Today is an important milestone in my book writing career. I hope you don’t mind the indulgence, but I wanted to share it with you.

I received the news a couple weeks ago that I will be represented by one of the top literary agents in the world (details to follow). For those who understand the book writing world, they know what a blessing this is.

There is a Catch-22 in getting your book in print because to get a literary agent you need to have a publisher ready to contract your book. Quality agents are so backed up with their existing clients they have little to no room to take on new writers. You need to come to them with something already in the bag.

Unfortunately; to get a publisher to even look at your book, you need an agent. There lies the rub. It can make it an almost impossible task, and it’s why writers can get so frustrated with the process.

Fortunately, there are writer’s conferences available which allow you at least a rickety bridge to cross over the chasm. It’s here where you get to present your ideas and credentials in person to editors and agents.

I attended my first Mount Hermon Christian Writer’s Conference a year and a half ago at the bequest of talented writer Shawn Grady. Shawn had been attending my Bible study and encouraged me to join him.

At this time, I had my hands full operating my advertising agency and traveling around the country working on documentaries. Still, when I learned Shawn was getting published, the familiar stirring to get back to writing books was palpable.

After he fended off several dozen reasons from me why it wouldn’t work with my life, busyness, budget and schedule, I relented and joined him.

Everything changed.

One step into a room full of writers, editors and publishers reminded me of the dream I had since my teens. Having written three books before the age of 22, I was back home again. These are my people. This is what God intended me to do.

It took eighteen months, reading dozens of writing books, hours late at night at the computer developing plots, characters and prose and many proposal revisions to get me where I’m at now.

Which is merely at the beginning of an exciting new journey.

I hope you accompany me as I will intersperse my “Real Life. Real God.” Blog writings with some journal entries of how the process is moving forward.

Additionally, today I’m launching my new writer’s website at http://www.michaelkreynolds.com. I’d love to get your feedback.

As it is true. A writer is incomplete without a reader.

One of the few benefits in this stumbling economy is that we all get cut a little slack.

Three years ago, if our business was failing, we were a foolhardy entrepreneur. If we were laid off from work, we were a bad employee. If we were unable to pay our mortgage we were reckless.

Nowadays, those of us who are struggling are able to blame the economy and get somewhat of a pass. It’s because misery has plenty of company.

But, if most of us are honest with ourselves, we’ll realize the difficult economy didn’t cause the problem. It merely exposed the problem. We were all living above our pay grade.

I have a saying that I wish was more tongue-in-cheek than reality:

We’re all broke. It’s just some of us spend more than others. 

As Paul the Apostle would say, I am chief among sinners. We moved into our home over a decade ago just before real estate values exploded. In a short period of time, our home increased in worth by 225%.

We banked on the ascent never ceasing and we kept spending as if we were rail barons. We invested our equity in many good things including allowing my wife to be a stay-at-home mom, investing in our marketing agency and allowing our children to participate in many extra-curricular activities.

I live in the state of Nevada, which has the ignoble distinction of having the highest unemployment rate as well as the sharpest drops in property value. A large percentage of homeowners in our community are not only underwater with their mortgages, they are 20,000 leagues beneath the sea. 

If our family had made the decision back in the boom to live more within our means, the bust would have had little effect on us. Instead, we based our living style on unsustainable assumptions.

We are not alone.

In the business world there is a term called “downsizing” which describes what happens when companies do layoffs and trim their budgets. It used to be associated with some degree of failure, but almost every company has had to do this of recent, merely to survive.

The business world has come up with a euphemism for “downsizing” which is “rightsizing.” It’s a much more pleasant way of saying you’re simply making proper adjustments to your spending.

This concept of rightsizing transfers perfectly into our personal lives. What is the rightsize for us? The biblical answer is it’s whatever God provides for us. This is the essence of contentment.

