Often we get scared of success.  A lot of times we fear the thing we have dreamed of all of our lives.

Several things stop us from realizing our dreams.

1) We get comfortable in our ruts: This might be one of the most dangerous things we encounter in our lives.  We are creatures that are highly adaptable.  We will make do if it is necessary.  We can make the best out of the worst situations.  This can be a huge asset.  However, when it comes to realizing our dreams it becomes a negative.  Instead, of reaching for the stars we settle for the ground.  This happens in marriages, work, personal satisfaction and in even in church.

How we battle this starts in our mind and the more we transform our mind to that of Christ we can win. Christ can help you understand that your rut is not your mountaintop.  Christ makes us see something in ourselves that is greater and more powerful.  Christ pushes us to achieve incredible things and realize our goals and dreams.  So get uncomfortable and reach for the stars…they are waiting for you.

2) We let fear convince us we are okay where we are: Jesus says to us all, “Fear not!”  This is an incredibly simple statement, but one we must start to own.  Fear makes us do strange things.  When it comes to our dreams we let it take over.  Some of us are afraid of success.  Most, however, are afraid of failure.  Yet, the irony is that failure is a part of being successful.  Before I ever achieved anything in business I had many failures from which I learned.  In fact, I was truly more prepared, because of my failures.  It made me a better person and a better entrepreneur.

Fear in the end only convinces us to stay right where we are instead of moving out into deeper water.

Oh, by the way, there are some people that you know that will also try to keep you in your rut and make fear grow in your life.  You know who they are.  I have them in my life too.  They will always point out the problem, try to squash the dream or say you can’t do it.  Then when you do achieve something great, they will always, and I mean always, try to find fault with it.  Do you know how to handle these people?  Smile and walk away.  You don’t need them…I PROMISE!  Surround yourself with positive people, people who want to reach for the stars too.  When you do watch what happens!

Lent needs to be, for us all, a journey of dreaming big and reaching high.  Whether that is in your career or to a personal dream or achievement you wish to achieve.  Lent tells us to DO IT!

So do not wait.  Get out into deeper water.  Cast your fear aside.  You can do anything if you put your mind to it.  Start today.

Peace be with you!

Rev. Jim

Going faster doesn’t mean you are going to get more done.  The word “multitask” is a word that Satan invented for all human beings.  We are convinced we can all do multiple things at once, when in fact we can only concentrate on one or two at best.  When we spread our attention over a gambit of tasks and then try to accomplish them like an Olympic runner, NOTHING GETS DONE, or at least not well.

Lent provides us some time to slow down.  In our vain attempt to multitask all we have to do, we leave out the most important thing of all…Christ.  Lent provides us time to focus on what matters most…Christ, and knowing Christ changes our behavior.  You should be a little sweeter, a little nicer, a little more tolerant, a little more patient, a little more filled with joy, a little more grateful, thankful, loving, giving and all the rest.  When we slow down we focus on the ONE thing that is most important…our relationship with Christ and when we do that we change.

So today, try not to shove too much into it.  You are not trying to get your picture on the front of a Wheaties Box.  Instead, God created you to focus on living your life.  He created you to enjoy your life and by enjoying your life to the fullest you must take time to know Him!

I hope today is filled with the things that you have been whizzing by all these many years.  I hope you have less and less days of anxiety and stress and feeling like you don’t have enough time to get things done.  I hope that you will begin to tie up those loose ends that always nag at us.  Because it is almost Easter, a time to COME ALIVE, a time to really start living.

Make it a point to slow down enough and join us Sunday and all the services we have planned that will bring you face to face with God.  Haven’t we left Him out of our lives long enough?

Enjoy today…God created it just for you!

Love you all,

Rev. Jim

Despite the things that bring us down and the things that hurt our heart.  Regardless of how many doors get closed Jesus says to us all as we approach Easter…IT WILL BE JUST FINE!  It is okay.  You are blessed.  Be thankful.  Take heart for your valleys will not last forever.  Lift your spirit for life will not always be this hard.

I can’t help but look towards a Holy Week that is right around the corner.  I think of the pain and suffering that our Lord endured for our sins.  I try to comprehend the love He had for us and the love He still has for all.  I fall short trying to understand it.  We miss the mark often, because we get wrapped up in all our “stuff.”  We see our needs and only our needs and that distracts us from a bigger world that is in pain.  Yet, when I am able to step outside of my valleys and step into someone else’s to help and encourage I start to know what Christ felt.  I begin to feel a love much bigger than myself.  I forget about my pain and I see only others in pain and want to help.  Then I am able to take heart in my own situations and realize I have it pretty good no matter what.  I have a life for which I should be thankful.

