Another thought lately that's come to the forefront in my life is that I should wear an "under construction" banner around my neck.

I'm very much a work in progress ... with the scaffolding up and plastic covering up certain part like a New York City shop being remodeled. Indeed, God is still working on me. And thank goodness He doesn't give up.

ONLY JESUS WALKED ON WATER

This sums up everything I'm going through right now ... it's a painful realization in one aspect, but also something I need to come to grips with, especially for the personal expectations I put on myself in just about every aspect of my life. [Admittedly, I've dealt with this my whole life, so I'm not expecting immediate results.]

I also think too often we, Christians, give off the image that we've got life all put together perfectly in neat little boxes. That's definitely not the case.

We still fail. We still fall. We still trip and bust our lips on the road of life. We're still messy ... even if our exteriors are shiny. :-)

But, those who are honest will tell you ... we're a work in progress. Christ picked us up from the road we were walking down (sin, self, being our own masters) ... and brushed us off and now seeks to mold us as we continue in a new direction (His).

There is hope for us all ... I am an example. Only in Christ is the abundant life of being salvaged and redeemed and being made the object of His continued affection, but also a display of His grace.

... I'm glad He could walk on water ... and was perfect ... and gave that perfection for me, the imperfect, still-in-progress one.

Here's a really neat USA Today article about a company that provides job-related vacations. You can test out other fields from sword-making to wedding planning to even mananging a minor league baseball team and much more. It's kind of like interning at neat jobs you might have dreamed of for a couple of days. Pretty affordable too. It's called VocationVacations.com.

I had the opportunity this Wednesday (Aug. 9) to teach in my church's Wednesday night prayer meeting. My "talk" or sermon was titled "Living Like a Missionary."

I won't try to hide it or water it down ... I want those who don't follow Jesus TO follow Jesus. I want to show His love (the same love He had for me when He gave His life on my behalf) and to share His message. This is commonly called "converting people."

This message is really not intended for those outside the faith, but I offer it here to show you that Christians who are faithful to what Jesus called us to are about loving our neighbors (believers or unbelievers), serving them with Christian compassion as Christ demonstrated beautifully in His earthly ministry and the cross, and seeking to see them turn from idol worship of self, money, power, sex, whatever, to worshipping the only, true God -- Jesus Christ.

Christ said: "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father (God) but through Me." (John 14:6)

In this sermon, I sought to challenge my fellow brothers and sisters to recommit their lives to this task -- loving, serving, and seeing those outside the faith "converted."

Here it is: "Living Like a Missionary" (MP3)

As introspective as I am, lately I've been poising the question to myself about my life's work, future, and mission. I find myself heading toward thinking about future work situations, dreams, things like that. (Not because I'm discontent, but just like to think in the future too much.)

I've always been that kind of person who has things planned out well in advance. I like to have my 5-year goals in line, know what my next step is with my career, etc.

But I've admitted to a lot of people lately ... I have no clue what the next step is. People ask often me about it, but I just say, "No idea." They ask about pastoring, preaching, other stuff like that ... and the answer is usually the same: "No clue." I feel drawn to those "callings" but don't know what God's going to do with me one year, two years, three years, 10 years down the road.

When I first became a Christian, I was very content not knowing those things. (After all, my Father in heaven was in charge of that.) And at that time, God had taken my life and turned it completely upside down. Everything I knew and trusted was in limbo ... and I loved it. I found my joy in just being taken care of ... like a child again. Completely, utterly dependent.

What happens though is that the sin in you -- or me -- starts to creep back in and get a foothold on you. I started thinking again about plans, dreams, more me-centered stuff. It's easy to do. Then you start to slowly stop consulting God.

He starts to become more like the rubber stamp committee on your decisions that you take to at the last minute, knowing it'll get approved.

OK ... big tangent to say this ...

As I've been thinking about the future and everything, and with the thought in mind that I have no clue what God's going to do in my life, now or later, I poised this old cliched question to myself: At the end of my life, what do I want to have accomplished?

And in a moment of clarity, it hit me: Make a difference, leave a mark.

It seems so simple, it's hard to think of this as my well-defined, super-long "life's mission." But as I began to think about it, that's what I want to do with my life. The fuzzy details are in God's hands. I've gotten so consumed in trying to see those things, I've too often gotten sidetracked on irrelevant things and I don't want to waste my time.

But think about this ... make a difference, leave a mark.

Everything I do can funnel through that ... I want to make a difference and leave a mark in my work, in people's lives, in those I love, in whatever I do.

For me, that redefines many things. I will refocus on seeing how I can make a difference, leave a mark in EVERYTHING I do. Find meaning, purpose, mission in the simplest, mundane things. (Granted, not always easy to do, especially when I hate routine, detail-oriented tasks.)

But, you may ask ... what does this really mean?

For me, it means ... I want to spend my life concentrating on the things that really matter and help me do this. I want to spend the time the Lord gives me in rapid pursuit of making my life mean something to others. And I can evaluate every opportunity through those goals.

