Lindsay Willis

July 4th and the Kingdom of God

I love living in the US...would not want to live anywhere else (except maybe Vancouver, Canada!).  The US is a great country in so many ways.

But it is not the kingdom of God.  Today, I celebrate the freedom that we have to worship Jesus in our country, but I do not worship our country.

That point was brought home as I read through Daniel this week in our SOAP devotional.  In chapter 2, Kin NNebuchadnezzar had a dream and wanted all the magicians in Babylon to tell him the dream and interpret it.  No one could do it, but Daniel...and only because Daniel sought God for the answer. 

In Daniel's interpretation of the dream, he states the truth so simply.  Here it is from Daniel 2:44 in THE MESSAGE BIBLE: 

 “But throughout the history of these kingdoms, the God of heaven will be building a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will this kingdom ever fall under the domination of another.  In the end it will crush the other kingdoms and finish them off and come through it all standing strong and eternal.”

 

Eugene Peterson, the scholar behind the MESSAGE BIBLE writes in his notes about this passage:

 

“The purpose of the dream was to shift the center of trust from what humans do to what God does.  All human kingdoms are in decline, including your kingdom and mine.  Only what is done for God’s kingdom will last.  And the sooner we shift the center of trust from what we’re doing to what God is doing, the better off we’ll be, both here on earth and hereafter in eternity.”

 

So let's be thankful for our country, but remember that it too is temporal and will fail in the face of the Kingdom of God. 

 

Lovin SOAP

I am really enjoying SOAP right now (not that I don't enjoy it all the time, but these few days are some of my favorites!!).

We are reading Daniel now...and the first 6 chapters of Daniel are some of my favorite in the Bible.  They have leadership lessons, faith lessons, trusting God lessons, lessons on living our convictions, lessons on withstanding persecution....and many more.

Those four kids (Daniel, Shadrach, Meshak, and Abednego) rock my world with their faith!  It inspires me to live a bigger faith life.

If you have not read SOAP recently, now is the time to jump back in!  Reading the BIble is one of the best things we can do to grow in our relationship with Jesus...and that has to be the primary purpose in our lives!

Need I say more?

Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.  (Philippians 3:8)

 

 

What would you do?

I live on my computer...my work life, my church life, and some of my personal life is lived out through my computer.  Email is the primary way I communicate with my clients.  I surf the web to find a lot of information for my clients.  I surf the web to find info for church and for family and friends.  The internet is really important.

But I have not had internet service at home since Wednesday...and I have been on the phone for probably four or five hours with Embarq since Wednesday trying to get them to fix it.

Finally tonight, someone figured out how to "bridge my modem" through my router to get to the internet.  This is two days after they put a new modem in my office.  Why did it take that long for someone to figure this out?

Here's my question...what would you do if you had gone through this?  I am thinking about several things:  1. Calling and asking them to prorate 4 days of my service and take it off my bill or 2.  Canceling my Embarq phone service entirely and switching to Comcast digital voice and internet.  3.  Canceling Embarq and buying an aircard and getting internet via an aircard. 

Any other options I have missed?

What I hate....what I love!

I HATE hot humid weather!  Sorry, if I am not supposed to use the word hate, but I do.  I just don't like feeling hot and sticky and damp.  It is OK if you are a mushroom or something like that, but, as a human, I don't like it.  I do not let it affect my attitude...at least I don't think I do!  Maybe I better ask God about that one...

I LOVE being part of bringing a big vision to pass...and we get to do that being part of River Valley.  I love working with a visionary pastor...one who can see the things that can touch and change people's lives but that do not already exist.  That is why I LOVE being a Kingdom Builder at River Valley. 

Are you part of the Kingdom Builder's team?  If you are, make sure you join us this Thursday night at 6:30 for some great dessert and an inside look at the new space which will be our youth center.  If you are not a Kingdom Builder yet, come and join us.

The Bible is clear...without a vision we wander, or cast off restraint (Proverbs 29:18).  Vision keeps the lines of purpose drawn tight in our lives.  Come Thursday night at 6:30 and let a big vision stir your faith and help us raise the next generation of leaders.

A memorable Sunday

Today is Father's Day...and I get to spend the day with my Father. He will turn 91 in just a few weeks, so every Father's Day I get with him is BIG!  I admire my dad.  He sacrificed a lot for his kids...and he has loved my mom for the past 66 years!  He was always there when I was growing up, giving up promotions so he would not have to travel and be away from his family.  It meant a lot to me for my dad to drive me to school every day and when he dropped me off, give a little kiss on the cheek and tell me he loved me.  When I go visit dad and mom these days, he still always tears up a bit when it is time to day good bye (unless there is a Twins game on...I do realize that I come after the Twins these days!!)

And today is my mom's 87th birthday.  I am so blessed to have both my parents alive late into their lives.  Mom loves to go for drives and to eat out, so we will do that today!  Mom is a special woman.  She has overcome a lot in life...and I love her!  She also was always there when we were growing up...and I am so thankful for her devotion to her kids!

It will be a great day today!  Hope you get a chance to celebrate Father's Day with your dad!!!

The eve of the big tourney

It is 11:10 on Wednesday night and I am catching the last few minutes of the build up to the US Open.  One of the four major golf tournaments this year.  It is no where as good as The Masters, but for several reasons, I am really excited about it.

Tiger is back and is playing GREAT!  I am eager to see what gems he pulls out of his bag!

Phil is playing at a place that loves him...and his wife is battling breast cancer.  THAT will be emotional.

Geoff Ogivly is playing great golf and could give Tiger a real run for his money.

There are several other contenders also:  Jim Furyk, Paul Casey, Angel Cabrera, and Henrik Stenson.   A dark horse is Adam Scott.

What does all of this mean?  I will be a very happy camper this weekend!  If you have never understood why a person could like golf, check into this tournament.  You could get hooked!!