We seek to tie ourselves to—at least what we perceive to be—a solid, tangible, long-term source of income. Since it’s May, here’s an example: Whenever we encounter a high school graduate, we always inquire about their college plans or to hear their life plan. What we are trained to ask them and how we have trained them to answer is based on this underlying question: So, what will the source of your life be? We then mentally deem their school choice or career plan worthy or not, based on that answer. We never say it, but we’re all thinking it.

My wife and I have discipled couples that made the spiritual decision to have less stuff, but more life. More time, less crazy. I’ve never not seen someone be blessed by that leap of faith. Testing and proving that God is indeed the Source and Provider when you feel a spiritual conviction to change, or a calling that you can’t ignore any longer, can be amazingly freeing. But for a captive to be free, he has to walk out of the cell when the door is unlocked.

I have seen this truth for myself over the past year of how God will actually do what He promises when we place ourselves in the position for Him to respond on our behalf. It’s funny how that works—a truth is true, but we must place ourselves in the position of faith to activate that truth and see it for ourselves. The truth has to become true personally—for me, for you. The child believes Dad will catch him if he jumps, but the child has to decide if he can jump.

Regardless of who writes your paycheck, do you perceive God to be your Source? Is there anyone in your life that you view as your source? Your employer? Your wife’s employer? Your trust fund? 401K? You and your bootstraps?

Last year, I had a good friend tell me this: “All your life God has been writing your checks, even though employers, banks, and locations have changed.” Regardless of the details of our situation, where we are, or where we’re going, it is crucial that, at some point, each of us understand that all our water is coming from the same source, regardless of the label on the bottle.

Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth.
He made the things we can see
and the things we can’t see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. He existed before anything else,
and he holds all creation together. —Colossians 1:15-17 NLT

We have never been more tethered in today’s world, yet ironically, never more disconnected. We have multiple communication devices and platforms, yet we’re disengaged in personal contact. Telling the world about our lives, while hiding our hearts.

Here’s a few questions to consider:

—How accessible are you?

—What do people have to do to reach you?

—Are you—for lack of a better term—engage-able?

—How are you filtering who reaches you and doesn’t?

—Where is that filter coming from or motivated by?

We must honestly evaluate how we are engaging the world and being perceived. And, as believers, evaluate how we are impacting people’s lives for the Kingdom.

Of course, we can’t take every phone call, respond to every email when it comes, or have a conversation with every person we encounter. But, honestly, that isn’t the issue, is it? We stay behind the gun, because we weren’t available last week when the initial connection was made.

So, is there an answer? . . . There’s always an answer, but they’re rarely easy and always take work.

Here’s some expanded questions from before. Take some time and think them through:

1—Who am I immediately accessible to and why? What size is that circle? Should it be bigger or smaller? Are the people I love really in my accessible circle?

2—Am I in control of my communication and connection or is it in control of me? Do I have too many devices and platforms for me to keep up with? What should go?

3—If God wanted to speak to me today, what would He have to do to get my attention?

Now, here’s a few practical suggestions:

1—Make a list of who should be in your circle of accessibility, then make a list of who is actually in your circle. Decide how you’ll balance what you find.

2—Sit your family down, beg them to be honest, and ask them to tell you if they feel you are available and accessible? Engaged? Maybe offer them to share on a scale of 1 to 10. Don’t be defensive. Take the info and make changes. That’s the point of asking.

3—Do the same exercise with your friends.

4—You may need to do this exercise in your work environment, especially if you are in any level of management, and particularly if you’re the CEO.

5—The last and final suggestion—and this one is tough—lay your communication devices and media platforms, such as your Facebook page, on the altar and ask God what He would have you do to balance your life with His will? Ask Him what you should do to become more accessible to Him.

If God has full access to you, you will impact who you’re supposed to, when you should.

The Spirit, not content to flit around on the surface, dives into the depths of God, and brings out what God planned all along. Who ever knows what you’re thinking and planning except you yourself? The same with God—except that he not only knows what he’s thinking, but he lets us in on it. —1 Corinthians 2:10 MSG

Now, I’m not writing about cancer here, but how the cancer has already changed his perspective and outlook on life and priorities. He said the past few years that his business had boomed, mainly due to one large account, and he and his wife bought some land and began to fill the American Dream Toy Box. You know, the stuff everyone says, “If we ever have money, I want one of those.” Funny how “those” always multiplies once we start the buying.

