I realize, in my attempt to cover each and every blessing that I have received, that I may have miss sending this thanksgiving email to some of my blessings called friends.....it is my hope that I'll catch some of you that I've missed posting it here.
May God, who is the source of all of our thankful blessings, be with you and yours as you gather together this day.
In peaceful contemplation of the journey home,
Jim
Friends,
It is the beginning of the 'holiday season' and soon most of us will gather around the table with family and/or friends to enjoy some good food, good fellowship, and good rememberances of those things that we, as Americans and as believers, can be thankful for.
As I look back upon the year that has passed between last Thanksgiving and the coming one, I am amazed of all the changes that have taken place and the journey that has zigged-zagged through the landscape of this life. Some of it very sad, with consequences and results still playing themselves out in my life. It seems a few times, a unfortunately small few, were good things….monumental moments in the passage through this life…..funny, it is the sad times I treasure the most and am most thankful this holiday. In those moments when I didn't know what to do, where to go, and how to get there……God spoke, either directly or through one of His many children who have surrounded me in this journey home.
This Thanksgiving, as is my usual thought; I give thanks once again for the hope given, realized and etched in my very being, that comes from the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ upon the cross of wood and iron for all of us, even a wretch like me, so that once and for all the punishment of sin would be washed away through the blood given so that we could share in His inheritance.
I am thankful for those times that drew my faults and my sins to the surface, and the powerful healing given through the edification of others to repent and ask forgiveness for those things, for my brother Larry, for Kristina, and others. I am thankful for those times that drew me into realization of God's strength and mercy, and what He has given for me to do.
I give thanks for the ability to give love; whether returned or not…..to appreciate the people in my life for what they are (children of God) rather than what they do. I give thanks for the devotions I read, the ministers who wrote them, and the ones who have read mine. I give thanks for Pastors Bright, Cramer, Bauer, and Combs who have preached the Gospel in times such as these.
I give thanks for the brothers and sisters would stood with me in the troubling times of the past year; it is not the financial blessings that were given that gave the most blessing to me nor the other things that were freely given to the needs of me and my children. No, the blessing was so far greater than silver or gold…..God enabled me through the giving to learn to be truly blessed by the love and concern of others. To realize the depth of their faith, realized in their actions, and to overcome my pride to be humble in the acceptance. That is a greater blessing than any other. I look eagerly to the day when I can forward the blessings given on to another in such a position as I.
I give thanks for the brothers and sisters who have lifted me and my kids up in prayer, for the effect of having the multitudes echoing my cries of supplication to the Heavens was indeed heard by our Father and enabled my voice to lift up other's cries of supplication in return, strong and clear, as they were submitted to the will of the Father. There has been sorrow and joy in the prayers of the faithful this year, and I am glad for each tear cried and each victory fists raised in each and every one of those prayers I was blessed to be a part of.
I give thanks for the teachers in the schools, who brought the highest level of educating my children into their classrooms, for those I have known and those I have not. For the school systems of Walled Lake, and Holly……and those who daily give of themselves to ensure the generations to come.
I give thanks for the family that I still know and talk to at Orchard Grove Community Church, for those I knew at Soul Quest, and for the brothers and sisters that I am growing to know and love within the body at The River in Holly. God is on His throne and blessing each and every one of those who endeavour through to realize the mission that has been handed through the generations since the Twelve…..GO and preach the Gospel……
I give thanks for the brothers at Out of the Wild, though I have not met face to face with any of them….it isn't hard to imagine what that meeting would be like…..true brothers fighting for the cause of God, seeking and growing as men of God. Andrew, Garry, Matt, and a host of others have listened to the journey I've been on and cheered from afar, though loud enough to hear through the countryside!
I give thanks and humble appreciation for the experiences at M3, the men's ministry of Awakened Hearts (which became a full-time ministry this year). The message, calling men to be men of God….and showing them how, has been an increasingly disruptive thing…in a great and wonderfully powerful way, as I reach for that goal with both hands…..coming closer to God so I can see what He made me to be. For Scott, who is an powerful, impactful, and humbly real leader…speaking not for his own glory, but shining the light of God's truth through his words, actions, and teaching. For Mark, who quietly moves in the circles of men, encouraging and edifying….and making more impact than mere fellowship could ever have. For all the men who gather once a month at Able Men….brothers who by their very presense are strong warriors with tender hearts who move in a world broken for the sake of God's mission.
There are many other blessings and many other people that I could name by name and spend many hours naming specific times or actions where they have blessed me, blessed my kids, or blessed others who have impacted me…….but this is a quick email to remind us all of where our thanks-giving should lie….and that we all, not just on Thanksgiving, but each and every time….give our thanks to those who bless, bless those who give thanks, and seek out the ways that God invites us to bring others to the place of true thanksgiving.
