gorton

My son Carter graduated from high school this past May and is now a full-fledged college student and working as a buser and dish washer on the side.  When he was about to graduate he was talking to his grandmother in Colorado about what he wanted for graduation.  He didn’t want any money, or fancy gifts.  No clothes.  To trips.  No car.  No techno equipment.  What he wanted from her was to write down stories of her growing up years so that he could remember her by the experiences she had.  No material stuff for graduation, but stories.  He wanted to know her and her experiences.  That’s all.  Just stories.

My mom took his request to heart and began to write stories as well as collect pictures of her past that would tell of her experiences.  It became a composite to the windows of her childhood and early adulthood that opened his eyes, and mine.  My sister helped with this process and sent a book filled with pictures and words on a page to all family members and opened my eyes to my mother like nothing else has ever done.

I knew that mom had lost an older sister, Ruth, when she was 17.  The doctors back then  misdiagnosed the symptoms as a flu bug when it was a ruptured appendix.  What I didn’t know was the after story of her mom becoming very depressed and crying all day long about losing “My Ruth, my precious Ruth.”  My mom got lost in the shuffle as she said, “I began to realize that Mom hardly noticed me anymore.  When I would speak to her, she would look at me as I weren’t there.  It was almost as if she were mad at me for being alive when her beloved Ruth was dead.”  Six months after Ruth’s death her baby brother was born.  She didn’t feel wanted.  She didn’t feel valued.  She didn’t feel important. Insignificant.  Unwanted.  Devalued.  Isolated and alone.

As I read this story, my heart broke for my mom and the pain she experienced during this time in her life.  As I read her story, I gained a greater appreciation for what my mom went through and how far she has come in the healing process.  How often we go through life and have friends who experience traumatic events and never take the time to hear their hurting hearts and the pain they are going through.  O sure, we are there for them at the point of the crisis and say that we will be there for them.  But what happens when the shock wears off and we are back into our own routines?  What happens then?  It’s only when I slowed down and began to read that my perspective changed.  The trauma of my mom took on greater significance in my life.

I have the privilege of giving my mother great respect and value for who she is and what she experienced as a result of Carter encouraging her to write her experiences in life down.  On this journey, are there people in your life that might benefit from you taking some time to get to know them a little better and gain insight into their lives in the past?  Jesus made a statement when He was having the last supper with his disciples when He said, “Do this in remembrance of Me”.  The Bible is a book of past relational experiences that we can learn from.  It might be good to take some time to do the same with those we love.

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Going After It

Posted on September 18, 2015 by James Gorton

Have you ever lost something and you put all your energy into finding it?  Well, I experienced an event yesterday when I came home from work.  I let Monty out of the laundry room where he stays when we are away.  He has plenty of water and space to roam, but I do believe that he sleeps most if not all the time while we are gone.  I came into the house from the garage and opened the gate.  I proceeded to walk to the master room, sit down in my old leather chair and contemplate my day’s activities.

I began to hear the jingling of Monty’s dog tags as he began to try to find me. Nothing mattered to him except finding me. He began his search in the places where he knew I might be.  He didn’t go to Carter’s room or Tyler’s room or even the guest bedroom.  He went in the family room, then in the living room and finally in the master bedroom.  He came into the room but didn’t see me so he went into the bathroom and checked out the throne to which I wasn’t there.  He came out and came right to the chair where I was sitting and proceeded to take a flying leap into my lap for some touch time.  He wasn’t going to be denied from seeing his master.  He went for it (me).

I think there are some parallels as I have journeyed throughout my personal walk with God.  I am reminded of the passage in Jeremiah 29:13 “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”  God says to us that if we seek Him with all of our heart, He will be found by us.  The seeking and the searching is our responsibility.  The being found by Him is His responsibility of revealing himself to us.

I am reminded of my life verse in II Chronicles 16:9 where it says that God will strongly support those whose heart is completely his.  We have to have a heart of going for it (Him) with all of our being.  Monty would not be denied.  He knew that I was in the house and he was going to find me however long it took.  Do we have that same drive to know the Lord.  No matter what comes our way, no matter what road blocks that cause us to take detours, or places we go that don’t ultimately fulfill what we are looking, do we have that determined resolve to settle for nothing less than what we are looking for.

For Monty, the only person that captivated his attention and his resolve to find me was me.  The only person that captivates my attention and desire to find Him is God and His son Jesus Christ.

On this journey be careful what you seek after.  There are many things that can cause us to take detours and take us to dead-end streets.  Seek after someone who is big enough to fulfill your wildest dreams and then settle for nothing less.