Scripture teaches frequently on the concept of rightsizing in our personal lives:

⁶ But godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷ For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. ⁸ But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. ⁹ (1 Tim 6:6-9)

Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread.  (Pro 30:8)

5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” (Heb 13:5)

12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength. (Phi 4:12-13)

31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matt 6:31-34)

Our biggest shortfalling is that we struggle with the word “need.” We begin to shift too many “wants” into the “needs” column. When Jesus spoke of his provision for the sparrows and the lillies of the fields, he didn’t mention flat screen televisions and ultimate driving machines.

For many of us who have gone through the stresses of the past few years, it is hard to argue with these words of wisdom from Proverbs:

Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife. (Pro 17:1)

Rightsizing is not only about our home budgets. It’s also about how we spend our time. What it comes down to is are we on God’s agenda, or our own? If we’re on His plan, one thing is for certain. It will be sufficiently funded.

My friend shared, it’s about “not having what we want, but wanting what we have.”

Are there areas in your life that could use some rightsizing? If not, why not gather the family together and work on it together?

What suggestions do you have for leading a life full of the joy of contentment?

How do we know God is really there? Is He listening to us? Does He truly care about me?

For most of us, we rely heavily on circumstantial evidence to answer these questions. We measure His worth through the blessings He shares in our life. If our bank account is hefty, we’re feeling safe and in control. If our children are healthy, we feel He’s answering our prayers. If our marriage is strong, we’re feeling loved by Him.

The obverse of this is when we are going through times of difficulty. We get frustrated and discouraged. Our spirits sag and we lose sleep at night. If we’re honest, it gets hard for us to praise God. We begin to question if He is really there at all.

The result of this mentality is a faith that wavers with the wind. Our enthusiasm for God becomes tethered to the stock market, our job situation and the opinions others hold about us. 

I own an advertising agency and once had a client who ran what seemed to be a thriving business. Curious to learn some of the reasons for her success I would often ask her why things are going so well. Her answer would almost always be the same. “I guess God just loves me.” Her smile and ebullience were so infectious that I didn’t challenge her theology at the time. I wish I did.

A year later, I opened the newspaper to see her featured in a headlined story. The “successful” entrepreneur had been arrested for embezzlement and was accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from her customers. Unable to face her accusers, she had turned fugitive.

Sadly, I never got the chance to follow up with her and share an important message: “God still loves you.”

The blessings of the world are not a measure of the degree of God’s love for us. Similarly, the challenges we face are not a clear indication that God is withholding his favor.

The true victory in our life is that Jesus died on the cross, and for those of us who believe in him, our sins have been forgiven. We will live forever in His presence.

If our attitudes shift with the circumstances of life, it’s an indication that we’re losing our grip on the big picture.

When it comes to our relationship with God, we need to learn to focus less on His “presents” and more on His “presence” in our life.

In fact, nothing demonstrates our faith more convincingly to those around us than joy in the midst of adversity.

Are we letting the worries of the world bring us down and in the process diluting our witness?

Or, even in the midst of great storms, are we continuing to fill our sails with the hope and glory of God’s plan?

There was a time in my life when I was always right.

I was fruit which hadn’t fallen far from the tree. Our family dinners resembled more of an English parliamentary debate than a special time for relationship building. We were all mouth and no ears when it came to our arguments, but at least in the end, each of us were always right.

None of us were still speaking with each other by the time it came to washing dishes. But that was okay. Winning was everything.

This disease of always been right (as I would later learn it to be) blossomed into complete relational dysfunctionality as I grew older. I had many acquaintences, but few friends.

Of course, the perfect job for someone who is always right is a business consultant. So I started an advertising agency, acquired a partner, and promptly began to poison the relationship. But, at least I was always right.

When my partner decided he had enough of me, he left and we went through the process of resolving the finances and things got ugly. Fortunately, as we are both Believers, we agreed to settle this through Christian mediation hosted by an organization called Peacemaker Ministries. Their mission is to assist Christians in resolving conflict in a Biblical manner.

When I showed up for our meeting, I came with reams of documents, well developed accusations and memorized stories to support my argument. All together it provided bulletproof evidence proving…once again…I was completely right.