As you gather around the table this Thanksgiving day, or travel delivering meals to those unable to have one, or reach out to your neighbor in fellowship; be a blessing to those near.
And remember those who are far away from home this Thanksgiving; those troops who spend thankless hours defending a country struggling to be free and realize its potential. Remember those who are home; broken by war's ravagings, and gave a bit of themselves for the sake of another. Remember those who have gone to their eternal home, spilling the blood of patriotic duty upon the tree of freedom for a people who never knew freedom's warm embrace. If you know a veteran this Thanksgiving that's near, simply say "Thank you" and they'll shine like a beacon in the darkest night; for their service was truly appreciated.
Remember those families who have lost jobs, homes, and possessions this Thanksgiving. Cherish the example they've set as they've kept their families together and faithfully struggled through the trials and tribulations that have been placed in their paths.
Remember the outgoing President, George Bush, who executed the office of the President of the United States for eight years. Remember with thanksgiving his faithful service and the ability to forgive his mistakes.
Remember President-elect Barrack Obama, the first African-American President. Give thanks that our political process still works and that the people still have a voice. Even if you didn't elect Obama, give thanks that our voice can still be heard as our new President takes this country through the difficult times ahead. Give thanks that we can lift him and his family up in prayerful supplication to the Lord and King.
Humbly, I submit to each of you, my thanks for all that you have done; for God, for the kingdom, and for me. No matter how material, or how spiritual that work was….I am thankful that I can bow before my Father and give heartful thanks for each and every one of you to His listening ears. And no matter if we don't meet or meet on a regular basis, I thank you for the ability to lift you up to our Father in praise…….
In Christ,
James Hutson
www.outofthewild.ning.com
www.chapel-michigan.blogspot.com
www.M3ministries.org
www.AHMministries.org
www.men2menministries.blogspot.com
Thursday, November 27
Tuesday, November 25
Thresholds to cross......
"Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 18:4 (ASV)
"What then shall we say of that happiness to come which is promised to the saints, which we consider to be nothing else but the pure and unmediated contemplation of the Divine Essence itself?" - Eriugena, Periphyseon, Irish, 9th century
I have the priviledge of watching my son grow into the community of men, straining at the imposed limitations that his father, who in many aspects, isn't ready to let him dive into that world, though he is nearer and nearer to that realization of acceptance. As I watch him gaze into that world that I hopefully have represented to him well and truthfully, I can help but hope that I gaze at the future my Savior has promised me with such eagerness and impatience as well.
Soon, my son will take his place within the community of men, and begin another part of the journey home.
There is a set design to manhood, one created and implemented by the Creator God Himself, where man was purposed, and enabled to fulfill that purpose. Adam began the fall of all men since to fail to live up to that standard. Scott Engelmann, Mark Jackson, and the leaders of Awakened Hearts have been burdened to renew that call to all men to be godly men of godly design, boldly displaying the biblical model of masculinity with unabashedly Christian truths. This is the world of men that I want my son to join, this is the community where men grow men from boyhood to manhood to fatherhood and beyond.
It also has me reflecting upon the community of Christ, that godly community where the faithful grow from milk to solids, and are emboldened to be not merely broken humanity, but broken humanity striving towards God with an intensity that burns through the burdens and trials of this world.
T.M. Moore reflects, "One is a Christian who fears and loves God, believes in Jesus for the forgiveness of his sins, and lives increasingly the life of holiness, righteousness, and goodness which is the result of obedience to God's Law."
In the world of humanism, secularism, and universal 'interchangeable' truth, this is often times an unrealized goal of many cultural, and immoral Christians. It isn't a life most will subscribe to; to know you are bound to be 'this-short' of the achievement of godliness, predestined in a way to fail, but needing to try and strive for it anyway. It is like two men climbing a steep hill. One keeps slipping and sliding, up and down, in the loose damp dirt that defies his attempts at purchase. The other, a few feet away, barely leans into the incline, his feet steady eating ground away as he heads towards the top.
The Christian, of course, is the one who is struggling in the mire of life.....
Christianity isn't a laughing business; you can't put on the clothes just for Sunday service and consider yourself holy and just. You can't just drive meals to shut-ins once a month and consider yourself righteous. You can't just simply donate that 'extra' few dollars to a ministry and say you're an evangelist. Christianity is a lifestyle of constant and evolving changes, a permanent state of disruption and change.
It has to be a lifetime commitment, because we will never be what we are intended and designed to be in this lifetime.
It doesn't bounce from moments of great joy to utter dismay. It remains constantly pressing the ceiling of its limitations and finds the purest joy and peace in knowing that such a ceiling will always be notched higher and higher.
"Real Christians," T.M. Moore says, "endure every hardship and press on to know the Lord and follow Him, come what may."
