He raised the knife

He sat for just a moment looking longingly at his son. His hopes and dreams all rested on the life that lay before him. He thought of all the days they had walked and talked together, and he remembered the day he was born. The excitement and the unknown possibilities were more than he could imagine. He wasn’t just a good boy. He was a boy whom his father loved dearly. He was a smart boy who helped get the work done, learned quickly, and was extremely helpful. He loved to laugh and could make you laugh, too. Everything about this boy was what every man dreamed for in a son.

Then he raised the knife.

He didn’t just begin to move slowly toward the boy. He raise the knife high over his head with intent to deliver a strong and deadly blow. He hoped to be quick so as to cause no pain for the boy and yet the pain in his own heart was almost too great to bear. He caught a glimpse of the boy’s tears running down his cheek and forced himself to ignore the look of horror in the boy’s eyes. He could scarcely see because of the tears in his own.

Now consider this. We know the end of the story, but when God asked Abraham to sacrifice his sone, Abraham did not know the ending. When he pulled the knife back, he wasn’t looking around for the ram. He didn’t pause at the top and say “God, are you sure about this?” I suspect that his intent was so focused that the rustling in the bushes had to be close by and fearfully startling. Why? Because when he raised the knife, he was prepared to come down with the knife. Abraham loved Isaac, but his devotion to God was greater than his love for his son even though it was contrary to everything he knew and believed to be true in his past and promised for his future.

On this father's day, I ask my self, "Am I willing to sacrifice what God is asking of me?" What is God asking of you? Is He asking you to sacrifice your children, or is He just asking you to stop watching television. Maybe He is just asking you to cancel your cell phone and send the money to a missionary every month. Maybe He is just asking you to quit your job. Maybe He is just asking you to pray with your wife every morning or submit to your husband’s leadership. These things are trivial compared to sacrificing your children, but they are not so trivial in every day life. It also wasn’t trivial when God Almighty held back His power and was willing to watch His own son die to be able to have a relationship with you, and, still, we have a long list of things we can’t give up for Him.

Why not? Are these things so great that being obedient to the Creator pales in comparison? Living with peace in your heart knowing that the God of the universe is pleased with you isn’t worth it? Let’s do a priority check. Let’s take whatever it is and tie it up so tight that it can’t get free again. Don’t look at it and think about how much you want it. Ignore it if it seems to call to you and beg you not to do this. Then raise the knife and don’t look for the ram. God will provide if we obey Him and then we will reach the heights of success.

They did nothing

You can drive around town and see many houses that are sitting unoccupied. Many of these houses look like all the other houses and if didn’t look in the windows and see they were empty, you wouldn’t know it. But some really jump out at you because of the level of degradation that has taken place. The yards look terrible. The weeds are overgrown. Maybe a window shutter is hanging crooked. These are the kind that no one has to tell you that they are abandoned. It’s obvious.

Did someone tear these houses apart? Did someone go during the night and adjust the shutter to hang crooked? No. It just slowly fell apart over time. Why? Because the owner of the house did nothing.

It is the same in life with our minds, our bodies and our souls. Every day is a chance to learn, grow, succeed, change, expand, hone, sharpen. Every activity is chosen to make something different. Did you ever get up and say, “I hope today is boring and that nothing I do today makes a difference”? No. We hope that what we do makes a difference in our lives or in someone else’s life. We go to church to be changed inside or to give worship to God. We go to school to learn and grow partly for knowledge, partly for simple completion of what is expected, or simply to pad our resume for a better job or better pay. But no matter what or why you do it, you are doing it in hopes of some change. The problem is that we walk away from an activity and start thinking about the next one and we don’t let the change happen. We hear a great sermon and then at lunch, the meaningfulness you felt seems to slip away. We study for a test and then let the answers drift to the back of our minds where they get locked away and slowly forgotton. Life goes on and then we forget to let change come even though we made the effort to go seek it out. The problem is that simple change doesn’t occur until you act on it. You mind sees it, hears it, and thinks it’s a good idea. But our habits take over and “normal” life carries us away from the dream that for a moment was reality.

The only bad day you could ever have is one where you do nothing. And after a while, your house will show it. Let’s make a difference today in our own lives or in someone else’s life by acting on those good ideas and dreams. When you realize that there is something in your life that you should do and somehow, you just know in your gut and in your heart that it’s good for you, then go do it. It may not work like you think, but at least you will know. This will start a process of learning about faith and who you are inside that will help you reach the heights of success.

I'm not even driving the boat

Welcome to the Heights of Success. The title of my blog is based on my motto that I have had for many years and struggle to follow each day:

"If I have given God glory today in the things I have done, I have reached the height of success."

This is my first attempt to publicly share my thoughts on life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I find it strange that this pursuit is so difficult and rewarding at the same time. Each day is a blessing and each struggle feels like a curse yet all of these ups and downs come from a desire to reach one final end - fullfillment.

For many years, I have felt like I was driving the boat, but I wasn't sure where I was going. Now, I'm not even driving the boat. I have a new captain. He's trustworthy. Knowledgable. He's sailed these seas many times before and even walked on water.

What you will find here will be irrational. Sometimes seemingly nuts. I don't know where it will lead and what it may mean to you as a reader, but it's real and it feels more real than I've ever felt before.