As it turned out, God had a different agenda. We started off in prayer and read some Bible passages about forgiveness and conflict resolution and almost immediately I experienced the Spirit moving and my ice cold heart began to melt.

There I sat before my stack of papers and carefully prepared notes of defense while a powerful thought came over me, catching me off guard. 

I may be wrong.

I tried to bat it away as a fly from my ear, but it continued to persist. Finally, I succumbed to the pressure and silently asked God to reveal to me exactly where He might be under the impression I was wrong.

Oh my. Did things unravel at that point. Rather than one wrong, he revealed to me in a scrolling of memories, dozens of wrongs I had committed on my partner and his family.

Overwhelmed with sorrow, I began to bawl uncontrollably, and sought forgiveness for each of my shortcomings. Anger. Jealousy. Selfishness. Arrogance. Self-Deception. Gossip. And the list kept going.

My partner stared at me in complete shock of how this proud, arrogant, man was falling to pieces before him and he responded with compassion and forgiveness.

When I finally finished one hour later, I was emotionally spent. Yet, I felt an unbelievable sense of relief and peace like nothing I had felt before. God had removed a burden I was carrying awkwardly on my shoulders through my entire life.

I left this encounter humbled, broken and realizing that I had been wrong for most of my life. I wanted to seek forgiveness from everyone.

In a matter of an hour, God completely changed me. For months following this people would ask, “What’s happened to you?” It healed relationships in my marriage, family, business and with my friends.

Since that time, many years ago, God has continued to work with a sharp chisel on this hardened invidual and in His mercy, He continues to chip away at the arrogance, self-deceit and selfishness which sadly remains part of who I am.

But through this process, He has left me with a profound relational gift. Before I rise to anger, jump to hasty conclusions, or dig my heels in the ground, I try to always consider something important.

I may be wrong.

This has made all of the difference. I think it can make a difference in your life. Of course, I may be wrong.

How about you? Have you ever experienced the power of humility and forgiveness in your relationships?

“How do I change my life?”

Few topics have reaped more of a financial windfall than this foundational premise behind the self-help industry. The merchants of this commercial empire use talk shows, books, audio tapes and videos to tout radical insights in how people can change their lives to fulfill their greatest desires.

Most of the time, when we pursue these short lived efforts it results in having us throw up our arms in despair. Even worse, it may result in actual change which merely directs us more resolutely down a false pathway. Now, it takes us much longer to realize we’ve put all of our eggs into the wrong basket.

Why? Because at the core, the problem is that we can neither trust nor easily change our desires.

For example:

On The Surface: We’ll tell ourselves we want more quality time with our kids.
At The Core: Time after time, we find ourselves sitting in front of the television rather than playing with our children in the backyard.

On The Surface: We say we want a more intimate, communicative relationship with our spouse.
At The Core: When we do have time together, we are easily bored, agitated and negative.

On The Surface: We say we want to remove the stress of finances.
At The Core: We continue to spend unwisely, increasing debt and digging ourselves a deeper hole.

There is a reason why this problem persists, and it’s one, surprisingly, that can be gleaned by observing methamphetamine addiction. 

I have been blessed to produce a series of documentaries titled, Crystal Darkness, which have been seen by more than 10 million people across the country and beyond. They document the destructive power of meth on its users.

This is a drug carefully engineered to draw its victims into its deadly web. Meanwhile, in the background it quietly destroys those areas in the brain center which control good desires such as maternal instinct, healthy living, family time, and relationship building. Instead, it replaces these God-given pursuits with an unnatural craving for the drug. 

The design is as brilliant as it is wicked. All desire for the good things in life is replaced with a deadly attraction to the poison of the drug. 

Sadly, the way meth operates is just an accelerated version of what goes on in our lives every day. Our drug of choice is the many corrupting forces (the Bible refers to these as “idols”) we allow in our lives. Pride. Selfishness. Gossip. Lust. Gluttony. Greed.

As we continue to make bad decisions in our lives, we fail to realize that our choices are actually changing us for the worse in the process. We reach out for more and more poison.

