2009 Is Here

There is so much that has happened in 2008 that in ways I am very glad to see it go and there is still a piece of me that is sad to see it go. I am glad to see it go because it held some of my scariest moments in terms of my health in it I was in the hospital for about three weeks in August and also I had a surgery that was kind of a surprise for me. It went from I was going to have the surgery to I was not going to have the surgery because there was no room on the surgery schedule for me to have it, to me actually being told in the morning that I would actually be having the surgery later in the afternoon of that same day. I am sad because this year was a big self realization year for me. I realize a lot of what I want out of life in terms of family and friends. I have also come to realize that there is a lot of need in the world and that there is something that I can do help alleviate some of that need no matter how small it might be. Even if it seems small to me and the person I am helping it may very well be a big deal in our lives. When I started this blog quite some time ago I did it because I wanted to see how a man should measure his life, I am learning that the people that should be measuring a person's life are the people that he touches in his life and the people he leaves behind. I want to make the biggest dent in people's live that I possibly can. I am taking a step to do so real soon. As soon as I take that step I will make sure and write about it here. There is so much to be done in the world that needs to be done that I personally think that we all should look to do our part. I have yet to decide on a new years resolution because they never really seem to work out for me but I think I have decided on one while I have been writing this. 2009 is going to be a year of "doing" for me. There are a lot of things that I have always talked about doing and I think this year I am going to start doing them. Lofty goals and aspirations have never gotten anything done except take up time. I am going to put mine to work for me this year and let them keep me busy. So here's to 2009 and walking the walk

I had a Stroke

Yesterday was a big two week anniversary for me. It was the anniversary of something life changing and something that has left its mark on me forever. Two weeks ago yesterday at 3:34 PM I had a stroke. Over the course of the next two hours it would be the first of at least two strokes that I would have that day. The tests would come to show that the strokes I had that day were not the first ones that I had. There was some damage that was visible in the MRI which is evidence that there was at least one (possibly more) stroke that left its mark on my brain. To make things more interesting the MRI also showed that I had had strokes on both sides of my brain unlike most people who only usually have them on one side. I have had stroke-like symptoms for the last year and a half--though none of the tests has ever shown that I actually had them. I have had several tests done MRI's, EEG's, CT Scans, EKG's, Echos, Sonograms, Ultrasounds, EMG, TEE, and none of them have been able to tell the doctors what was causing my numbness and loss of muscle strength--that is until now. Though it sucks to have had a stroke, now they know what is wrong with me and they can treat it. I am on blood thinners and most likely will be for the rest of my life, and with that comes the weekly blood tests or $20 finger prick to make sure my blood is thin but not to thin. Out of all of this I am more sure today than I was two weeks ago that God has a plan for my life, because what could have disabled me for the rest of my life has indeed left no lasting damage in my body function or brain processes. To not give Him the glory and praise for such a personal miracle would be just silly. He takes care of those who serve Him.

Healing the Body and the Heart

So often throughout the scriptures we see that Jesus had compassion on people. He allowed them to follow Him, and He ministered to them. He allowed them to interrupt Him, and He heard their needs. He allowed them to touch Him and take what they needed. There were times when He just simply spoke the word and the need (whether it was deliverance, healing, or forgiveness) was met. It wasn't His touch that healed their body or met their physical need or quieted their emotional distress, it was His words. There is so much we can do with our words; we can encourage, we can support, we can correct, we can edify and we can heal with our words. Then again there is only so much that we can do with our words; we can only speak them, they might help someone understand the point we are trying to make but they can never demonstrate the point we are making. If I tell you that I support you or that I forgive you, I might quiet your emotions but there is still something instantaneous lacking in our exchange. But if I say those things to you and then I reach for you and hug you, then I have conveyed physically what I have said verbally. When we take the time to touch we put a physical punctuation mark on our verbal statements. For some that touch is what it takes for them to understand what you have been saying. If I told you I loved you but didn't touch you, would you believe me? If I told you were healed or that I had faith your were healed but wouldn't touch you because you were contagious or had sores, would you believe. Sometimes touch is required for people to finally hear what we have been saying. Touch the untouchable. When we do that we do what our words can't--we heal the heart. When Jesus touched people and took time for people He healed their hearts because oftentimes they were the outcasts of society--the untouchables. Who are the untouchables around you? Are you ready to be His hands, to heal hearts?