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Lost And Found

Posted on September 17, 2015 by James Gorton

This morning I went to a Memorial service for one of my close friend’s wife who had battled cancer for over 5 years.  Fortunately his daughter had contacted my daughter, Debi, in Chicago to tell her about the service today.  I had no idea that she had died, but was able to go to the service and support my friend and family in the loss of their mother, wife, and friend.  What becomes acutely clear from what I just said is that I was not connected with this family for a long while.  Let me take you back.

Stephen and I had met at a local church 25+ years ago and connected immediately.  As we talked, we came up with the idea to start a Friday morning mens group to build friendships as well as add an element of spiritual influence.  We started with 5-6 men meeting every week during the school year and then taking the summer off.  We celebrated birthdays and holidays together with our wives and children as they came along.  One year we decided to go downhill skiing together and liked it so much that most of us bought skis for the next season.  The longer we met, the more connection took place.  Men would come and go over the years, but it was a place where true friendships were forged.  Every year at Christmas time our families celebrated with a dinner and the all important white elephant gift giving experience.  If you don’t know about the white elephant experience, it is a time to pull out your ugliest sweater, old golf balls, salad dishes made in the shape of a leaf, your unwanted stuff you never use, wrap it up in a gift bag with a beautiful bow, and give it to your friends who also have unwanted junk to give away.

But 13 years ago, things changed.  My family decided to change churches and we lost touch.  I no longer attended the mens group as I had in the past and we drifted apart.  I hadn’t seen Stephen for 13 years until today.  What a sad commentary on lost years of connection.  13 YEARS.  There was no connection as his kids graduated from high school and college.  There was no connection when his three girls got married.  There was no connection when he had his first grand child and then a next and a next.  There was no connection when his wife Martha got cancer and battled with it for 5 years before she died a few days ago.  13 LOST YEARS.

Today was a new connection with a close friend that I had lost touch with.  After the service, a reception followed with all the foods that his wife love to make for the family.  As I went up to Stephen, he saw me and we embraced for a long time.  He had lost his wife, but I had lost my close friend (for 13 years).  There was one thing he said that blew me away.  “I consider you my best friend.”  Do you hear that statement.  I wasn’t there for him when he was dealing with terminal cancer.  I wasn’t there for him when he contemplated the death of his wife.  I at that moment didn’t feel like a best friend.

But today, I had a second chance.  I asked him if he would like to get together and he jumped at the idea.  I got his cell phone and am intending to meet with him this coming week after his three daughters and families leave.  I have a second chance to reconnect and value the relationship that I let slip from my grasp.  I am going to be intentional in coming along side him as I have experienced what he is beginning to go thru, a loss of a spouse.

On this journey, we sometimes let precious relationships slip away for lack of effort and sometimes we never get a second chance to reconnect.  Today is the time to reevaluate our relationships and make sure that we become intentional in cultivating the most precious gift on earth, relationships.

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Becoming One Flesh

Posted on September 15, 2015 by James Gorton

I have been married for over 3 1/2 years to my wonderful wife Nadine.  I was married for close to 35 years to my late wife Cynthia.  It wasn’t until recently that I began to get another picture of what becoming one flesh meant.

For all of my life I have heard that the phrase becoming one flesh meant a physical union of sexual intercourse between a man and a woman.  In Genesis 2:24 it says, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.”  The shall become is a present perfect verb signifying that there is a point in time that this process starts and continues indefinitely into the future.  I also believe that not only is becoming one flesh a physical union, but also a spiritual union that is becoming, a social union that is becoming, a mental union that is becoming, an emotional union that is becoming, a parental union that is becoming, a financial union that is becoming, etc.  Marriage is a relational connection of the husband and wife to one another in every area of life.

But in the last few months I have stumbled upon another aspect of becoming one flesh that I would like to put forth.  I’m not talking about any of the becomings that I have identified in the previous paragraph.  So you might ask, “Then what are you saying?”  Well here it is.

When Nadine and I go to bed we like to snuggle.  We like to get close together with one another and have our feet and legs touching one another when we go to sleep as well as our holding one another’s hand.  In the initial moving into place, it is very clear to me that her foot is resting on the top of my foot.  She may move her foot back and forth which I do like and am aware of the movement.  But when she stops the movement of her foot, an interesting phenomena begins to happen.  The feel of her foot begins to go away as well as the temperature of her foot, especially if it is cold.  Her foot slowly but surely begins to meld into my foot to the point that I am unable to feel her foot on top of mine at all.  The same experience happens to my hand on hers over time.  If there is no movement of the hand, I begin to lose the sensation that I am touching her hand.  It’s as if my feeling for her hand disappears and I am only touching myself.  If my focus of attention is on staying connected to the foot or hand, any sensation of hot or cold begins to meld into feeling nothing but oneness with her.

