Author: Brent Dumler

God Is Thinking About You

“How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I would count them, they are more than the sand. I awake, and I am still with you.”

The Psalmist is reflecting on God’s NUMEROUS & CONTINUOUS thoughts of him.

You are ALWAYS on God’s mind. His hopes and dreams for you far surpass those of the best of friends or even the most loving parent.

And regardless of how many times we’ve made poor choices in life, He is ALWAYS there…READY to help guide us toward those hopes & dreams. ALWAYS!

Today is a new day. Yesterday (and all of its garbage) is gone. It’s in the past. While our past does play into who we are today, it DOES NOT determine who we are to become tomorrow.

What changes do you need to make today so that yesterday doesn’t repeat?

Write it down.

Tell a friend.

And ask God to help you succeed. He really does want to see you succeed… full of joy & purpose.

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Win Your Community Back

One top definition of ‘COMMUNITY’ online is this:

– a unified body of individuals with common interests living in a particular area.

But I have a question. How can these individuals KNOW if they have common interests if they don’t actually KNOW each other? Furthermore, If we don’t KNOW each other we can’t really be UNIFIED, can we?

I love this quote about community by Erwin McManus:

“The more isolated and disconnected we are, the more shattered and distorted our self-identity. We are not healthy when we are alone. We find ourselves when we connect to others. Without community we don’t know who we are…

When we live outside of healthy community, we not only lose others. We lose ourselves…Who we understand ourselves to be is dramatically affected for better or worse by those we hold closest to us.”

I believe this to be true in my own life. And this is a huge part of what our Missional Community is trying to model here in the Yakima Valley. We can and should get to know our neighbors next door (this was a thing once upon a time). Offering random acts of KINDNESS to complete strangers can be an amazing experience, for them and US. It doesn’t have to be awkward or impersonal.

CHALLENGE: Introduce yourself to a neighbor near where you live. Take them cookies or brownies. Explain that you simply want to know who your neighbors are. Then, watch their reactions! We live in a cul-de-sac and have done this with about half of our neighbors so far. ALL of them have been welcoming to us and almost refreshed by the interaction. Two of them actually asked my wife and I into their home for a few minutes!

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The Gift Of Joy

Blessing OTHERS with the gift of JOY, and dropping the need for their approval, is actually a gift to OURSELVES as well.

“These things I have spoken to you, that my JOY may be in you, and that your joy may be FULL.”

John 15:11

Go ahead and read the first 10 verses prior to this to learn what ‘these things’ are that Jesus was talking about.

And something I discovered about this? It’s MUCH easier to make others smile than it is to get them to think highly of you.

Who Disciples You The Most?

Note:
This is NOT a political post!

This is a quote from a sermon by guest speaker Yemi Mobolade while we were visiting our former church in Colorado Springs recently.

yemi

His message was actually on the issue of race and how we wrestle with it in the Church today. But I took it more broadly. When I heard him say the words above (in the first service) you could hear a pin drop in that large auditorium. That told me something.

Yemi had just gone to a place of discomfort and social unrest among the people of God.

And it got me really thinking. More than the political LEFT & RIGHT in popular news media, what other INFLUENCES & VOICES do you and I allow to DISCIPLE us more than Jesus?

Is our worldview concerning race, sexual orientation, environmental issues, human trafficking, wealth, abortion, marriage, etc, etc, etc. MORE shaped by the voices, books, and media in our society OR by the Word of God?

For those of us who call ourselves disciples of Jesus, it SHOULD be the later.

Then, why is it NOT the case so often?

Hey, I struggle with filtering my influences like most of us. I guess I just wanted to share this quote to stir up some challenge and thinking. This quote did that for me.

Great message, Yemi!

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God Ideas

Another great quote from Mark Batterson in his book, Whisper.

Can you relate? I know I can. Whenever I’ve had good ideas in the past, God presents His…and WOW!

And it’s not a matter of His vs. mine.

It’s the fact that they’re GOD’s. End of discussion. He simply speaks and galaxies continue to form for thousands of years!

I’m only into the 1st chapter of this book and it’s already challenging me (in good ways).

Have You Noticed The Good In Your Day?

