jeff noel.org

Pray, Pay, Obey

What does that mean exactly?  Growing up Luthern, in a small Pennsylvania town, there weren’t many Catholics. In fact, I don’t recall knowing what a Catholic was until college.

Well, life comes full circle and here I am, a devoted Catholic for over a decade. There are something like 15,000 members of our Holy Family congregation. All walks of like.

One of them, I see occasionally at Gold’s Gym.  We recently had a nice conversation with these highlights:

Draw nearer to God and God will draw nearer to you. James 4:8.

True love doesnt force anything.

Greed, sloth, doubt, hypocracy – the four points in the circle surrounding the four squares.

Pay, pray and obey Catholic.  This is how my friend (60-something) described himself.

God does not want good men in heaven, he wants Saints.

Gotta go.  Time to work on praying, obeying, paying and demonstrating.

What Will You Headline Read?

Guest Blogger, Bob Stewart, returns today with another insightful look at life, our Faith, and our responsibility to both. Take it away Bob….

“Mom called me the other day from Tennessee, where I was raised, to read to me a couple of obituaries.  I know – that sounds so exciting, doesn’t it?  But that’s what my mom does.  She does it to let me know who I should know who either died or is related to someone who died.

But on this last call, she read to me about Albert Hamby, who died at the age of 87.  Why should that stand out at all to me?  I didn’t let this obituary go without a reverent moment of reflection.  Albert was my pastor when I was little – when I made Jesus my Savior.  That was and is a spiritual “marker” in my life, and an important person in showing me the way was Albert Hamby.

Are you living a legacy, as Dr. Johnny Hunt said in his book Building Your Leadership Résumé, which is going to outlast you?  Are you building “markers” in other people’s lives that, after you are gone, are still there to help others along the way?  It could be multitudes or your own family, and it is a question I am asking myself as well.

I am reminded of a song from Steve Green back in the 1980s, called “Find Us Faithful.”  In the chorus, he stated, “Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful.  May the fire of our devotion light their way.  May the footprints that we leave lead them to believe, and the lives we live inspire them to obey.  Oh may all who come behind us find us faithful.”

Again, I ask, “Are you living a legacy?”

Bob Stewart

A Blog of a Different Color

Ladies and Gentleman, may I present Ohio’s Craig Nickoloff, a man who works hard to help make the world a better place for younger generations.  Here is Craig’s contribution to our Spirit entitled:

Coram Deo…

“I’m growing.

Always will be.

Human nature I guess.

I used to pride myself on doing my best.

Had a re-examination though.

Conclusion…

I still pride myself on doing my best.

Peeling away that outer layer, though, reveals a different motivation.

As a school student, I was out to bust stereotypes.
I was a scholar, athlete and musician; and excelled at each. But I wanted to prove that the different castes could get along well with each other. They didn’t have to stick to their circles for comfort’s sake. My target audience was my peers. By peers, I mean not just friends my age, but also family and anyone else who wanted to watch. It was a noble effort, but in the end, I was looking out for myself. I was expending a lot of energy to impress many others.

I got tired.

So, college – a sort of dark time – consisted of me dropping all pretenses and doing what I wanted. Fortunately, I come from a great family and the lessons they have taught me carried me and kept me from going any deeper.

And one key thing here…
God watched over me…
As he does all of us.

And his plan had much, much more in store for me.

God brought a strong, beautiful woman into my life. I don’t say beautiful to brag about her outwardly (which is nonetheless true), but to praise how God has molded her spiritually. He used her to guide me back to Him.

So it is in this state that I sit here, wondering how He’ll use me.

My motivation now is not that of before. I’m not living my life to impress others, not even my wife.
I hate to say it. But, it is possible to do “good” things; be a generally “good” person; live an outwardly respectable, impressive life; but also be a contradictory, no-good liar on the inside.
It’d be exhausting, but it’s possible.

Strip it all down.
Past bare body…
Past bare bones…
Past bare words…
Right down to bare spirit.

me & God.
mano y Omnipotent Creator.

He loves me so much that he’d sent his son, Jesus Christ, to take the entire world’s sins on his shoulders and die.

He knows my heart. He knows my thoughts. He knows my words. He knows my actions.

I get away with nothing.

Is my love for him pure?
Is my faith unwavering?

God gave us free will. It’s so hard to resist human temptations.

There’s a saying, “I’d rather beg forgiveness than ask permission” that helps some to make decisions.
That’s fine and dandy with our peers, as we live out our real-time lives.

But with God, while he is a forgiving God, he knows that that saying went through your head in the first place.
So, the whole procedural “beg for forgiveness” later thing doesn’t work so well.

I recently started a Bible study, published in Tabletalk magazine, with my wife. At the end of each page is an exercise entitled “Coram Deo.” In Latin, it literally means “before the face of God.”

So, going through the actions, through the motions, through the works is a nice thing. But what is it that really serves as the motivation?

I believe that the true calling of a Christian is to live one’s life Coram Deo.

And if I live my life before the face of God and glory in his grace and mercy, then all of the other “good” things will fall into place as I obey his commands.

