Tag Archives: life

Turkey and Frosting

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Happy Thanksgiving! I know I am a week late, but I am still eating turkey leftovers.

Wow. Over a month has gone by since my last post. Time can really move!

If you have been waiting for the conclusion to this series or are brand new to this blog,

I welcome you.

Thanks for taking two minutes out of your day.

If you would like to catch up or get some context, here are the links to the first three posts:

Double Birthday

Double Birthday, Again!?!?

The Day of Atonement explained

“Jesus changed everything. He always does. More on that next week.”

These are the final words of my last post.

And friends, I believe that with all my heart.

I can’t speak on behalf of other people. However, I can speak about my life.

Here is a picture of my life without Jesus.

  • I wonder if I would have my family. Surely, my wife would have left me long ago because of my addiction to porn. That is something that I could not overcome without Jesus.
  • My kids would only be around part-time. It pains me to think about not seeing my kids on a daily basis because of the divorce.
  • Jobs…I think that I would be barely making ends meet. Fast food work is not something I would earn a living on.
  • There were bouts of mild depression in my early twenties. Most likely I would be in a depression right now.
  • Alcohol…not really something I abused. But who knows, without Jesus, the bottle might be more attractive to me.
  • My relationship history was not the best. That pattern would probably continue to this day.
  • I most certainly would not have excellent friends from my church. I would not even belong to a church.
  • And the list continues…

Of course, this is all hypothetical. Jesus changed everything.

I do have a loving wife and wonderful kids. My addictions are broken. I work at a dream job. My church is close to me.

Because I have Jesus, I have everything I need. All this other stuff is really just his blessing. Frosting.

May I conclude with a question or two?

Do you have Jesus?

He cannot be bought, earned, manipulated, or caught. He must be invited.

He will change your life…for the better.

Are you ready to send that invite?

If you have questions or comments, I would love to field them. You can comment below or email me directly – tim@timsorbo.com

Thanks, as always, for reading. It might just be the best two minutes of your day.

See you next week for some thoughts on Advent.

Lent, pt. 26

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I broke out a new game tonight. Everdell.

Here is a picture of a game setup for three players.

everdell

It is a beautiful game. This is actually the collector’s edition. I traded an unwanted game for this one.

And then I started playing. Against myself.

Yep, you read that correctly. I played a three player game by myself.

Me, myself, and I. This is how I learn how to play a game.

And no, this is not the first time I have done this.

Although I enjoy playing games against myself, it was not meant to be played alone.

That is not how board games work. They are designed to be a shared experience.

So is church.

I love going to church. It helps me live the life God has created for me.

During Lent, try going to church a few times.

Who knows, maybe you will meet God in a new way.

Lent, pt. 15

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We read yesterday how the woman, who was subject to bleeding, was in Pain.

In that pain, she was driven to desperation.

However, she soon had a Problem.

Reading Mark 5:25-34 can, again, give context.

If Pain=Desperation, then Problem=Disillusionment.

Here is what I mean.

Before she found Jesus, she tried normal methods to get healing.

Doctors, medicine, etc. But none of that was not working. In fact, she was getting worse.

This disillusionment with the world’s system can sneak up on us. This is what it might look like in today’s day:

     Going to the casino because you can’t make rent this month.

     Hiring a prostitute because you can’t find a wife.

     Leaving a job because you were treated unfairly.

     Breaking up with your boyfriend because of trust issues.

     There maybe more in your life. We all can have problems.

These circumstances become problems because we don’t go to Jesus first. 

The text says that the woman was going to doctors and getting worse before she ever heard of Jesus. She was disillusioned.

But thanks be to God because we have heard of Jesus.

Ironically, He may choose to use the very problems in our lives to bring about healing.

A doctor could do surgery.

An angry spouse could have a change of heart.

You could get a raise at work.

Life with Jesus does not exclude problems. Life with Jesus gives hope through problems.

It is okay to let you Pain push you towards Desperation.

But please don’t let your Problems bring about Disillusionment.

Tomorrow, you can come back to see what part the People will play in our narrative.

 

All it took was a cross.

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Who Am I? That question will likely be repeated many times this year. I will try to answer that question with my posting. This blog, in essence, is my journal.

journal

As I discover my identity in Christ, I will write in my journal (this blog).

You, as the reader, will hopefully be challenged, enlightened, or whatever God gives you, when you read each post. I also want to encourage you to comment. There might be something you write about that another reader might be thinking.

Above all, it is my hope and prayer that this post will bring glory to God. Sure, I like when people “like”, comment, or even follow me but all of that is icing on the cake.

God gets all the praise and honor. After all, He did say that if “I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto me,” John 12:32

Remember 2017? My posts all had the same format.

The Word. The Worth. The Work.

This structure helped me to explain my thoughts and hopefully, communicate them clearly. I will use the same organization for the Who Am I? posts.

The Word – Colossians 2:13-15

hammer and nails

The Worth – I am alive because of Christ and all it took was the cross.

I was dead in sins. There was no life because of my sinful nature.

But God made me alive! He forgave my sins! Even more, he took the power away from my enemy and nailed it to that cross!!! It is finished!!!

The Work – Who Am I? I am alive! I know that based on what I read in Colossians.

So now, because I am alive, I can start living. No more dead man walking stuff.

I guess this means Jesus nailed it!

 

Stranger Things

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Stranger Things. If you like suspense, fear, and intrigue with a strong dose of fiction, then  the show, Stranger Things is for you.

My wife and I really enjoyed both seasons. Try it! You just might like it too!

stranger-things-titles

In the show, there was an alternate universe. Some of the characters called it ‘The Upside Down’. It was the same yet different. The buildings were there but there were very few people. Again, the Upside Down was the same but yet, strangely different.

I understand that I am being very vague and ambiguous with the description of the show. All I really want to communicate is that there was another world, a world different from the reality in which the people were living.

The Word – reality

The Worth – We live in this world. But I feel like we are not always living in reality.

Acts 17:16-31 is a passage of scripture that describes Paul while he was in Athens. The people are accusing Paul of speaking about ‘strange things’.

So Paul, as was his custom, began to preach. He was explaining how the people were worshipping many different idols and gods. They even had an idol to an unknown god. I assume they were covering all of their bases.

He then turns the conversation around to God. And in verse 28, Paul hits them with the truth. “For in him we live and move and have our being…” 

In the original language, the word being means simply, “to exist.”

Substitute the word reality for the word being. We exist, we live and breath, in fact, our very reality is in God! If God is removed, we cease to exist!

All of the idols and gods the people of Athens were worshipping are not reality!

In November of 2017, are we just like the people of Athens? Too many times the answer is…yes! We worship so many things and can be oblivious to the reality that is God!

The Work – What is your reality? Do you find that your life is filled with many things, that you are religious, that there are idols present?

If you answered yes then you might need a reality check.

reality check sign

Stop and take time to ask God what is reality. What is real?

Perception is truth. What you see you take as truth. Ask God to help you see, feel, touch, and perceive His reality. That is the truth we all need.

It might take a little getting used to but it will be worth it!

I conclude with Paul’s words, “For in him we live and move and have our reality!”