He said the problem was they got caught in a vicious cycle of acquiring stuff, the stuff needed maintenance, and cost more money, so they worked harder and then they had no time to enjoy any of it. We talked about how so many of us as Americans really want to “own,” but not necessarily “use,“ because the owning eats up all the time, and oddly, seems to satisfy us. The stuff becomes like trophies displayed—impressive, but useless.

My friend said that after the diagnosis, he and his wife talked over priorities, and started selling the stuff. Oh, and somewhere in all that, the big account got pulled too. 95% of his business—gone with a single phone call. He said now, he and his wife want to downsize, simplify, enjoy life, and experience things together—like weekend road trips and time with good friends.

He said he gets up every morning and prays, “Lord, thanks for another day I had and this one to come. Help me to do what You want me to today.” He said he won’t miss his stuff, he’s realized money isn’t that important, and just wants to slow down and enjoy the days God gives him. He no longer wants to miss life, just because it’s flying by him too fast.

I want to tell you, if you met my friend, you would never meet a better, more generous, more kind-hearted man than him. And he loves God. To be honest, I really don’t see this friend a lot, but anytime I do, within minutes we are talking, not about the weather or sports or stuff, but about the Lord. I love friends like that—more now than ever.

Here’s what I took away from my time with him and some questions I know he would want you to think on too. . . . If you were diagnosed with cancer today, what would be on your list of things to go? What stuff wouldn’t matter anymore? What would need to be added to your life that isn’t there now? What would matter to you? And where would God be on your new priority list?

Why not answer those questions and start that journey before there’s a diagnosis?

We are such funny creatures that we will be busy about things that we know, deep in our hearts, really don’t matter, but somehow we might feel better about the insanity if we can do it just one more day.

I also realized my friend is finding life—that real, abundant life Jesus spoke of—because he has now seen death. It showed up in his body and on an x-ray. But God is busy producing life in his heart and spirit that is truly contagious and will spread farther and deeper than any cancer. The doctors say his tumor is shrinking. And I can tell you his spirit is growing. The same Healer is doing both.

Think about those questions, okay? And let me repeat what I say here a lot: If you’re still breathing, you can change.

What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes. —Matthew 6:31-34 MSG

Let’s look at three distinct groups of Christian men in relation to work.

1—”DON’T ASK, DON’T TELL” CHRISTIAN

This man decides that, regardless of what he does for a living, his faith will have no impact on his job. Doesn’t talk about it, just ignores it, and makes it a private thing. It’s okay if co-workers find out he goes to church, because that’s socially acceptable.

The issue then becomes a violation of the very nature of being a Christian and also discounts literally hundreds of Scripture passages like being an ambassador of reconciliation, fisher of men, son and servant of Christ, a city set on a hill, on and on. But it doesn’t stop men from acting like they’re not a Christian for one-third of their weekdays. The bigger issue with this is does this guy really turn his faith on when he goes home? When he hangs out with his friends?

2—CONVENIENCE CHRISTIAN

This man sees faith and church as a ticket to situational morality and the faith community. He needs it, he flips the switch, talks the language, makes the sale. Faith goes back up the sleeve for the next game. When he doesn’t need it or it could get in the way? Switch is off. Like the “don’t ask, don’t tell” guy, church is socially acceptable, so that’s the only place where faith enters life anyway—Sunday for an hour or so.

3—AUTHENTIC CHRISTIAN

This man views faith as a 24/7 undeniable part of who he is. His faith forms his identity. It permeates and impacts all areas, including work. He desires to be an influence and a witness for Christ. He knows he’s not perfect, but even how he deals with his mistakes reflects God’s grace and humility. Work, family, friends, church—all the same man. All the same faith. All the same Lord.

Which man are you? If deep in your soul, you know you aren’t a 3, here’s the great news. Any 1 or 2 can become a 3. It’s a decision away.