Those actions won’t be done to prove, they’ll be done to demonstrate.

I’m praying everyday for strength and wisdom to do my best at living my life…

…Coram Deo.”

Only Crumbs

“Can you imagine a world without Christmas?” — Father Kenny

It’s only been one month, but I miss Christmas.

How about you?  Do you miss Christmas?

Can still remember what our Priest said (above) at Christmas Mass. Can you imagine?

Oh, I get it, most people aren’t thinking about Christmas today, unless they are reminded from their credit card bill.  Makes sense, I guess.

Christmas comes once a year.  Lights, trees, songs, TV specials, food, gifts, traditions…

But what if we celebrated it everyday?

Can you imagine a world with Christmas everyday?

From The Mouth Of Babes

“Do you have any questions?”, the Brevard Zoo staff member asked the boys.

One six-year old boy threw his arm up in the air, “Can scorpions fart?”

Brevard Zoo. Yesterday, January 24, 2010.  Twenty Cub Scouts plus an equal number of Parents.

Our Church has a growing Cub Scout Pack.  It shut it’s doors two years ago, due to low enrollment.

Last year, two Dads resurrected our Pack and Twelve boys with a few Tiger Cubs, a few Wolf Cubs, and even fewer Bear Cubs. It was intimate to say the least. And it was my first year having a Wolf Cub.

This year, we’ve tripled. Now our trips have more energy, more unpredictability. More involved Parents. More blessings.

More humor.

Thanks to a couple of dedicated Dads (Rob & Greg) (and also Mike) who led us last year.  They could have given up and said it was too much work.

That would not have been very funny.

A Growing Community

Wanna Touch?

Peace, the Fruit of Small Surrenders

“Small surrenders make up a stained glass mosaic.” — unknown

As you read this, on this day (Sunday), what comes to mind for you?

There are many possible directions and interpretations.

It reminds me, at first glance, the daily surrender necessary to overcome addiction.

One day at a time.

A small surrender to desire.

And sometimes in one day, there are many small surrenders.

And then tomorrow, begin again.

Repeat until death.

Please Do Not Disturb

“A Christian who is not evangelizing is a Christian on early retirement.” — unknown

There can be a fine line between being helpful and being obnoxious.

I often find people who don’t know me, and they start in on all the benefits of believing in God, and all the pitfalls of not, a little pushy.

And it is even realistic to describe my feeling as uncomfortable.

I pray that jeffnoel.org never makes anyone feel like that.  The beginning quote here reminded me that it’s quite possible to have blind spots.

Does anyone know a good Optometrist?

Always Hungry?

Human’s get hungry several times each day. No brainer, right?

We are always needing to feed ourselves.

Enter the rat race and insanely busy schedules.  Enter fast food establishments. Enter television.

The other day I saw a Burger King commercial, touting the toys in the kid’s meal packages.

The kids commented on the furry animal toys which are the current give-away.

“So real, it’s almost, real.”

Unexplainably, I immediately thought about God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit – about Faith.

So real, it’s almost, real.

Is Excellence Showing Off?

Sometimes, friends nearby will say to me, “Showoff.”

At Gold’s Gym one time, Joe said, “You intimidate people.”

“What are you talking about, Joe”, I asked, confused and astonished.

He said, “You intimidate people. Because you’re gifted.” Come to find out he was referring to my physical fitness appearance.

I told Joe “The only gift I have, is that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior.” We both smiled big smiles.

Maybe six years ago, two colleagues and I were in the break area, the two of them discussing their latest diet (Atkins I think it was), and I asked them, “How come no one ever asks me what I do – to lose weight, I mean?”

“You don’t need to worry about it”, was the quick and serious reply.

Know what I said?  And I was pissed frustrated with their answer. I said, “I worry about it every single day, that’s why I don’t need to worry about it!!”

You know what?  Maybe working harder than others is showing off.

The “guilt” you’ve heard me talk about is really just a humble attempt to say I do not feel guilty.  I’ve busted my back trying to make extra-ordinary from ordinary.  And it’s been one success after another.

Now, I guess being the Internet’s only “Five-a-Day Blogger” is showing off too?

Hidden Message?

What else do I feel guilty about?

• Decent Health
• Great Job
• Great Hometown
• Great Spirit
• Hold on, this is getting awkward

Sorry, I’m going to need more time to think this through. It’s awkward.

If I go with a gut instinct right now, it feels like the reason this topic got started in the first place was because I feel so blessed.

I mean, more than any one person deserves.

“And you feel guilty about this?”, someone reading this is asking.

But the blessings listed here and the others not listed, are the blessings we all have.

I guess, as I write this it becomes clearer, there’s something about the way I structure each day that allows me to be nearly fully present every moment of every day.

It’s almost like an addiction. I think about it all the time.

Being able to walk, think, read, smile, drive, teach, eat, breath, love, cry, laugh, get dressed, spend money, go to Church, have friends, Family, a job, sunrise, sunset, sight, hearing, desire.

Where does it stop? It doesn’t. Our blessings are infinite.

I can’t be the only one on the planet that thinks like this, can I?