Loving outside ourselves, in this way, is what Easter is all about.  Serving, helping and giving to others makes us proclaim, “I am finer than frog hair!”  It makes us want to help others proclaim the same thing.

You might be suffering right now, but remember your Lord is with you.  You might be feeling pain, but if you step outside of it and look in, it might not be that bad.  You might even realize that if you just started to love others in their valleys your valley just might vanish.  But wherever you are remember life is worth living.

I hope you will come alive this Easter and recall the love that Christ has for you.  I hope you will always hold in your heart how wonderful of life you have and how much more wonderful it is in when we are thankful and rejoice in everything.

Today I am finer than frog hair…how bout you!

Love you all,

Rev. Jim

I ask this, because I know what valleys feel like.  I have been in many life and death valleys myself.  I know what real pain feels like, both physical and mental.  I also know what it takes to get out of them.

First, Christ can heal anything! I hope you realize this.  Christ can bring life into a depressed heart.  Christ can restore a dying marriage.  Christ can rejuvenate broken spirits.  Christ can destroy hate, resentment, anger, jealousy and years of pain and replace it with faith, hope, love and forgiveness.

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions–it is by grace you have been saved And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus… Ephesians 2:4

To get out of that valley we need Christ…I promise.

The second thing about valleys is that they will not destroy you although they feel like they might.  I love this line and I don’t know who said it…YOU DIDN’T MAKE ME, SO YOU CAN’T BREAK ME!  Valleys can’t break us or destroy us, because they are only external things.

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  Isaiah 41:10

God knows us inside and out.  He knows you down to your first molecule and it is only God that can alter, rearrange or change you.  It is only God that can destroy us and we have a God that loves.  We have a God that has gone to great lengths to bring us life, not death.  We have a God that so loves us that we walk as His children with confidence and boldness.  He will uphold us with His righteous hand.  “This valley didn’t make me, so you can’t break me!”  Scream that out next time Satan gets a hold of your life.  Yell that out for the world to hear.   Valleys are not alive.  They have no power over our lives.

The third thing is that sometimes we make our valleys deeper than they should be.  We tend to want to make valleys out of ruts or mountains out of molehills.  We tend to do this with the little things in life.  Don’t make valleys worse than they really are.  Don’t build them up in your mind to be nuclear catastrophes.  If you do that is exactly what they will become.

Now for some of us we deal with the really big valleys.  Death, tragedy and the loss of loved ones are on that list.  In fact, they might be the most devastating things we will go through as human beings.  Please do not lose heart.  Please hear your Lord speaking to you that life is eternal.   Please know that God loves you and is surrounding you this very moment with His angels.

“I came so that everyone would have life, and have it in its fullest”  John 10:10

Not even death can separate us from a loving Lord who died so that we might live.  Hold fast and remember the promise of our Christ,

“This day you will be with me in Paradise!”

Valleys can, in the end, only make us stronger and bring us closer to our God.  Don’t be scared of them.  Lean on your Lord.  Know that He can bring you out of them.  Know that they cannot destroy you.  Most of all, know that God has the last say even in death.  For God has said, “LIFE!” for us all!

May you live not in your valley today, but in LIFE.

Love you all!

Rev. Jim

The person couldn’t help but say it. It was always something: a snide remark or a negative comment. This was just how this person was. They needed to belittle others or point out little flaws that didn’t really matter a whole lot in order to make themselves feel bigger or better. In fact, you just know that whenever you get around this person that it is like walking on eggshells…who knows what they are going to say or if they are going to say something about you! This person is angry, hurt and continues to punish others for it. Who is it? Maybe you…maybe someone you know…maybe your boss…your spouse…a lifelong friend.

I used to try to just be as friendly as possible to these people. The reason I was so nice to them is that I used to fear that they would turn on me eventually. I realized over years that no matter how nice I was to people like this that nobody was immune to their anger or criticism. It was just a matter of time before I was the focus of something that they didn’t like. In fact, by just always being nice and placating them, I realized that I was only enabling their bad behavior.

Now I just LOVE them. Love doesn’t suggest that I enable them more, but instead love means that I hold them accountable for behavior that hurts others. It means that I am not afraid to “tell it like it is” even when the truth might sting a little.

