Today’s a new day! This crazy/beautiful journey is not about me. It’s not to show you how strong I am, for my strength comes from God. It’s not to show you how great my faith is, for my faith is a gift from God…exactly at the time I need it. Anything you see in me that is good is not of my doing… it’s from Heaven. ~OC
When Christians Disagree About Politics
The past few years, we have seen how politics has divided America. All you have to do is tune into a talk show, watch the news or scroll through social media. Politics have sadly brought out the worst in some people. What is even more heartbreaking is how politics have divided some in the Church. A place where we should be united as become divided by today’s politics. So how can the Church work through this political division and be united? Here are a few thoughts.
Republicans and Democrats can be Christians. I have been amazed how some people question your faith based on your political party. I personally do not belong to any political party. I gave up my party affiliation before the last election. It is okay for Christians to be involved in politics, but their political party cannot be more important than their relationship with God. When Christians become more concerned about who’s in the White House than who their neighbor is, that becomes a dangerous and slippery slope.
Arguing about your political beliefs does not make you a better Christian. That only means they enjoy arguing. We need to look past our political differences and love our neighbors the way God commands us. Even if they have a different political opinion.
Admit when your political party is wrong. Guess what? Republicans and Democrats are not perfect. I know, your favorite political cable news show wants you to think they are, but their not. So do not be afraid to step up and admit when your favorite candidate messes up.
Take time to talk. I encourage everyone to reach out to those with different political beliefs and talk. Not argue. Not debate. Just talk. I promise, you will walk away realizing you have more in common than you think.
Living out our faith. My heart has been broken hearing how the current political landscape has ended friendships. How politics have driven some people from the Church. I am not sure how we got to this point in American politics, but it truly saddens me. I have a lot of friends on both sides of the political aisle and I respect their right to vote for their candidate. Even if I disagree with that candidate. I have had some serious conversations with friends at church who vote and believe differently than I do. I do not pass judgement. We have respectful conversations. Because at the end of the day, I am more concerned about serving God and others, than I am about who wins an election.
As Christians, we should make the choice to rise above partisan politics. We can still have our opinions. We can still vote our conscience. But it is time we work together to unite this country. Our words and actions should model the teachings of God and not mock them. ~OC
The Hands And Feet Of Jesus
As I continue to walk through this crazy beautiful health journey, I have been blessed to see those around me be the hands and feet of Jesus. It has been a wonderful experience to see God’s people actually living out His teachings.
Several years ago, I had to stop driving. My health got to a point where driving was a dangerous undertaking. I could not put other people or myself in danger. This was not an easy decision. Part of my freedom was taken away. It also put a lot of pressure on my wife. She had to take on the role of being my chauffeur. That is a huge job with all of my medical appointments. So for a number of years, Laura would drop me off at my treatments/appointments and pick me up afterwards. So basically, she had to work around my schedule. Then last year, Laura and I joined a Bible Study at our church. During one of the gatherings, Laura mentioned my treatment/medical appointments schedule to a one of the lady’s at the study. Without missing a beat, this young lady shared the group could help out with rides to treatments and doctor appointments. She asked Laura to send her my schedule and she would put together a team to take and pick me up from my appointments. And she did! Within a few days, people from our Bible Study had signed up for all the time slots. Laura and I were blown away. So for the past year, people have been signing up to take me to my treatments. What a huge relive and blessing that has been for my wife and I.
That is just one blessing from our amazing small group at church. Our Bible Study includes dinner before the study. The group always has extra food to send us home with, so Laura does not have to worry about cooking. What a beautiful blessing that has been for Laura. A simple act that has meant so much to us. Laura and I have been so blessed by this amazing group of people. Our small group has become our family. So blessed.
So how can each of us become the hands and feet of Jesus? Here are just a few ways we can help serve others.
Rides. Who in your circle might need rides to medical appointments, grocery store or mall? Take the time to find out and help set up a schedule.
Meal Train. Who in your circle might benefit from having meals delivered to their home. That new family to the neighborhood, that family with a new baby, that family dealing with some medical issues.
Mission Trip. Step out of your comfort zone and go on a mission trip. You can start off with a short-term mission trip and work yourself up to a long-term trip.
Volunteer. I guarantee you there are endless possibilities to serve in your community. Take the time to research and find out where you can serve.
Brown Bag. Make some lunches or dinner for the homeless people you pass by every day. That simple act could make a huge difference in someone’s life.
Hygiene Kit. Put together some hygiene kits to pass out to the homeless.
Gift Cards. Buy some gift cards and pass those out to a single parent, college student or homeless person.
Visitation. Take time to visit a person at the hospital, treatment center or the person who is homebound. I can tell you from my own personal experience, visits mean so much. I have some friends who just sit with me during my treatments and hospital stays. It makes a huge difference.
Prayer. We can all pray. Never underestimate the power of prayer. Join the prayer team at your place of worship.
These are just a few ways we can be the hands and feet of Jesus. There are so many more. I encourage each of us to find a way to serve others in our community. ~OC
Never About Me
As I continue to walk through this crazy beautiful health journey, I pray my journey will continue to encourage others to never give up. Even when the race gets overwhelming, people will inspired by my journey. But more importantly, I pray people will realize that whatever strength and insight I have comes from God. Only through God can I continue to walk through this marathon called life. Anything good you see in me comes from God. He is the one who has turned my health journey into a crazy beautiful adventure. I pray this journey never becomes about me. ~OC
God Is Bigger Than…..
