Vince Lombardi, the storied coach of the Green Bay Packers, was an astute student of human nature. He was familiar with the weaknesses of mere humans and possessed a special ability to inspire the men he led to achieve great accomplishments, both on and off of the football field. His inspirational life was filled with pithy nuggets of wisdom. One of my personal favorites is this one:

“Fatigue makes cowards of us all.”

Have you ever been there? It’s so easy to get weary in well-doing, especially when there seems to be an unrelenting assault on our most cherished values accompanied by overwhelming feelings of helplessness as to what I can actually do about it!

In his book, Dream Energy, author and business consultant, Bobb Biehl, addresses the problems we face when we are fatigued. He writes, “Not only do humans get cowardly and timid and security-oriented when they’re fatigued, they also tend to get introspective and negative. They question, ‘Can I do it? Am I going to make it? Will it work?’ As a result, they begin settling for the “realities of life” or “the way things are.”

For those who have been actively engaged in the cultural battles before us, Biehl’s analysis is all too accurate. In fact, there are many good people who have thrown in the towel and chosen a more restful and reflective life rather than jumping back into the ring to re-join the cause. They are tired. They can’t add another thing to their plates. What difference does it make, anyway?

If that’s you, listen up! Recognize the root of your problem. You have grown weary. You’re tired. Fatigued. Be encouraged! There’s a solution for fatigue. Here’s a few practical things I do to keep my battery charged and my head, and heart, in the game.

1. Honor the Lord’s Day: Honor the Lord and set aside Sunday to worship Him and to unplug. No work. No calls. No emails. Re-connect with Jesus. Make sure your relationship with Him is fresh and current.

2. Prioritize Time with Your Spouse: Your spouse should be a source of encouragement and refreshing. Every soldier needs to be able to retreat from the front lines to a place of renewal safely away from the bullets and bombs of life. Schedule time to be alone with your spouse.

3. Exercise: This is a hard one. As your responsibilities increase so do the complexities of life. I have a large family and multiple hats. Life is crazy. Time is at a premium. Yet I must prioritize the care of my body or everything literally shuts down. What you like to do varies. The point is, do something. It will relieve stress, clear your mind and renew your strength.

4. Pray About Everything: When the battle gets intense, pray. Seek the Lord at the start of each day. Give your efforts to Him. Seek His wisdom and favor. And then trust Him for all you need. Or you can just freak out, throw something and scream until you have a stroke or a nervous breakdown!

5. Meditate on God’s Word First: Some people begin their day reading the newspaper or listening to the talking heads on the news. Then they wonder why they are becoming increasingly cynical and jaded. Instead of listening to the ones who report on the news, why not learn from the One who is the Lord of History itself. Listen to what the Creator and Ruler of the planet has to say. Place greater value in His perspective. Learn to see life through His eyes. Hear what He says about the issue. This will fill you with faith as you head out to face Goliath.

This list is certainly not exhaustive, but it represents five best practices, five smooth stones,  that have helped me avoid cowardice by staying in a place of ongoing refreshing. Where’s that giant?!

Dear Friends,

People blog about all kinds of things. My passion is to write about current events from a biblical perspective with the goal of bringing Christ’s Lordship to life! I hope you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read.

If so, I need your help! One of my goals this year is to amplify this message for greater impact. I’m working to expand the readership by getting more and more people exposed to this message.

Would you help me by doing the following:

Subscribe to my blog on the website by clicking the “subscribe” button at the top of the page. This way you’ll receive an email every time I write something.

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Together we can help trumpet the greatness of God and the blessing which comes when we bring His Lordship to every area of life!

Have a great 2014!

At the start of each New Year, I love to begin by preaching on the greatness of God. I want our congregation to head into 2014 with rock solid hope and unshakable faith. There’s only one BEING great enough to deliver – God Almighty!

The psalmist captures the rallying cry of my heart when he exclaims, “Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness; let us exalt His name together!” (Psalm 34:3, NLT)

If you are not from these parts, you might not be aware of the fact that we were greeted on the first Sunday of the year with blizzard-like conditions and record setting temperatures. I magnified the BIGNESS of our God by reading from Job 37:5-7:

“God’s voice is glorious in the thunder. We can’t even imagine the greatness of his power. He directs the snow to fall on the earth and tells the rain to pour down. Then everyone stops working so they can watch his power.”

It’s pretty stunning to meditate on the fact that God directs each snowflake. He not only directs their path, but He also creates each one as a stunning spectacle of His sovereign power and creative genius!

As R.C. Sproul notes, “If God is not sovereign, God is not God. If there is even one maverick molecule in the universe – one molecule running loose outside the scope of God’s sovereign ordination – we cannot have the slightest confidence that any promise God has ever made about the future will come to pass.” This means ever snowflake is submitted to His providential care.

In fact, blizzards are God’s way of stopping “business as usual” to remind us of our finite limitations and weakness. For those with eyes to see and hearts to worship, these show stopping displays of power and beauty are opportunities to pause in humble adoration and to stand in awe of His sheer, majestic power.

This is why we can venture into the unknown of 2014 with faith and hope. God is the sovereign Creator and Ruler over all of His creation, including YOU! If He directs the flight of a snowflake, and takes the time to feed sparrows (Matthew 6:25-30) don’t you think He can take care of you?

Let’s move with great faith as we follow our faithful God!