Set Your Mind Above

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We mounted some clay pots on our back patio to plant herbs in for the spring. There is just one problem, the birds got to them first. So instead of growing herbs, we will now be playing host to the hatching of baby birds in nests they have made in two of our pots. Well...as I watched these birds, it reminded me of Jesus' reassuring words in the sermon on the mount. Here I watched these little creatures day in and day out find food and shelter, which God constantly provides. We are of so much more value - so won't God also care for us? So long as we seek his kingdom first, the answer to that question is yes. Not yes to all our comforts, but yes to what we truly need. 

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What happened to last weeks podcast? Tune in to find out! Also, we talk about the downtown area of Danville and it's current heavy construction. It's been a huge hastle to everyone, and our once beautiful and quiet downtown is a loud mess. But, it will be worth it, because when they're done it will be more beautiful than ever. Well...all of us are similarly under construction. God is working at chipping away in our lives at the things that need to go. It's not easy, but you know what? It's worth it, because when he's finished we will be more beautiful than ever, resembeling his holiness & righteousness. 

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All of our kids to his point have said dada before mama, and Kylie has been holding out hoping that Finley will say her name first. But ever since last night...Finley has repeatedly said dada. It is the most precious thing in the world when your children finally come to know you and call on you as their dada. Well...have you ever stopped to consider how incredible it is that we can call upon God as "Abba, Father"? We don't just have any relationship with him, we have come to know him and have the most intimate relationship possible with him as his children. 

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Tune in for a special announcement about the direction of this podcast going forward for the rest of the year starting in April! 

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My dog is a little theif - he is constantly stealing our stuff and chewing on it. Most of the time I can fish it away from him, but when he takes it under our bed I just leave it because it's too hard to deal with. Well, I looked under the bed yesterday and, uh, things have piled up. It's so bad. Maybe I shouldn't have let it go so long, and it wouldn't have gotten so bad. Well...the same thing happens when we ignore our anger, it builds up to resentment and becomes a much bigger issue than it ever should have been. We need to do the hard work to deal with our emotions and our anger, and resolve them with others. The status quo is not true peace, not as God defines it. 

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I sat across from a man currently spending some time in jail, but I realized he has been a prisoner for most of his life. He was a victim of abuse from the age of 5 on, a prisoner in his home. He sought freedom through drug use, which of course became it's own prison. Now he sat in literal prison, now seeking the only one who can set him free: Jesus. As I listened to his heart, I heard so much hurt - and I couldn't help but to sympathize with this poor man. Well...hurt people - they hurt. Do we just focus in on the hurt they cause others, or do we try and get to the root of the issue and address their own hurt? Christ saw people as broken, and it moved him to treat them with compassion which led to their repentance. Do we have that same attitude? 

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As we got off our plane to head for home, Kylie and I watched the sweetest reunion between a little girl, no older than 2, and her father at the airport. She ran into his waiting arms, and it moved us to see their love for each other. Well...one day we will have the same kind of homecoming reunion. We will be brought together with those in Christ who have died before us that we miss dearly, but more importantly, we will come home to the waiting arms of our Savior & our Father in heaven. 

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I recently purchased a 1000 piece puzzle from the Ark Encounter, and I finally got the opportunity to start working on it last night. Puzzles are great because each individual piece is unique and have their own picture, but when you put them all together, they make one big picture. Well...Scripture works much the same way. Each of the 66 books are unique and tell their own story. But when you connect them all together, they paint one giant picture of God's redemption of mankind by his love through Jesus. 

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I am not used to having a hypoallergenic dog. Growing up, I had long haired dogs. They shed a ton, but their hair did not get matted. With this puppy we have now, he's had to get shaved down twice now. I thought that brushing him once or twice a week was good enough, but no. He needs daily maintenance. Well...so many of the good gifts that God gives to us require regular maintenance for us to ensure they stay good. Marriage is good, but a good marriage takes a lot of work. Children are good, but raising them right takes so much work. The church is good, but building deep and spiritual relationships takes more than a passing "hello" on a Sunday. God has blessed us with good things, but are we putting in the work to keep them that way? 

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My son is almost three, and he wants to do everything on his own. "No, I do it" is his favorite expression. He came with me the other day to the butcher and it was no exception. He wanted to buckle himself, walk and not ride, help load the cart and unload the cart, etc. What took the most time is when he wanted to button his own jacket - except, there was one problem: he got the top button wrong. Of course when that happens, every subsequent button is off too. So we started from the top and tried again. Well...the same thing goes for our lives spiritually. We have to get first things first. Jesus said the greatest commandment was to love God above all else. Before people. Before anything. Why? It's because if we don't love God first and foremost, we won't be able to love anything else like we should either. If the top one is off, everything else will follow. When we get the top right, everything else will fall into place. 

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