"We are not free to be Christians on our terms," Moore concludes. Indeed, there is nothing within the Bible that mankind has determined is right and just that has not fallen victim to its own creators. As we step into the world of economic failures, world crisis, and wars; it is those who have developed the muscles from carrying the burdens for so long that will be there to pick up their brethren when they fall and help them towards home.
It is those soliders who have fought that battle constantly over the flesh who have that thousand-yard stare, focused solely upon the heavenly gates of our final destination.
As my son gathers himself to begin the journey from boyhood to that greater challenge of manhood, he leaves behind childish things....well, most childish things....as he stands before the group of men and gains acceptance into the community of manhood. The only child-like thing I hope he carries on with him is the humility he's had as a child and has taught me to realize as a man.
As I gather myself to begin the next part of the journey home, as a man of God and face the gathered throng of critics, supporters, and the indifferent....I hope that I can carry that child-like humility too.
I don't know when I'll cross that threshold....but I know how I want to cross it when I get there.......
"Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus." - Revelation 14.12
"What then shall we say of that happiness to come which is promised to the saints, which we consider to be nothing else but the pure and unmediated contemplation of the Divine Essence itself?" - Eriugena, Periphyseon, Irish, 9th century
I have the priviledge of watching my son grow into the community of men, straining at the imposed limitations that his father, who in many aspects, isn't ready to let him dive into that world, though he is nearer and nearer to that realization of acceptance. As I watch him gaze into that world that I hopefully have represented to him well and truthfully, I can help but hope that I gaze at the future my Savior has promised me with such eagerness and impatience as well.
Soon, my son will take his place within the community of men, and begin another part of the journey home.
There is a set design to manhood, one created and implemented by the Creator God Himself, where man was purposed, and enabled to fulfill that purpose. Adam began the fall of all men since to fail to live up to that standard. Scott Engelmann, Mark Jackson, and the leaders of Awakened Hearts have been burdened to renew that call to all men to be godly men of godly design, boldly displaying the biblical model of masculinity with unabashedly Christian truths. This is the world of men that I want my son to join, this is the community where men grow men from boyhood to manhood to fatherhood and beyond.
It also has me reflecting upon the community of Christ, that godly community where the faithful grow from milk to solids, and are emboldened to be not merely broken humanity, but broken humanity striving towards God with an intensity that burns through the burdens and trials of this world.
T.M. Moore reflects, "One is a Christian who fears and loves God, believes in Jesus for the forgiveness of his sins, and lives increasingly the life of holiness, righteousness, and goodness which is the result of obedience to God's Law."
In the world of humanism, secularism, and universal 'interchangeable' truth, this is often times an unrealized goal of many cultural, and immoral Christians. It isn't a life most will subscribe to; to know you are bound to be 'this-short' of the achievement of godliness, predestined in a way to fail, but needing to try and strive for it anyway. It is like two men climbing a steep hill. One keeps slipping and sliding, up and down, in the loose damp dirt that defies his attempts at purchase. The other, a few feet away, barely leans into the incline, his feet steady eating ground away as he heads towards the top.
The Christian, of course, is the one who is struggling in the mire of life.....
Christianity isn't a laughing business; you can't put on the clothes just for Sunday service and consider yourself holy and just. You can't just drive meals to shut-ins once a month and consider yourself righteous. You can't just simply donate that 'extra' few dollars to a ministry and say you're an evangelist. Christianity is a lifestyle of constant and evolving changes, a permanent state of disruption and change.
It has to be a lifetime commitment, because we will never be what we are intended and designed to be in this lifetime.
It doesn't bounce from moments of great joy to utter dismay. It remains constantly pressing the ceiling of its limitations and finds the purest joy and peace in knowing that such a ceiling will always be notched higher and higher.
"Real Christians," T.M. Moore says, "endure every hardship and press on to know the Lord and follow Him, come what may."
"We are not free to be Christians on our terms," Moore concludes. Indeed, there is nothing within the Bible that mankind has determined is right and just that has not fallen victim to its own creators. As we step into the world of economic failures, world crisis, and wars; it is those who have developed the muscles from carrying the burdens for so long that will be there to pick up their brethren when they fall and help them towards home.
It is those soliders who have fought that battle constantly over the flesh who have that thousand-yard stare, focused solely upon the heavenly gates of our final destination.
As my son gathers himself to begin the journey from boyhood to that greater challenge of manhood, he leaves behind childish things....well, most childish things....as he stands before the group of men and gains acceptance into the community of manhood. The only child-like thing I hope he carries on with him is the humility he's had as a child and has taught me to realize as a man.
As I gather myself to begin the next part of the journey home, as a man of God and face the gathered throng of critics, supporters, and the indifferent....I hope that I can carry that child-like humility too.
I don't know when I'll cross that threshold....but I know how I want to cross it when I get there.......
"Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus." - Revelation 14.12
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