Here’s the strange flip though . . . a 3 can become a 1 or a 2. It rarely happens overnight. It usually takes some time. If your 3 status is slipping, maybe you’re already a 2.5, heading toward 2 or 1, turn around and head back. Please. Why?

The world is changed by 3s. And we need more 3s. We need you.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you. Then I will teach your ways to rebels,
and they will return to you. Forgive me for shedding blood, O God who saves; then I will joyfully sing of your forgiveness. Unseal my lips, O Lord,
that my mouth may praise you. You do not desire a sacrifice, or I would offer one. You do not want a burnt offering. The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. —Psalm 51:12-17a NLT

Near the end of the event, I began to have men, young and old, come up and thank me for my teaching, but many added “thank you for being available” and “thank you for being accessible to us.” On one hand, I was encouraged that it made a difference, while on the other, saddened they had ever experienced anything else. These men made it clear that, over the years, many of the speakers had chosen to be inaccessible. But guess where the ministry is? With the crowd, yes, but equally important, with the one. Check this out and then we’ll get to the point.

Crowd . . . Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom . . . among the people. —Matthew 4:23

One . . .  Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night . . . —John 3:1-2a

Crowd . . .When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching. —Matthew 7:28


One . . .  Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour. When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her . . . —John 4:6b-7a

In our crazy, busy, “I just don’t have enough time” world, one of the greatest ministries we can have today is simply being accessible and available—to the crowd and to the one. “So are you saying we should we be available to just anyone?” Of course not. But the real question today is, are you accessible and available to the people that God wants you to be?

Even though I am free of the demands and expectations of everyone, I have voluntarily become a servant to any and all in order to reach a wide range of people: religious, nonreligious, meticulous moralists, loose-living immoralists, the defeated, the demoralized—whoever. I didn’t take on their way of life. I kept my bearings in Christ—but I entered their world and tried to experience things from their point of view. I’ve become just about every sort of servant there is in my attempts to lead those I meet into a God-saved life. I did all this because of the Message. I didn’t just want to talk about it; I wanted to be in on it! —Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 MSG

The first battle—Garden of Eden

“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. … When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened . . .  Genesis 3:4, 6-7a NIV

Incredibly bad news for the brotherhood of man. In our first battle with the enemy, and as a son and soldier of God, we lost, not because we didn’t fight hard enough, but simply by not lifting a finger.

Through the centuries, this battle still rages. Daily, we’re all both casualties and accomplices. We make choices to continue the compliance, complacency, and cowardice of the First Adam. (1 Corinthians 15:45)

The second battle—Garden of Gethsemane

Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” … Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.” —Mark 14:32, 35-36 NIV

Believing that Jesus was all God, yet all man—God’s Spirit contained in the human form of flesh—the God in Jesus knew the man in Jesus had to fight this battle, to once again face the enemy, but win. Eden revisited. This explains the deep struggle in which we see and hear Jesus engaged in Mark 14 above. Jesus had to show us the battle can be won and the key will always lie in His prayer and plea, “Abba, father, everything is possible for you.”

Jesus won by lifting Himself up, thereby gaining back all that was taken away in the first garden. The Second Adam redeeming the loss of the First Adam.

As we re-visit the Crucifixion and the Resurrection, let us come away knowing that we can die to the First Adam and be raised anew in the Second Adam, facing our seemingly-endless battles, yet again knowing, we can win, only because “Abba, father, everything is possible for you.”

Yes, for you, brother!

 If you even remotely know the story of David and Bathsheba, this is all the intro you need to recall where it goes. If you’ve been around church much at all when this passage is taught, you have likely heard the valid point made, “David stayed back home at the palace when he should have been off at war like the other kings.” And, yes, that is a true and quite logical statement. Now, when we read this Scripture and hear that point made, we typically think things like, “What was he thinking?” “Was he looking for trouble?” “Could he have been more stupid?” I want to share two thoughts with you to bring this closer to home for us.

 1—The above passage says it was “in the spring.” Well, it’s springtime now. Try some of these modern twists of this passage on for size to see if you’re leaning at all towards David’s dilemma.