Matthew 8:1-3--The leper only wanted the words to heal his body, Jesus said the words, touched him (an untouchable) and He healed his heart too.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Mike

Loving the Right Way

I was reading in Philippians chapter one this morning about loving each other. In The Message version of verses 9-11 it says it so well that I am sure I will be thinking about it all morning.

9-11So this is my prayer: that your love will flourish and that you will not only love much but well. Learn to love appropriately. You need to use your head and test your feelings so that your love is sincere and intelligent, not sentimental gush. Live a lover's life, circumspect and exemplary, a life Jesus will be proud of: bountiful in fruits from the soul, making Jesus Christ attractive to all, getting everyone involved in the glory and praise of God.

You know it is great to love people and to be all lovey and stuff like that in church, but is it sincere or is it the sentimental gush that Paul mentions here. I understand what it is saying to use your head and to test your feelings so that the love I share is sincere. Reading that this morning has me going mentally through each of my relationships with people and testing my feelings. Is my love for that person sincere or is it a basket full of sentimental gush? It is truly my heart's desire to be able to say that I love people sincerely and intelligently. I want to be able to say that not only do I love much, but I love well.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Mike

Matthew 18:3 Revisited

I just finished a post with Matthew 18:3. I think it was more of a mind clearing than a post. I needed to get that all out of my head before I could post what I was really thinking on that verse. Here it is in the NIV :3 "Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven." And now in The Message(v2-5): "For an answer Jesus called over a child, whom he stood in the middle of the room, and said, "I'm telling you, once and for all, that unless you return to square one and start over like children, you're not even going to get a look at the kingdom, let alone get in. Whoever becomes simple and elemental again, like this child, will rank high in God's kingdom. What's more, when you receive the childlike on my account, it's the same as receiving me. "

Think of a little child. Innocent. Pure. Trusting. Loyal. Naive. Ignorant. Those last two descriptors aren't meant to be to mean spirited--they are meant to be positive and in the same light as the first two adjectives. The innocence and purity of the whole becoming like a child thing really isn't as hard as it may seem. Dedication, will power and self discipline can all lead to those things if they are applied to our lives. The parts that seem almost unattainable are the trusting, loyalty, naivete, and ignorance. How is that we are supposed to become like a child in these situations. How do you unlearn hurt, pride, anger, and fear? How do you learn to trust when you have been let down so many times before? Beyond that, how do you learn to trust someone and something you can't see? How do you unlearn the outcomes to situations you have played out in your life time and time again? How do you rely on someone to take care of you when you have fended for yourself for so long? These questions are the battleground that has to be crossed before someone can become like a child again.

The Message version breaks it down nicely. It says we have to become "simple and elemental" again. Childhood broken down to its elements. That's tough. I can tell you I would love to be there completely. I would love to be at that point in my life right now. I am ready to resign from being an adult. Just when I think I have reached that point though, something comes up in my life when I feel the need to become the navigator and all mighty in my life again. I feel at times like a hypocrite because it is almost as I know what it says in the Word and I can preach it and believe it for you, but when it comes to me I always miss the mark. It's normal, I know. But I am not one for normal I want to be extraordinary. Really at this point in my life I just want to know God is in charge and be content with it. I want to be able to resist the urge to take control back because I don't feel things are going the right way or going fast enough for me. I want the childlike faith I know exists in me to be the only faith I have and live. Pray for me and I'll pray for you because I know I am not the only one.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Mike