If you look hard enough you can NOTICE beauty everywhere you go. I took these pictures today in my front yard.

It’s about focusing your mind to be aware, or on the lookout, for what you WANT your attention on.

Check this out. Philippians‬ ‭4:8‬ ‭ENCOURAGES us in this mindset.

“Finally, brothers, whatever is TRUE, whatever is HONORABLE, whatever is JUST, whatever is PURE, whatever is LOVELY, whatever is COMMENDABLE, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, THINK about THESE THINGS.”

So, when we NOTICE negative thoughts, anxiety, worries, guilt, or envy taking over our thoughts it’s up to US to replace them with HEALTHIER thoughts like the ones listed above.

Try it for yourself, or share it with someone else.

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Have You Been Working On A New Habit?

I haven’t been to the gym in over 2 weeks!  Various (excuses) reasons. We’re starting back in a healthy rhythm today. IMG_5895

Can you relate?

The trick is to eventually pick it back up, whatever it is. Writing, exercising, reading, meditating, journaling….what new habit have you been working on?

Wishing you a wonderful and productive week.

 

 

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I’m more interactive there & reply to all comments!

I Shattered A Glass This Morning

Did YOUR day start like this?  IMG_5888

First thing this morning…I was simply trying to slide it out of the way and it tipped over. Water and broken glass ALL OVER the counter. “Really? Are you freaking kidding me?” (I actually said that out loud)

Then I stopped, cleaned it up, and RESET my attitude.

Now, I don’t want you to get the impression that I am THIS DISCIPLINED all the time. Ha, that is NOT the case. And it’s not like we haven’t been informed that crappy days were going to be part of life.
John 16:33 reads,
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have PEACE. In this world you will have TROUBLE. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Jesus himself PROMISES that even though TROUBLES will attempt to take over our days, weeks, and even months…YOU & I can overcome them AND HAVE PEACE!

Whether you’re in a pleasant or difficult season right now, may you have the awareness and thirst to LEAD INTO JESUS. May you also FEEL HIS in yours as he guides you on this journey.

 

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I’m more interactive there & reply to all comments!

Empty Nesting & Time Zones

IMG_5663I have a love/hate relationship with watching our kids grow up!

In our 26+ years of marriage, our family has moved over 20 times.  And 5 of those have been large moves across the country.

Why?

One word.  ‘Adventure.’

What I’ve discovered as Cailey and I are quickly becoming empty nesters is that our kids are taking on the rhythm of life they were raised in.

Take exhibit A (image to the right).  This is the new world clock on my phone.  As of this week, this now represents the 3 time zones our immediate family live in.

Most of our moves, and all 5 of the big ones, were related to doing ministry.  And it wasn’t ever as simple as going where employment was.  There were always multiple options for us to choose from.  I guess we’ve just firmly believed in listening to God carefully and stepping in faith in whichever direction He sends us.  We’ve modeled this lifestyle to our kids, so it should not surprise me that we now have a 21 y/o son living in Colorado and a 23 y/o son serving the next 3 years in Guam with the U.S. Navy.  Our other two kids currently live at home, but who knows where they will end up in the next year or two?

 

All that said, here are a few lessons I’m learning about watching our kids leave our nest and become highly independent adults.

  • Our direction and influence in their lives must look different than before. It also needs to be OFFERED, not GIVEN.
  • Their life choices are THEIR life choices. Their career, family, lifestyle, and overall worldview isn’t going to look just like mine. Those are not wrong or right. They are simply going to be different…unique to the person they are becoming.
  • It is fun watching them discover ADULTING along the way. But this is a spectator sport. We must not interfere in game play when we’re on the bench. And guess what? Our kids will determine if and when we come off the sidelines, not us.
  • Lastly, I love the fact that our kids still TALK to us! Now, I’m not so naive to claim that they tell us everything and they know all there is to know about Mom and Dad. But we still share our ambitions, worries, victories, and basic joys with each other. Cailey and I call that a win for our family.

Our family is far from perfect. We’ve even been told we’re entertaining at times (that’s not always a compliment). But our kids genuinely love each other, and deep down they know that their parents love them.

Here’s to family, life transition, and simply going with the flow!

 

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