Week two... the irony still exists.

Week two is gone. I don't have a lot of time, between moving and weddings and what not so this will be quick. Something I have discovered so far is the necessity to budget time for things that are important to you. Within the first week, I have found myself spending much more time looking through online news and playing a stupid number game on my phone. As was my assumption, it's not that social media is bad, it's just what I was filling my dead space with because I didn't have it budgeted for anything. Much like my time with God, when life isn't exactly what I expect, I make excuses for why I can't. This week has been "I'm working hard and just need to relax a bit" or "I"m stressed with moving and just need to chill." These inevitably turn into me doing nothing useful with my time. 

On a positive note, I have practiced my banjo more and read more. But mainly in the first few days. As soon as life took a slight curve, I took a slight break and then stopped. It can't just be an idea, it has to be a line in the sand. 

I was recently talking to my brother about this. He said that him and a co-worker are going on a smartphone fast. For maybe a few months or longer. The idea was to stop wasting time. There is also a lot of trouble you can get yourself into with smart devices. I think this is a great idea, don't get my wrong. However, the more I thought about it, the more I felt like you would simply find something else to waste time on. Unless we are intentional and decide that we are going to do x y or z, we will simply do nothing. I may be way off, or maybe its just my personality type. I think we need to evaluate it though. I am toying with the idea of journaling (not on here) my time each day for a week. Not to shame myself, but so that I become more conscience of my time. 

Recently I have been reading through Revelations. It can be a confusing and terrifying book to read. What I have gotten out of it, however, is that at some point this world will come to an end. I can't keep putting off kingdom work because I have my "own crap" to deal with. I need to be doing something to glorify God. I don't know how much time I have left and I don't want to be caught with my metaphorical spiritual pants down. I'm pretty sure social media, the news, 2048, or the other things I waste my time with are helping that. 

Quick disclaimer. I'm not saying you shouldn't watch movies or play video games or be on social media. I just challenge you to look at where a majority of your time is spent an evaluate what that is doing for you and for God. 

Ok, I gotta get ready for a wedding but I love you guys. I appreciate your time on this "quick" post. Questions comments concerns, post or email me mschroc2@gmail.com. Please send any prayer requests as well. And don't forget, it's never to late to start something new.

Mike 

Giving up social media for a month...

So it's been a while since I've blogged. I had some ideas to blog about, eve some good ones to blog about. They just didn't happen. I began to wonder why my life was "so busy" that I wasn't doing the things I really wanted to do. I started to examine my life. What was I doing with my spare time? 

I work a fairly physical job. It's in the construction field. It's not overly taxing most days, but still manual labor. When I get phone from work, many days I just want to sit and relax for a bit. The problem was I would sit, and just not get back up. There were so many things to distract me. There was social media, tv, the internet in general, all there ready to take the time from me that I could be using to cross off things on my goal list. Things like blog, run, learn to play the banjo, and so on. I'd get "caught up" on facebook or twitter, then it'd be to late to run, or I wasted the time I had to practice banjo by following some stupid hashtag through the twittersphere. 

I realized that one of my worst offending obsticles is social media. Many times throughout the day, on the drive to and from work, while sitting on the couch with Sarah, or just walking around, my first instinct was to open my phone and go through facebook, twitter, and/or instagram. Even when I'm supposed to be hanging out with people I was on my phone. 

So this is where this journy is starting. A month in the life of someone not on social media. How is this going to affect me? What will things look like after a month? Originally my intention was to ween myself off the desire to always be on my phone, but I think there may be more to it than that. Beyond just staying off social media, my goal is to be more intentional with my time. I hope that by the end of the month I feel in control of my time. Dave Ramsey, the finacial guru guy, talks about how if we don't budget and give every dollar a job to do we end up spending it on random things. The same is true with out time. If we don't budget time for doing x y or z, we usually end up not doing them and wasting those minutes on random other things. 

By my calculations, if I live to be 97 I have just over 36 1/2 million minutes left. Minus sleep and some unproductivity. The point being, I only have so much time. It's not an infinite time left on this earth. I need to make is count. I don't want to reach that the 36 millionth minute and realize that I worked hard but I have nothing to show for it. No one saw Christ in my life. I want to have an impact on people. Not so that I can be glorified, but so at the end of my life, people glorify God and celebrate him. It seems so ideological I know, but it's what's in my brain. 

So, for the next, at least month, I will be blogging about this. Hopefully once a week, but with my proven track record, we will see. And before you say anything, the irony that you probably found this on a social media network is not lost on me. I also don't think social media is terrible either. For me, I was just abusing it. I do think it can be a great tool. Maybe more on that later. 