Ignored and Overlooked

Ignored and overlooked. As a kid on the playground none of us wanted to be the last kid picked for the team. None of us wanted to be passed over or passed by. We wanted to be a part of the action that was going on around us. We wanted to be a part of the group--to have something to belong to. We had a need for association. As we have grown up, has this need changed or diminished? Maybe to a degree it has, as we are more selective of the groups that we look to associate ourselves with. Thinking in terms of society, I still can't imagine one of us that wants to belong to a group that either of those two labels applies to. Overlooked for a promotion because of our gender. No that's not good. Ignored in political realms because we don't have a high voter turnout percentage. That's not a good feeling either. How about ignored because we are in prison for committing crime or worse yet crimes. What if I was in prison because I committed the same crime over and over and over and got caught each time--should I be ignored or overlooked? I don't have a job right now because I am sick. What if my life was reduced to holding a sign on the corner because I have exhausted all my other means of support? Would you ignore me because it was my fault? Ignore me because you have your own problems? Overlook me because I am overweight so I must be eating somewhere? One of the things I have heard most from people who have AIDS is that the thing they miss most is being touched. Would you let someone who is sick with AIDS die without being hugged simply because their disease carries a stigma just as big as its death sentence? Overlook them because of what they did to contract the disease? Pretty tough questions. These are roaring through my mind right now. Especially now. I don't have a job. I am not made of nor was I born into money. Yet I have so much more than I need. I have the luxury of deciding what, when and where I will eat. I hear God calling again. I know He is going to move again in my life soon. I feel it.

Matthew 25:37-40 (The Message)"Then those 'sheep' are going to say, 'Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?' Then the King will say, 'I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.'

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Mike

If I am Me...?

Rick Burgess and Bill "Bubba" Bussey host the wildly popular Rick and Bubba Show, a drive-time radio broadcast that originates in Birmingham, Alabama. Animators once made a cartoon out of their two characters and invited Rick and Bubba to provide the voices. Rick was the voice of Rick, and Bubba, the voice of Bubba. Bubba, however, couldn't seem to please his producer. He suggested that Bubba change inflections, volume, and other details. Bubba grew understandably impatient. After all, he was voicing himself. He turned to the producer and objected, "If I am me, how can I mess me up?"--as told in The Cure for the Common Life, by Max Lucado

Take away point:

Be yourself. So many times we are faced with people and circumstances that try and fit us into the molds they want us to be shaped like. We have been called to be who God wants us to be. No one knows us better than us, except for God. As long as we are walking in His direction and following His voice we will be all we ever need to be.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!

Mike

Hearing It Again for the First Time

"The only mistake is not to risk making one"
--Max Lucado, The Cure for a Common Life

Risk is never something that is on top of my list to undertake in a day's time. I never wake up and roll out of bed wondering what risks I am going to take throughout the day. I don't plan risks in my life at all. If anything I try to avoid taking risks at all. If there are risks involved in any of my day to day business, I do my best to manage them. I try to control all of the unknowns and be prepared to deal with any situation that arises from them. The hard part of all this though is that this is not possible with the walk I have decided to take with Jesus Christ. being a disciple and trying to live by what we have been taught often times means following the leader into realms uncharted and unforeseen. It means doing things that often are not in plans I had for the day or even for my life. I often wonder sometimes as I am doing my best to follow the plans that God has for me, how much I would have accomplished for Him and His kingdom had I started followed long ago when I heard the call. I wonder sometimes what I would be like if I had simply flowed with the risks instead of becoming better at managing them. I am learning that one of the good things about following Christ and taking the risks that come with that walk is that failure is almost never an outcome unless I try and take over the lead. He has called us to do His will and accomplish His purpose for our lives, which means that His glory is dependent on our success. If we fail where does His glory come from? If we remain in His will and tuned to His call then, no matter the risk, we can't fail.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Mike

Can You Hear ME Now?!?

This has been an interesting week for me in terms of what God has been teaching me and asking me to do. It is amazing what will happen when you get so frustrated with waiting and you open your mouth to say,, "God whatever it is you want me to do just tell me and I will do it!" Amazing because it brings to life that age old adage about being careful what you wish for, because you just might get it. When you open you mouth like that, it seems that is when God chooses to speak back to you and it is not always what you want to hear. It is almost as if He waits until you are so broke down and there is almost nothing left of you to get in your way and then He moves you. After reading that back to myself, I guess that is a pretty smart plan after all. I mean why use somebody when they are not broke down and there is too much of themselves to get in the way of His plan.

