Beautiful Things

Wow, I can't believe how much time has passed since I last posted. So many things have happened. My kids are growing up, and sadly, we’ve lost some family members who have gone to be with Jesus. The first three months of this year have been filled to the brim, and then it happened... I heard a song that made me stop and reflect (you probably already know where this is going, haha!). I felt compelled to share it with the world.

I first heard this song about a week ago while my family and I were in the van, and I loved it so much that I added it to my "favorites" playlist. I hadn’t listened to it once since then, until today. After a doctor’s appointment, I went back to work and decided to play it again. It's been on repeat since 9:20 this morning. The song is "Beautiful Things" by Benson Boone. Normally, I would paste the lyrics here, but this time, you'll have to look them up for yourself.

The heart of the song is this guy pleading with God not to take the beautiful things from his life. That struck me deeply and made me reflect on all the beautiful things in my own life. I immediately thought of my wife and kids and how they make my life so beautiful.

We live in a broken, fallen world. Let me explain why I say that. If you view the world through the lens of the Bible, then you understand what I mean when I say this world is ugly. It’s sinful and fractured, making it hard to navigate at times. But thank God, this world is still painted with "Shades of Eternity." If you are a born-again child of God, you can see these "Shades of Eternity" clearly, and when you do, it's impossible not to raise your hands to heaven in gratitude for the life—and the eternal life—that He has given you.

There are a couple of lines in the song that resonate deeply:
"If everything's good and it's great, why do I sit and wait till it's gone?"
"But I'm up at night thinkin' I just might lose it all."

These lines hit hard because we sometimes hold on so tightly to the blessings God has given us. We cling to them, trying not to lose them, and in doing so, we trade the eternal for the temporary.

My prayer for myself is that starting today, God would help me appreciate the beautiful things in my life more fully and use them to bring glory to Christ alone. I pray that, when these beautiful things fade or are taken from my life, I won’t shrink in despair. Instead, by God’s mercy and grace, I will rise up and SHOUT, "THANK YOU, GOD!"

You can trust this if you are a follower of Christ: when your beautiful things are taken, more beautiful things will come in God’s perfect time. You just have to be willing to see them. And if your beautiful things have been taken away, I encourage you to pray. I pray that God will open your eyes to see the new beauty He has for you.

Right now, as I write this, my heart is full, and I’m smiling.

What Happened?

I can hardly believe it’s May since I last posted! I owe an apology to my two followers for leaving you hanging, haha! 😅 Things have been pretty normal in the Andrews household—just everyday life stuff. Like many families this time of year, we’re preparing to celebrate the birth of Jesus. But, I’ll admit, "getting ready" for Christmas and "getting into the Christmas Spirit" has been a real struggle this year. It’s been tough because I’ve spent so much time focusing on trying to be successful and comparing myself to others. Matthew 6 keeps coming to mind as I write this, because I’ve been spending more time focusing on what’s wrong in my life and not nearly enough time being thankful for the blessings I do have. This pattern of focusing on myself didn’t happen overnight, though—it’s been a cycle repeating over and over for years.

Here’s what I mean: I start with good intentions, pumping myself up and convincing myself that I can do anything, that I’m an incredible person. This mindset lasts for a while—weeks, sometimes months. I encourage others, lift them up, and while that seems good, deep down it often wasn’t about them. It was about me. It was shallow. The issue isn’t that I encouraged others—encouragement is good—but it was the self-centered attitude that I had, the desire to promote myself. And during these periods of excitement and motivation, I lost my focus. Despite my good intentions, I was taking my eyes off Jesus and not lifting Him up.

For some of you, you might not see anything wrong with promoting yourself. After all, you might think, "If I don’t, who will?" But I would argue that if you focus all your energy on Christ, you won’t care about promoting yourself. You’ll naturally want to make Christ the center of everything in your life. If you're a follower of Jesus, you know that Satan is very good at what he does—he seeks to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10). And as a disciple of Jesus, you understand that Satan is always working to make us ineffective witnesses to others. During my most motivated, encouraging phases, someone at work, church, or even within my own family would say or do something that would make me feel like I wasn’t the incredible person I’d built myself up to be. Suddenly, I’d feel like a failure—like I couldn’t do anything, that I wasn’t worthy of being used by God. It’s like a manic episode, and while you may be tempted to feel sorry for me or send words of encouragement, what I really need are your prayers. Please pray to God, Yahweh, on my behalf, that He continues to grant me grace and strength in my weakness. I appreciate the encouragement, but I don’t need pity. What I long for is contentment with where God has placed me. I want to be successful in reflecting the love and wisdom of Christ. I want to be a person of solid principles and standards, so that no one questions what I stand for or where my heart lies.