If you have any questions, comments or anything please comment on the blog or email me at mschroc2@gmail.com. Also, please let me know if there is any way I can pray for you as well. One of my goals this month is to pray more and I would love to pray specifically for you. 

With love always,

Mike

Which apostle are you? I got Judas....

It is the Easter season. Arguably the most important season in the Christian faith. Our salvation hinges on the this point in which Christ dies because of what we did and in three days, was raised from the dead to sit in Heaven and to be our advocates. Such a pivotal moment. This Easter, as I sat in church and I listened to the last supper, the Garden of Gethsemane, and the crucifixion and resurrection I identified with someone in the story I had never thought of being like before. That person was Judas. 

For those who may be unfamiliar with Judas, he was one of the disciples of Christ. A friend and a follower. And on that night, he was willing to  betray Christ for some money. It's not like Judas didn't know who Christ was. Maybe he didn't truly believe Christ was who He said he was. It's hard to believe that someone who hung himself because of  what he did, didn't actually believe Christ was Christ. Either way, Judas was willing to betray Him for some gold. This was the point that struck me. That Judas, knowing Christ, was willing to betray him. And this is the part that I sadly related to. 

How often is it that I chose to betray God in my ability to gain things in the hear and now. Part of it is the worldly inability to have any type of delayed gratification. But a larger part for me is the ability to have the control. Maybe that's what it was for Judas too. Maybe, even knowing Christ, he wanted to make sure he had control and was able to take care of things. But what does this look like in my life?

For me, I looked at my life. I think about when I'm at work and the way that I may interact with people. I make sure not to rock the boat or I may compromise how I talk or what I talk to be able to fit it. To make sure that I fit in so I have a better shot at being accepted, maybe move up. Isn't that the same mentality that Judas used? Wasn't he merely compromising his faith to be able to gain more in the here and now? I started to realize how much I compromise things in my life and not just for financial gain. I compromise to gain friends. I compromise to gain status. I compromise to get things I want here and now. 

The weight of that decision haunted Judas to the point of hanging himself. Then we wonder why we feel so empty and why that job promotion or that new tv are such fleeting joy and don't bring real, true happiness. 

Just a thinking point. What are the things we are choosing over Christ? Just made analyze my own life and I hope you take a second to introspectively look at your own. 

As always, email me with questions, concerns, prayer requests. I'm changing my email though. It's mschroc2@gmail.com . If you enjoy my thoughts please share them on social media sites. I'd love for this blog to get some steam but I'm going to keep doing it either way. Even if no one else gets anything from this. Till next time.

Love you all,

Mike

Back In the Saddle

God has, I think, been doing work in my life and stirring in my spirit. I think it is because I have been slipping into a state of complacency. Since I spent time with my college church in Virginia at something called LT, I have been unable to be merely a Christian who is going to church and that's it. I think part of it to is God has been putting a lot of sermons into my life about works. This has been a kind of tough topic for me to face. To explain you need some background though.

Growing up, I attended a church whose denomination is, at least partially, a works based religion. That church has since done some cool things. and I'm excited about where God is taking some of the leadership. Anyhow, because of that "doing things to get to heaven" part of church was part of my Christian walk. One I really began to grow in Christ and find grace, I jumped to the other spectrum, and didn't want to do anything because of God's grace. 

In the past few months, time and time again, God has been bringing scripture, sermons, people, emphasizing not only the need for grace but for works. This has been a struggle and something I think I have fought against. One of my older, wiser brothers summed up his thoughts on this. It has to be a balance we do. We probably will never be in the right balance, but swinging like a pendulum on either side of the line. We should be seeking to make that swing as little as possible. And, more importantly, have grace for those who are on the other side of that line from us. After all, our goal as the body of Christ is not to be various types of Christians with so many various theologies and fighting and screaming and yelling. Our goal is to be united under Christ, have grace in the things Christ didn't specifically describe, and not seek to be "a better Christian" but simply be Christ to a world who doesn't know Christ. This is incredibly important in the light of hateful group who claim Christianity to seek to be Christ in people's lives...but that may be for another, and I am getting way off topic. 

So I have for so long seen how God's grace covers such a multitude of things in our life. I used it as an excuse not to do anything. At it's true, we don't need to do anything to gain God's favor. Reading my Bible won't get my into Heaven. Going to church won't get my into Heaven. Memorizing scripture won't get my into Heaven. But how often does Christ call us to do things. We are to known truths. We are to love others. We are to go out and make disciples. 