In contrast, if my focus of attention is on how cold her foot is and I continue to focus on the external situation of her foot, I have a tendency pull away from the iciness of the appendages.  If the foot is too hot, it causes my foot to want to jump outside the bed covers to cool off.  Depending on where my focus of attention is determines whether I experience oneness with her foot and hand or separate my body from her foot and hand.  If I focus on the external circumstances (hot or cold), I disconnect.  If my focus is on staying put, the circumstances change and I begin to experience a sense of oneness.

This phenomenon of experiencing oneness can have many parallels in our personal relationships with others.  If we are seeking to connect with a spouse, a child, or a friend, we focus on the positive aspects of that relationship and are drawn into a closer bond with that person.  If however, we focus on the areas of concern, problems that come between us, or well on the negative aspects of the person, our natural tendency will be to disconnect from the one that could bring us great joy and happiness.

On the journey, it’s so important to place our focus on the right things in our relationships with others.  That perspective will decide whether we experience oneness or isolation.  Choose wisely.

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Limited Vision

Posted on September 10, 2015 by James Gorton

The alarm went off at 4:25 am and my body wasn’t ready to get up, but my mind convinced my body otherwise.  The hot water began to wake up my sleepy parts, and the rest woke up when I turned the water off and the shower door opened.  Brisk cold air hit my body.  We were in Flagstaff for the weekend and I had an appointment at 7 am in Scottsdale.  Nadine had my hot water and lemon ready along with an apple, a banana, and some nuts (I’m becoming a fruit and nut person).  With a kiss and a goodbye, I headed down the driveway and onto the I-17.  It was pitch black with a harvest moon and millions of stars sparkling in the night sky.  The only lights to guide my way were my headlights of the car illuminating the blacktop.  The high beams gave me more eyesight as I began the journey down the hill to Scottsdale.  None of the ponderosa pines or rock croppings could be seen, but only the stripped white and yellow solid lines passing my car.

Then an interesting sight began to take place.  On the left side of the car (east) I started seeing the outlines of the landscape with the land totally black, along with the sky beginning to turn a dark blue.  A few clouds began to take shape in the sky.  Within a matter of minutes I could see where the land stopped and the sky started in a 360 degree circle.  The light in the sky forced the stars to dim to nothingness as the sky got brighter and brighter.  Outlines of trees and bushes turned to colorful plants and trees.  Rock formations took shape.  Houses began to appear.  The headlight beams began to vanish as the light of the sun brushed them away from the highway.  My car lights had no effect on lighting of my environment as the sun took over.  At that moment I began to gain some insight as to what I was experiencing.

God’s light is much more effective in lighting my way that my own light.  Although the car lights were adequate to keep me between the white lines, they had limited to no value in being able to see my environment.  Black and white.  Darkness and light.  I was unable to see anything else with my headlights.  When the sun came out, it revealed my environment and my surroundings, allowing me to see much more than just the headlights.

My light is very limited in lighting my path in life.  The headlights pushed out the darkness in only one direction.  Maybe 200-400 yards in front of me.  On either side of the car was total darkness.  In back of me was total darkness.  In front of the limitations of the headlights was total darkness.  When I depend upon my light and direction, I am going to be limited in my outcomes and will inevitability lose my way, let alone not seeing all of what God has in store for me.

As I depend on God’s light, it shows so much more beauty around me than my light can do.  It was an amazing sight as God’s light began to push away the darkness.  I got a glimpse of His creation in a whole new way.  I have traveled this road many times, but for the first time I saw the ponderosa trees, cedar trees, narly bushes, and rock formations in an entirely different way.

We can be truly in darkness in the midst of God’s light if we don’t open our eyes to his beauty.  In one sense I have been in darkness on this road even though I have driven this road many times.  When I began to open my eyes to the darkness and the transforming power of God’s light, this stretch of road and everything that I passed took on a transformed perspective.

On this journey of connecting, this principle can be used in our relationships around us.  If we use our own light to look at relationships and their value, we might miss some insights around us that limit our ability to really connect with those we love.  Allowing God to give insight into our relationships and their value will most definitely open our eyes to the riches of deeper connections.