Jesus was like that. He “told it like it was!” In fact, the truth that He shared turned people upside down. What if you were the one holding the rock about to stone the young woman? What if you were the leader of the church and heard Jesus’ indictment upon your life? What if you were the rich man and encountered Jesus’ words of life? What if you were one of the disciples and heard the parables of truth, the Beatitudes or the Sermon on the Mount. I mean these are real truths for our lives. These are “get right to the point” and “knock us on our heels” answers.

People will never change if we remain silent. People that hurt others, say things about people when they are not present, make little jabs at the character of folk and all the rest will continue to do just that if we don’t say something. You know, they might even continue to do it after they are confronted, but at least you pointed it out…you tried to change it.

So don’t be afraid anymore of people like this. Whatever you do, don’t let them make you angry, but instead, let them embolden you to stand up for what is right.

I thank God for these kinds of people and believe me I know who they are. It makes me see the thing I don’t ever want to be, but it makes me realize there is still a lot of preaching left to be done and a lot of love yet to be shared.

So today, make this a part of your Lenten Journey. Let us all stand up and out and let the world know there is a better way to live. Tell it like it is. Don’t be afraid to say it. When you do amazing things will happen. When you do others will take notice. When you do people’s lives will change!

Love you all,

Rev. Jim

SLOW DOWN my friends!  Lent is meant to be savored, digested and enjoyed.  Life is all about the race, but when we speed through it we tend to not pay attention to all the little treasures it offers.  We miss the flavors, smell and taste that make it worthwhile.

Jesus moved through life just like that…. slowly.  In fact, He did that so well that He even noticed when a woman touched His robe to be healed.

As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him.  And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her.  She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.  “Who touched me?” Jesus asked.  When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.”  But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.”  Luke 8: 42-46

How incredibly sensitive our Lord is to the things around Him.  Keenly in tune to everything going on around Him that He even notices a woman crawling on the ground to touch the hem of His garment.

When we slow down in life we become more aware, we become more sensitive to all that is happening.  How fast are you wound up?  Is your foot on the pedal and is the pedal on the ground?  Is your schedule such that it just seems like you can’t get a breath?  If it is then you are going too fast!  If it is then you are missing life!

Stop now and enjoy.  Feel the things that are pressing up against your heart and mind.  The beauty of this world surrounds you.  The laughter and humor of life is there, but can you hear it?  The cry of those in need moves in and through us, but are we noticing?  The simplicity of life goes before us, but do we see it enough to follow?  We must stop – we must slow down – we must undo and untangle the mad rush that we are in.

I hope my colleague in ministry will one day stop and enjoy a dinner.  I know he will eventually.  One day he will be able to taste all the flavors and experience the joy of a well-cooked meal.  I hope we will all do the same with life.  After all, we only get one to live!

Deep breaths…enjoy…love you all!

Rev. Jim

Yesterday, we learned that momentum is critical as we grow into the likeness of our Lord.  We must continually do the things necessary to build a relationship with God.  What are you doing to build that momentum in Lent?  How are you adding on to your spiritual journey?

Part of what we do at Stockbridge First is evaluate how well we are taking you along that journey.  We gauge our effectiveness as a church in so many ways and one way was the SURVEY you took many weeks ago.  It went great and I thank you for all who took the time to fill it out.  It told me a lot about what you think.  The best thing about it was that the number one thing you love about the church is that we are filled with FRIENDLY AND CARING PEOPLE!  I AGREE! Other comments were “No bickering” “No drama” “No complaining!”  Now not all churches can say that.  When you get to know people here you can’t help but find goodness in the hearts of others.  At Stockbridge First we have that…way to go church family!

Another telling part of the survey was your spiritual growth.  Many of you remarked that when you came to Stockbridge First UMC you were “just starting out on your spiritual walk” or that you were an “nominal” disciple.  After attending Stockbridge First UMC you remarked that you are “further along in your journey with God and that we have made a difference in your life.”  THIS IS GREAT NEWS!

But just standing on this great news is not enough.  We must continue to get better at what we do as a church and continue to add new things to meet the needs of others.  We must continue to build momentum.  This is just like our Lenten Journey.  One person came up to me and said, “I love it when you talked about giving up something and then replacing it with something else that will help my walk with God.”  We don’t just give up something, but we add something in the process in hopes that the virtue we add will deepen our relationship with God and our walk as well.  We don’t just stand still, but we keep moving forward.

