I think we finally slept in a little later than 5:00 a.m. this morning. I have been online today completing some forms requiring medical information. It is interesting to review doctor visits, hospitalizations, medications, surgeries and tests that have taken place since last July. When I was in the Long Term Acute Care unit of Northern Colorado Rehab Hospital it felt like I was getting daily visits from the x-ray technicians and lab people drawing blood.

The IV antibiotics that I am on will continue until next Sunday. After that the PIC line will be taken out and I will finally be back to having my arms and chest free of tubing. However, as I have mentioned before the adjustment to the twice a day dose has work out well and isn’t an inconvenience.

Reading through Old Testament history there are critical points in an individual’s life that has a significant impact on that individual and even the history of Israel. I have made some observations about King Saul.There were some significant points of disobedience that caused God to reject his leadership and look for a “man after his own heart” to lead Israel.

We see that King Solomon’s heart was drawn away by his foreign wives. As a result he did not follow the Lord whole-heartedly and began to erect altars to these foreign gods and followed is wives in offering sacrifices on those altars. As a result, God’s judgment came against the reign of Solomon and Israel became a divided kingdom.

Jeroboam became King of Israel (the northern kingdom).Ten tribes out of 12 were under his rule. The prophet spoke to Jeroboam and told him how Solomon had sinned by building altars to other gods and not following after the Lord. His promise to Jeroboam was clear:

“I will choose you so that you can rule everything you desire. You will be king of Israel. If you will do all I command you, follow my ways, and do what I consider right by obeying my laws and commands as my servant David did, then I will be with you. I will build a permanent dynasty for you as I did for David. And I will give you Israel.” (1 Kings 12:37,38)

The Lord kept Rehoboam from attacking Israel in an attempt to overthrow Jeroboam and reunite Israel. Jeroboam began securing his reign and kingdom, but as he did he began to become insecure and worried about the stability of his reign, forgetting the promise of God.

“He said to himself, “The kingdom will probably return to David’s dynasty now. King Rehoboam of Judah, the former master of these people, will regain popularity if they go to sacrifice in the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem. Then they will kill me and return to King Rehoboam of Judah.” After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said, “You’ve been worshiping in Jerusalem long enough. Israel, here are your gods who brought you out of Egypt.”  He put one in Bethel and the other in Dan.  Worshiping them became Israel’s sin.    (1 Kings 13:26-30)

So here we go with the golden calves again! Perhaps in a King Saul rationale Jeroboam thought, “I’m not like Solomon building altars to other foreign gods, I’m just making up my own gods.” We don’t know. We do know he “sought advice” and that the people of Israel seemed to be compliant in the new gods and forms of worship Jeroboam established.

King Jeroboam in attempting to secure his kingdom through human wisdom received God’s judgment on his reign and family. However, his actions not only impacted his life but the golden calves in the northern and southern part of the kingdom became the source of continued idolatry for several hundreds of years. “The sin of Jeroboam” became synonymous with idolatry and disobedience, instead of honoring God and a legacy of an enduring reign.

What if Jeroboam would have trust God? How different the future of Israel would have been. If only he would have remembered the Word of the Lord and clung to God’s promises consider the suffering and wars that could have been avoided. Obedience to God helps avoid the greatest regrets of life.

(Tomorrow I will share some concluding thoughts on these events)

Today was the Rocky Mountain Energy Forum webinar that I hosted with Amy Attwood. I appreciate all those who participated. We have another one scheduled for April 24th. If you are interested in some good information and background on the issue of hydraulic fracturing let me know.

I have my personal fundraising page set up for the Colfax 5K. It is Saturday, May 17. I have several who have offered to help me participate by pushing me in my wheelchair. That means I have about six weeks to train to see how much I can motor myself in a regular wheelchair.

You can support my effort with a donation to Teen Challenge of the Rocky Mountains at www.coloradogives.org/ksummers

If you would like to join our effort and participate in the event and help raise funds for Teen Challenge check out www.teenchallengerockymountains.org

My occupational therapist paid me a visit today. It was a good session as far as some good education on my recovery and further evaluation on the strength of various muscle groups in my shoulders. I believe I have a good workout plan and may be transitioning to outpatient rehab within the next month.