So how do we get out of this destructive cycle? The answer is it requires divine intervention.

Jesus teaches this when he spoke to the Church of Ephesus in the Book of Revelation. He said:

“You have forgotten your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen. Repent and do the things you did at first.” Revelation 2:4b-5b.

We are incapable of making lasting, transforming change on our own because we have traded away cheaply the God-given drive to pursue that which is pure, righteous, and life-building.

Our intent for radical and renewing change must begin with a fervent request for God to hit the “Reset Button” on our inner desires. In essence, to return them to manufacturer’s specifications. We must willingly return to the “First Love” of our life.

How do we do this? You can do this on your own, or, if applicable, gather the family together and follow Jesus’ instructions: 

1. Repent. Pray for forgiveness for putting things in front of what God wills for you.
2. Cleanse. Ask God to help you and your family remove the desire for the idols in your life.
3. Re-Commit. Make the radical changes to your calendar, activities and checkbook to reflect this new commitment.

Because this is such a difficult process, plan on having to go through this cycle repeatedly as God works in your life. But, you’ll experience powerful results right away.

One of the greatest gifts God provides for us daily is this opportunity to hit the “Reset Button” on our lives and to make significant change for the better. But, the Bible teaches us, it’s not an an offer that will last forever.

Why not make today the day real change begins to occur in your life?

Just enjoyed a three-day rafting trip on the Eel River in Northern California, and like most outdoor enthusiasts I’m experiencing a short memory. Fading in the background are the miseries of icy rain, trying to set up tents in 60 mile-per-hour gusts and the ensuing strains of mild hyperthermia. Our five-raft, two-kayak entourage was alone on the river for reasons the weather made obvious. 

Left in my mind are the glorious visions of green rolling hills, a plethora of waterfalls, the adrenaline rush of Class 3’s and a Class 4, and the lulling pleasures of a Mark Twainesque journey. And then, of course, was the Ghost Train. 

Accompanying us along the entire 53-mile stretch of the river we traveled was one of the most magnificent railroad tracks you’ll ever see. Beautiful trellises, architecturally elegant bridges and stone carved rail tunnels highlighted this engineering marvel.

At the turn of the 20^th century, the launching of this passageway to the coast for the Northwestern Pacific Railroad must have drawn spirited parades, grand ribbon cutting ceremonies and was surely the pride and hope of so many communities linked together. 

Yet, today, all that is left is twisted, rusty rails, broken bridge ways, and dilapidated rail cars, discarded as rubbish down the embankments of the river. So beautiful is this once proud rail line, that there remains an attractive quality in the debris, like an old Hollywood icon still resisting the tyrannies of age.

Still, I couldn’t help but to see the tragic parallels of the lives so many of us lead. We put so much time, effort and faith into constructing the things that will exist merely for a brief glimmer on the timeline of eternity. We sacrifice our families, our relationships and we drain our limited time allotment in misguided pursuits which lead to those achievements which will surely rust and tarnish.

As I laid in my tent those nights of the trip, the writer’s imagination within yearned to hear the sound of the train whistle once again. When I peered outside would I see the majestic iron horse circling the canyon, with the translucent faces of its passengers visible through the windows? Would I see the conductor as a glowing apparition, working cheerfully on a timeless journey?   

No. Instead, the evening was met with silence, save the whispers of the river.

I left my rafting trip with a new commitment to stop investing my most precious resources in the Ghost Trains of life. 

I couldn’t wait to embrace my children, invest more earnestly in honoring my wife with my time and attention and to commit to asking God daily, “What shall you have me do?”

There is much to do in our time here. But, the Ghost Train reminded me once again to build with the vision of the Master Carpenter in the hearts of others and to store my treasures in a place where neither moth nor rust destroy.

One of the amazing things about God is He teaches you in such unique ways and through the most unexpected teachers. My men’s Bible study learned this firsthand when we were joined about six months ago by a 68-year-old man name Ben.

