Financial Crisis: Go Away!

It's been a while, but I've been uber busy. Anyways . . .





Regarding the current situation in the nation, I'm not gonna lie, I'm scared. I don't know if I'll have a job 3 months from now. I'm no longer single, so it's not just me I have to worry about. My wife works at a small private high school, so if things get real bad, the entire school could be expendable. (Why pay to send your kid to school when they can get a public education for free?) Needless to say, I'm a bit worried.

I have faith in God. I really do. As a matter of fact, my faith couldn't be stronger. But if my school loans get called in and I'm unemployed, bad times will be ahead. I know I'm not alone. This guy is on an unwanted, unpaid vacation and this guy is trying to sell his house.

I know I shouldn't worry. It does no good. I also know God will provide, but I can't help the fact that things are rough for a lot of people. I don't want to be one of those people. I've been in school my entire life. I have little money and few assets. Wiggle room is not something I have a lot of.

Here's Your Sign?

If you've been reading this blog (which I'm sure millions of you have been), you know that I'm kinda in transition. I'm trying to figure out where to go from here. I'm trying to figure out what to do with my life. This morning I was reading in Matthew and ran across verse 39 of chapter 12. It reads, "But Jesus replied, 'Only an evil, faithless generation would ask for a miraculous sign; but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah.'"

At this particular time Jesus was talking about how many of the Pharisees wanted Jesus to prove he was from God. While I will admit I am taking a bit of liberty with the verse, I think it applies to many of us even if we belief He is from God. How often do we pray for direction and then ask for a sign? How often to we ask God for a sign that what we are doing is right?

I'm not saying that God isn't in the sign business. I believe that I could walk into my bedroom 5 minutes from now and there, plastered on the wall, could be a huge sign saying "Michael, do X. Love, God" It could happen! But ya know, when I read this verse I was reminded that faith is so important. God doesn't create faith with signs. That is evidence. We have faith because we need no evidence. Faith is action on our part in the absence of evidence. God may not tell me "Michael do X". He might not tell me anything, but I might very well do X, or Y, or Z, or whatever. As long as I have faith that God will direct my path, I don't need signs. If I have faith that God knows what is best for me, even if I step out in faith and do the wrong thing, God will bring me back to exactly where he wants me.

So often when people are making big decision, I hear them say, "I don't want to make the wrong decision. I want to do what God wants me to do." Right before I committed to come get my Ph.D. I said those very words. A very wise friend said, "Michael, no matter what decision you make, even if you make the wrong one, God is big enough to fix it." She had faith in God's plan for me while I was stuck looking for signs. I am so thankful for her and her wisdom. I need to remember to approach life like that. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying go willy nilly, do whatever you want to and God will fix it. I'm saying that God doesn't sit around with a remote control directing our every movements through some sort of signal to us. I think a lot of times, He wants to see what we can do with our faith, so He puts us on autopilot.

So, that's just a little note to myself about how I need to have faith in God. Don't wait. Go. Do. Step out onto the water.

Jesus Saves Souls, Lubbock Style!

If you don't know by now, I live in Lubbock, Texas. It's a growing city of a little more than 200,000 people. It isn't huge by any stretch, but for a small town Texas boy like myself, it seems like a bustling metropolis. Lubbock is one of the few places in the country that has been left nearly untouched by the financial crisis. Houses are being built, help wanted signs are everywhere, and people are moving here from all over the nation.

At a time when most people are scared for their lives because of the pressing financial situation, there is at least one man who has put his life in God's hands. That man, Johnny Landrum, lives right here in Lubbock. You see, Johnny sold all of his possessions and made a sign that says "Jesus Saves Souls". He takes that sign and stands on a busy street corner every day, all day. He says he did this because God told him too. Admittedly, when I hear stories like this, I am kind of skeptical. I always think "this person is crazy". However, I think Johnny is legit.

You can read the article here. You can watch the news clip at that site as well. Now, I don't know much about Mr. Landrum. I don't know a lot about his theology or how he got to this point. What I do know is that this man is really energizing a lot of people around town. I pass his street corner at least once a day; usually several times. My wife teaches at the Christian High School whose corner he stands on. Needless to say, we see a lot of him and he is rarely alone. It's really cool to see him out there rain or shine, cold or warm, morning or night, etc. When he first started, he was there all by himself. Now, he almost always has someone standing by him or a local motorist stopped to give him some aid.

Anyways, I don't know what will come of his actions, but I find it quite a story.