A 10,000 % Return On My Investment !

A 10,000 % Return On My Investment !

One of the things that my beloved father told me is there no such thing as a ‘sure thing’ here on this earth. This is no doubt due to one simple fact – people are fallible. We make mistakes. Even with the best of intentions we simple ‘mess up’ . No 100% promise or guarantees.

What if I were to tell you that I could get you a 10,000 % return on your investment ? You would probably call the squad and say ‘take Bill away’ or as Jimmy Stewart put it in the movie “It’s A Wonderful Life” “He’s gone off his nut !” . Rest assured that my feet are planted firmly on the ground – the solid rock of Jesus Christ. Listed below is how to get that return on your investment:

Matthew 19:27-30 (New Living Translation)

“ 27 Then Peter said to him, “We’ve given up everything to follow you. What will we get?”
28 Jesus replied, “I assure you that when the world is made new[a] and the Son of Man[b] sits upon his glorious throne, you who have been my followers will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 29 And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much in return and will inherit eternal life. 30 But many who are the greatest now will be least important then, and those who seem least important now will be the greatest then] “

You may have noticed that I was ‘absent’ last week on Facebook. I was feeling very frustrated a week ago Sunday. Wondering why my prayers were not being answered – very much like the line on the Natalie Grant song ‘I Will Not Be Moved’ that goes ‘thou sometimes it feels like my prayers are bouncing off the sky’. I emailed several of my Christian friends. One came back with a awesome suggestion. A technology fast – no posting on Facebook, no job hunting, no emailing, no unnecessary commerce, along with that I expanded that to going to chapel at 7 AM (yes 7 AM) , having radios playing at my apartment 24/7 from the local Christian radio station (104.9 The River) , and listening to online sermons from other pastors (oneplace.com). On Wednesday I expanded it even further to fast lunch.

The world would say ‘your nuts – you can’t stop your job search !’ and ‘how can you survive without Facebook and email ?’ Here’s why:

1 Corinthians 3:19 (New Living Translation)

“19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God. As the Scriptures say,
“He traps the wise
in the snare of their own cleverness.” ‘

I do need to say that I kept in touch with family and a few friends but spent a majority of my time focused on God.

The benefits ? The blessings ? Well as I put it to a good friend of mine ‘it would be like trying to count the grains of sand on the seashore’ – impossible ! But I will list a few:

One is God’s presence. I really mean the presence of Jesus with you. It is truly something that you cannot put into any form of communication know to man. It is so awesome to know he is right there with you !

God focus. Both of my radios have on ‘The River 104.9’ 24/7 – where God’s presence is satan cannot be. Plus I have also listened to some awesome online sermons at oneplace.com. God is really in focus all day – every day !

Giving God my first fruits of the day. Starting each weekday off with chapel has been such a moving experience. Doing this every day reminds us of what all that God has done and is doing and will do for us. Bearing one another’s burdens. Communion. Wow.

Peace about my job search. God has replaced any anxiousness on my part with complete peace. And reassurance that God is moving and working in this area as evidenced by several phone calls. And reminding me of all who area praying for me in regards to this.

Exercise. During the time I normally spend eating lunch, I have decided to go to the driving range. I now have Will going with me as well. The tendonitis that was in my right shoulder is pretty much gone. I am hitting a golf ball better than at any other time in my life which feels great. And I say a quick prayer (aka ‘flare prayer’) before each shot. I feel strength returning to my upper body that I thought I never had.

Losing weight. Yes fasting is not easy. But the benefit is that my stomach is shrinking. I don’t nearly eat as much at dinner. And I am losing weight !

Family. My kids and I are close. I feel that through this I am drawing even closer to them and am praying that I am providing an example of what a Godly father should be like in their lives. I told them that God woke me up to pray for Victoria and Peter at 3 AM the other day and had that confirmed by them – God goose bump kind of stuff for sure !

Friends. Simply put I have received a 10,000 % return on ‘my investment here’ – Ephesians 3:20

Ephesians 3:20 (Today's New International Version)

'20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, '

Do I have all the answers to all my prayers ? No. Is God still working on me ? A resounding YES !