Ben became a part of our group right after spending his prior three decades in federal prison. He was introduced to us by a Pastor in prison ministry who was concerned about Ben’s transition to the outside world and wanted our group of men to support him through the process. We embraced the challenge, looking forward to sharing our wisdom as Ben began his new life.

What we didn’t know is that God brought us Ben in order to teach us all some important life lessons.

Early on, we discovered that Ben fashioned himself to be one of the world’s finest shoe shiners and he soon reported to us he landed a position in one of the local resorts.

As he would describe his job, his warm brown eyes would light up and with an overflowing smile he would shake his head, look up and say, “I love to shoe shine. I love to shoe shine.”

Wanting to support him, and curious to learn more about the source of his joy, we all decided to visit him separately at his workplace. When each of us recalled our experiences with Ben’s services, we all had similar stories to share.

He was always excited to see us. “You sit yourself down here,” Ben would say as he would lead us to his chair. “This is your time to relax.” 

Then in the next fifteen to twenty minutes, there would be a whirr of arms and hands as he would work on our shoes, constantly swapping out a variety of cleaners, dyes and polishes. Finally, he would grab a polishing rag tightly in each hand and with a skill mastered over many years; he would bring a mirror-like shine to a pair of shoes you thought were long left for dead.

In fact, he’s brought youth back to many of my forgotten footwear, those which were too worn to use, but too beloved to abandon.

But what makes Ben’s occupation so special is that it’s also his ministry. You see, when you sit down to enjoy his shoe shining artistry, you are also going to get a heavy dose of God. And not just for his friends. It doesn’t matter how young, old, rich or poor you might be. If you’re sitting in Ben’s chair, you’re going to hear about his Lord and Savior. And the way Ben shares his stories, his love of Jesus shines as brightly as the shoes you’re wearing. 

In our Bible study, most of us were shamed by Ben’s example. We used to gather weekly to complain to God and each other about our jobs, clients, bosses, wages and finances. No more. Because of Ben, we’re embracing our God-given talents and occupations. We now realize our workplace provides us with a wealth of opportunities to share our faith. And it all starts with a joyful spirit.

 We love to shoe shine.

 One of the most studied passages of the Bible depicts the temptation of Jesus Christ (Matt 4:1-11). After fasting for 40 days and nights in the desert, Jesus is tested by Satan, who offers him food, wealth and power. The traditional teaching portrays this as an example of Jesus resisting temptation when he was at the weakest, most vulnerable point in his nascent ministry.

But was Jesus really at his weakest?

In reality, he was isolated from the distractions and influence of the world, and reliant upon God the Father. Can we not learn from this how to rely on God’s strength and not our own?

When Christians talk about “going through the desert of life” they often equate it with being at their lowest of lows. It’s common to hear people speak of how they are experiencing “the life of Jobe.”

“It was when my marriage failed.”
“Right after I lost my job.”
“When my mother passed away.”
“When my drug addiction hit rock bottom.” 

Many share this as the time they first made a decision for Christ. 

But is this their weakest point? Or is this instead a time of great opportunity of needing to rely on God’s strength?

If we’re to judge merely by our circumstances—our checking account, our career failures or times when we are treated unfairly by others—we are indeed in the valleys of life. But isn’t this the world’s standards? Aren’t these the same times we’re most dependent upon God?

The Bible is replete with stories of how this works in real life, and the Book of Judges may provide the clearest example. During this time of history, when things looked bleak for the Israelites they would repent and appeal to the heavens for relief. Time after time, God in his mercy would restore their faith and provide blessings. Unfortunately, time after time, they would quickly lose their focus on God and the nation would again find itself in a Spiritual ditch. And the cycle would continue. 

If we’re honest, isn’t this the same history of our personal faith? When times are tough, we freely reach our hand up in desperation for God. However; as our circumstances improve, we soon retreat back to our old ways of being self-dependent and detached. 

