Written by Patrick Siefring

What a great question…”What do I believe that God is calling me to do?”

For most of my life, I could not answer this question. Why? Because I truly did not have a relationship with God, I was a CEO Christian! (Christmas, Easter, Only) I prayed only when I wanted to and on my own time/terms. Even after I met Courtney, my wonderful wife of 15 years, who brought me out of my CEO status to attending church every Sunday, I still was a luke-warm Christian. I was the church of Laodicea (Revelation 3:15-16). I had to be spit out!

Courtney and I were not putting God first in our marriage or in anything else in life. This came to a head in June of 2020 when Courtney asked for a separation. I hate that that is what it took for me to plead with God and start a real relationship with Him!

Sorry I am taking the long way to answer one question, I feel some of the past is needed to answer that question.

So from June of 2020 to September 2021 God was preparing me for a message to hear His calling…honestly I’m sure He has been preparing me for long time.

So Courtney’s grandpa is a retired pastor…and he told Courtney many times that he did not think I was a good match for her. Courtney’s grandpa is very straight forward and will debate with you that he is always right. (By the way I asked for his permission to write this.) He told her I would not be a good spiritual leader and I would be the reason her relationship with God would be hurt. He was half way right! I was not a good spiritual leader, however I was not the reason Courtney turned away from God. She told me I am the reason for bringing her back to Jesus. (Praise Jesus for that! He used me.) Side note… she brought me back to the church and then God used me to bring her back to Him. Isn’t that funny?

So in September of 2021 Courtney’s grandpa said to her, “I was wrong about Patrick, he has become a good spiritual leader and he does not worry anymore about Courtney’s faith and relationship with God.” He also stated he was eating his words. When Courtney told me this in the car while I was driving, she continued to talk. I Could Not Hear Anything Else, other than a voice inside my head telling me, “FEED MY SHEEP! FEED MY SHEEP! FEED MY SHEEP!” I instantly started to cry and praised God! And thanking Him!

Since that day, God has led me to a Great Banquet and Pastor Tony Alstott asked me to lead a Sunday class here at Wesley called “Growing in Faith”. I truly couldn’t believe that one day I would be leading a Sunday school class, but here I am! Tony told me that God does not call the equipped, He equips the called.

So…What do I believe that God is calling me to do?

Feed His Sheep. I am still learning how many ways God wants me to do that. Because He is still calling me!

I have several friends that I follow on social media that are doing some real kingdom work. There’s a girl I graduated with who is going to Europe this summer to do mission work. There are other people I know who are graduating from the school of ministry at a local church here in Southern Indiana. They’re taking Matthew 28:19-20 seriously and they are fired UP about Jesus. It has to be one of the most amazing things to watch. I may not be close friends with each of them, but their lives are an inspiration. God is at work in this generation. How are they doing this?

I think we can get caught up in all of the negatives that come with having social media. There are a lot of them. Just the other night at dinner with friends, we were discussing how different life is now because we’re all on our screens. People can say whatever they want because they’ll never have to say it to someone’s face. It can be exhausting. You know what I’m talking about. There are a lot of pros and cons that come with social media and I am not here to debate them. It’s a significant part of our lives today whether we want to admit it or not. One of the biggest pros about it is that we can easily share things with people. Now, that can be good or it can be bad. What I see in my generation though, is that people are using it for good. Their captions and posts reflect their relationship with Jesus. They’re not pushing Jesus on people; they’re sharing about Him unashamed. They are sharing how He is working in their lives and the excitement and passion they have about their calling is palpable. The love they have for people is plainly visible.

We live in a culture where we are being encouraged to live our lives without letting the judgment of others bring us down. I wish more people treated sharing the Gospel that way. It can be hard not to think about what others might say. Many people have been hurt by the church, so they may be hard hearted towards Christians. What is a way you can tell and show people about Jesus without saying a word? Love them. Show people you love them. It’s not our place to judge other people. We aren’t God, and we never will be. 

I see God at work in my generation by the love that we are giving other people. For me, I will give and give and give until it runs me dry. I wear my heart on my sleeve. I see people unashamedly sharing the love they have for Jesus Christ, and they are sharing that love with other people. They are living and breathing the greatest commandment we’ve ever been given. John 13:34, “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.”

Written by Lu Emily

When the world is dangerous, seek God’s safety and peace. Connect to the shelter in the storm. Zephaniah 2:3 – “Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, you who do what He commands. Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the day of the Lord’s anger.”