The point is this: as a Christian, a believer in the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus, I am called to give everything I have to Jesus. Everything I do should be done for Him, with all my heart and to the best of my ability. Jesus came to give us life—abundant life—and the only way to experience that life fully is to throw ourselves at His feet, with wild abandon. When we do this, the freedom and joy we experience in the glory of Christ are unlike anything this world can offer.

As we prepare to celebrate the birth of Jesus and gear up for a new year, I encourage you to focus on Jesus and let Him guide your steps. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Anthony

Enjoy this Sermon from Adrian Rogers

The Light and the Dark

In him was life, and the life was the light of men.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
John 1:4,5

"Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth!"
Psalm 46:10 

    John 1:4,5 is a very appropriate way to start this post and it would be appropriate for many others like myself for whom the light of Jesus has shown in their darkness.  Why did I say "their darkness"?  Because spiritual and emotional darkness takes different forms for different people and it doesn't affect everyone the same way.  I also am not a physician or a licensed counselor.  What I am though is a Jesus follower, a Christian and it is Christ who defines my worth. The reason that I tell you that, is that is where my experience and knowledge come from.  My reason for posting my story is three-fold.  1.  Satan has convinced me for a long time that if I ever told anyone about my struggle then I would suffer embarrassment, shame, and ridicule, 2. I want to help someone who like me, has allowed satan to keep them in the dark, and 3.  I want to glorify and praise the Creator of the Universe.

   

    For the better part of 10 years off and on, I have struggled with anger issues, anxiety, and worry.   The slightest little things would set me off and I would yell and scream at my wife, my kids, or my co-workers.  After the arguments and yelling stopped, I would try to wall myself off from everyone.  This portion of the episode may be the worst because of the despondency, apathy, and melancholy. Things that would normally bring me joy, I would not care about.  During this time, I could put on a well-formed mask for people who didn't know me, but for those that I care about and am around a lot, the mask was transparent.  I treated them so bad and I was a jerk.  After about a week of this treatment, I would go through a list of people that I had treated badly and apologize.  By the simple grace of God, they would forgive me.  Even as I type, I am floored at the amount of grace God has given me.  I am thankful for my wife and kids for how much stuff from me they have put up with and how much they love me. I realize that I will still have bad days, but through the process of sanctification, I am maturing spiritually.  I am thankful for friends and co-workers that have not abandoned me but have gone through cycle after cycle of my anger and apathetic moods.  My story is overshadowed by the story of Jesus and what he did for me on the cross.  This testimony is long, so I will stop here and the next time I write I will start with where the healing began.  I covet your prayers and know that I am praying for you to a God that knows exactly what you are going through.

Words

 So, I got to thinking about words.  The meaning behind them, the tone in which they are said, what they look like on a page.  Words are powerful, but only to those that receive them and believe them.  For example,  If someone was speaking to a large crowd on how to properly put together a scrapbook.  That is interesting, but I probably wouldn't listen closely, therefore I would not be inspired to put together a scrapbook.  If that same person gave a demonstration on how to build a nice grilling area on my patio,  I would perk up and maybe even take notes.  I would receive their words and based on the fact that the speaker knew how to build a nice grilling area, I would believe him.

Then I thought about our loved ones that have passed on.  We probably take for granted the words that they spoke to us.  Words spoken to us by people that love and care for us are, most of the time, discarded or looked over.  Why?  I have no idea.  Maybe their words get buried amongst all the rhetoric and noise that we are exposed to every day.  It is a shame that the words spoken to us by our loved ones only mean something when they are not being spoken anymore.  There is a song sung by The Band Perry, "If I Die Young" and one of the lyrics in the song says, "A Penny for my thoughts, oh, no, I'll sell'em for a Dollar, They're worth more after I'm a goner".  This is true for most of us.  Oh, what death stills from us.  That person that we loved so much and cared for, death takes the sound of their voice, their words, and then all of a sudden memories of the times we were with them come flooding back.  The words that they happen to have put down, become priceless. It is hard right now not to shed a tear as I think about those that I have loved and the talks that we have had and what I would give to hear their words.  