This morning I read through the Book of Colossians. This one of Paul’s letters that he wrote from prison in Rome.  In this Book Paul not only asserts the deity of Christ in response to some first century hearsay, but he challenges believers to their conduct in light of Christ’s supremacy.

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above,not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Colossians 3:1-4

Paul clearly communicates the transformation that comes into an individual’s life when they become a follower of Christ. In the verses above he talks about your “mind” and “heart.” Our thoughts and our emotions are the key to the direction of our life and the degree of joy and peace that we experience. This focus is not to make us as those with our “heads in the clouds” but as those with our “heads focused on heaven.” In other words, our preparation for being forever in God’s presence begins now with cultivating His presence in our life and allowing Him to rule our mind and our hearts.

As our life is drawn away from the “things on earth” our thoughts and emotions will be manifested in our life style and the character qualities of our life. Paul put is this way:

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone.Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3:12-14

This verses call to mind the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians and perhaps even the armor of God from Ephesians with the imagery of “clothing” yourself in these virtues. These traits are godly character traits that can only be applied consistently and correctly in our lives as we trust in God’s Spirit to empower us and to help us.

The challenge is for us to learn what these mean from God’s view and not a worldly view. Sometimes the worldly view can see these characteristics as weakness or allowing ourselves to be run over by others. Different personalities will react differently when they read these traits. However, the way the world views them may not be the same as they way God views them. Our desire must be to please the Lord and not people. The whole point Paul is making is that Christ’s deity calls us to a higher life, with a heavenly focus.

 Today seemed like a busy and fairly taxing day. Mid-afternoon I took a nap and that helped me regenerate for the rest of the evening. Changing my antibiotic doses to twice a day has really made a difference. The nine at night and nine in the morning seems to work out well for our schedule.

My good news of the day was that I discovered an oversight on my tax return that should help with an additional $500 tax refund. I’m just not sure when I will get it, but it may come in handy for Christmas. Also, it was great to have Ted Grizzel help yesterday with my transportation to the Rehab Hospital and to come today to work on a leaky faucet in our kitchen.

I am trying more and more to use the walker to transfer from wheelchair to bed or my recliner. This gets me some periodic exercise through the day in addition to any specific exercise activity. This morning I stood in my walker without having to push up from the bed which was a first.

BIBLE VERSES FOR TODAY… Mark 11:22-26

“Have faith in God,” Jesus answered.  “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it,and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

 These verses come at the end of a passage in the Bible where Jesus is teaching His disciples about faith. The passage begins with Jesus cursing a fig tree as they left the town of Bethany.  The verses above follow the disciples observation, on their return journey, that the fig tree was dead.

Frank Adams is a church consultant from Fredericksburg, Virginia. I like the wording for his outline related to this passage.

1.     Faith will dry up what needs to be dried up (11:12-14, 21-21)

Frank makes the comment, “there are things that should not be allowed to continue as they are.” That point alone is challenging and convicting enough! It reminds me of the leadership adage, “If the horse is dead dismount!” But for our personal lives it calls for some inner evaluation. What is there in our life that needs to be changed, or killed? What is there in our life that needs tending and mending in order to bear more fruit?

2.      Faith will remove what needs to be removed (11:22-23)

Mountains thrown into the sea is a pretty dramatic metaphor. But when the challenges and problems in life can appear as intimidating as the Rocky Mountains it is easy to become discouraged. Faith provides the strength and the ability to see the future regarding our life not from the perspective of the foot of the mountain,but at the top of the mountain.

3.      Faith will get done what needs to get done (v.23)

“Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe…”

James said, “when you ask you must believe not doubt”  (James1:6)  If we ask without faith we are wasting our time.

Consistently in Jesus ministry we see Him responding to an individual’s faith. We see Him commending faith. Heb. 11:6 says, “without faith it is impossible to please God.”

So, keep believing, keep trusting because faith gets done, what needs to be done.

4.      Faith will provide what you need but don’t have (v. 24)

The old hymn, “What a Friend We Have in Jesus” contains the admonition, “take it to the Lord in prayer.” What troubles us, challenges us, what we need, we can ask the Lord for in faith.

