Rise and Shine

     
     Each morning when I wake, I am grateful, I honestly wake up with a smile on my face. Can you relate? I'm a morning person for sure so that just goes along with my early morning enthusiasm, but whether you are an early bird, or the midnight oil burner that has to be crowbarred out of bed, the question is the same, are you grateful for the day that you are about to encounter? Right now amidst a global pandemic, civil unrest, political strife, social isolation, and uncertain tomorrows is it possible to be grateful for the sun coming up today? I'm guessing you've figured me out by now and you probably are picturing something like little Orphan Annie singing "Oh, the sun will come out tomorrow" when you think of me, and guess what? You would be absolutely correct. Whatever this day holds, whatever lies in front of me tomorrow, it is not going to determine how I feel today, how I feel about today, nor is it going to dictate how I live out my day today. I've adopted a mindset that mirrors the words of Ralph Abernathy, friend and colleague of Dr. Martin Luther King, "I do not know what the future holds, but I do know who holds the future." So, each morning, every day I wake up, I bounce out of bed, I exercise my body, mind, and spirit, and then I head out the door with the idea forged in my head that I don't know exactly what this day is going to deliver, but I know who the deliverer is. Armed with that mentality I can confidently go forward facing whatever comes my way.
     Simplistic view of life? Coming from someone that doesn't know what struggle is about? Are those or similar thoughts creeping through your frontal lobe? Maybe. Or, maybe the mentality I have allows me to face adverse situations and circumstances a little differently than you, and maybe just maybe you don't know as much about me as you think you do? Maybe I choose to look for the light instead of stumbling around in the darkness and that quest for enlightenment allows me to have the outlook on each day that I do not know what today holds when I wake up this morning, but through it all regardless of it being good or bad, I know who is in control and His word tells me not to worry about tomorrow, just get up and move head first into this day! (Matthew 6:34)
       You can find examples of people around the world that have this rise and shine mentality and when you find them many times they are dealing with a much bigger plate of life's adversity than you or I will ever be served. Take Rob Mendez, the high school football coach that has no arms or legs. Inspiring? Motivational? Absolutely, but more than that his example should make you feel ashamed if you wake up tomorrow morning and complain about having to get up and go to work. What about Zion Clark, a collegiate wrestler that has no lower body extremities? Shouldn't he be getting up in the mornings blaming God and holding a grudge against all those that have been blessed with two legs, two feet, and ten toes? Not happening, Zion says don't pity me, and then he displays why when he takes to the wrestling mat and defeats that very same person with two legs. People like Coach Mendez and Zion Clark have had to overcome a great deal of adversity in life and I'm pretty sure they face a considerable amount of uncertainty about what each new day holds for them health wise and just plain old daily living wise, but it is obvious that they have decided that they don't have to know what is in store for them today because they know who holds each day.
       You make the choice, rise and shine or roll out and survive. You get to decide if this is going to be a beautiful day. Regardless of rain, snow, sleet, or tsunami we choose how our day is going to be. Circumstances are going to be just that, and situations are going to make life challenging and even hard to bare, yet through it all if we know who holds each day, then we know that as He holds each day He is also holding each of us. Live life to the fullest, quit worrying about your situation and start looking at others situations that you can have a positive impact on through your engagement and interaction. When you start the process of removing self from the equation you will begin to see that your life matters not because of you, but because you can make the lives of others better. Don't worry about tomorrow, rise and shine today, because that is the gift you have been given. Remember, it is better to give than to receive so that life you have been given, go out and give it away in service to and for others! It will make all the difference in your way of thinking and the plans you make to assure this big, old rock keeps spinning around and around!
Rise up today, tomorrow, and each day that you are blessed to have, and shine!
Coach Carter