These thoughts led me to my next thought.  Jesus left us His words, which are far more valuable to us than any words I could ever say or put down on paper.  His words could not be stolen by death and while we can wish that we were with Him when He was on this earth,  His death, resurrection, and ascension made it possible for us to enjoy an eternity of His words and the Holy Spirit.  One day I will pass on from this life and the only thing that will be left of me is the legacy that I leave with my kids, memories, these posts, and pictures.  My legacy and values that I leave with my children, may perhaps live on for a little while, but memories and pictures will fade from the timeline of humanity.  I praise the one who has not and will not fade and when I die, I am going to spend eternity with Him.  I wrote at the beginning about words being powerful and I pray that today that these words on this screen have planted a seed that grows into a lasting relationship with Jesus.  If your struggling with surrendering your life to Jesus, don't, He simply says, "Come and Follow Me".   There is nothing more important and powerful than the words of Jesus.

One Second, WAIT!

One second.  It is nuts when you think about all the things that can happen in one second.  According to a google search and the site: bedtimemath.org  "With each second that ticks by, around the world 4 babies are born, 2 people die, Earth travels 18 1/2 miles through space, and the International Space Station travels 5 miles around us. In that same second, an unbelievable 20,000 cans of Coca-Cola are sold, along with 9 iPhones. 4 thousand stars are born across the universe."

Seconds could mean the end of a relationship or it could mean a new life for someone.  When you are finished reading this, there will not be any final resolution, but what I hope to accomplish with this writing, is that you will think about your actions and your words.  I admit that I rank at the top of those people that fly off the handle or get my feelings hurt way too easily.  My shortfalls in the area of grace towards others are a simple matter of spiritual maturity and keeping my focus on Jesus.  But, through prayer and studying God's word, I am getting better (I hope).  I am always reminded of Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.  When we seek the kingdom of God, we see and treat people differently, we order our inner life differently, not because of anything we did, but because of Jesus and what he is doing in and through us.  

The idea of one second came to mind one day when I was at work and I noticed how some people were talking about how bad the day is and some was talking about how good the day is.  So, I thought, "We all get the same seconds.  Everyone has the same amount of seconds.  So, maybe the problem is perception and focus?"  The second before I meet someone new, I have the ability to make a difference in that person's perception of the second that we experience together.  Just because I am a Christian doesn't mean that my perception of every second is always right, but I pray that if my perception is based on the foundation of God's word then I can make a difference.  I hope that last part makes sense.  As a parent of a 19-year-old and two almost 15-year-olds, then I see the seconds that I experience with them zipping by at light speed, but of course, that is my perception, haha!  I am sure at times their perception is that time doesn't go fast enough.  So, I will end with this advice,  pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18) and through the power of the Holy Spirit, keep your focus on Jesus.

In Christ Alone,

 

Anthony

 

Could it get worse!!?

 No pictures today.  I am feeling pretty down today.  This is probably the second time since May 2020 that I believe getting that MBA was the biggest waste of time and money that I have ever done.  You see, I believed the lie that told me I could do better for myself and my family by getting that MBA.  Load of crap.  I thought that getting the MBA would allow me to move up in the company that I am with, It didn’t and when that didn’t happen, I have spent the last two years trying to find a job that would pay more or the same as what I am making now.  This morning I learned that I was turned down for another job.  Useless.  That degree has not gotten me anywhere and I am stupid for thinking that it would.  My dad would have loved for me to have stayed at home and worked with him, but I had to be stupid and leave Winston County so I could come to the big city and be somebody.  I could have been somebody working with my dad.  Today is my pity party and no one else is invited and I don’t want any comments to this post.  I don’t need anyone’s encouraging platitudes.  It would be nice to know that the things I do matter.  I do believe things will get better, but right now it’s tough looking at the big picture, and frankly I don’t give a rip about the big picture.  I want the big picture to be the now picture.  I am sick of trying.  I am tired of plowing.  