 Church Reformer Martin Luther said, “God our father has made all things depend on faith so that whoever has faith will have everything. And whoever does not have faith will have nothing.”

 5.     Faith will heal what needs to be healed (v.25-26)

The sin of unforgiveness can hinder our prayers. When we understand God’s forgiveness freely extended to us, it should empower us to forgive others. But this verse places the action of our forgiveness toward others as preceding God’s forgiveness for us. Perhaps it is because if we don’t have faith in God to take care of our offenses and to empower us to forgive, how can we believe Him to forgive us or for “whatsoever we ask”?

This verse reminds us that the greatest healing, the greatest act of faith, the greatest request can be for the healing of broken relationships.

Frank Adams ends his outline with the exclamation, “Think about it!” I actually have for several weeks and decided to grab his outline and include my own commentary. If you like the outline you can thank Frank, if you don’t like the commentary don’t write Frank.

Frank Adams www.newlevelchurchconsulting.com   frankpadams@verizon.net

 Today was my appointment with my infectious diseases doctor.  I think he was pleased enough with my progress considering my blood protein is in the normal range when it was twenty-four times higher than it should be a few weeks ago. Tomorrow I have an appointment back at Northern Colorado Rehab Hospital for some never testing in my left shoulder.

I will continue on the IV antibiotics until April 6. I then have appointments on the calendar in April with my urologist, neurologist and a follow up appointment the end of April back to my infectious disease doctor. For someone who never needed to go to a doctor this is a different mode and routine than I am use to.

This week I will continue with my occupational and physical therapy. The main focus will continue to be on working on muscle strength and endurance. As I have mentioned it is interesting the muscles that have responded well in comparison to those that still need a lot of work. But I know that I am making progress. The continual focus on my routine exercises for legs, arms and shoulders is important.

This aspect of physical rehab is a constant reminder of the importance and challenge of “balance” in our lives. I need to continually work so my physical development is well balanced, well rounded. For example, my focus has been so much on my ability to walk the development of my shoulders has lagged behind. I work on strengthening my arms, but I forget that my shoulder muscles require specific exercises.

Balance is important in many aspects of our life and certainly in our spiritual life. It is easy for me to read the Bible; it is more of a challenge to be disciplined in prayer. Some are energized and find it easy to share their faith; others almost live their life as “secret” Christians. Some are ardent “prayer warriors” but struggle with relationships.

During my days in college ministry we use to talk about “WFDE” as a reminder of spiritual priorities and balance: Worship,Fellowship, Discipleship, Evangelism.

I believe those can serve as a good check point of our spiritual health and development. I know that individually we have spiritual and natural gifts that make certain disciplines more natural, but each Christian must be aware of what spiritual health and development looks like.

A championship football team will talk about the three phases of the game that must be in sync: offense, defense and special teams. And then there is the coaching element that covers these three. To be our best for God and His kingdom we need to understand and evaluate our strength of balance in key areas of the Christian life.

Worship – is both personal and corporate. Are you an observer or an active participant? Is worship something that is viewed as a “Sunday” church activity? Is it part of your daily life?

Fellowship – involves our connection with others. We need relationships that build us up and we need to contribute to and encourage others.

Discipleship –addresses our spiritual growth. We are to be life time learners when it comes to God’s Word and His ways. One of the reasons I read through the Bible every year is because God’s Word continually addresses my need and speaks to me where I am at that point in time.

Where I am today, the challenges I face will not be the same next year at this time. As a result, different words, concepts, stories, will take on a different meaning.

Evangelism –We are called to share the good news of Christ with others. This can be in a variety of ways. What matters is knowing the heart of God for those who are “lost and without hope.” When I read Christopher Kennedy Lawford’s book about people recovering from their addictions, it was interesting to find how the turning point for so many was somebody listened, somebody cared, somebody offered hope for a new life. That is what sharing God’s love and gospel is all about.

I am finding that having balanced muscle development enables me to get around and navigate more effectively the obstacles that come in my path. Balance muscle strength keeps me from falling and makes it easier to get up when I do. The same is true for our lives spiritually.