Back in December, Pastor Tony said something in one of his sermons that has remained with me: There is never a good time for bad things. There is never a good time for someone to die. There is never a good time for a pandemic or a tornado or a fire that kills. There is never a good time for a loved one to be assaulted or a child to be tortured by a parent who should love him instead.

Since Adam and Eve’s fall and expulsion from the Garden of Eden, the world has been dangerous. The first family had the first murder. You would think when there are less than half a dozen people on the earth that murder wouldn’t happen. Yet Adam and Eve felt the loss of two sons—one in death and one who would be forever estranged. There were no winners and no peace in those moments.

In 1996, we lost our youngest child in an accident in the blink of an eye, doing a family activity at home. She was two. I thought my life was over. Through it all—through Stat Flight taking her to Kosair Children’s Hospital, calling my husband at work and asking him to meet me at the hospital, telling our parents and two older daughters she wasn’t coming home—I was tortured. I was sure Jeff wouldn’t forgive me for losing one of our children on my watch. It was a slap in the face to see our five and three-year-old daughters realize Mommy and Daddy couldn’t always protect them. I felt so powerless.

I was mad at myself because I didn’t do the one thing I should have done: I never once prayed to God to save her. I used to beat myself up over that. But in those days, I was the one who needed saving. She was already safe. Even though I believed in God, and I was saved in the sense of having accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior, I was not humble enough to realize how much I needed Him in all aspects of my life.

Nothing is more humbling than finding out just how powerless we are to stop bad things. That accident awakened me to my need for God. Casey’s short little life—and her death—have shaped how I view the world and where I look for peace and safety. Those things come from God, and we come to Him by being humble. Humility is letting God be God of our lives. Anytime we take control and try to run the show, then we are not humble.

Right now, the world lacks humility. Throwing tantrums on airplanes, yelling at customer service staff, fighting over COVID-19 responses, letting differences of opinions ruin relationships, engaging in road rage, or just cursing under your breath at the driver in front of you—it all comes from a lack of humility. When people treat personal desires as rights, they act like others don’t matter. This is not humility, and it is not loving others as God loves them. Any lack of humility is a form of hate and pride.

As long as we don’t humble ourselves and seek God with our whole hearts, bad things will increasingly continue to happen, and honestly, we’ll be doing some of them. That is a daily struggle for all of us. Sometimes there are still areas of my life that I don’t give Him. Or I start listening to my self-opinion more than I’m listening to God’s thoughts. But the truth is, there is no peace or safety apart from God.

Instead of demanding what we want, let us humble ourselves and ask what He wants. Because the only way to change a world full of pain and turmoil is to wholeheartedly turn to God.

“Some of the branches of the cultivated olive tree have been broken off, and a branch of a wild olive tree has been joined to it. You Gentiles are like that wild olive tree, and now you share the strong spiritual life of the Jews. So then, you must not despise those who were broken off like branches. How can you be proud? You are just a branch; you don’t support the roots—the roots support you. But you will say, “Yes, but the branches were broken off to make room for me.” That is true. They were broken off because they did not believe, while you remain in place because you do believe. But do not be proud of it; instead, be afraid. God did not spare the Jews, who are like natural branches; do you think he will spare you?” (Romans 11:17-21 GNTD)

A cousin posted a message a few years ago that simply said, “worst sinner ever.” It created a topic of conversation for several people and really stuck in my head. I had a shirt made with that message on the front, but added to the back of it, “saved by grace.” We certainly have a God that loves us no matter what. As a father, I can only wonder how hard it must be for God to watch us make mistakes and still maintain an unwavering love for us. What a great example Our Father is.

Worst sinners; an interesting phrase. What makes a sinner particularly bad? Is murder a greater sin than theft? In our society, laws are put in place to follow which should produce a moral character set to which we all should live by. God on the other hand sees sin as sin, no degree of sin (“Whoever breaks one commandment is guilty of breaking them all.” James 2:10). Sin is what separates us from God, and through the sacrifice of Jesus, we are able to be forgiven, completely forgiven. God keeps no record of sin, and for that I am grateful beyond measure. So to wonder what God thinks of the “worst sinner” shows our human limitation and takes away from the amazing love that God has for us. 