God is calling me in a new direction. It is kind of weird though because it seems like He never really used me in the old direction I felt Him calling me in. It was almost if He was testing me to see if I would or even could hear what He was asking me to do. It must be great to be God. (I will leave that one alone. No need for Lucifer being kicked out of heaven Part II.) In this new direction I am excited and a little intimidated at the same time. I guess that is good because I am excited enough to want to take on the challenge that intimidates me. The funny part of all this was how God had to tell me. He took me into 2 different places in scripture dealing with my new calling. Then a book I received in the mail was all about stepping out and accepting the call that God has placed on our lives. And I guess I was still saying "God are you sure?!?" I picked up a book that I could never get into when it was given to me 2 years ago because I needed something to get me through a 2 hour doctor appointment my mom had. God stepped in again and used this book to speak to me as it dealt with finding and doing what God made you to do for His glory.

I might be a little hard of hearing, but I finally heard Him. And together we will press on.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!

Mike

The Purpose

I am reading through 1 Timothy today. I have a lot of questions that have been going through my mind lately and it seems that God is answering them one by one. This morning these words popped of the page at me: "The purpose of my instruction is that all the Christians there would be filled with a love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a sincere faith." (1Timothy 1:5 NLT) This spoke volumes to my spirit. It confirmed in me a need to preach and teach discipleship. My heart hurts for the people that are saved and then allowed to fall by the wayside and fend for themselves in terms of spiritual development. I know that each person that comes to meet my savior is called to a specific purpose in His kingdom and they need some guidance and help find out exactly what that is. Sometimes people get so concerned with increasing the number on the souls-saved-board, that they allow these new converts to get lost in the new life they have just taken on. Our goal should be to help these new brothers and sisters in Christ "be filled with a love that comes from a pure heart, a clear conscience, and a sincere faith."

Father let me help advance Your kingdom with a pure heart, a clear conscience and a sincere faith in you.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Mike

Measure of Life

I have been struggling with the measurement of life for a while now. This has been kicking around in me since I have started this blog. There are so many ways to measure a person's life in the eyes of the people that lived around them. There are many more ways to measure life even by those people who did not live around the person. The reason this is coming to the forefront of my mind is that I am going to another funeral tomorrow. I didn't know this person, the only definition of this person that I will be able to get is the one that is presented in the eulogy tomorrow. I have heard about people who have written their own eulogies and have even had their memorial services while they were still alive. That to me though is telling people how you wanted to measure up and not how they measured your life. I am not quite sure how I want to be known after I have died. I am not quite certain of the mark that I expect to leave on the world after I am gone. I want to be so many things, but can I be so many things and be good in all of them at the same time? Or will the quality suffer for lack of focus? I do know one thing about my death and memorial service--I want it to be a celebration. I want people to understand that the sadness and grief over death of a loved one is a selfish emotion. Though they are normal emotions, I don't want that to be the focus of the service. I want my service to conclude with a standing ovation of a life well lived and a purpose accomplished. I want people to applaud the fact that my spirit is no longer restricted by time, age and sadness and all of the things that come with them. I want them to celebrate the fact that I have arrived in my final home and I will forever be in the presence of my God, my King and My Father.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!

Mike

Proud Moment

I am not all that close to my extended family. I am now just getting reacquainted with some of them. It is a shame on what I have missed growing up and into my adult life in terms of my paternal side of the family--there are some real great people there. One of the people I am extremely privileged to know is my cousin Dana. I am not the kind of person that lavishes compliments on a person or extends my trust to a person just for the sake of doing so. I do these things after I get to see a person and their life. My cousin has gone through some tough times in life, like most of us she has made some bad decisions along the way. Where some people might forever see those mistakes or the consequences she paid for them as the definition of her life she chose to re-define herself. This past Tuesday, my cousin Dana walked across the stage in a high school gymnasium and received her high school diploma. She went to a school and earned it and just didn't to take the test for a GED. Some might be quick to write that off as no big deal but to me it is. That takes determination and dedication at her age to accomplish that. Some people look at others lives as a measure of their mistakes. I don't anymore. I see that one of the measures of a person's life is the determination to never stop growing and to never stop changing. My cousin proved that when she walked across the stage last Tuesday. I have nothing but respect and admiration for her. It was truly a night I was proud to be associated with that side of my family.



Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!

Mike

A Reminder to Love

This email was sent to me by a friend. It is absolutely a prayer that reminds us to think more like God and see situations and people through His eyes and with His love. I truly believe we come across people and situations in our lives solely for the purpose of adding them to our prayer list or at the very least to pray for them at that moment. I pray that as you read through this, you will be able to identify with it and it will touch you as it did me.

Heavenly Father, Help us remember that the jerk who cut us off in traffic last night is a single mother who worked nine hours that day and is rushing home to cook dinner, help with homework, do the laundry and spend a few precious moments with her children.

Help us to remember that the pierced, tattooed, disinterested young man who can't make change correctly is a worried 19-year-old college student, balancing his apprehension over final exams with his fear of not getting his student loans for next semester.

Remind us, Lord, that the scary looking bum, begging for money in the same spot every day (who really ought to get a job!) is a slave to addictions that we can only imagine in our worst nightmares.

Help us to remember that the old couple walking annoyingly slow through the store aisles and blocking our shopping progress are savoring this moment, knowing that, based on the biopsy report she got back last week, this will be the last year that they go shopping together Heavenly

Father, remind us each day that, of all the gifts you give us, the greatest gift is love. It is not enough to share that love with just those we hold dear. Open our hearts not to just those who are close to us, but to all humanity. Let us be slow to judge and quick to forgive, show patience, empathy and love. Amen.

I am not big on "pass it on" letters, but in this case how can we afford not to remind people to love everyone, not just those we want to? If you send this to 5 people, then you have a chance to touch 5 people. Working for God on earth doesn't pay much......butHis retirement plan is out of this world

Be blessed and Be a blessing!!
Mike Aguilar
Empty Vessel Ministries

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” (Matthew 5:6)

Crazy Kind Of Love

I had the distinct privilege of going out with my best friend and some of her friends this past Saturday night. It was a real cool Hollywood VIP themed part with limo, red carpet, paparazzi and all. I decided these folks are cool as we had attended a wedding with them the previous week. I have known one of here friends for a while and I just met her boyfriend at the wedding. Watching them this past weekend makes me believe in the old saying that "true love is blind." There is a lot that I can say about this and I am already on my way to saying but I don't think I should. All I have to say is that if I ever trip up and find myself in love I want that person to love me the way these folks love each other. No matter what they look like they are the most wanted person in the room. It was a memorable and learning filled experience. That's all I am gonna say. Peace.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!

Mike

Powerful Video Post

I saw this video last night and it was awesome. It is amazing how the arts can be used to minister to people on a completely different level. This is amazing! I hope it ministers to you as much as it did me!

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!

Mike

10 Good Reasons...

I am not a kid person, but there are definite times in my life when I start to feel a little longing to have a little me walking around. I am around my nieces a lot and as much as they can get on my nerves they can correct a thousand wrongs and melt my heart with a smile, a laugh or a nice thing said. Just when I am close to being worn down about my not having kids, I come across this article. It is what it is and I imagine it was written with a tongue in cheek spirit (although I imagine it doesn't have to be taken that way).

Enjoy the article here: 10 Good Reasons You May Not Want to Have Kids!

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Mike

Sign Here

I was a nerd in school. I was a flirt and I loved all of teachers and they loved me. When I was in second grade one of the administrators leaned into my ear and whispered that I was going to be a "lady killer." When I asked her what that meant she told me I would figure it out when I was older. Well I don't know if that ever came true but I was blessed with the gift of charm that has gotten me both into and out of troublesome places. I was thinking back to my school years because it is the favorite time for all adults that live with children in their houses--back to school time. Occasionally my nieces would bring home papers that needed to be signed by their parents--spelling lists, test scores, progress reports, etc. I though that was great because it helps hold the kids accountable for their work and their progress in school. It must be a great feeling to carry home a piece of paper bearing a good test score or a positive progress report home to be signed by your parents. (I wouldn't really know--I forged most of my needed signatures when I was in school.) I can imagine that the paper must be heavy with pride in the backpack and the kid almost unable to contain the excitement and joy they feel as the recipient of such a good thing. Then just as I can imagine the joy I can almost imagine what it would be like to have to drag home a poor test score to be signed by your parents or having to have them sign a note that told of your poor behavior in class. Imagining your parents disappointment in your behavior and then having to receive any discipline that comes with the note that you had to bring home.