 In the spring, at the time when men work in the yard and clean out the garage . . .

In the spring, at the time when men play with their kids out in the yard . . .

In the spring, at the time when men start to take walks with their wives . . .

In the spring, at the time when men plan their vacations . . .

There’s a few examples. Write your own sentence. Fill in your own blanks. If you are heading into spring thinking about blowing off the war, snoozing, and walking on the roof—so to speak—why not take a lesson from David? It’s time to be where we’re supposed to be, doing what we’re supposed to be doing, fighting our own war.

2—This is only my opinion, but I believe David had been there, done that, and he was bored. Bored with war. Bored with riding off with the troops. Bored with besieging. I don’t know if he was struggling with depression or not, but after all, he got up out of bed “one evening,” which in Biblical translation means late afternoon, which is why he could see Bathsheba. As guys, it doesn’t matter how cool or awesome our life may look to someone else, when we get bored with the same ol’ same ol ‘, that is when the opportunity for trouble is in our face.

So, whether you’re an Indy car driver or a Wal-Mart greeter, if you’re a guy, you can get tired of routine and monotony. So, are you? . . . Uninspired? Unchallenged? Unempassioned? Tired of it all? . . . What are you going to do about it? How will you re-engage? Re-energize? Re-prioritize? If you don’t, you might just end up on a roof and you know the rest of that story. We all do. So get a plan. Talk to someone. Be pro-active about changing life. Be the king of your war!

Where are you supposed to be fighting? Where are you the king and your people need you to get off the roof and rule? Where are you walking around where you don’t need to be, just checking out the sights?

Do whatever it takes to breathe new life. Get off the roof and back in the war. Your people need you. We need you.

Here is a snapshot to prove it . . .

1 + 1 = 2.

X + 3 – 8 + Y = 25.

Degree = 126 hours.

4.25% X 30 years.

Child X 21 years = $295,000.

Tax rate = 25% — (deductions)

Retirement = $2,250 + ($225,000 at 5% X 15)

Death = $8500

We spend our entire lives trying desperately to add and multiply, while the world is working subtraction and division against us—even at death. Now let’s take a look at math from a spiritual, eternal perspective.

And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. —Acts 2:47 NIV 

“Yes,” said Jesus, “and you won’t regret it. No one who has sacrificed home, spouse, brothers and sisters, parents, children—whatever—will lose out. It will all come back multiplied many times over in your lifetime. And then the bonus of eternal life!” —Luke 18:29-30 MSG 

Thus says the Lord: Stand in the court of the Lord’s house [Jeremiah] and speak to all [the people of] the cities of Judah who come to worship in the Lord’s house all the words that I command you to speak to them; subtract not a word. —Jeremiah 26:2 AMP

But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. —1 Corinthians 12:24 NIV

In Christ’s family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, slave and free, male and female. Among us you are all equal. That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. —Galatians 3:28 MSG

Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you. —Deuteronomy 4:2 NIV

When we look at spiritual math and simplify it, God is adding and multiplying, while the enemy is subtracting and dividing. That’s why it’s called a battle.

As a Christian man, subtraction and division aren’t worth your time and energy. Doesn’t get you gold and silver in Eternity. Identify where you’re involved with that math and drop out.

Calculate your life right now. Where are you adding? And I’m not talking about the bank account or the golf score. But to people. To the Kingdom. To Heaven.

Where are you multiplying the gifts that the Lord has given you? Where are you sowing into His Kingdom to see it multiplied by Him?

                       Subtract. Divide. Satan. Stop. End.

Add. Multiply. Jesus. You. Now.

Will we take a decision too lightly, make it hastily without enough info, and then regret it for years? Or stress, worry, and lose sleep for a week, struggling over a crossroads? Point A or B, the lady or the tiger, champion or chump, success or failure. It’s one of our toughest jobs as men, especially when our family and others’ lives are riding on what we do.

Here’s some thoughts and questions to hopefully help you and lighten the load at your next crisis. Or your current one.

~Has God already given you the answer?

