Oh, the things you learn
when seeing the teen years
the second time around
through your child's experience.

I remember applying for college
and part time jobs with fairly
light hand and many fields
left blank on the form.

I simpy didn't have
much experience to put down.
Nor did I really need any
since I was young and starting out.

It seems that is no longer
how it's done.

Now they have something
called a, "Brag Sheet,"
which must be filled out.

I guess it's a resume of sorts,
listing all those things in which
you've been active and involved
with a few references tacked on.

This gives you something
to hand to the college recruiter
or job interviewer if you have
no concrete expereince,
but have been on committes,
in organizations, finished projects,
or received honors or awards.

It's a list of things you brag about.

Different day, different culture.
I guess I'm just still stuck
in the days of self doubt.

Because...
I have a hard time getting past
being told not to brag on myself.

But this is a new culture
of self-confidence which
replaces those days of
self-doubt.

I wonder if these types of
things cycle through again...
kind of like fashion.
Will self-doubt come back
into style in another 30 years?

I wonder what the image culture
of the day was back in Jesus time?
Or even Paul's day?

Boy could they have written
great Brag Sheets!
Have you ever read about
the big boast list Paul displayed?
It actually seems a bit sarcastic.

But there were some false teachers
on his day who paraded
around handing their "Brag Sheets"
to the newly established churches

These men boasted
of all they knew,
had been taught.
Paul saw these men as trying to
lead the churches away from
the truth that he had taught them;
the true gospel of Jesus.

And Paul realized that he was a
better write, than he was a speaker.

So he actually made light
of himself after these men
stood about boasting in all
their amazing credentials.

This is how he compared himself...
But whatever they dare
to boast about...
I’m talking like a fool again,
I dare to boast about it, too.

Are they Hebrews?
So am I.
Are they Israelites?
So am I.
Are they descendants of Abraham?
So am I.
Are they servants of Christ?

I know I sound like a madman,
but I have served Him far more!
I have worked harder,
been put in prison more often,
been whipped times without number,
and faced death again and again.

Five different times the Jewish leaders
gave me thirty-nine lashes.
Three times I was beaten with rods.
Once I was stoned.
Three times I was shipwrecked.
Once I spent a whole night and
a day adrift at sea.
I have traveled on many long journeys.
I have faced danger
from rivers and from robbers.
I have faced danger
from my own people, the Jews,
as well as from the Gentiles.
I have faced danger in the cities,
in the deserts, and on the seas.
And I have faced danger
from men who claim to be believers
but are not.

I have worked hard and long,
enduring many sleepless nights.
I have been hungry and thirsty
and have often gone without food.
I have shivered in the cold,
without enough clothing
to keep me warm.

Then, besides all this,
I have the daily burden
of my concern for all the churches.

Who is weak without
my feeling that weakness?
Who is led astray, and
I do not burn with anger?
2 Corinthians 11:21-29 NLT

What?!
This doesn't sound like
any Brag Sheet I've ever seen which
would get someone noticed.
Not in a good way at least.

And it's not like Paul is
looking for sympathy.

For when we get down to
the very last few sentences...
I am completely blown away.

As if none of those
are bad enough
to be his burden...
as if none of those have caused
him enough pain, or suffering,
his DAILY burden is for
the people in the churches
which he planted.

Who IS this man?
If I had suffered even one or two
of those things, I'd have milked it
for all it was worth.

I'd have gone home,
sat in my pity party
crying out to God...
Why don't you love me anymore?

But Paul is bragging, even boasting,
of these things which have
happened to him.

He knows it is because of persecution.
He knows it is for the cause of Christ.

If I must boast,
I would rather boast about
the things that show
how weak I am.
God, the Father of our Lord Jesus,
who is worthy of eternal praise,
knows I am not lying.
2 Corinthians 11:30-31

And he is so very sincere.
Who does that?!
Who?

Do you know anyone like this today?
Have you ever encountered
a single soul like this?
The more I read of him,
the more I'm amazed.

That's when I consider
how weak I am.
But not in a godly way.

In becoming weak for Christ...
I have far to go.

In learning to be faithful,
I have much to learn.

When I read of Paul's willingness
to suffer, then brag humbly about it
in order to boast of our Lord,
I am astounded.

Word of God
train me today...
To remain humble always
in my service to You.

To brag only about my weakness,
giving You glory for providing
​strength through me.

Did you ever have a dream
that went unrealized?

Now, I don't mean the kind of dream
you have while sleeping.
Rather, a deeper sort of passion
which stirs within...
tumbling, bumbling, whirring and
whizzing about when it's all you can
think of for a time in your life.

Maybe it was when you
didn't have the time or the money
to put it into place.

Maybe it was when you
didn't have the independence
or the freedom to make
your own choices.

Maybe you began it
and somewhere along the way
got distracted, or bogged down
with life's many daily drudgeries.