Jesus will help keep that heart and spirit moving forward if you will let Him.  Our Lord Jesus Christ loves you.  He came to redeem a frail body and broken spirit.  He comes to restore your life.  He comes to heal your relationships.  All He asks is “will you walk with me?”  That’s it.

So if you are stuck, just put your spirit in motion, gain some momentum.  Fast, give, serve, worship, love, pray and all the rest.  Get some speed up.  Soon you will be moving by the things that once tempted you.  You will walk with confidence again knowing that your Lord walks with you.

Thanks for the momentum you continue to build here at this church.  I could not be more proud and honored to serve you and serve with you!

Love you all,

Rev. Jim

But despite all the incredible physical things the skaters could do some had something else going for them…PASSION! I mean you could really look into the face of the skater and tell if they were just out there to do the moves or if they were really into it.  There was one lady who was flawless with all the jumps, but just seemed like a robot.  Then there was a young lady who fell a couple of times, but you could tell she was really getting into it.

People connect with passion!  People respond to passion.  People love passion, because that is what we are all about.  Soldiers don’t follow lifeless leaders into gunfire.  They rally around men and women that are passionate and full of life.  This country was founded upon that same fire and passion.  Our founding fathers were on fire about freedom and creating a country based on just that.  So much so they were willing to sign their names on the dotted line for it!

Lent is about passion.  It is about a passion for our Lord and Savior.  It is about being caught on fire with love.  It is about being overwhelmed with forgiveness.  It is about becoming swept away with service and giving.  Lent doesn’t beckon you to walk, but instead wants you to run and run hard.  Lent begs us to get our heart rate going so we can feel the burn in our legs and the pull on our lungs.  Lent wants us to feel again!

As you go through Lent I hope you start feeling passionate about the things that are worth just that – things such as your Lord, people and life.  Continue to let go of those things that don’t have real meaning.  They only weigh you down.  Instead, grab hold of the things that will truly let you live to the fullest…JESUS!

There will be a lot more opportunities to see athletes perform.  Some will just go through the motions…others will live it!  Hope you do today!

Love you all!

Rev. Jim

The definition of authentic is this: accurate in representation of the facts; trustworthy; reliable…genuine through and through.

Now our walk with Christ should be authentic.  In fact, a lot of Jesus’ complaints about the way people are worshipping God are focused on authenticity.  The Pharisees just “appear” to be real followers of God.  Deep down they are “dead on the inside.”  People are following the Commandments, but are not taking them seriously.  People wanted just a superficial relationship with God, not a relationship that would involve any real change of their life.

If we are authentic in our relationship with God, and then with others, that means we are real through and through.  What people see on the outside is exactly what is on the inside of our hearts.  It means we are allowing God to shape our hearts and actions according to His will.  When we are authentic, people see who we really are.

Let me give you an example.  When you see me, what you see is what you get.  I don’t pretend to be something I am not.  In fact, I make my struggles plain for the world to see.  I am a man that makes mistakes and by no means is perfect.  But I do love the Lord, try to serve Him with all I am, give it my best on Sundays and throughout the week.  I will forget things like you do (thank goodness for Diane), but it is not intentional and I feel hurt, pain, remorse, joy and all the rest.  I try to keep it real all the time…in other words, authentic.

It means I am not trying to be something I am not.  Instead, I pursue with passion the thing the Lord is growing me into.

Your Lenten journey will be one where I hope the INSIDE will match up with the OUTSIDE!  I hope your heart will coincide with your actions.  You will discover the more you journey into Lent the easier that becomes.  The more you take off the “masks” and the things that you want people to see and just be the person you are, the more authentic your life will be.

So if you really don’t like someone stop being fake and just go settle it with that person.  You are not fooling anyone by the placating smiles etc.  If you really are struggling with what God is saying, then hit your knees and ask with an open heart for Him to help change your life.  If you are exhausted with putting on “airs” and the rest then take it all off and admit what you really are…a sinner just like me, flawed, but trying to be better.  When you do that, it is then that we can join hands and walk this journey together.  It is then that we become brother and sister forever.

Some people will never want this kind of authenticity.  They will want to judge others, complain and try to “look” good.  However, some will decide life is just too short to live that way.  Some will say it is time to be the person I am and strive with everything I am to live the way God wants me to live.

I hope the latter will be you.  If it is then walk this Lenten walk.  It is a walk that with each step we can and will reach deeper and deeper into whom we are.  It is a walk that, in the end, will make us more authentic, the real deal, genuine through and through.

Now go and live it…inside and out!

See you Sunday to learn how.

Rev. Jim