Driving in total darkness with my car lights and seeing the sun begin to illuminate the earth

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First Step In The Change Process

Posted on September 2, 2015 by James Gorton

I flew into College Station, PA over the weekend to speak to a parenting conference on Saturday.   It was a very small airport next to Penn State University.  I rented a car and drove 100+ miles to the place I was to speak.  I spoke Friday night and all Saturday on the principles of parenting various stages of the family life cycle.

On Sunday morning I got up at 3:30 am and began my drive back to College Station for my 6:15 am airplane departure.  On the drive back, I noticed something outside that I didn’t think a lot about, but it became heavier and heavier.  FOG.  Dense fog.  Have you ever driven on windy roads in pitch darkness, having to make several turns and have never been on the roads you are traveling on?  Added to this dilemma is the fact that on the country roads in middle Pennsylvania there is nothing open at 4:30 am in the morning.  The further I drove the more lost I became.  Had I had GPS with me, it would have been no problem, but there was not such thing ten years ago.  Fog.  Windy roads.  All stores closed.  Fog.  Fog.  I became hopelessly lost.  The more I drove, the more anxious I became.  The more anxious I became, the more depressed I felt because this was the only flight leaving this airport this day and if I missed the flight, I would have to stay another day.

It was only when I recognized that I would probably miss my flight that I saw an individual at 6:10am who was taking out the trash.  I pulled along side and said, “I am lost and have no idea where I am?”  He responded by saying, “If you just go back 1/2 mile, turn left, the airport is about a mile up the road.  I feverishly turned the car around, followed his directions and pulled the car into the rental facility (not open) and ran for the airport door.    As I ran to the agent, I heard, “Dr. Gorton, we have been waiting for you.”   I went through security, ran to the plane and off we went.

I had to admit that I was lost in order to find where I needed to be.  The first order of change is to admit that we are on the wrong path and need to make changes.  Relational change.  Job change.  Focus change.  Attitude change.  Friend change.  Emotional change.  Whatever choices we have made that have caused us to go down a wrong road, we first need to admit we have made some bad choices.

As I was reading a story today, it reminded me of this principle.  It is a story of a man named Jonah.  God came to him and told him to go to Nineveh and tell them to repent of their destructive ways.  Jonah didn’t want to do the right thing, so he boarded a ship headed in the opposite direction and make his own decisions for his life.  Unfortunately for him, a huge storm hit the ocean where the ship was and was about to break up the ship.  Jonah however was fast asleep in the bottom of the ship, so the crew woke him up.  This small segment in Jonah 1 spells out what is happening.  “This terrified them and they asked, “What have you done?” (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.)” Jonah‬ ‭1:10‬ ‭NIV

Jonah had admitted to them that he was running away from the Lord.  He was admitting that he was on the wrong road.  This is the first step in change happening.  Now just because we admit we are on the wrong road doesn’t mean that things are going to be okay. Jonah was thrown over the side of the ship and was swallowed by a whale.  Sometimes there are consequences for the wrong choices that we make, but not admitting we are on the wrong road stops change from happening.  Rough roads will be apart of the change process but it is worth it when we are moving on the road that God wants us to move.

On this journey, be aware of signs that point to us getting off the path of health and vitality.  Be willing to admit that we have made a wrong turn so that you can get back on the right road.

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Hummingbird War Games

Posted on August 31, 2015 by James Gorton

Over the weekend Nadine and I saddled up our horses (car horses that is) and headed for the high country of Flagstaff for some R&R. We typically drive up on Thursday night and come back on Monday morning, although on this trip we started out on Friday afternoon. Neither of us had eaten much that day and decided to cook us some vegetables (I mean just vegetables) for our supper.

Our menu for the night consisted of blackened brussels sprouts, garlic sautéed mushrooms, finishing the meal with apple slices layered with peanut butter. It may not sound all that exciting, but it was sooo good after a long day of work. We sat on our front porch in our love seat swing and watched the harvest moon begin to peak through the ponderosa pines. The coolness of the night setting in caused our bodies to decompress and want the comforts of our California king mattress. It didn’t take long for our heads to hit the pillow fall asleep.

Saturday morning begins with a 4.65 mile walk around the grounds with our 8-year-old Cavalier King Charles puppy named Monte. He loves the walk, but on the last mile he was dragging, but he made it. It was time to pull the lounge chairs out from under the patio awning and take a breather. I do need to tell you that I have fed birds on my back patio for over 25 years and love to see all kinds of birds that come to the feeder. I also have a hummingbird feeder that draws in hummingbirds for a drink of especially mixed ingredients for their palate.