So this battle ensues within me. What does Christianity mean. Every decision we make is doing one of two things. It is either taking our focus to Christ or away. Reading my Bible won't get me to Heaven, but that decision to do that or not to do that is taking me towards Christ or away from Him. It's also either going to help us love others better to nothing at all if we choose not to do it. Those are basic examples. But I think it helps to illustrate this battle going on in my heart and head. This, in turn leads to the battle between my flesh and Christ. Because my flesh would much rather be satisfied then to seek God. 

This battle has brought back this discontent within my soul of simply living and going to church and allowing those to be disassociated with each other. Recently I was talking to a pastor I admire, and he reminded me, that Christianity should infiltrate every aspect of our lives. My heart is realizing that I am returning to a complacent life of going to church and leaving there and everything I learned at the door. Every aspect of our lives should be missional. Every moment is an opportunity to exemplify Christ to whoever is around it. I, admittedly, do poorly most days. I hope, however, it is a work in progress.

My challenge to you is to search your own heart. Which swing of the pendulum are you? Are you relying on grace alone and not seeking Christ and choosing ways to grow closer to Him? Are you relying on what you can do only to be able to earn that grace? How have you been treating those Christians who don't necessarily agree with you? Are you Christ to those you come in contact with? I struggle with these moment by moment. I hope they challenge you as much as they challenge me. 

As always, feel free to comment or email me at Optimisticprime15@gmail.com. And please tell me if there is anything you disagree with me or would like me to further explain my thoughts on. If there is something you would like me to pray for, I would love to pray for you so please drop me a line and let me know how I can do that. 

I love you all and there is nothing you can do about it.

And now for something...completely different.

So it has been entirely to long since I have done any writing or acknowledged life outside of work, church, and my wife. Which can be a good thing. Lately, however, I have been getting the urge/drive to create and to share my thoughts with the world. I have tossed around a few ideas, and decided that my blog had been gathering some dust. I decided this is a good place to start. I have also tossed about the idea of doing a podcast with my brother, but that has yet to go anywhere. That is, in a nut shell, my state of the bloggosphere speech. Any feed back on anything I have done of have thoughts about doing, or things I haven't even told you yet, you are welcome to. Thank you to those who have taken the time to read my random thoughts on life and various issues throughout the year or however long its been. 

I am HIGHLY underqualified...

 Earlier this week, God put something on my heart while I was at work. God is not looking for the right man for the job, He is simply looking for the willing man for the job. I thought about this for a while before I started to wrap my head around it. It was good enough to tweet, but what did it really mean for me? What was God trying to tell me. After a while, it began to crystallize in my head. But first, like usual, we need some background.

So as I have grown in my walk with Christ, I have heard a lot about how life is about God preparing us for where we are going. I can attest to this. Often God has pushed me to be patient because of the need for patience in something bigger. Or showed me where I am finding my ID because I will reach a point I must choose where to find it. I do believe things in our life are preparing us and we must grow.

,Several years back, I felt as though God said, I want to use you in ministry somewhere, but you're not ready. I took that to mean that He has some stuff for me first before I am there. I have gotten so caught up in that, that I keep waiting for me to be "ready". In doing so I have passed on opportunities because of it. I know I am lacking in areas. There is no way God wants me in ministry x because I still have so much crap to deal with. I just sinned, I obviously can't be used. Then God told me, you don't have to be ready, just willing. I have been holding back because I deemed myself unworthy to participate in God's plan. I realized two things about this statement. 

Number one, is that me believing my failures are holding me back are nother more that lies from Satan. How often I have believed him when he has berated me for sin, or held it over my head. Once I am forgiven by Christ, He sees it no more. Yet Satan would lead me to believe that it is now within my identity to be that kind of sinner. When there is an opportunity to serve, Satan reminds me of my sins and faults. But there is an even better part I realized.

The biggest reason God is looking for the willing man vs. the "right" man is that he wants to provide. The best part about being willing to allow God to use you, is that He is glorified. In our weakness, He is strong. When we wait until we are the right man for something, we are relying on ourselves to be able to. We are seeking what we can do to succeed. When we are simply willing, we must rely on God. He must be the one who is moving. We lose ourselves and seek Him alone. That is the beauty of being the willing man for a job we feel unqualified for. Not only must we seek God, but we get to see Him glorified. It's a good thing to, because I'm not sure I'd ever have been ready or able to otherwise. 

As a small disclaimer, this doesn't mean that God doesn't want to use you in places you excel or when you are the right man for the job, it simply means to be willing to follow His call even into an uncomfortable place or outside your box. Often, this is where we can see God move the most. Questions, comments, concerns, please feel free to comment here, or email me at optimisticprime15@gmail.com. Feel free to send any prayer requests too. You are always welcome to comment about past blogs, or future blogs... if you can figure out that one. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and the New Year has been bright. 

With love always,

Optimistic Prime