2 Tuesday Prayers

So I have a lot going through my head today being that it is the day we vote on a myriad of issues both locally and nationally. My emotions the past few days have swung from indifference to indignation to fear to worry to carelessness...so basically all over the board.

It is hard for me to swallow some of the things people are saying this election cycle. The vile and hatred we have clothed in some of our arguments is appalling - on both sides of the aisle. We don't all agree and I think it is unreasonable to think that we will ever all agree on everything. The founding fathers didn't agree on everything but they did agree on one thing - God ordained them to do what they were doing. I won't expand my thoughts on that much today because my brain is so scattered it would be like reading a James Joyce novel. I do encourage everyone to read Under God by TobyMac & Michael Tait. It will provide you with an easy read and a great resource to explain just who our founding fathers were and why they established this country.

I voted this morning before work but after going to Man2Man. We vote in Loachapoka...it's ok if you have to read it a couple times to get the pronunciation right. It's a small little town but it's pretty cool. We usually have to wait 5 minutes max to vote there but this morning it was over an hour from the time I got in line to the time I left. I think that's pretty cool. It's about time people stood up and made their voice heard.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous about this election. I feel like the soul of our nation hangs in the balance. I was filled with apprehension when I first got in line, but then it happened. I stopped, took a breath, listened to God, and prayed. I prayed for about an hour, nearly the whole time I was in line. I prayed for the election, for the candidates, for the voters, for people in line around me, for the soldier and his family that walked by headed to the back of the line, for our church, for prayer requests mentioned this morning, for my family, for anything and everything that was weighing on my heart. When I left after turning in my ballot and getting the "I Voted" sticker from the older gentlemen at the door I felt as though a weight was lifted off my shoulders. I left it all up to God. I'm still a little apprehensive about the election, but I'm not losing my mind. I know there's nothing else I can do but pray, and pray I will continue to do. My hope is in God. My faith is in God. My life is in His hands. He knows what we need and he will provide it for us, even if it isn't immediately apparent.

Oh yeah, I also picked up a nice lady, Tina, on my way to work today and gave her a ride a couple miles up the road in rural Macon County. It was totally a God thing. I had no choice but to stop when she waved at me; it was as if I literally couldn't help but stop. She thanked me profusely and we talked for the 3-4 minutes or so she was in the car. We didn't get in depth but it was apparent she's had a difficult life. She moved to Alabama in 1995 from Cleveland. Please pray for her that she would find what she needs, though I don't know what that form that might take. I didn't ask her if she was a Christian. She just said she had to go to the store this morning and was on her way back home and didn't have a ride. Hopefully I saved her a little energy and helped her smile a little bigger today. Those God things can totally take you out of your comfort zone but they are so awesome and so much bigger than we know.

Slow Down

"Oh, I don't want to let go
Of all the things that I know
Are keepin me away from my life.
Oh, I don't want to slow down.
No, I don't want to look around,
But I can't seem to work it out,
So help me God."
--"Slow Down" by Third Day

24Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. 26What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?
--Matthew 16:24-26

For those of you that don't know, I have about a 45 minute drive one way to work each day. During this time I have plenty of opportunities to listen to many different things on the radio or I can switch to a CD. Most mornings I listen to Rick & Bubba and then in the afternoons I listen to Sportscall. This morning after Man2Man at church I didn't really have the urge to listen to Rick & Bubba, nothing against them but something in me just said to listen to the new Third Day CD. My dad and I went to the Music Builds Tour in B'ham last Thursday and he bought the new CD but is letting me borrow it this week. It's awesome and I'm going to have to buy my own copy! So I popped it in and down the road I went.

At Man2Man this morning we talked about Matthew 16:24-26 and how that relates to our daily walk with Christ. One of the topics that kept coming up was how busy we can get going about our lives and how easy that makes it to forget about or ignore God. We can get so caught up in trying to make another dollar or doing that next deal that we think we can handle it on our own. We think we know what's best for us when in fact, God our creator ultimately knows exactly what we need. We need Him.

We have to slow down and let God do His thing. We have to be humble and take the time to listen to what He has to say. I'm not always the best at doing that. I get up early in the morning to go to work and many days I work late. Time is precious when I get home. It's easy to go about my day and feel very frustrated when I go to bed. I'm tired and I don't feel like I've accomplished much. I'm learning that if I just slow down, take a breath, and let God take control I will be in much better shape. It should be a simple thing for us to accept but our sinful nature trips us up. I'm constantly working on letting go and slowing down.

At first I didn't draw a connection between the song and the scripture but after I kept repeating the song it hit me. I think God was saying "you're gonna listen to this song until you hear what it's saying!" At least that's the way it struck me. You might have different thoughts about it.

Man2Man

Today was the first meeting at Cornerstone (our church - www.cornerstonebuzz.org) of Man2Man. What is Man2Man you might ask? It's a new weekly meeting on Tuesday mornings at 6:15 AM of the men in the church and any other men in the community that want to attend. The purpose is to bring men together to uplift them and hold them accountable for subjects and things in life that are uniquely....well, men stuff. There will be a brief message from the Bible and somebody will share a real life story each week then we'll break up into smaller groups for discussion and wrap up with prayer. Oh yeah, breakfast, juice, and coffee are included for free!

We had an awesome story and testimony today from Mark Fuller and Josh Agerton (Pastor of Connections - www.joshagerton.com) gave a brief message on The Armor of God from Ephesians 6:10-18. Any guys in the Auburn-Opelika area that might read this I strongly encourage you to attend. I truly believe God has ordained these meetings and lives will be changed.