What can we learn from this? There are two important lessons:

There’s Strength In The Desert
No one enjoys experiencing difficulties in life. Pain hurts. But if we can somehow embrace these times as an opportunity to develop a more intimate, healing relationship with God, we will demonstrate a faith which will shine brightly for others. We will also clearly find His strength and solace in the midst of our greatest challenges.

Desperate For God In Times of Plenty
On the other hand, in times of plenty, our prayer life shouldn’t be altered because of a shifting in our external circumstances. Being blessed should never fade our zeal and reliance upon the One who blesses us. In fact, we must learn from the experience of the Israelites in Judges and know that we are most fragile and susceptible to Satan’s tempations when times are good. We are most vulnerable when we’re operating under our own power. Does your prayer life change at all when times are good, or do you come to the Savior each morning desperate for His presence in your life?

Everybody loves a good oasis in life. But understanding and appreciating that there’s strength in the desert will radically change our faith.

Remember your wedding day? With a few notable exceptions, most will describe the weeks before, during and after the ceremony as one of the most exciting times of their lives.

But, then what happened? Where went the passion, excitement and adventure of it all? Is marriage destined to have the shelf life of a loaf of bread, growing stale and moldy as each day passes?

Contrary to the persuasions of the world, it’s not wrinkles, stretch marks and bald spots that wear down the joy. It’s what’s referred to as “The Drift.” This is a phenomenon where day by day and year by year, we slowly drift apart, trending back toward the life of selfishness and loneliness we were accustomed to prior to getting married.

Although Christians would like to believe that going to church and listening to uplifting sermons on the radio will cure them of “The Drift,” the startling divorce statistics among people of faith would sadly counter this argument.

Yes…we must never forget the biggest key is that God must be at the center of a healthy marriage. As we learn in Ecclesiastes 4:12 “a threefold cord is not easily broken.” It’s God that gives the strength in the union of a man and a woman. And without Him at the core of your marriage, it may be temporarily functional, but it will always lack divine purpose.

Yet, scripture also teaches us in Proverbs 29:18 “without vision the people perish.” The Hebrew behind “vision” is also translated in some versions as “revelation” which collectively means this vision is more about seeking God’s plan. The word “perish” refers to a “lack of constraint” as well as “death” and without this understanding of your marriage purpose, there will be fissures and great injury to the relationship.

The solution to all of this is to make a commitment to devoting time and prayer to discover the “Shared Vision” of your marriage. This might be challenging and require a tissue box or two, but the results will have a dramatic impact on strengthening your marriage.

Being a Christian can’t be an excuse for being lazy in your relationship. It’s takes daily attention, nurturing and roll up your sleeves type of work. The results of this effort are tremendous; however, and will bless your marriage and positively impact generations to come.

So why not take a “Marriage Vision Retreat” with your spouse and make a commitment to aligning your plans and dreams. I firmly believe it can be the most important day in the best year of your life.

As far as materials to help lead you through this, there is none better than Jimmy Evans’ The Mountaintop of Marriage: A Vision Retreat Guidebook For Couples. You can find it on the ministry’s official website at www.marriagetoday.org. It’s a small, well designed booklet that will guide you through the process of working on the vision for your marriage.

Ideally, you would purchase the guidebook, plan for a weekend away, and be clear of all distractions so you can make some real progress. But, don’t let materials or time get in the way of accomplishing the task. You can keep it as simple as picking a day this weekend to carve alone time with your spouse. With a sharp pencil and a pad of paper in hand, answer together the following questions:

 What’s our vision for:

 Our Faith
How do we grow closer as individuals, a couple and a family in our relationship to God?

Our Marriage
In what areas would we like to work together to improve our relationship?

Our Family
Where we would like to focus our teaching, discipline and encourgagement for each of our children? How can our relationships be improved with our in-laws and grandchildren?

Our Finances
What changes do we need to make to reduce the stress and challenges of keeping up with the bills? What kind of budget can we keep up with? What kind of saving should we be doing?

Our Future
What long term goals do we have as a couple? What should we begin to do today to lay the foundation for the future?

