A Fancy Road Map ~

It has been a busy week thus far. Something seems to be going on at every turn. I am not complaining though and I continue to look for Jesus in everything and everywhere I am going. Tomorrow I am headed out early to head down to Anderson SC for UNLEASH. Its an awesome church conference with thousands of folks coming to learn and share experiences with other leaders in church from across the country. They even had some folks from England last year so I am thrilled to be going again. I will be attending the break out sessions for the Childrens Ministry as well as the Pastoral Care ministry. I am excited to learn as much as I can about these 2 areas that God is stretching me in and teaching me in. My mind will be on overload for a few days afterwards as I digest all that I will be learning and applying in my life and in the ministry areas in our church. Can't wait!!!!

I wanted to talk a little about a neat little device that I got to see and play with first hand while on the road to Charleston last week. For some this may be old school but for me, who never travels far from where I don't know where I am going, I just don't have a need for one of these fancy gadgets. I know a few people are laughing right now because of this ~ That is ok but let me share something ... A few times this little gadget had us going on circles and had us going on squares. Yes I said, squires. Leaving the hotel in Charleston, we actually made a square and went back to the hotel. We were looking for a place to eat in downtown Charleston and we had the address in and it was confused....and so were we! Out on the open road, this thing told us travel time, distance traveled, feet to the next turn, travel speed and who knows what else. The only thing it needs for it to be helpful to us - is a place to go. It needs to have a destination in mind.

That is so much like our walk with Jesus. Heaven is our destination. The road we travel across our lives leads us hopefully if we have taken the right roads is heaven. It is easy to get lost, it is easy to get heaven lost in the fog and desires of this world, that heaven seems to be a far off thing. It is something most people never give much thought to until they reach the end of their life or they get that phone call and life changes on a dime. The bible is our GPS - it is our instruction book that God has left us on living our lives and building a relationship with Jesus. Marriage, money, relationships, desires, purpose, raising our children etc... - its all in there. Those things have not changed over time even though so much has changed in other areas - like distractions, TV, Internet etc..... The bible, like our GPS, is our direction in life to keep us on the road, to remind us where we are going and to keep our eyes on our destination. Without it, we get lost among the twisted windy overpasses of life and may end up in a place that we don't have any idea how we got there. Making that big square that leads us back to the same place again and again ....... if your life is in this pattern loved ones or you just seem to be aimlessy roaming through life - get your GPS Bible out and get some directions. Guys, that means you too and we know how we are with directions!

So no matter where you have come from, what road you have traveled or in what direction life has taken you - God has some words He has left for us to keep us on our destination (Heaven).. this is from my quiet time this morning:

Ephesians 2:

You're no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You're no longer strangers or outsiders. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone. God is building a home. He's using us all—irrespective of how we got here—in what he is building. He used the apostles and prophets for the foundation. Now he's using you, fitting you in brick by brick, stone by stone, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone that holds all the parts together. We see it taking shape day after day—a holy temple built by God, all of us built into it, a temple in which God is quite at home.

Love you all,

Lonnie~