In Romans (11:17-21), Paul makes a comparison of Jews and Gentiles using an analogy of an olive tree. He explained that the original tree had a branch broken off and a wild branch was grafted/transplanted in its place. Sometimes we may feel that we don’t fit, but God has a plan for us, all of us. The branches of the tree are where the fruit is picked, but the life and essence of the tree is provided from the roots. God should always be the foundation of our lives. “Rooted in Christ…” is more than a motto, but a reminder that it is not just how we live that matters, but what gives us life and how we show and share that to others.

Our God is an awesome God. You 80’s Christian’s just smiled as you recalled the song by Rich Mullins.  To understand the essence of God is beyond my ability, but I praise God for the chances that I have to learn more about Him. I am grateful for the leadership and teaching that so many have shared with me at Wesley Chapel.

“Whose crazy idea was it to put the alphabet in math? I have enough trouble with just the numbers!” said one of my students in 7th grade math class.  I have the challenge of trying to transition these 12 year old brains from general math into Algebra, and that is not an easy task.  Students generally understand why 2+2=4; that makes sense.  But then when you throw in those x’s and y’s, many begin to get quite confused and frustrated.  “Why do we need to know this?” is the comment I often hear.  It’s difficult to give them an answer to this question that will satisfy them.  

My response?  “You can’t see the future; you can’t yet be sure what you will be doing as an adult.  My job as your math teacher is to help you become prepared for any path that you may take.”  I remember having those similar feelings as a child when I first learned Algebra, and maybe you can relate too.   

One of the ways I introduce Algebra is by showing my students a clip from the movie The Karate Kid.  Mr. Miyagi (the karate sensei) is teaching his student (Danny Larusso) the techniques of Okinawan Karate to help him defend himself from bullies at his school.  During his first few sessions, Mr. Miyagi had him use specific methods to wash his car, paint his fence, and sand his deck.  Of course Danny is extremely frustrated because he just wanted to learn karate, not do this man’s chores.  However, after completing all of these chores, which took a couple of days with aching repetitive work, Mr. Miyagi demonstrated how these methods of repetitive work had actually built muscle memory that developed innate karate skills in Danny.  He was quite amazed and continued to come back for more lessons.  By the end of the movie (Don’t read this next sentence if you don’t want a spoiler alert!!) Danny wins the local karate championship.   

Just as John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus, and I try to prepare the way for my students’ journeys to high school and beyond, and Mr. Miyagi prepared the way for Danny’s karate success, Jesus is always preparing the way for our path as well.  So many things he asks us to do may seem to have little meaning or purpose at the time.  But Jesus knows what is down the road for us, and He also knows what we will need when we get there.

He asks us daily to build our spiritual muscles by spending time with Him in prayer, reading His word and telling others about Him.  He is preparing us for the plan that He has for our lives; the plan He has had for us since the beginning.  

God gave us His Word to prepare our way.   He gave us the Bible to teach us who He is, and He gave us Jesus, to be our example. And not only does He prepare our way, but he provides everything we need along the way.  [2 Peter 1:3 God’s divine power has given us everything we need for life and for godliness.]

And where does this “way” lead?  To a place better than meeting John the Baptist at the Jordan River.  To a place better than finally understanding algebra. To a place better than the winner’s platform at the championship karate tournament.   Following Jesus’ path leads us to an eternal life with Him in heaven. Even when you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel, know that it is there.  Jesus is the light [John 8:12], and He is always there [Matthew 28:20].  Everything He asks us to do helps keep us on that path; the path that leads to eternity with Him.  

So when you can see how Jesus’ way makes sense, when it is as clear as 2+2=4, rejoice in that.  And when you start feeling like life’s x’s and y’s are being thrown in with your numbers, and it just doesn’t make any sense, you can trust that Jesus will walk with you and continue to lead you in the right direction. [Isaiah 55:8-9 – “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways,” says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.] Keep reading His word, keep praying, keep listening, and keep following.  It is much easier to see where we’ve been and where we are than where we are going, but Jesus has that under control. 

We all weren’t meant to be John the Baptist, karate champions, or Algebra experts, but we were all created with and for a purpose.  The only way to be prepared for our purpose is to follow the One who created us.  Even if we don’t know where we are going, He still knows the way! 

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for, and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1

Oh, and in case you were wondering, it was Francois Viete (in the 1500’s) who is credited with first using letters in math.  Although I doubt you were actually wondering.