A Quick Word of Caution:
These are all challenging and multi-layered questions. You will really need to be in prayer leading up to this time, during and after. Many of the issues you’ll be addressing have been hidden under the carpet for quite some time. Some may cause pain and discomfort to discuss. Don’t start by flinging your bodies on the hand grenade issues. Ease yourself in with the easier topics and take a break or pass by those issues which are too difficult. You can return to them again at a better time.

Strength In Fellowship
You might consider working on doing this in tandem with another couple or a few couples. If you know and respect a couple who you feel have a strong marriage and could provide support, ask them to participate. If things become very challenging, talk to your pastor or agree to visit a marriage counselor.

We just hosted an event at our church and more than 40 couples participated. It was a great day of worship, prayer, teaching and vision planning with couples. You might see if your church is interested in hosting an event. However; the key to the success of the event was that we set up quite a bit of one-on-one time for each of the couples. The most important business will be between you, yourself and God.

Don’t Delay!
It’s highly recommended that you don’t put off the effort to make this happen. A much stronger marriage and a “Shared Vision” are close at hand. Even for the sturdiest, most Godly marriages, having a “Marriage Vision Retreat” at least once a year will be a tremendous blessing to you and all of your family.

Christians really have the unique ability to drive people nuts. Most other folks of faith are pretty good about keeping to themselves and staying out of other people’s business. But the same can’t be said of us Holy Rolling, Bible Thumpers.

The reality is there truly is a diamond hidden amongst all of that bothersome coal, and if you can somehow get past our many shortcomings, you’ll discover our hearts are in the right place.

So before you give up on us completely, here are a few helpful things you should know about Christians.

Yes…Most Of Us Are Fake
If you see a guy wearing a Coca Cola shirt, don’t assume he works for the company. Anybody can wear a shirt, few are the real thing. The same holds true for us. So many people will claim to be a Christian, but very few are really “followers of Christ.” What’s the big difference? Well…one is someone who is merely using the title for convenience and to be part of the club, while the other is really committed to changing their life in a major way.

 …And Heavily Flawed
If it wasn’t hard enough to have to identify real “followers of Christ,” here is some more bad news. Even the “Christ followers” are a messed up bunch as a whole. Just know that if we were perfect, we wouldn’t need the fixing that Jesus Christ offers us in the first place. When we give our lives to Christ we are forgiven, but it takes all of a lifetime to become more like Christ. We’ll need your patience.   

 …And Confused
Anyone who tells you they understand each and every facet of the Bible and their Christian faith is a heretic and when you hear this you should start boiling the water. The truth is that the Truth is very complicated.  After hundreds of years of research and study to rely upon, even the greatest Biblical scholars still disagree over some of the finer details of the faith. Yet, what is clear is that when you begin to study the Bible, the major truths become quickly apparent and the more you learn, the more you want to share it with others.

…And Pushy
Probably one of the biggest complaints about “followers of Christ” is that we are so pushy. I mean, why can’t we just keep our beliefs to ourselves? Well here is the answer. We imagine ourselves as if we’re on a river leading to a beautiful lake that we’ll be able to enjoy for all eternity. We want all of the people we love to be there with us. Across the way, we see friends and family going down a separate river that we believe with all our hearts is headed for a terrible waterfall that will spell their doom. We understand that we must look like complete loons as we’re waving frantically and shouting from the distance for you to get out of the boat before it’s too late. But you should be flattered that we’re willing to sacrifice whatever fragments of our dignity we have left for your benefit. More concerning to you should be those “Christians” who would calmly wave from abroad and whisper, “Enjoy your trip, my friend”

 Who Can You Trust?
So with all of that compelling evidence as to why we should be ignored altogether here is a suggestion for your consideration. When it comes to really learning about who Jesus Christ is, try to seek out those Christians who are humble, encouraging to others, quick to forgive and slow to anger. Yes. I know we’re talking about needles in the haystack. But when you do find these unique individuals who have a peace and quiet confidence to them, try to figure out what makes them unique and special. The answer to that question could very well radically change your life.