And your dream just lost it's
tumbling, bumbling, whirring and
whizzing fervor, when it got stuffed
into a dull gray dusty corner somewhere.

I know the disappointment,
I know the loss and feel of lack.
Believe me, I've got more dusty dreams
than I care to count.

I try to tell myself
I'll get them all done someday.
But the tomorrows just keep
rolling past me.

I know all the pep talks,
I've given them to myself.

I've read all the self-help blogs
and tried all the goal setting tips.
Why am I the one who can't finish?

I want to encourage you
to pick up your dream, dust it off
and start dreaming again.
But if I don't do the same for mine,
then what kind of friend am I?

I'm certain that God planted
within each of us seeds of dreams
which were meant to be grown
into the fullness of purpose.
And I know these are not
just for our own selves
but for those whose lives we
can influence around us.

So when I came across
this word from Paul today,
I was hit smack between the eyes...

And in this I give advice:
It is to your advantage not only
to be doing what you began and
were desiring to do a year ago;
but now you also must complete
the doing of it;
that as there was a readiness
to desire it, so there also
may be a completion
out of what you have.

For if there is first a willing mind,
it is accepted according to
what one has, and not according
to what he does not have.
2 Corinthians 8:10-12 NKJV

​I really think Paul is telling me...
telling those of us who have
dropped our dreams,
is to stop listening to the lie
which says that we missed
our opportunity;
the lie that it's too late for us
to begin again.

I think he is encouraging us
to dig up our dream,
to consider it again...
even if we didn't finish before.

Good Heavens!
We've grown since then,
we've learned things, and
become more prepared.

If God has given us a willing mind
and the passion within...
He can provide all we need
to fulfill our purpose.

And if we are destined
to serve His kingdom,
then what He planned for us to do,
what He planned for us to give...
will serve the needs of others.

For His plan in our lives
always gives room, not only
for grace to us, but grace through us.

Hard work.
Action,
Gratitude.
Grace, grace and more grace.
Yes toward others,
but also to ourselves.
These are things we need to
build within our daily practice.

But we must realize our hard work
will come with a price.
We will need to serve others
without reward or notice.
For their approval is not why
we were given a dream in God's plan.

But God always provides
in His own way...

When God took care of the Israelites
in the wilderness for the forty years
He provided the miracle of manna.

It was this white puffy substance
that appeared on the ground like dew
in the morning and the people
were to gather only one day's worth.

If they gathered more and tried
to store it up, any that remained
would spoil... or corrupt.

There was no hoarding, no stashing,
no selfishness, nor greed.
No one could think only
of themselves, nor profit from it.

It simply wasn't how God intended
manna to supply their needs.

God wanted them to rely
completely upon Him, DAILY.

So it is. when God gives us ideas,
when God plants a dream in us.

They are to be gathered now,
for our daily supply.
We may not be stepping into
the Promise Land of the Dream yet,
but we must gather daily
what He gives, putting the thoughts
and ideas into some form of action.

If we try to store them up, or
stash them away, they will spoil.
They won't mean the same later,
They won't have the same impact
the same purpose, even
the same intended audience
God planned for us to reach...
later.

Remember...
as there was a readiness
to desire it, so there also
may be a completion
out of what you have.

For if there is first a willing mind,
it is accepted according to
what one has, and not according
to what he does not have.

If God tilled the soil of our heart,
this readiness for the dream,
it is the seed of desire.

He also then, already
created within us the strength
and determination to fulfill it...
our purpose for His kingdom's sake.

I say it's time we started stirring
tumbling, bumbling, whirring and
whizzing about until everyone knows
that our dream is about to come true!

Let's dig up that dusty dream
and renew the fervor we once had.

Word of God
train me today...
To never give up
on the dream You planted in me.

To constantly till the soil of my heart,
nurture and fertilize the plantings,
so that You grow me into
the fulness of purpose
​planned for me in the Kingdom of God.

There are some who would say
that the Bible doesn't make sense.
Others who claim that it is no longer
applicable to our culture of today.
​And still those who believe it is a
holy book, but don't feel qualified
to open the pages and dig into it.

But truth be told, it has been said
that the Bible was written and can be
understood on 5th grade reading level.

So it's not the words themselves
that are difficult to grasp, rather
the intimidation of the concepts...
the mystery behind the text,
that seems to cause us to leave it
on the shelf increasing layers of dust.

Well, long ago, we did need people
to help us interpret these sacred texts.
So there was a Tabernacle, housed
with holy and anointed priests who
were the only ones allowed
behind the veil into the place of God.

But when Jesus came, all that changed.
At the moment of His death,
the veil was torn, and now we all
have access to the holy place of God.
Including the understanding of
the wisdom in His word.

And there is no better way to explain it
that simply to read about the veil
directly from the Bible itself...

It began actually, after Moses
encountered God on the mountain
gathering the Ten Commandments
on tablets of stone.