And the bottomline for that is ... I want to give it for the soul's of men and women, and for my Lord's ever-expanding Kingdom. It means investing in the lives of others, of giving myself and more of myself to others, of giving and using the strengths, talents, treasure, time in service to my King through His creation.

I've had the chance since moving back to Oklahoma City to think a lot about how those outside the Christian faith view us inside the Christian faith.

This issue gets very personal for me as I seek to see my loved ones, who are "lost," have a lifelong, growing relationship with Jesus Christ as I have.

(Being "lost" is a Christian term for those outside the faith -- those who are without the hope of eternal life that Jesus' sacrifice on the cross provided for all those who have placed their lives in His hands.)

I have to admit, my perspective is a little bit removed as I've literally been shrouded in a full-on Christian environment for more than four years (after I became a fully devoted follower of Christ).

But here's the realization I had as I tried to think about how one of my loved ones, in particular, views my life as a believer ...

I think he sees me living a "pure" lifestyle compared to typical standards. I don't drink. I am faithful to my wife, and in fact, after three years of marriage still refer to her as my "bride." I give more than 10 percent of my paycheck to my church. I faithfully attend weekly Sunday services at my church (and not just because I work there), including active participation in a Sunday school class.

And I actively seek to share my faith with others -- no matter what their socio-economic status, or language, or culture, or color.

From an outsider's standpoint, I live a good, moral life. Perhaps even a disciplined religious life.

I think a lot about this as I walk into our apartment after church -- with Bible in tow, wearing nice khakis, while others may be just waking up ...

I often wonder what they think when they see me and my wife? Do they see religious lifestyle or radical love?

I know this ... if all I am communicating is that I live a clean, religious, disciplined lifestyle, one that merely sacrifices my own wants and needs (and Sunday mornings) for the sake of being "spiritual" ... then they or maybe I have missed the message and point of it all.

And if those who see my life think that by living this lifestyle gets me into heaven, I've also failed miserably in my vital task as a Christ follower.

The point of Christianity is this ... Jesus lived a perfect life, died a perfect death, was raised from the dead as proof of all this ... so that I may have the free gift of heaven at His expense.

He did what I could not. And I now live a "changed life" in honor and love for Him. I am merely grateful for His gift. I love Him and serve Him because He "redeemed" me. He purchased me with His blood on the cross. (This is the essence of a "sacrifice." One dies in place of another. Jesus bled and died in my place on the altar of the cross.)

All these things -- the clean, disciplined lifestyle everyone sees -- is the mere result of an inner heart change I had four years ago. I surrendered my life to Christ. I said, "Jesus, You are my Master, my King. I am your subject and servant. I offer my life to you."

I live the "pure" life -- because I don't want to defile His sacred property -- my body.
I live the sober life -- because He commands me not to be drunk with wine, and I would rather be controlled and under the influence of His Holy Spirit, who lives inside me.
I love my wife -- because He commands me to love her as He loved me -- unconditionally -- and it's my joy to care for another of His own.
I give money to His church -- because it's all His money anyway, and I'm just His manager of it. It's also an offering of thanksgiving for providing for me.
I join together regularly with other believers -- because we are brothers and sisters -- all children of God, and thus, family. We grow together, we love together, we serve together, we worship together, we cry together, we carry each other's burdens together (albeit not perfectly) because we have something infinitely superior in common -- we have one Heavenly Father.
And I share all this with others -- because I want them to know Him as fully and deeply as I have, and to bask in the joy that follows from being forgiven all my debts against God, with heaven as an unmerited reward.

I don't live a religious, disciplined lifestyle because it makes me feel good or secures a seat in heaven or because there is some sense of innate goodness in me (believe me, there's not) or because I'm a "good person" ... I live this way, I do these things to reflect honor and glory to the One who deserves it eternally.

... it is my offering of praise. To love Him is to obey Him, His Bible says. I live not the disciplined, religious lifestyle of a Christian ... I live the "exchanged life" -- mine for His (the life I now live), His for mine (the life He gave for me).

I am not my own ... I am His ... bought with a bloody, horrific price.

A priceless price I am forever grateful for ...

To Him, I say ... my King, I love You and thank You and with everything You give me, I return it back to You ... may my life -- Your life, this life -- please You ... for all eternity.

My wife and I just recently moved to Oklahoma City to take a position at a Baptist church as communications director. We were moved to have 10, basically, total strangers from our soon-to-be Sunday school class come and help us unload our 26-foot moving van in less than an hour and a half.

Truly incredible how the body of Christ on earth functions when it just gives and loves unconditionally as Christ did for us on the cross.

Friends and skeptics, this is the real church behind everything you think or even read about or see. It's the biblical one. The true church that Christ purchased with His blood is one that lays down "self" for others.

When we do these things like this (even for those we don't know, or for that matter, even LIKE), it's an act of BEING the body -- the physical presence, the hands, the feet -- of Christ on earth.

To God be the glory!