C+P=E It's Simple Math

    
How fitting? Four years ago, on what would have been the same week as this in July, the FTM for that week was E+R=O, Events + Responses = Outcomes. Just looking back to assure this week's message wasn't too closely related to the E+R=O post, I happened to look at the date and realized that the two posts were linked by the same week in July only four years apart. Which leads me to believe that although different messages the same theme holds true in each. It's that whole "Grow through what you go through" mentality that we discussed a few weeks ago. The formula behind C+P=E is Circumstances + Perspective = Experience. Definitely a topic for the world we are living in today. 
      This morning I was talking with my sister, who has made the decision to be a remote, virtual teacher for the 2020-2021 school year. After 28 years in the classroom this is definitely going to be a new experience for her and her professional career.  As we talked she shared with me that another teacher she knows has also made the decision to apply for this new platform in education. Both my sister, Donna, and her colleague have taken the attitude that to just do things like you've always done in the midst of a crisis would basically be like grabbing a bucket of water instead of a fire hose to help put out the fire. Donna and I concluded that the whole idea of a growth mindset fits perfectly in this crisis that we are currently treading through. Bottom line is you have two choices, see this as a terrible situation that we have to hunker down in and try to survive, or you can take the high road and decide that yes, we are in a global pandemic that has the possibility to be a deadly force in our society, but we must move forward and work to make this year a better year for students than any previous year in their educational career!
       Circumstances are what they are, you can't see someone that is getting ready to go in for cancer surgery and say "Wow you're going to grow so much through this experience, I'm glad you have cancer." That would be somewhat ludicrous. But, another person with cancer might say, "I have cancer, but the doctors found it before it was too late, and now they are telling me that after this surgery there is a strong chance for recovery. This falls into the category of Perspective. Same circumstances completely different perspective. That's the choice. We can't choose to have cancer or not, just as we can't always determine our lot in life from a relational stance or if we are talking about finances, rights, wrongs, ups, downs, or any other life situation you may be facing currently. The only thing we can choose is the approach we choose as we enter life each day. Perspective, north or south, up or down, in or out, you make the decision. 
      I see the apostle Paul as a poster child for positive perspectives. In the first chapter of Philippians he writes to the believers from prison encouraging them and assuring them that God's plan is in full swing and the outcomes of his imprisonment are evidenced in the number of guards and prisoners being saved due to his time there in jail. In verse 13 Paul says, "it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ." Notice he didn't whine and cry and say "Oh God, I'm locked up here and I need you to set me free!" Sound familiar? I know that I'm guilty of many times asking God to remove the hardship in my life instead of thanking God for the opportunities that will be presented due to the hardship. Basically, Paul's stance is summed up in this affirming statement, "For me to live is Christ, but to die is gain" Philippians 1:21. I may be locked up (Circumstance), but while I am in here I might as well do God's work and save some of these lost souls (Perspective), which leads to Paul feeling like he has been given the fast pass at Disneyworld! (Experience). Paul finishes that conversation with this nugget of optimism, "I know that it would be great for me to go home to be with Christ, but it is better for everyone else if I stay here and continue my work for God." Philippians 1:23-26. 
        Now I want you to take this pandemic and find a way to apply a C+P=E mindset to a current circumstance you are dealing with in your world. As in my sister's case, she and her colleague are excited about the opportunity to use technology in a new way to provide an educational experience that will be both rigorous and interactive. If you are social distancing or self-quarantining could this be the time that you've been looking for to sit down and read a good book, read the Good Book, or even start writing your own book? Laid off from work, how about instead of sitting around feeling sorry for yourself, you take this as an opportunity to become that entrepreneur that is waiting to bust out and thrive! 
      Point is you have circumstances, we all do, but how you approach those is completely different for each person. What I am telling you today is although we can't choose our circumstances in most cases, we can choose our perspective on how to approach the circumstances in our lives. That choice will have a direct impact on your experience as you work through the good, the bad, and the ugly of life. "Consider it pure joy (Perspective), my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials (Circumstances) of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance." (Experience).
        Life is changing, the way we have always done things is not the way we will do things tomorrow. This is a chance of a lifetime in your lifetime. I pray earnestly that each and every one of will be safe and stay healthy during this viral outbreak, but I can't sit around hoping that you sit around hoping you don't contract COVID-19. God has a purpose for your life and that very purpose may be revealed to you during such a time as this if only you will open your eyes to the opportunities on display in front of you and take them by the horns and ride it on through to the place you were created to be! 
Praise God for whatever lies in front of me, because there is no way it is bigger than the God that lives inside of me! 
Coach Carter 

Coach Carter

Every Soot Cloud Has a Silver Lining

       

