Wednesday is sermon day. I have been reading and studying all along, but Wednesday is the day I consolidate all my thoughts, information, and Bible verses in a logical, sequential way and write it all out. My goal is to make God’s truth as revealed to us in His Word, the Bible as easy to understand as possible. I also want the sermon to motivate those who hear to put what they learn into practice in their life, to change and grow in character so that their relationships with other people improves and also their relationship with God. One of the signs that the sermon is being used by God is that people get convicted. They feel badly for what they have been doing or what they have neglected doing because of being to busy or indifferent to a responsibility. Generally people don’t like the feeling of being convicted, and it is a reason many choose not to come to church, but conviction is almost always a requirement if a person is going to grow and change into a better person. God’s Word is supernatural as the Holy Spirit works in us through it and is said to be sharper than a sword as it cuts to the core of our soul and spirit judging the thoughts and motives of our heart. Periodically as I think, ponder, write, and rewrite my sermon on Wednesday it will convict me more than a little bit. It is almost like God is speaking to me while I write. Over the years of preaching I have observed that when a sermon really convicts me as I write it, and I make several commitments to change some things about my life, that those sermons produce the most response from those who listen to me on the weekend. That being the case this weekend’s sermon is going to be powerful and very annointed by God.

I was watching Tim Tebow being interviewed tonight and he was asked the question if he was worried about not making the Philadelphia Eagles Football team. His answer was very good. He said, “Every day I have the choice of living by faith or fear, and every day I choose to live by faith”. We are born with “default settings” in our brain and heart, that is the way we tend to respond to life and the way we think when we don’t choose to do or think otherwise. If we don’t consciously choose what we are going to do or think we will act and think according to our natural programming, and that default setting is selfish, worldly, fearful. The only way we can rise above those natural responses is to choose to. Most people just live life on auto pilot, in default mode and defend their behavior by saying, “that is just who I am”. The truth is we can choose to act differently than are default setting if we actually choose to, but we must choose decisively. Casual, undiscipled living will result in worry, anxiety, selfishness, bitterness, irritableness, and on the list goes. The key to emphatic, decisive choices that control our behavior is the super strong desire to grow and change. Want, really want, want so much you can taste it, want so much it hurts, want so much you get totally disgusted with your present way of acting or more accurately, reacting to life. When you have a red hot desire to be a good person who lives above fear, and intimidation, and comparison, and people pleasing you will choose, and the cool thing is God gives us His power to choose and to succeed.

Archery season opened Saturday. Most of our family, grandkids included are going to hunt for deer and elk in the Steens Mts September 14th to the 24th. It is going to be a lot of fun camping together and hunting. We are going to have 3 or 4 wall tents depending on if I can find a 4th one and several smaller tents as well. The biggest wall tent will be the cook house and cafeteria. I have rounded up 5 propane tanks and a number of heaters. Unless some rain falls no fires will be allowed, though I see the weather report has some rain coming in the next couple of days. I have been practicing with my bow quite a bit for the last month. My son Sam’s house got burglarized a number of months ago and they stole his bow, so I gave him mine and I bought a new one. I am getting a little wimpy as I get older so I needed to get a bow with an easier draw and smoother as well. The one I got a PSE Prophecy is super smooth and easy to pull back. It is amazing how far the engineering on bows has come over the years. Occasionally I miss the target and hit my shop wall. Not good on arrows!! My shop wall is full of holes and I am going to have to buy another dozen arrows before we go hunting! The Steens Mts are incredibly beautiful. The canyons and gorges are amazing. We camp and hunt at the 8,800 ft level so breathing as we hike down into the canyons and back up again several times a day is a challenge. Going to the Steens Mts archery hunting in the Fall is one of my all time favorite activities. I enjoy the great fellowship with family, the challenge of getting a deer and elk with a bow, the hard work and effort required, the beauty and majesty of the place, and the great times I have with God that are prompted by His creation.