Is it an issue written in His Word where His will is already laid out for you? There are literally thousands of commands, precepts, and principles of how to live. Knowing God’s Word can also bring many of our answers to life. I teach this principle constantly: God will never compromise His Word for you, but He will always customize His Word for you. You can’t ever be the exception to His rule, but He will show you exactly how each verse fits your life and how it applies—to you.

Has He taught you a lesson in the past, or even disciplined you, and your current situation is similar to that? God loves us enough to often work in patterns in our lives, so we can determine when it is He at work. Watch for those patterns and learn Him. He already knows you, so He’s constantly giving you a trail to Him. That can help greatly in finding your way to a decision. Your past and God’s presence can bring His light into your future.

~Has God already made provision for what you are asking?

I had a friend years ago who asked to meet with me to discuss whether or not he should step out into a new ministry. He wasn’t questioning the call, as much as the faith to step out, especially with the finances. I heard him out and then asked, “Didn’t a relative leave you a sizable trust fund a few years back?” he said, “Yeah, but we use that for things like a new car or remodeling the kitchen.” I asked, “So, you don’t think God gave you any of that to finance His ministry?” . . . Case closed. It really wasn’t an answer, just a new perspective. Maybe you don’t really need an answer to a problem, but a new perspective on the already-provided answer.

~Why would God not want you to do it?

Isn’t it funny how we so often ask God if we should do something? So, we assume a position of inactivity until we sense permission for activity. Wonder if God ever gets fired up by the guy who says, “I’m charging the hill, Lord! Stop me if I’m not supposed to!” . . . I am not advocating being a loose cannon for Jesus and I’m certainly not talking about an issue of sin, but just asking if there could be times in your life when God is wanting you to move forward in faith, you just need to give Him authority over your steps. Walking is simply a repeated pattern of the same movement. God is plenty big to stop your next step, if He wants. But what if you start walking and He yells, “Run, son!” That’s exactly why, too often, we won’t start walking at all.

The very steps we take come from God; otherwise how would we know where we’re going? —Proverbs 20:24 MSG

We plan the way we want to live, but only God makes us able to live it. —Proverbs 16:9

Here’s what I learned in that half hour stroll through the memory lane of that cemetery and what I want to share with you today.

1—The next time you have a life-changing decision to make such as a career change, relocation, or any major life move, find a cemetery, even if you don’t know anyone buried there. Walk around and read the gravestones, look at the “born” and “died” years. Read the epitaphs. You’ll find something uniquely sobering about walking among the dead to decide what to do with the rest of your life.

2—If you are contemplating leaving your wife and/or family, throwing in the towel on your marriage, giving up and in, look for the couples buried side by side, then look for the men buried alone. Think about the marker you’ll leave when you’re gone. Think about your wife or kids coming up with a life phrase to put on your gravestone. What will they say? If you’re being tempted to think only in the temporary, at least explore the eternal for a half hour before you act.

3—If your wife, children, family, and friends had to come up with four to six words to etch forever on your gravestone, what would they say? If you’re still breathing and don’t like that thought, you can decide to change that answer with the rest of your life. If you feel good about their answer, keep pressing on and upward.

One of the biggest, in-your-face realizations of a cemetery walk is that we get just one life here. I certainly understand why sinful humans would invent the concept of reincarnation. “Hey, if I screw this one up, all good, because I get a bunch more to try and get right.” But it’s also easy to see why the enemy of God would want us to believe that lie. The reality is we get just one shot at this and we have no idea how many years we have. God knew an end would make the journey count.

In the Disney movie, Tuck Everlasting, a family discovers the fountain of youth. They have become eternal beings at the age that they drank the water. A young lady named Winnie, who has befriended the family, discovers their secret and wants to drink the water. The Tuck father tells her, “If there’s one thing I’ve learned about people, it’s that they will do anything, anything, not to die. And they’ll do anything to keep from living their life. What we Tucks have, you can’t call it living. We just are. We’re like rocks, stuck at the side of a stream. Don’t be afraid of death, Winnie. Be afraid of the unlived life.”

 Another follower said, “Master, excuse me for a couple of days, please. I have my father’s funeral to take care of.” Jesus refused. “First things first. Your business is life, not death. Follow me. Pursue life.” —Matthew 8:21-22 MSG