Nadine and I had no idea what was in store for us to enjoy when the hummingbirds came to drink. There were several personalities present in the theater of hummingbird dances. The first hummingbird to come to the water was a quiet soul that made no sound but just wanted to feed and move on. She (I say she because the males make loud sounds, but the females are quiet) would point her beak into the drinking hole for a few seconds and then go to the next hole and the next. Once she was satisfied, she would fly off.

The males didn’t want anyone to come and drink from the well of delight and would scare off any seekers of the delicious beverage. The one male in particular would sit on a branch not far from the feeder and would wait for a seeker to come and would chase them off, signifying that it (the feeder) was his and his alone. Little did he know that as he was gone, others would come to the feeder and get their fill of the delightful nectar.

One time another male came to drink and the squatter of the feeder took off in a war to keep this intruder from getting any of the juice. The males went beak to beak and fought for over a minute in mid-air with their beaks seeking to win an advantage over the other, all the while other hummingbirds were coming to the feeder to drink.

The highlight of our time came when one of the younger female hummingbirds came to the porch and did an amazing thing. She hovered over Nadine’s head about 2-3 feet above her and stopped. As she was hovering above her head, it seemed like forever that the hummingbird was checking her out and maybe getting a scent of her perfume that she wanted some of. We don’t know what it was all about, but for 20-30 seconds she just hovered, moving just above her head, and then moving to where her hands were. After getting enough of whatever she wanted, she moved to the feeder, drank her fill, and flew off.

There are so many comparisons in our personal lives and relationships we can glean from God’s creation. In family structures, there are those who just want to satisfy their needs in life and move on. There are others in family relationships that are so determined to protect their turf and not allow anyone else in the family to get the upper hand that they lose out on taking care of their own needs. They chase others away from potentially having a wonderful impact in their own lives. There are those that are so committed to doing battle with other members of the family and isolate themselves from connecting with a support system that is so needed.

Finally there are family members like the inquisitive hummingbird who take time to find out about others in the family structure and to smell the perfume. On this journey in building healthier families, it might be helpful to determine what kind of person you are and work on moving to healthier places of connection within your own family system

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A true Prayer of Confession

Posted on August 28, 2015 by James Gorton

I have to admit that I am not an avid reader of the local, state or national news.  I get caught up every couple of weeks when I eat breakfast with my close friend who reads daily every newspaper before going to work.  As I sit there listening to what is happening with our government and the decisions that are being made, I get very angry with what is happening until the effect wears off and am good until the next time we meet for breakfast.

You see, I am like most citizens of the U.S.A who sit around and blame others for the problems of our society.   Admitting our contribution to a conflict is a difficult task in today’s society.  We love to blame others for the dysfunction of our society.  It’s the government’s fault.  It’s the democrats fault.  It’s the republican’s fault.  It’s those liberals.  It’s those conservatives.  It’s President Obama.  We want to blame others and there is an element of truth in all that is said.  None of us are perfect and so we all have contributed to the problems of our society.  I don’t want to get into a political debate here because I realize that I haven’t done everything that I could have to help fix the problems of our society.  O yes, I do vote every-time that the voting booth is open, but I could have done more.  It is so easy to point the finger because of all the problems that are occurring in our great country, but I saw a different response by someone I greatly respect to his situation where his country had been dismantled and he had been taken as a slave to another country.

He had to live as an alien away from where he was born and had grown up.  He was taken from his parents and had to serve a foreign dictator.  What I see in his perspective is one that I would love to adopt in my personal life with those I come in contact with, as well as when I look at all the problems of our great nation.  I don’t see him blaming anybody but himself.  The following prayer of Daniel illustrates the kind of action I would like to take when I hear about the problems of our nation.  I know it is long but if you have a mind to read it, it can change your response to dysfunction as it has mine.

“I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed: “Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. We have not listened to your servants the prophets. . . you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you.  . . .We have sinned against you. . . .we have rebelled against him; we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. . . .The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him. “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. . . . “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant.  . . .We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”‭‭Daniel‬ ‭9:4-19‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Daniel throughout the prayer takes responsibility for the wrongs, sins, disobedience, wickedness, rebellion, lack of listening, and unfaithfulness of himself and his nation.  He doesn’t blame others only, but puts blame on himself.  True confession begins when we look at our sins and wrongs we have done, not finger-pointing at others.  It begins with my sins.

