It is obvious in the Bible that pride is a bad thing; God doesn’t like pride at all, and there are many consequences listed in the Bible that come right from God as punishment for pride. I’m not too fond of pride in myself when I see it coming out in various circumstances and situations. It is hard to see in myself, and I can tell that many people I am around a lot don’t see it in themselves, either. There are many reasons and causes for our pride, but whatever the reason for it being in my life, my goal is to root it all out, like hoeing weeds in a garden. And just like weeds, it keeps growing back again, so the weeding has to be a continuous part of my life.

Patty’s car started running poorly last week, so I took it to my mechanic, and he plugged in this little gauge that read codes that the car puts out, indicating the problem. He read the gauge, declared the problem, and fixed it in about an hour, and it runs great now.

I thought to myself; I wish I had a gauge that I could plug into my ear and tell me what my problems are. That would be so cool and would certainly speed up the process of me becoming holy.

I have a built-in gauge like that; it is my mouth, but if I don’t listen attentively to what comes out of it, I will miss what I need to know to grow. One of the things that happens in my life is that people will tell me things that I already know very well, which almost everyone knows, so I am not sure what their motive is for telling me because I know that they know that I already know what they are telling me, and it ticks me off!!

When that happens, and it often does, I need to take a deep breath and quote the verse in my mind that says, “God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble,” and then say thank you. I am sometimes successful in responding the way I know is pleasing to the Lord, but often, I respond with some kind of sarcastic and obnoxious comeback that is rude. I will usually say to myself, “Why do I do that? Pride, there it is, plain and simple, now fix it.”

When the “Five Days of Prayer” is on the horizon, I significantly adjust my responsibilities and schedule to devote at least eight hours daily to prayer. But I picked up this nasty head cold and have been at home all week in bed or sitting in my recliner instead. I have been participating in the prayer time via Zoom, but after about two hours, I find it very hard to concentrate on the words when I can’t see the people praying on my iPad screen very well. So I switch to working on my Scripture Memory, Bible reading, writing, and book reading. As a result, I am getting extra time on each of those disciplines, which is nice as a change of pace. I have been enjoying this extra rest, sleep, and extra time on spiritual disciplines so much that I think I will plan on a sick week every month. Patty asked how I was going to make that happen, and I said that I would pretend that I was sick; after all, I used to do that when I was in grade school, and she responded by saying, “Well, don’t expect me to wait on you ‘hand and foot.'” Sheesh, here I thought I had married a good wife! She probably won’t let me breathe on her in the middle of the night, either!

All of that to say, “rest” is a part of God’s agenda for our lives. I do a pretty good job establishing periodic rest times in my life, and as I have gotten older, I have increased those as needed. Many times, for me, rest isn’t just sitting and sleeping but just a change of activity and routine. I go on a month-long bicycle trip each summer, riding about 70 miles daily, listening to sermon podcasts while I ride, and reading and writing in the evening. It is an excellent change of pace that keeps me healthy in my body, my mind, and my emotions. I used to take one day off each week from ministry responsibilities, but now I take two, at least from activities where I am speaking, leading, or involved in church activities.

When I was a kid cutting firewood with my Dad, he would stop regularly and sharpen the blade on his saw. It would take 15 or 20 minutes, and he would occasionally say, “It takes extra time to keep your saw sharp, but if you didn’t take that time soon, you wouldn’t be cutting much wood. That is how rest is in life; if you take periodic rests, your brain works better, you have more energy, and you have a much better attitude about life.

Remember, watching television, playing video games, reading the news, and other such activities aren’t effective rest times. Reading the Bible, reading good books, listening to good podcasts, praying, writing, painting, working on your 1969 Mustang, fishing, and sleeping is.

I try not to be, but I become a big wimp when sick. I moan and groan when Patty is around so that she will come over and give me some sympathy and ask if she can get me anything. I hate it when she is gone too long because there is nobody to moan and groan to. She has never told me to shut up and quit complaining, but I can tell when she gets a little weary of my need for attention and sympathy. Occasionally, she will hurt my feelings with her responses to my baby’s behavior. As she crawled into bed tonight, she said, “Please don’t come on my side of the bed tonight and breathe on me!” What kind of thing is that to speak to a man on his last leg of life!