I am continuing fasting lunch for several specific prayer requests. I am going to 7 AM chapel until God blesses me with the job. I am continuing having the radios on all the day for God’s presence at my place. I am hitting the driving range rain or shine to get that exercise.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (New International Version)

‘ 16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. 17For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.’

I am closing with the lyrics and music video for the song ‘Whatever Your’e Doing (Something Heavenly)’ by the group ‘Sanctus Real’ .

Go get your 10,000 % return on your investment – the reward is truly ‘out of this world’ !

“It's time for healing time to move on
It's time to fix what's been broken too long
Time to make right what has been wrong
It's time to find my way to where I belong
There's a wave that's crashing over me
And all I can do is surrender

(Chorus)
Whatever You're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but somehow there's peace
It's hard to surrender to what I can't see
but I'm giving in to something Heavenly

Time for a milestone
Time to begin again
Reevaluate who I really am
Am I doing everything to follow Your will
Or just climbing aimlessly over these hills
So show me what it is You want from me
I give everything I surrender...
To...

(Chorus)

Time to face up
Clean this old house
Find More lyrics at www.sweetslyrics.com
Time to breathe in and let everything out
That I've wanted to say for so many years
Time to release all my held back tears

Whatever You're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but I believe
You're up to something bigger than me
Larger than life something Heavenly

Whatever You're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but now I can see
This is something bigger than me
Larger than life something Heavenly
Something Heavenly

It's time to face up
Clean this old house
Time to breathe in and let everything out “

“How To Bring Sunday And Monday Together” by Rich Nathan

“How To Bring Sunday And Monday Together”

Senior Pastor Rich Nathan asked us yesterday “How many of you wake up on Monday morning and say ‘Thank God it’s Monday !’ ‘I can’t wait to get to work’ ” ? Only those few who are ‘professional ice cream testers’ or ‘ video game testers’ LOL ! Rich stated that most of us who are Christians wake up, put on a pot of coffee, do our devotions, pray, get ready for work and ‘leave Jesus at the door – see you when I get home tonight Jesus’. He state that for those of us who do take Jesus to work that we are in the minority.

The history behind this ‘separation’ started hundred’s of years ago where God or religion was separated from all other aspects of life – the two were never intertwined. There were those who lived the ‘perfect way of life’ such as priests, nuns, and monks, and those who lived the ‘permitted way of life’ such as farmers, laborers, tradesman, and the common man.

According to Rich, the first part of the solution is to ‘Recover the Biblical Message Behind Work’ which contains three aspects of work:

Old Testament – God is a worker. John 5:17 ‘Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working." ‘ and Exodus 34:21 ‘Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest.

Jewish – “Work was life” We are made to be workers and must improve the world around us.

New Testament – Proverbs 22:29 ‘Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will serve before kings; he will not serve before obscure men. ‘ and Paul’s warning against not working from 2 Thessalonians 3:10 ‘For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat." Rich was careful to point out that this does not apply to those of us who are truly seeking employment but cannot find a job.

The second part of the solution is to ‘Recover An Understanding of Vocation’ . The real meaning for the word ‘vocation’, Rich stated, is ‘God’s work through our human work’. The implications of work, according to Rich, are two fold:

Work is a way to respond to God’s call – ‘Am I an instrument of God at work’ ?

Work is a way to love and serve our neighbor

The Hebrew word for work is ‘avod’ and that comes from the word ‘avodah’ which translates to worship – pretty neat huh ?

A personal reflection on this outstanding message:

My parents were the best examples of work and how they enjoyed their jobs (a art teacher & a nurse) for the most part day in and day out. They did not leave Jesus at the door when they left for work – it was evidenced by both of their positive attitude about work, willingness to help others, and I do believe at times they had fun. And having them for examples I have carried Jesus into my jobs – getting a simple thing right at work I would say to myself ‘ Praise The Lord’ or ‘Thank you Jesus’. People knew more from my actions than from the scriptures on my desk that I was a follower of Jesus Christ. At times I faced persecution in one form or another because of my faith– it was during those times that I knew I was truly drawing close to God.

