It’s an every-day thing now, people taking a picture or selfie of some famous landmark. Whatever happened to just looking at the landmark, viewing the natural beauty of a mountain or waterfall?

I actually missed seeing a whale come up out of the water once because I was fooling around with my camera.

This pertains to every day life too. Most people are so busy going here and there, making appearances so they can say they were there, that they miss golden opportunities of just being in the moment.

It’s always a whirl-wind of a time when 2 of my grandkids visit. They’re both trying to tell me something at the same time, or the older one typically dominates the conversation altogether. But, I intentionally slow my mind down and just breathe in their presence. I do capture the moment in my mind often so I can remember it later.

In the moment is a wonderful place to be, especially if you’ve invited God in. Precious moments can be found in stillness, in a baby’s laugh, in an elderly person’s smile, or in the middle of a worship song.

Stay in the moment with God.

2 Corinthians 4:18 - “as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.”

To my fellow ‘texters,’ don’t you just love predictive text, suggestions on what the next word will be that speeds up the text message. They call this ‘predictive text.’

But, you have to be careful of what the phone’s prediction of what you’re about to say may be something totally different from what you were thinking.

As a Christian, I guess you could say that I have a predictive life in a way. No, I’m not a robot and I don’t take commands from someone else. But, I do follow Jesus and I ‘sometimes’ take His suggestions and follow through.

The more I do this, the better my days are. Instead of being head-strong and doing things my way, I often pray and seek God’s advice.

No one can predict the future, only God knows that.

So, why not trust God’s suggestive tips along the way instead of letting the world predict your next thought.

Matthew 6:1 - “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.”

The above statement made by Rick Warren is very insightful on a spiritual standpoint.

I’ve worked in the IT arena over 30 years and I’ve been around some very powerful people. In knowing them, I had an advantage in obtaining new positions. The problem so many times in my career was that I neglected getting to know God, the one who holds the keys of life. Thus, it was forever a struggle. Trying to please man will get you nowhere.

Had I invested in my relationship with God, I may have gone farther and faster in my career.

Know the man (God) who holds the keys. Start each day talking to Him. Let Him know your fears and desires. Ask Him for guidance. Never underestimate His love for you.

Revelation 3:7 - “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: ‘The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.”

Serve God, not man.

Did you know that God’s best work is turning ashes into beauty? But, before He can do a work in us, we must let go of the ashes.

We can’t hold onto the past and expect to go forward. We can’t dwell on what happened to us and expect God to turn things around. You also can’t harbor unforgiveness and hurt and trust that God’s going to honor your requests. But, once you let go and give it all to God, you’ll be blown away at how God can turn your life around.

It’s hard to see the beauty in anything when all that’s present is ashes.

God can turn hopeful dreams into reality.

Try it. Serve Him. Get to know Him and watch your life change for the better.

How do I know this? Because He changed me and He’s continually making me better every day.

He’s not done with me yet, and I look forward to every day with Him.

Isaiah 61:1 - “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;”

I admire some aspects of the minimalists. Most have a clean, sometimes sparse home. They tend to live life simply. The few I know have a small amount of furniture, with very little art on the walls.

On the other side of this as a group, sometimes called, “hoarders.” A hoarder is someone who hoards things. Some collect and keep things, even things that may seem useless or of little value. These things tend to clutter the living spaces and might limit them from using the space or area as intended.

Hoarders tend to have a lot of anxiety. They are overwhelmed at times, when they look at all the clutter closing in on them.

In addition to being cluttered in your home, your mind can be cluttered. Worry clutters your mind. Doubt distorts your view on what’s right or what’s wrong. When your thoughts dwell on the negative, you’ll soon find your mind cluttered with doubt, worry and anxiety.

Try focusing your thoughts on what’s good in your life. Clear out the clutter.

Philippians 4:6-7 - “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Have you ever started to watch a movie and someone had already told you what happens in the end? And, even though there is drama and action, you can be at ease, knowing that everything turns out good.

If you haven’t heard, there is an end to this life we’re living on earth. The good news is, you can know the ending, and your choice of who you’re living for now, will determine whether the rest of life after death will be a good or bad ending.

Some think that they don’t need to decide now or that they can just live life doing good deeds staying out of everyone’s way. That’s a scary place to be.

Let God write your script. I promise you, it will be a happy ending. And, along the way, He can add new and exciting seasons and He always promises to be beside you in the scary or unexpected scenes.

God’s ending to this life is never-ending in the life to come.

Revelation 10:7 - “but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.”

I grew up during a time where preachers in my little country church preached fire and brimstone. I was scared to death of them.

They didn’t seem to do a whole lot of listening. But, to their credit, they did preach from the Bible. Their message was to the point. If you don’t surrender your life to Jesus (they preached), you will go to hell!

Well, I did surrender my life to Jesus when I was 16 years old. The problem was, no one came along beside me to teach me this new life. I guess they all expected me to change my ways and follow Jesus, without any other guidance.

I now know that even after you give your life to Jesus, you need discipleship. What does this look like? It’s when mature Christian helps you learn how to read the Bible. It’s someone who can help you understand how Jesus wants us to live.

I’m not going to go around and preach to others who aren’t saved. My goal is to live a life, pleasing to God and appetizing to the non-believer.

I won’t preach Jesus; I will live it out daily.

So, when someone I don’t know looks at me, they see someone that is happy, peaceful and a person that has a servant heart and attitude.

Let others see Jesus in you.

Matthew 5:16 - “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

You see the flames engulfing the burning building, and then you see a hysterical mother, screaming that her baby is inside the building. Human instinct has us running into the building to save the baby. Love overcomes fear. Fear isn’t even a thought; getting the baby out of the fire consumes us.

Let’s take the above scenario in a different light. What would happen if that same burning building contained your worst enemy? What if it was someone that had hurt you in the past? Would you still run into the building to save him/her?

1 John 4:18 - “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”

The Bible says that God is love, and in God, there is no fear.

Fear has to do with punishment. There is a day of judgment coming. But, if you are a Christian and know the love of God, then you have no fear of judgment.

The person who rejects Jesus is the one who should be scared.

The key to overcoming fear is total and complete trust in God.

Trust God. Refuse to give into fear. Love others - no matter their flaws or what they’ve done to you. After all, you were once a sinner, and Jesus loves you.