Reflecting on 2017 and Favorite 2017 Worship

Before progressing into 2018 I believe it is important to reflect on 2017. My highlights of the year most importantly was in October going in for an angioplasty to find after my first 99% closed arteries 14 years ago I had another 99 % closed one and one heart artery in the 80% range closed. God helped me to get help twice in my life for my heart without having a heart attack. Some may call it luck but my worldview points to God. That was the primary blessing of the year. I find myself again asking why am I alive when I know others die with such blockages. All I can think of is my time is not up yet and God still has things planned for me on this earth.

Other highlights of the year were continued teaching of college students in my college success course I teach and also in my work as a therapist seeing positive growth in clients. Professionally a highlight was to attend and do a presentation at the International Positive Psychology World Congress in Montreal, Canada. It was a great learning experience and a wonderful vacation trip for the family.

Music wise we ended off on a high note of attending a Mannheim Steamroller concert at the Majestic Theater in our nearby San Antonio. It is a beautiful old theater and Mannheim’s Christmas show was amazingly spectacular. We have enjoyed good music this year but the highlight was in the Fall to hear John Michael Talbot in concert at St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic Church in San Antonio. I had always enjoyed his music over the years and had not heard him in concert since my time in Chicago over 20 years ago.

John’s music and voice just carried my heart and mind into worship. I loved hearing his songs that I have continued to listen to over the years. The evening was an opportunity to hear his thoughts behind some of the songs. He is also a deep thinking teacher and some of his thoughts challenged my thoughts on living of a life of knowing myself as a sinner but also understanding God’s mercy through Jesus Christ. I also needed his thoughts on daring to believe God in prayer from his sharing on Mark 11: 22 “So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 24Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.” He encouraged us if we can learn to let go and let God amazing things can happen in our lives. We limit God in our lack of faith. So the John Michael Talbot concert was a spiritual worship highlight of 2017 for me. If you ever have the chance to hear him do not miss it. Check out his website for tour information -- https://johnmichaeltalbot.com
Like the last post about Christmas I am including another John Michael Talbot song for you to reflect on. Growing up in my high school years I would play many of his songs at church and this one was one of my mom’s favorites. Listen to the Youtube video and reflect on the lyrics.


Would You Crucify Him by John Michael Talbot (Click on the title to hear the video of the song.)

Sometimes, in the cool of the evenin'
Truth comes like a Lover in the wind
Sometimes, when my thoughts have gone misleadin'
She'll ask that same old question once again...
Chorus:
Would you crucify Him
Would you crucify Him..., my religious friend?
Would you crucify Him..., talking 'bout the sweet Lord Jesus
If He'd walk right here among you once again?

She's askin', How many times have you looked down to the harlot
Lookin' through her tears, pretendin' you don't know?
For once you were just like her, how can you be now so self righteous
When in the name of the Lord you throw the first stone

So now I turn to you through your years of your robes and stained-glass windows
Do you vainly echo your prayers "to please the Lord?"
Profess the Marriage with your tongue, but your mind dreams like the harlot
But if the Judge looks to your thoughts can't you guess your reward?

Yet how many times have you quoted from your Bible
To justify your eye for your eye and your tooth for your tooth?
You say that He didn't mean what He was plainly sayin'
But like the Pharisee, my friend, you're an educated fool!

Reflection: What were the highlights of your 2017 year? What do you think of the lyrics and meaning of the song “Would You Crucify Him”? Books are a great way to start off the New Year. Check out my book Living More Than OK on line (click on the title for the hyperlink to purchasing it at B & N)

Taking Thought of Our Thoughts

From the first thought of the day, “I don’t feel like getting up”; to the last thought, “why can’t I fall asleep”, we are faced with thousands of thoughts. Constantly we are bombarded with our thoughts during breakfast, driving in traffic, while listening to others. Do we understand how these thoughts affect our lives, our choices, and our futures?

In the Old Testament book of Proverbs 23:7 we find these words, “As a man thinks in his heart so is he.” This is a powerful proverb if you reflect over its importance. Our thoughts are what shapes the real us. Our character, values, behavior, dreams, attitudes are all shaped by our thought life. Our environment and genetic makeup has a part in our development but the driving force of development is our thinking processes. This idea raises the bar on our personal responsibility if we consider the power of our thoughts.

I recently re-read a little leather bound book a friend in Chicago gave me years ago, by the writer James Allen. It is called As A Man Thinketh. You can read an online version by clicking on the preceding title. Here is a sampling of ideas from his work:

A man's mind may be likened to a garden, which may be intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild; but whether cultivated or neglected, it must, and will, bring forth. If no useful seeds are put into it, then an abundance of useless weed seeds will fall therein, and will continue to produce their kind.

Every thought seed sown or allowed to fall into the mind, and to take root there, produces its own, blossoming sooner or later into act, and bearing its own fruitage of opportunity and circumstance. Good thoughts bear good fruit, bad thoughts bad fruit.

His analogy of the mind and life to that of a garden is important in contemplating what kind of life we want to lead. When our family visited Chicago recently I made sure we visited Chicago Botanic Gardens as my wife always enjoyed visiting there when we lived in Chicago. You can stroll through acres and acres of well manicured gardens full of flowers not weeds. The various gardens there, are a peaceful setting to appreciate a variety of flowers and plants.

Thinking back to Allen’s analogy, how do we want our lives to be? Do we want a life in disarray and a mess or a life of beauty? Deep down we want a life of beauty but moving beyond what we want; we must look at what actually is. We can ask ourselves do I have a life in disarray or a life of beauty? Our thoughts have a major effect on the outcome of our lives. It is our thinking that drives our choices for good or for bad. If we are filling our lives with negative thoughts or dwelling on how boring our lives we are not living more than ok. Weeds of life will quickly overtake our daily experience leaving us in disarray.

The Apostle Paul in the New Testament scriptures states an important point of what the focus of our thinking should be. In Philippians 4 :8&9 he says, “ 8 Finally, brethren,)whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” The focus of our thoughts should be on positive things. Our thoughts should be seeking truth with the aim for excellence. I enjoy The Message paraphrase, by Eugene Peterson of the same verse 8 Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. We need to fill our minds and reflect and ponder those thoughts that are the best and thoughts of beauty. How much could we improve our lives if we took the time to meditate on true, noble, authentic, and gracious thinking.

What would others think of us if our thoughts appeared above our heads like walking billboards. Would they see noble, gracious thoughts? Or would we be embarrassed by the negatives of unfair judgments, negative putdowns, and personal insecurities? Too often we allow cursing and negative thoughts gain control. Relationships falter as we have ungracious thinking about those around us. We limit our potential by having untruthful and ugly thoughts about ourselves. These negative thoughts work out to make our lives ugly like an overgrown weed filled garden not a peaceful garden of beauty.

Take some time at the end of the day to reflect over your thoughts of the day. Make a list of the negatives and the positives found in your thought life. . Is your list full of road rage thoughts, complaints, and personal putdowns on yourself? What can you do to change the negatives and build up reputable and authentic beautiful thoughts? We will delve more into what you can do in the next post. Until then, take thought of your thoughts.