My prayer is that my children have seen this and will do so when they are working – and I can say that I have already seen that in both Will and Victoria. And that others can see that and do so as well.

God is moving in my efforts to secure employment and I eagerly awaiting my new ‘vocation’

So when you go to work don’t leave Jesus at the curb – he didn’t leave you at the cross !

"Carry Me Down" by Demon Hunter

The Christian group Demon Hunter is not all about "screaming" . The lead singer has some awesome vocals as evidenced in quite a few songs - and one that I really like is called "Carry Me Down". There are two versions - both are great - but the one I really like is the piano verson from the film '45 Days' and is available on Itunes.












"...And if you see me losing faith
In what it means to die
Don’t let me leave before I know what lies behind the stained glass doors
Save sorrow for the souls in doubt
Bleed every care out"

I love those lines - do they speak to you of your sharing with other's about Christ before it's too late ?

"So if you see me losing sight
Of all the death in life
You’ll find the peace in every time I failed to see the death in mine"

Romans 6:5-11 says it so well

" 5 Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. 8 And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. 9 We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. 10 When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God. 11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus."


A few weeks before my dad passed away, I asked him directly about his faith in Jesus Christ. I looked directly in his eyes when I asked him "Do you know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Saviou' and dad replied 'Yes' and I could tell, in spite of the brain injury, God was speaking through loud in clear. I had no doubt and that is what carried me through this time.

Take some time to reflect on these thoughts and lyrics and I am sure you will be blessed

"And if you see me losing ground
Don’t be afraid to lie
I know the pain inside my heart can’t break the fear inside of yours
And if you see me losing faith
In what it means to die
Don’t let me leave before I know what lies behind the stained glass doors

Save sorrow for the souls in doubt
Bleed every care out

[Chorus:]
Will you carry me down the aisle that final day
With your tears and cold hands shaking from the weight
When you lower me down beneath that sky of gray
Let the rain fall down and wash away your pain

For every word we never spoke
We have a tear to cry
For every silence like a wall between a better you and I
So if you see me losing sight
Of all the death in life
You’ll find the peace in every time I failed to see the death in mine

Let all the fear inside you drown
Tear out the blade and lay it down
Save sorrow for the souls in doubt
Bleed every care out

[Chorus]

Oh, the blood is rushing out
Oh, I’m better off without
Oh, the walls are closing in
Oh, sing for me again

[Chorus]
(Rain down, oh rain down, no care for the flood)"

August 11, 1954

Yesterday was just another hot, humid day in the city of Pittsburgh. Will, Victoria,Peter and I were thankful for a safe trip, the opportunity to see 'grandma', and have a very nice lunch. But to me, my kids, and a very special 84 year old woman in Munhall, PA it was oh so special. You see it would have been Mom & Dad's 55th wedding anniversary yesterday.










After we ate lunch yesterday, I stopped at Giant Eagle and bought a dozen roses. We went to dad's grave and each laid a rose on it. I said a prayer thanking God for mom and dad's marriage and their love for Jesus Christ. Mom was very touched that we remembered this very special day in all of our lives. None of us were there but none of us would be here if that most blessed occassion did not take place.

After we got back to mom's, I found a vase and placed the remaining roses in it, filled it with water, and placed it right next to mom & dad's wedding picture.















And you know something ? In spite of it being hot, humid, and just plain icky, it was a truly 'Beautiful Day' !

"Life After You"

I listened again to this song off of Daughtry's new CD 'Leave This Town' called 'Life After You' and was very touched by the lyrics - hope you find it a blessing as well.