When I walked out the door I knew it was going to be a red-letter day on the calendar. It was Spring, the birds were chirping, the sun was shining, and the temps were just about perfect for a morning drive to work with the windows down, sunroof open, and the radio blaring out some of my favorite songs! Life was good. As I bebooped down the road towards work I fell in behind a tow truck obviously headed to work as well. The fact that this truck was having to travel at a much slower speed didn't even phase my morning commute it actually was allowing me to take in a little bit more of the wildflowers sprouting up on the banks of the road and out along the fields and farms. It was a good day. We both eased our way up to the red light at the intersection leading onto the main roadway. Then it happened. When the light turned green and the driver of the wrecker accelerated to overtake the little peak of our road, this huge billowing cloud of black soot engulfed my little white Honda CRV. When I say engulfed my vehicle I mean literally inside and out black exhaust smoke overtook my vehicle, my visual capabilities, and even my lungs as I inhaled a big whiff of black soot. Good old diesel engines, you gotta love'em! 

       As we both proceeded through the red light the wrecker took a left hand turn, which is the normal direction of my morning commute, but after what just happened, I determined a right hand turn, which would result in a little longer drive, was absolutely in order and preferred. Soon after we had parted ways the air cleared, the clanging clatter of the values dissipated, and the sun was able to resume shining down on me and my little CRV. Life was good, again.
      Now here's some takeaways I received from that little experience. First off, life can be chiming along with everything going your way and then all of a sudden boom it's like a dark cloud just set in over your head and thunderstorms are following you wherever you go. I could have just as easily been driving along and instead of a cloud of exhaust fumes it could have been a vehicle barreling in behind me ramming into the rear end of my vehicle landing me in the hospital. Or maybe it could have been that I'm loving my career and all of a sudden zap the bottom falls out of the industry and I'm sitting down looking at a permanent lay off slip. Fill in the blank family, marriage, finances, dark clouds in your life are just that a dark cloud. They stink, they mess up your day/life, and you would just as soon roll up your windows, close the sunroof, and move on down the road away from them as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, we don't have that luxury in most of those situations, you may be able to head away from a tow truck pushing out black soot exhaust clouds, but in life it just isn't that easy.
     There's a reason for that. Some of those dark clouds are there to build us up to the person we are supposed to be. Keep that in mind the next time you are going through one of life's dark periods. Heck, your dark cloud may have been with you for a while and it sure doesn't appear to be going away on its own. Maybe, just maybe that situation you are dealing with is going to be the platform by which you impact your circle of influence. Maybe it's there so you can teach your family how to persevere through challenges so that when you are gone they will be able to advocate for themselves due to your example. Maybe, that dark cloud of soot was cannoned out of that exhaust so you would turn right instead of your normal left hand turn, resulting in you seeing a car stranded on the side of the road with a flat tire and a mother with two small children that needs a helping hand. Maybe, just maybe, that black cloud that is hanging over your head is a reminder that you have a beautiful life to live and you can't even see the sun shining when there are no clouds in sight. Trust me that wrecker wasn't in front of me for no reason. If nothing else I'm pretty sure that wrecker and the ensuing exhaust blast was given to me as an impetus for this Flat Tire Ministry Thought that I am sharing with you today because someone needed to hear this message today!
     Regardless of how bad that cloud of smoke messed up my drive at that moment, when that light changed from red to green I had a choice to make. I could have chosen to stay right behind that wrecker and continue to get blast after blast of black diesel fuel exhaust, or I could turn right extend my drive, but open myself up to a list of new opportunities that I might not of otherwise have found. It is exactly the same in your life. When you are down, when life is blowing black soot right in your face you have a choice to make. You can squander away your life, feeling sorry for yourself, and making that dark cloud your home away from home. Or you can make the decision to look beyond the situation you are in and start looking at the potential this dark cloud is offering you to serve God. The apostle Paul walked with Christ after being blinded on the Damascus road. From there he experienced persecution, threats, beatings, a constant pain in his side, and being shipwrecked at sea all while serving God. Here's what he said about his situation. "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. So what shall I choose? I do not know. I am torn between the two. I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better indeed. But it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. “Philippians 1:21-24 The things Paul endured made him desire to leave this earth and receive the peace and joy promised in Heaven, but he knew that through the pain and suffering he endured he was better equipped to help even us today. In this "me" generation we are living in, it is important that we as followers of Christ understand that your life isn't about you! Your life is about the legacy you can leave behind to make this world a better place where black soot clouds get swooshed away by the gentle exhale of our Heavenly Father as He opens up your pathway to where He has purposed you to go.
Life is good, even in a cloud of soot!
Coach Carter