All I have is a nasty head cold; I cough and sneeze, my nose runs non-stop, I blow my nose constantly, my head hurts, my muscles ache, and I have zero strength. It sounds terrible but isn’t; it’s just a major inconvenience. We have so many people in our church with cancer who are going through chemo and radiation, others with MS and heart problems, and some have seizures.

One of the principles of dealing with life is, “Many people are going through worse things than I am, so rejoice always and pray for those going through real problems.”

I haven’t been able to go to the five days of prayer much this week, so I spend more time than usual praying for people in our church who have a variety of trials and problems.

Many people have trials so much worse than mine, so I need to rejoice because I am not going through what they are going through and because my rejoicing results in character growth for me.

And I rejoice because my wife loves me so much!!

I went to our “Five Days of Prayer” tonight as I felt better from the cold I have had for the last three days and had a wonderful time. It is such a blessing to listen to people as they pray their hearts for their lost friends, neighbors, and family. People know the consequence of remaining an unbeliever, so the passion and concern for those they know who are headed for hell is powerful.
As I was lying in bed listening to people’s prayers via Zoom for the last three days, I would try to figure out who they were by their voices. Tonight, I was doing the same in the prayer room as I tried to figure out who was praying. It is hard when people have their heads bowed; I can’t see their faces or tell precisely where the sound is coming from.
Here is a significant axion of my pastoral life;
“The corporate prayer of a church family is the most powerful force on the earth.” Those who don’t participate are missing out on a powerful experience of the presence of God. Being part of such an amazing experience of power and unity is supernatural.
‘I truly believe that the number of people who gather to pray is significant to God and that He is waiting for that number to reach a tipping point that He has determined before He does truly amazing things in and through that church. I also believe that we are close to that prayer volume needed when we will see and experience an incredible outpouring of His Holy Spirit into our geographical area. I want very, very much to experience that before I am done here and head off to heaven.

For the last couple of days, I have been sick with a bad cold, lying in my bed listening via Zoom to those in the prayer room at JBC praying for lost people to be saved and for God to bless and work in our church during our five days of prayer. It has been a blessed time for me; it isn’t as good as being there in person, but it is a close second.

A fundamental principle taught and believed at JBC is that when we pray, God works, and the more we pray, the more He works.

Another principle is that when we gather together to pray, the presence of God is manifest among us; that is, we can powerfully sense His presence with us, and in His presence is fullness of joy.

Another principle taught and believed at JBC is that in His presence, we will grow in our faith, and the stronger our faith, the more powerful our prayers become.

Another fundamental principle of JBC is that demons can’t stand to be in the presence of God, so when we gather and pray together as the church of Jesus Christ, all who are there are cleansed and freed from the power of darkness.

There are many more principles regarding prayer that we have learned, believe, and live at our church, and that is why God is blessing us and using us to reach lost people and make disciples.

Last night, out of the blue, I started feeling wimpy. I was supposed to teach my Leadership Class at Agape Family Fellowship at 5:00 pm in Albany, but I canceled it five minutes before starting the class. Patty drove me home, and I jumped into bed. I fully expected that I would recover with a good night’s sleep so that I could come to prayer this morning at 5:00 am. But I wasn’t any better, so I stayed in bed all day and am now attending prayer via Zoom. Zoom isn’t as good as in person, but I can hear everybody’s prayer better than when sitting in the room.

I love our “Five Days of Prayer,” I love hearing people’s prayers, their hearts, and concerns, and I especially love the powerful sense of God’s presence with us as we gather together as the church. As I sit in my recliner with my electric heating blanket over me, I try to identify every person who prays from their voice and pray with them in my mind and heart. I figure out who most are.

I made a goal to fast during the five days, and I think it will be easier now that I don’t have to resist all the food that is brought to the prayer time; I have to get Patty to keep the door closed between our bedroom and the kitchen so I don’t smell all the food being prepared for everyone to eat. It is incredible how my sense of smell improves when I am fasting.