"Life After You" by Chris Daughtry

"Ten miles from town and I just broke down
Spittin' out smoke on the side of the road
I'm out here alone just tryin' to get home
To tell you I was wrong but you already know
Believe me I won't stop at nothin'
To see you so I've started runnin'

All that I'm after is a life full of laughter
As long as I'm laughing with you
I'm thinkin' that all that still matters is love ever after
After the life we've been through
'Cause I know there's no life after you

Last time we talked, the night that I walked
Burns like an iron in the back of my mind
I must've been high to say you and I
Weren't meant to be and just wasting my time
Oh, why did I ever doubt you?
You know I would die here without you

All that I'm after is a life full of laughter
As long as I'm laughing with you
I'm thinkin' that all that still matters is love ever after
After the life we've been through
'Cause I know there's no life after you

You and I, right or wrong, there's no other one
After this time I spent alone
It's hard to believe that a man with sight could be so blind
Thinkin' 'bout the better times, must've been outta my mind
So I'm runnin' back to tell you

All that I'm after is a life full of laughter
Without you God knows what I'd do

All that I'm after is a life full of laughter
As long as I'm laughing with you
I'm thinkin' that all that still matters is love ever after
After the life we've been through
'Cause I know there's no life after you"

"Keep It Simple Servant"

God laid something on my heart that I want to share with everyone today.

"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matthew 22:36-40 (New International Version)

I am sure you remember the old saying “Keep It Simple Stupid.” ? Well I have put a new “twist” on it and have changed it to “Keep It Simple Servant”. What made me think of this is the attitude that we as humans carry wanting to be perfect without any mistakes – and we all know there was only one who was perfect – Jesus Christ. I think of my dear father who I loved without question – but one thing that drove all of us ‘nuts’ at times was anything he did was always perfect. Artwork such as pottery, drawings, crafts, Christmas decorations (I could write a whole article on how dad used to put on icicles one at a time lol!) , pumpkins at Halloween, and paintings. Cooking and baking – Will, Victoria, and Peter still talk about his lasagna to this day, his cherry delight, his mushroom soup, Hungarian chicken, apricot rolls – on and on. Cleaning and painting – the floors were spotless, almost never any messes, and he was meticulous when he painted with masking and edging – even outside 30 feet off the ground painting the trim over the garage ! Gardening – we always had the best tomatoes season in and season out and some of the most beautiful flowers you would ever want to see.

You could not help but admire his work – dad truly had a gift from God and he lives on in his art work which we are all truly grateful to God for.



I like to think that I or my children don’t have any of those habits but you know the gene pool thing here – I would say though there is a twist for me especially in the past two years. I have experienced pain like never before with the end of my marriage, loss of friends, the loss of the best father a son could ever ask for, the loss of a job after 14 years, and a couple close relationship losses. God has taken me through all of this pain to say that he loves me, cares for me, and has a future for me with a hope.


I don’t ‘drive myself nuts’ over things that do not matter, or when situations or circumstances are out of my control, or setting myself up for failure with setting the bar too high that even an Olympic athlete couldn’t make it over. I do indeed listen to the words of Jesus and how he made it so simple. The teachers were questioning him over the law and Jesus boiled it down to this ‘'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind’ ‘ and ‘'Love your neighbor as yourself.'’ This is why Jesus stated ‘And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven’ Matthew 18:3.

It really is that simple.

So “Keep It Simple Servant”.

'Work' by Jars of Clay

This song has really been speaking volumes to me the past couple of days and I pray it will bless you as well !

Below are the lyrics and a link to a video of Jars of Clay performing this on the 'Logan Show' (Dan Haseltine had a cold but it's still a great performance) and the official music video

"Just in case, I will leave my things packed
So I can run away

I cannot trust these voices I don't have a line of prospects that can give some kind of peace
There is nothing left to cling to that can bring me sweet release
I have no fear of drowning
It's the breathing that's taking all this work

Do you know what I mean when I say, "I don't want to be alone"?
What I mean when I say, "I don't want to be alone"

Empty spaces with shadows hit by streetlights
Warnings signs and weight of tired conversations
In the absence of a shoulder, in the abscess of a thief
On the brink of this destruction, on the eve of bittersweet
Now all the demons look like prophets and I'm living out
Every word they speak, every word they speak

Do you know what I mean when I say, "I don't want to be alone"?
What I mean when I say, "I don't want to be alone"
What I mean when I say, "I don't want to be alone"

Do you know what I mean when I say, "I don't want to be alone"?
What I mean when I say, "I don't want to be alone"
What I mean when I say, "I don't want to be alone"
Alone, alone, I don't want to be alone

I have no fear of drowning
It's the breathing that's taking all this work"