Mountains vs. Wind & Waves (part 2) · 296 days ago by Ryan Gano
OK, so yesterday (actually last week, but who’s counting?) I started out a talk about difficult times in life. Jesus said to talk to the mountain but he said to ignore (not worry about) the wind and the waves. I’ve been praying about this for a while because I want to make sure I treat situations correctly. This is my conclusion:
Mountains: Block your path. A mountain is in the way of further progress. If you can’t speak but you feel called to be a preacher, that is a mountain. It will hinder your ability to speak God’s word to others. Of course this wouldn’t be the case if you felt called to preach to deaf people, or via a blog.
Wind & Waves: Distract you from the path. A distraction could take any form. Often I’ve found that distractions take place in my own mind more than anything, I either spend time, worrying about them and playing the what-if game. What if this happens? What if that doesn’t work? What if I fail? This game and these thoughts can stop you in your tracks.
My conclusion? Both situations can stop you from doing what God has called you to do. Wind and waves seem to be more common in my life than mountains, usually I am not actually blocked, but in my mind things are too hard or too scary, so I stop, or veer off the course, or even turn around.
We have got to realize that God is bigger than our current problem. He is in control. And he does want us to accomplish the tasks he created us to accomplish.
Do you need to speak to the mountain or ignore the wind?
Mountains vs. Wind & Waves · 301 days ago by Ryan Gano
How do you respond when you face a challenge in life? I’ve been thinking about this quite a but recently as we all deal with the economy and aftermath of many things that have happened in the last several months. Earlier this week I was up early in the morning praying for wisdom and guidance in my own life.
As I was praying the Lord spoke to me about mountains and windy waves. The Holy Spirit reminded me of a few times when Jesus talked about or dealt with “problems” in life. The first story has to do with mountains… In Matthew 17:20 Jesus said, “For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.” I’ve heard that verse a lot… speak to the mountain and it will move!
Then there are the wind and waves. In Matthew 14 there is a story of Peter getting out of a boat to walk on the water with Jesus, unfortunately he gets a little scared. Let’s pick up the story in verses 30&31. “But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
Two cases of Jesus talking about faith. Same result (problem gone) but a different thing completely. My first thought, was, “How do you know whether what you are facing is a mountain or windy waves"? Jesus didn’t deal with them in the same way. One he spoke to and the other, he helped and then said, “What’s wrong with you?” (paraphrase of course).
So, we need to know in our lives whether we are facing a mountain, or wind. Tomorrow we’ll talk more about that!
When things stop moving · 339 days ago by Ryan Gano
Here I sit in my room, separated from distractions, working to grow closer to God (boy, it’s work too). A few minutes ago I was looking outside at the sky watching the clouds moving. Suddenly, one cloud stopped and another was gaining ground very quickly. It was as if this poor cloud has lost all steam and just died. Then I looked down at the grass and it didn’t look like it was doing anything either.
I say this because there are times when I don’t feel like anything is happening. Sometimes I feel that about World Changers, sometimes I feel that about our church, sometimes I feel that way about my own spiritual life. I sit… I wait… I expect… I get nothing. No movement, no forward progress, no visible signs of anything happening. And it hurts. It makes me wonder at times if I’ve missed something. Has growth or movement stopped because of something I have (or haven’t) done? Did I miss the boat?
But now I look at the clouds again and they look completely different! That cloud that “wasn’t moving” isn’t even there (or at least it looks completely different). And the grass? When I get home I’m going to have to mow the grass, not because it’s growing fast, but because it is growing!
Those times when it seems that nothing is happening are not necessarily indicators that nothing is happening. It could be that they are indicators that God is working on our roots, or that he is moving in ways that will leave us looking completely different when he’s done.
I pray that when things don’t seem to be moving we can all realize that looks can be deceiving. In those motionless times, we must wait on the Lord (Isaiah 40:31), because he who began a good work in us will complete it! (Philippians 1:6)
Living with Pop-ups! · 344 days ago by Ryan Gano
If you’ve ever played any “old” video games you’ve probably seen pop-ups. These are items that just appear on the screen as you get closer to them. They don’t fade into view or come up over the horizon. They just appear… I went and looked for an example video but couldn’t find one :-( …anyway, I think we all live with pop-ups in our life. I’ve had times where God has shown me something that he wanted from me. It wasn’t on my radar before and it just appeared. Now I know where to drive toward. Then I get a little closer and he shows me something else, so I drive toward that!
I think that my ministry and life has mainly been a series of pop-ups that allow me to suddenly see a little more of the direction God wants me to go. Living with pop-ups can be a little disconcerting, but it seems to be the way God chooses to do things :-)
Is there anything in your life that you would consider a pop-up?
Windows Live Writer · 345 days ago by Ryan Gano
Just installed a new blogging tool so I can write blogs from my desktop and have them automatically update. This is the first test. Does it work?
Free Song! · 440 days ago by Ryan Gano
A free Kutless MP3 is being given away at Bible Study Magazine. They are also giving away cool Kutless gear and Logos Bible Software.
I subscribe to Bible Study Magazine and it is a fantastic resource for those people who are serious about studying their Bible!
I also use Logos Software and love to be able to really study my Bible with ease. Right now I am actually reading Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan
Go check it out!
With Long Life · 486 days ago by Ryan Gano
I have been loving this song on the new (to me) Israel Houghton CD A Deeper Level
It’s got a great beat and an incredible message.
When my plans are changed for me... · 575 days ago by Ryan Gano
So, I was just playing this game on myspace called Mafia Wars. I’ve been playing it for a few days now. I really like the game because I don’t have to play it all of the time. I just check in and update things every once in a while. Not so much of a time sink as other games…
...anyway. I had built up quite a bank account for how early I was in the game (165,000 or so) I went to check out my account and saw that I had $0. The game stole my money. I was planning to use that money to upgrade some property. :-(
Then I went to check the inventory out because I had lost my inventory once before. I had all of my stuff… wait… I had 100 of each of the things I had before!
I was able to sell the stuff I didn’t want and finance about 3 million dollars worth of stuff. My plan was to buy a $200,000 piece of property, but the game had a different idea.
...now, this is obviously a small thing, and is the result of some glitch in the game, but it got me thinking…
How often do I get upset because things aren’t going according to my plans. I want to go way “a” but it’s blocked. Then I get upset and refuse to move. When in reality God blocked way “a” because he knows that way “b” is better for me.
If I would stop getting upset and just follow God where he takes me, my life would be much better in the long run.
Jeremiah 29:11 – For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. (ESV)
SOAP - Day 3 · 587 days ago by Ryan Gano
John 3:16-17 – “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. [17] For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.
SOAP - Day 2 · 594 days ago by Ryan Gano
Proverbs 3:5-8 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.
7 Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.
8 It will be healing to your flesh
and refreshment to your bones. (ESV)