Moses came down to the people
and his face was so radiant from
being in the presence of God
that they could not look at him directly.
He had to place a veil over his face to
shield them from the glory of God.

The same was true when the
Tabernacle was built.
The veil was to protect the people
outside the Most Holy place
from being exposed to God's glory
if they were not properly cleansed
as were the priests.

And so here we begin to read
why it is that many people
feel they can not understand
what the Bible stays to them...
We are not like Moses,
who put a veil over his face
so the people of Israel
would not see the glory,
even though it was destined
to fade away.

But the people’s minds
were hardened, and
to this day whenever the
old covenant is being read,
the same veil covers their minds
so they cannot
understand the truth.
And this veil can be removed
only by believing in Christ.

Yes, even today
when they read Moses’ writings,
their hearts are covered
with that veil, and
they do not understand.
But whenever someone
turns to the Lord,
the veil is taken away.
For the Lord is the Spirit, and
wherever the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is freedom.

So all of us who have had
that veil removed can see and
reflect the glory of the Lord.
And the Lord... who is the Spirit,
makes us more and more
like Him as we are changed
into His glorious image.
2 Corinthians 3:13-18 NLT

And it's not just about the
ability to read the Bible.

Unfortunately, there are many
who have decided not to believe
in God at all... who have chosen
to live life on their own
as if He doesn't matter, or
doesn't exist.

That too, is due to a veil,
a type of blindness...
If the Good News we preach is
hidden behind a veil,
it is hidden only from people
who are perishing.

Satan, who is the god of this world,
has blinded the minds of
those who don’t believe.
They are unable to see
the glorious light of
the Good News.
They don’t understand this message
about the glory of Christ,
who is the exact likeness of God.
2 Corinthians 4:3-4

Now this is not meant
to point fingers, to accuse.
Rather to enlighten, to lift veils.

This is to bring awareness to those
who may not realize
that lack of understanding
is not a form of ignorance.
It's not a sign of stupidity.

There are many very intelligent
people who simply cannot reason
their way through the scriptures
simply because their eyes are covered.

This is not a physical or mental matter,
rather one more spiritual.
There is a distortion that exists
between their eyes,
between their hearts,
that causes the message of God
to be misunderstood, even distorted.

This is an act of God's enemy,
the god of this world, satan.

So what is the answer?
How is this remedied?
Why do some see and others don't?
How was their veil lifted?

The first set of verses said...
But whenever someone
turns to the Lord,
the veil is taken away.
For the Lord is the Spirit, and
wherever the Spirit of the Lord is,
there is freedom.

The Lord is willing and wanting
to lift the veil from our eyes.
But it takes action on our part.

Even Moses needed to take action.
He was the first one to wear a veil.

Before he led the people of God
out of slavery in Egypt,
God had to get his attention.
God appeared to Moses
in a burning bush.

The bush had fire within it,
but it was not being consumed.
That got the attention of Moses.

Then Moses said,
“I will now turn aside and
see this great sight,
why the bush does not burn.”
So when the Lord saw
that he turned aside to look,
God called to him from
the midst of the bush and said,
“Moses, Moses!”
And he said, “Here I am.”
Exodus 3:3-4

Moses had to turn to God.
He turned toward God
and away from his flock,
away from that which was
his current world.
Moses had to give his attention
to God and consider his beliefs.

​You see, God is always there,
waiting for us to do the turning,
wanting for us to do the turning.

Then He will lift the veil.
Then He will reveal His truth to us.
Then we will see and understand.

Even those of us
who already know God,
who know Jesus as Savior,
can have a partial veil because
we simply are not seeking God;
because we have believed the lie
of our enemy that we cannot
understand the Bible.

All we need to do is turn aside.
Turn away from what distracts,
turn aside from the lie that
we cannot understand,
that it's over our head and
beyond our comprehension.

All we need to do is ask.

Whenever someone turns...
that is an action on our part,
turning to the Lord, He is there
to take the away the veil.

And since He is the Spirit,
He gives us freedom.
Freedom to see,
freedom to hear,
freedom to understand,
freedom to share and
freedom to express praise
for this newfound light
that shines forth wisdom.

When I have felt blinded,
veiled from truth in the past,
I have claimed these verses which
Paul wrote, as a prayer over myself.

This has been my prayer...
And I pray that the eyes of
(my) heart... the very center and
core of (my) being, may be
flooded with light by the Holy Spirit,
so that (I) will know and cherish
the hope, the divine guarantee, and
the confident expectation
to which He has called (me), in
the riches of His glorious inheritance
as (one of) God’s people.
Ephesians 1:18 AMP (personalized)

Let it be yours as well.
God does not desire that
we stay far from Him.
He created us for relationship
with, and near Him,
turned toward Him, unveiled,
seeking His truth and glory.

Word of God
train me today...
To turn toward You always
with unveiled face.

To never cease from seeking
light and wisdom, which brings
You glory, receiving Your blessings.