As we walk through this crazy beautiful journey, remember God is bigger than…
Our Fears
Our Disappointments
Our Health Issues
Our Failures
Our Enemies
Our Relationships
Our Jobs
Our Social Media Pages
Our Successes
Our Churches
Our Standing In The World
Jesus Looks Past Our Messiness
Even in the middle of our mess, Jesus sees the beauty. ~OC
Living Wholeheartedly
What is keeping us from living the complete life? I know that is a big question, with many potential answers. But God designed each of us to live a complete whole life.
Here are a few things, I believe can help us live out the life God created for each of us.
A New Chapter. Too many of us are living in the past. We continue to relive past disappointments. Past failures. Or sometimes we live in past successes. We all know someone, who is eager to tell us about winning the 5th grade all county championship thirty years ago. Don’t get me wrong, we should celebrate past successes. We should learn from past mistakes. But we cannot live in the past. The great thing is, we have the opportunity to start a new chapter each morning. So close the chapter on your past and start writing a new one.
Worthy. Has anyone told you lately you are worthy? That you are important. No matter your past, God finds you worthy. He sent his Son down from heaven to die for us. I think that proves how worthy we are in God’s eyes.
Comfort Zone. I believe to live the whole life that God created for us, we have to step out of our comfort zones. We have to be willing to take some chances in life. God designed us to be creative. To be adventurous. We cannot truly experience life, if we stay in our nice comfortable zones.
Labels. Stop wearing the labels the world puts on us. How many people continue to wear the labels put on them as a child? Not smart enough. Too short. Too weird. Too heavy. Too tall. Your from the wrong side of the tracks. So many people continue to wear these labels into adulthood. Today, I encourage you to take those labels off. Trash them. You are more than a label. You were created by a loving God to live an incredible life. To Dream. To Succeed. To Thrive.
Courage. It will take courage to start feeling Worthy. It will take courage to step out of your Comfort Zone. It will take courage to take off the Labels you have been wearing for years. But I promise you it will be worth it.
Today, I encourage each of us to think about these four points. To start living the incredible life, God has created us to live. Will you make a commitment to living wholeheartedly? ~OC
What Is Your Calling?
If someone were to asked you what was your calling in life, would you be able to answer that question? Would you even know what the person was talking about? Answering the question of what is your calling in life is a pretty big deal. Nothing to take lightly. So what is a Calling?
According to the dictionary, a Calling is a vocation, profession, or trade; a call or summons; a strong impulse or inclination. A pretty simple definition, but a life changing decision we all make at some point in our lives.
As a Christian, I believe God has called each of us to live a life of serving Him and others. Of course that is going to look different for each of us. Some will be called into full-time ministry. Others will be called to serve in their given profession. I believe God has a specific role for each of us that will use our unique gifts, talents, experiences and connections.
As most of you know, I am a former long-distance runner. I ran cross country in high school, a little running in college, but had not run in years when I felt God calling me to start running again in 2003. Oh, did I mention that God shared that calling with me while I was having open-heart surgery to remove a nasty tumor from my chest? It would have been very easy for me to dismiss this calling as way too much anesthesia. I mean really, who has a vision of running marathons while having life-threatening surgery? But several days after surgery, I still felt that calling on my life. I could not escape it. So five months after major surgery, I went on my first run in years. Answering that call changed my life in so many ways. Let me share just a few.
When I heard God calling me to start running marathons, I also heard him share that I was not going to be running just to run. No, I would be running to share God’s story in my life. How He was walking me through this crazy beautiful journey. Of course back in 2004 when I started running again, I had no clue this health journey would last this long. I am thankful for that. As I started running marathons, I felt God calling me to run for those who could not run themselves. My wife Laura started making shirts with the names of people I was running for. It became a topic of discussion at my races. People asked me questions about the shirts and why I was running. During those discussions, I was able to share not only about the names on the shirts, but I was able to share my faith.
During my running career, I was diagnosed with Young-Onset Parkinson’s. All the sudden, I was the cancer survivor and Parkinson’s patient running marathons. Then God woke me up on New Year’s Day in 2008 and called me to run a 1,000 miles in one year. Crazy I know. But with that calling came request for interviews and speaking engagements. More opportunities to share my faith with a larger audience. That was an amazing season of life.
The call to running saved my life. Really OC? How could running save your life? I am glad you asked. When my body started shutting down in March 2009, the prognosis was not great. Some medical staff were not sure if I would make it through the night. But of course I did. Then I made it through the month. Then I made it through the year. And ten years later I am still here. Almost all of my medical team shared I survived because I was in such great physical shape from running. That running had also made me mentally tough.
I often think back to 2003, when I felt God calling me to run marathons. What if I would have decided to ignore that calling? How different would my life be today? Even though I am no longer able to physically run, I still love running. I love talking about it, reading books on running, talking with other runners and coaching runners. Ten years after having to give up running, I still have the mentality of a runner. I believe my faith and my running mentality have kept me alive and thriving.
So how can you find your calling in life? Here are a few ways I found helpful.
Prayer. Being in prayer helps us discern God’s calling on our lives. If you are confused about the calling on your life, spend more time in prayer. God will make things clear. Never stop praying.
Obedience. Are you willing to follow through with the calling on your life, even when it forces you out of your comfort zone?
Trust. You may not understand the calling on your life at first. Others may tell you it’s crazy. I got some weird looks and responses when I told people God had called me to run marathons. Do not listen to the doubters. Keep your eyes on God and trust Him for guidance and direction.
What is God calling you to today? I pray that God will guide your steps as you seek His calling in your life. ~OC
Dear God
Dear God, today allow me to live with….
Love>Hate
Grace>Judgement
Forgiveness >Unforgiveness
Truth>Culture
Faith>Fear
Present>Past
~OC
The Blessed Overcomer 