There Is No Impossible with God

      
Today's title may sound a little bold to you, especially if you haven't developed a personal relationship with God. If you don't have a deep relationship rooted in faith which is coated in trust then the idea that there is no such thing as impossible with God may sound simplistic or even something from the world of fantasy and dreams. If you have no relationship and have no idea who God is or understand His promises then the title of today's FTM is overall what could be deemed, "fake news". Well I have a news flash for you today, I believe that there is no wall He can't break through, no war He can't win, no over that He can't start again, and there is no impossible with God! Wish I could take credit for those lines, but actually they are part of a song by the band I AM THEY entitled, "No Impossible With You".
     No impossible with God. So, does that mean that everything we pray for will come to fruition? Isn't that what the Gospel of Matthew shares from the mouth of Jesus? "Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." That sounds pretty definitive to me right? So, if I'm facing a financial crisis, I just ask God to send me the monetary means to overcome the crisis and "BOOM" instant pot of gold appears at the end of the rainbow. Or what about a health crisis? I'm pretty certain that most of us could say that we have or have had a relative that faced a major health dilemma and the first thing we did was knock on God's door requesting a healing touch that would most logically be titled a miracle. Marital or relationship woes? Seek a resolution from God and that relationship will suddenly be situated on solid ground. The situational list of "impossible" requests is endless, and as you may be able to attest, sometimes it just didn't work out that way you prayed in the end. Crisis ends up in a financial meltdown, health matter turned worse or is at best stable but not improving, or the DIVORCE papers just came in the mail. I thought the answer was there is no impossible with God? Isn't that what I'm telling you today you're asking.
      Well, I'm not talking about a magic lamp that we just rub when we need the Genie to appear and grant us three more wishes, of which the third wish is three more wishes. No, to be able to say that there is no impossible with God is much deeper, and is certainly not based on us having a golden street paved with no bumps, road blocks, ditches, or tragic wrecks along the way. The ability to lay claim to the idea of nothing being impossible for God is found in the faith that we develop as we get closer to God and realize that God's answer to our issues may have no semblance to what we can envision as the eventual outcome. God's plan is beyond what we can see, more complex, more engulfing, and much more expansive. Like I often say, "Your life isn't about you".
     When we look at a situation and say that's impossible, it will never work, we are limiting a Limitless God. His omnipotent power can raise the dead if He so chooses, (See John 11:38-44), or heal the sick (Matt. 8:3), touch the blind (John 9:1-41), or feed the five thousand with only a few fish and loaves of bread (Matt. 14:13-21). In all of the above examples was the expected outcome what others thought would be the end result, but there again God's ways and our ways are not even in the same dimension. We must have the trusting faith that if we plant the seed, then God is going to do the rest. What comes out of the ground and what fruit it produces or fails to produce are all part of His plan not ours. Ask Paul, (I Corinthians 3:6). We just have to make sure our motives for what we are asking are aligned with God's plan whether we can see it fully or if we are living in a committed faith that trusts that God knows better and we are giving Him control of our situations and circumstances and saying I believe, I trust, and I will not go backwards! Onward into battle we go.
     So, as we close out our time together today I have a picture that I want to share with you. On the way to one of my favorite put ins for kayaking on the Nolichucky I pass this spectacle going and coming. When some people see this, they will say "How in the world?" From the perspective of science, it would be labelled highly improbable, and from the eyes of the skeptic it would be considered a sham. But from the eyes of a believer, the heart of someone that holds tight to the fact that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, on the third day arose from the grave and ascended into Heaven, and now sits at the right hand of His father, I will say "Anything is possible with God!"

For those of you that aren't sure if what you are seeing is what you think it is, yes this is a tree, relatively large tree, growing out of a barn silo. Nothing is impossible with God!
Trust and Believe!
Coach Carter