Daniel then asks for mercy, God’s mercy.  “We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy.”  We have no right to ask God for anything due to our nature and our lack of following after the Lord.  It is only his mercy that we are able to ask God to intervene in our affairs and those of our nation.

On this journey it is so tempting when problems come our way to point the finger at others and blame the dysfunction of our society on the other guy.  It might be helpful to take some time to look at what we bring to the table and move to confession as Daniel did.

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Pride and Arrogance

Posted on August 27, 2015 by James Gorton

Have you ever admired someone so much that you would follow them anywhere?  I’m talking about someone here on this earth that has a charismatic personality and leadership ability that draws you into their life and passion.  I had a pastoral leader who was like that in Boston, Massachusetts.  I would have given my life for this man.  He was a wonderful preacher and man of God.  I would have followed him anywhere.  But somewhere along the way he got off track and made some poor decisions for his life that altered the rest of his life.

As I was reading this morning in the book of Daniel, I saw a similar relationship that Daniel had with King Nebuchadnezzar.  He had been taken from Israel as a slave to Babylonia to serve the King.  Over the years he had various encounters with King Neb and was put into service as one of the King’s top advisors.  He interpreted dreams for the king, gave him advice and lead all the wise men of the day.  One day the king asked David to interpret a dream that bothered him.  It was a dream about a tree that was large and provided shade for all those around.  The tree was chopped down but the stump remained.  Daniel was distraught when he realized that the dream was about his friend King Neb.  He was going to be removed from his kingdom as we read, “But when his heart became arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. He was driven away from people and given the mind of an animal; he lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like the ox; and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he acknowledged that the Most High God is sovereign over all kingdoms on earth and sets over them anyone he wishes.” ‭‭Daniel‬ ‭5:20-21‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Pride and arrogance were King Neb’s downfall.  He looked on his kingdom and took credit for the things that God had done.  Arrogance and Pride begin with the word “I” and spells out all of our accomplishments and successes.  I is a word that takes God off the throne and places us on the throne.  The primary way of cutting arrogance and pride out of our life is humbling experiences.  For King Neb, he “was deposed from his royal than and stripped of his glory. ”  He experienced life with the lowest forms of creation and ate with the dumbest of all animals.  It was during this humbling process that King Neb began to acknowledge the One who truly is the all-powerful and sovereign King.

On this journey, it is easy to begin to own the successes and accomplishments as coming from our energy and insights which take us down a very destructive path of arrogance and pride.  Today on this journey recognize what God has done and is doing in your present life and humbly submit to His path for your life.

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Compromise

Posted on August 26, 2015 by James Gorton

An agreement or a settlement of a dispute that is reached by each side making concessions.  Each side making concessions.  Giving up something you want in order to get something in return.  Losing something to gain something.  It sounds good in principle and many counselors talk to their clients about compromise.  Each giving a little for the better good.  Accommodation.  Bargain.  Settlement. Deal.

Compromise sometimes works when we are interacting with another person, but there is a place in our personal lives where compromise is deadly.  Let me illustrate this by the concept of “true north” versus “magnetic north”  In magnetic north using a compass, various magnetic draws around us will sway a compass needle so that what it is actually pointing to is not actually north, but may be a degree or more off.  True north is a point that never varies and is essential to properly navigate from our origin to our destination.  If we allow these magnetic fields to influence our compass even a degree, we will end up in a different place than we anticipated.

In our personal life it is important to find our true north, a direction and purpose for our lives and not allow others or things to cause us to deviate from our course.  It is so easy throughout life for distractions to get us off the track of our intended purpose.  There are three friends in the Old Testament who were examples of staying focused on true north.   Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego,  Israelite slaves who had been taken from their homeland and taken to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar were such people.  One day the king decided to make an image of gold and wanted everyone in his kingdom to bow down to it.  We read, “Your Majesty has issued a decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the image of gold, and that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing furnace. But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up.”‭‭Daniel‬ ‭3:10-12‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were asked to compromise their belief in their God and worship another god that had been made of gold.  They could have compromised and done it outwardly, but not inwardly.  They could have just gone through the motions and no one would have ever known.  But they didn’t.  They were willing to die rather than worship a god that would compromise their belief system.  In reading the rest of the story, you will see an amazing thing that happened to them because they stayed true to their true north principles.  They knew their true north in their lives and weren’t willing to compromise.

What are the true north principles in your life that you are willing to die for?  What have you compromised in you life and have regrets about?  It’s not too late on this journey to turn back and get back on the track of true north.  It means admitting that my path is leading me in the wrong direction and wanting God to redirect me back to true north.

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