My attitude is poor right now.  It will get better, but it’s gonna be a minute.  God has a plan.  I know that and I have no choice but to trust and wait.  But I think this last job I was turned down for is the last one I will apply for.  In the meantime, I will do what I know to do, I will work for my current employer like I am working for God and let my work be praise to his Holy Name.  No more LinkedIn, Facebook or any one of  the multiple social media platforms.  So, if you happen to have found this post, then congratulations, you didn’t come here via a shared post on Facebook.  So, to answer the question, yes it could be worse.  I am thankful for what I have and my attitude right now is not a reflection of how much grace He has shown to my family and I.  My attitude is simply a reflection of circumstances that have hit me in the face again today.  Thank God that His mercies are new every morning.  

 

  

Finished? Nope, Not Yet!

                                

 I wanted to write today, but really, there is nothing particular in my heart.  The way my blog ideas work is I may remember, hear, see, or do something that triggers a scripture or bible story.  When that happens, I start writing.  That is one reason why it is so important to read your bible and have God's word stored up in your heart because you never know when the Holy Spirit will use what you have read to bless influence or both.  

I am grateful and blessed that I have the desire to write.  That is funny and those that know me well would laugh along with me.  My only regret is that I put on such an act during the college years of my disdain for writing or being forced to write, that I avoided writing totally.  

My sons and I finished a grand project today.  This project could have been finished by a professional in two days, but I thought it was important for me to do something that I did not know how to do, but also it was a great opportunity for my sons and me to tackle something together that was way over our heads. I re-learned some things during this project that time has seemed to steal away from me and learned new things that I should have already known, though my wife had already told me.  

1.  Everything that you see on Youtube, is not that easy.  Just because you watch a professional on Youtube bust up concrete with ease and precision, does not mean you will be able to do the same.  In fact, when we did it, it was much messier and instead of taking a couple of hours, it took the three of us two full eight-hour days to saw, bust, and remove the concrete.

2. Just because your mind thinks your body is that of an 18-year-old, it is without any doubt, not an 18-year-old body.  My 47-year-old body needs more rest, more water, and at times multiple doses of anti-inflammatories.

3. The Pick-Ax.  Before this project, my boys and I have not had much experience with a Pick-Ax, but we have extensive experience with one now.  This tool is very effective but is also a demon to use as it will suck the air from your lungs and cause your arms to become as limp as that of a boiled spaghetti noodle.  We used it again today to finish.  I do not look forward to using it again.

4.  Post-Hole Diggers.  Before this project, I was very familiar with this tool.  But, it had been a long time since I used it so much.  WOW!!  My deltoid muscles have put in an internal memo that they are requesting they never have to be used in that way again for a very long time.

The point of all this is that this was a hard project.  It was hot, I couldn't have done it without the help of my sons, and though I had an idea of when we would finish, I did not know the exact day.  Our Christian lives are no different.  The Christian life is hard and it is not for the faint of heart.  Anyone who tells you that once you become a Christian, everything is supposed to be easy, they are lying to you!  Jesus has called us to serve and sometimes serving is not easy (John 15:20).  Jesus calls us to forgive (Matthew 18:21,22).  Jesus suffered and we will too.  We can not go through this pilgrim's journey alone.  Our life has to glorify God.  Our life has to be a testimony of who God is and we can not do that without Jesus.  He alone is the source of our strength and we must get out of this routine of keeping one foot in and one foot out of our Christian walk.  I could not have finished the project unless I was committed.  I made a decision to follow Christ and now I am committed to finishing and just like our home project, there are days when you just don't feel like working, but I knew that if I didn't finish then my relationship with my wife would be affected.  There are going to be days when you don't feel like following Christ, but unlike the relationship with my wife, Jesus will not leave you or forsake you.  He tells us that his burden is light and His yoke is easy (Matthew 11).  Jesus also gave us each other.  Tell your trusted brothers or sisters what is going on in your life and allow them to pour into you what they have experienced in God's Love.  We can't go through this Christian life alone.  Find a Bible-believing church and commit to that also and watch what happens.  Lastly, we don't know when Jesus is coming back, but we know that everything on this earth is temporary and will end one day.  Be ready, commit, and share the Gospel with everyone you can.  My prayer is that you will let the light of Jesus in and illuminate all the dark places in your life.  He is knocking.  Answer.  

Keep Plowing!!

Anthony