What if as adults we had to apply this principle to our discipleship walk. What if we had to take our completed days to God and have Him sign them for us? It would be awesome to be able to show Him your faithfulness and your dedication to the calling He placed on your life. What a great thing to be able to say that you are on track to complete all the tasks He has given you to do in your lifetime. We would be excited then to get God's signature on our days, because we wold know that He would be pleased with us. Now what if the situation was different. What if we had to show God our day and in it there was listed all the times we had the chance to use our gifts or our talents that He gave us and we didn't? What would it feel like if we had to show God all the time we spent being out of His will for our lives or just chose to be disobedient to Him? It wouldn't feel so good then, nor would we be so eager to take our days to Him to be signed off.

Now consider this. We do have to take our days to God and have Him sign them off. Whether it will be a positive experience for us or one that we missed altogether will be dependant on how we live out our days now. When we leave this earth we will be held accountable for the lives we have led on earth while we were here. We will have to answer for all the time we spent out of His will for our lives, for all of our compromises and all of the times we squandered the gifts He placed in our lives to be used for Him. Just the thought of that day pushes me into accountability mode.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Mike

Here is the song that put me into my current thoughtfulness:

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The Beginning of the End

I was on the way to pick up dinner tonight when I saw it. I looked in the rearview mirror and there it was. I had one single solitary white hair in my beard. It is official. I am older than I feel. White hairs are just like ants. Where there is one there is more on the way. I had a good run being young. It was cool while it lasted.

God--The Show Off

"There is a pattern that I see repeated throughout the Scriptures: Sometimes God won't intervene until something is humanly impossible. And he usually does it just in the nick of time." --Mark Patterson, In a Pit With a Lion On a Snowy Day

Isn't that the truth. Doesn't it always seem like God doesn't move in a situation that is rough on you until it seems there is no possible way out. It is almost like being in the deep end of the pool and not knowing how to swim and feeling yourself going under. You have gasped your last breath of air and have just about resigned yourself to the fact that this might be the last breath you will take, and then from no where someone jumps in and saves you. The bible says in Jeremiah that at just the right time God hears our cries for help and reaches down to save us. That is the hard part of this thing called faith. We have to trust that God knows exactly when that right time is. It would seem like the situations that help form our faith are the ones that are the roughest on us; the ones that push us beyond our known limits of endurance without completely breaking us to the point of no return. We come out of those situations with a deeper faith and trust in God than we had before we entered our rough times--that is if we maintain our trust in God and don't give up before we have had the chance to let God be God in our situations. I think the best part of being God must be the ability to show off when ever you want to. He lets us get to the point we are almost at our breaking point and then intervenes and puts everything back in its right place and restores order in our lives. I am Glad I serve a God like that. He allows me to get pushed out of my comfort zone and into situations where I have rely on Him for bigger and bigger intervention so my faith is built up and my relationship and dependence on Him increase.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing!
Mike

Tomorrow Never Comes

Driving home from an appointment today I had a random thought about tomorrow. It never comes. Yesterdays always happen. Another one is added every time we go to sleep and wake up again. It is always today. I am sitting in Starbucks right now waiting for my truck to get its new tires on--today. I am not in Starbucks tomorrow. I may plan to go to Starbucks and write tomorrow, but if I do make it there I will be doing it today again. I never get to work in tomorrow. Every time I am doing something I was going to do tomorrow, it is always today. Maybe that is why the bible says not to worry about tomorrow. Its pointless...it never comes.

Be Blessed and Be a Blessing TODAY!
Mike