Someone asked me why I was fasting during our five days of prayer. I do this for three reasons. The first is because fasting increases our power in prayer with God, and I would like all the power I can get when praying for people’s salvation. The second reason is that fasting is a huge factor in my growth in the character trait of self-control, and I need as much self-control as I can get. The third reason isn’t very spiritual but important to me. I have a goal to lose thirty pounds in the next six months, and fasting should help.

I ran a 10k five years ago, but the last half-marathon was ten years ago. From 1998 until 2013, I ran 60 half-marathons, about four per year. My fastest one was 2 hours and 12 minutes, exactly 10-minute miles. That isn’t very fast, but it’s not bad for a fat Pastor. I will run a half-marathon on April 6th, and I did my first official training today. I walked/ran two miles on my treadmill at a three percent grade at a 15-minute mile pace, that is, four miles per hour, and when I was finished, my pulse was 125 bpm. My goal is to run the half on April 6th in 2 hours and 40 minutes, twelve-minute miles, but I will be happy with a three-hour finish time, which is 13.75-minute miles, a fast walk.

About six other people have expressed interest in running this same half-marathon with me, or a better way to say it is running in the same event. I want to form a little running group, and all we would do would be to report to each other what we have done in the way of training, like what I did at the start of this blog.

A fundamental principle is that what we can’t do alone is a breeze when we do it with others. I plan on walking/running on my treadmill three times a week, riding on my stationary bike three times a week, and lifting weights three times a week. So, I would email a report of what I did to those in my accountability group once a week. We can encourage and harass each other so that we are faithful in our training. We might even schedule a couple of runs together if it works out.

If you want to be in this group with me, email me at duke@jbc.church. If you want to just run, walk, bike, or exercise for health and aren’t interested in doing the half-marathon, that would be fine as well; the more, the merrier.

It is December; it is time to start writing your 2024 goals. I would love to get a copy of yours.

I watched the University of Washington play the Oregon Ducks tonight in football. I was rooting for the Ducks to win because they would have a chance at the national championship if they did win. They lost in a very close game but had multiple chances to win. There were so many close plays that could have gone either way. As I was watching, I wondered if God would be involved so that one team or the other would win because of His influence. If He did, what would be the reason? Maybe because one team had more believers, or one team prayed more. I firmly believe that God knew who would win, but that doesn’t mean He influenced the game one way or the other.

We as people have freedom and responsibility, and we make good and bad choices that result in rewards and consequences. We are not simply puppets carrying out our pre-programmed roles. God foreknows all that will happen, but His foreknowledge doesn’t mean it will happen or that He caused it to happen.

1 Samuel 23:10-13 Then David said, “O Lord God of Israel, Your servant has heard for certain that Saul is seeking to come to Keilah to destroy the city on my account. Will the men of Keilah surrender me into his hand? Will Saul come down just as Your servant has heard? O Lord God of Israel, I pray, tell Your servant.” And the Lord said, “He will come down.” Then David said, “Will the men of Keilah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?” And the Lord said, “They will surrender you.” Then David and his men, about six hundred, arose and departed from Keilah, and they went wherever they could go. When it was told Saul that David had escaped from Keilah, he gave up the pursuit.

All of this is to say that whoever plays better wins.

I read about the term BHAG in a book several years ago and have used it ever since. The letters stand for “Big Hairy Audacious Goal.” That is a goal that is nearly impossible to accomplish and will take a great deal of effort to achieve. I try to have one or two BHAGs on my list of goals each year. One of my BHAGs this year is to run a half marathon on April 6th in Corvallis. The last time I ran anything over 10 yards was five years ago when I ran a 10K, 6.2 miles, so this is a monster goal for me; a half marathon is 13.1 miles.

I really don’t want to do this goal; the training time, the pain, the weariness, nothing about this goal is fun. So, I guess the big question is, why do it then? I need something to challenge me and make me work. I have gotten a bit lazy, and I use my age as an excuse to enjoy the comfort of my recliner and my bed and spend too much time resting; after all, I am 75 years old!

Five other guys are running it with me right now, so I have this built-in accountability. I have to do it; if I have to do it, I better do some training.

That is the purpose of goals: to discipline our lazy minds and bodies, to push ourselves out of our comfort zones, and to grow by conquering mountains and BHAGs.