Author: Jason

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Jesus Didn’t Tapout

Over the weekend while I was traveling back home, I saw on a small church sign in the backwoods of the Florida panhandle the words “Jesus Did Not Tapout”.  My initial reaction was like, what does that mean?  Isn’t tapout some MMA fighter stuff?  Sure Jesus fought.  He fought more then we can ever imagine.  So I decided to look this tapout stuff up.

To my surprise, to tap out means to give up.  It’s the sign of surrender in MMA or even in just plain ol’ wrestling.  Of course that makes me wonder why all these rough and tough MMA guys wear TapouT clothing – since it essentially says “Give Up” on the clothing.  As I kept digging to find out what this church sign could be referring to, I found that there is also Never Tapout clothing for MMA followers, and even a Jesus Didn’t Tap website.

So, even though my initial reaction was one of “what are you all talking about”, I agree with that little sign on this church.  It’s not that Jesus would be a big MMA fighter dude.  I don’t think that at all.  Actually, I am not a big fan of the MMA, and not a hater – just neutral.  But that’s not really the message here today.  It seems this message fits the idea of buffeting your spiritually body daily. The idea that Jesus did not give up.  He was presented with trials and temptations bigger then we will ever face, and he did not give in. He did not tap.  That’s the idea.  One of persistence and focus and forging ahead no matter what was in his way.  When Jesus came to this Earth he had a very challenging mission and he fulfilled it.  That’s not to say he didn’t grow weary, or even dread it, but he continued to move, continued to fight and didn’t “tap out”, as they say.

How about you today. Will you tap out, or will you stay focused on your mission?

5-8Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion. (Philippians 2:5-8, The Message)

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Daily Post

Proclaim Liberty

Its great to be back to the keyboard, buffeting away after a week at the beach in the RAIN!  No oil at all, only rain from the recent Hurricane, aptly named after my eldest.  Anyway, I big shout out to Ray, Joel, and Jeff for filling in during my hiatus.

I am sure most of you are still enjoying the day off work, celebrating our nations 234th birthday.  234 years of freedom!  That’s so great, however, since I remember alot of the bicentennial celebration, 234 sure makes me feel older!

On my drive back I heard the DJ on an Atlanta station was talking about the Liberty Bell in Philly, and mentioned the verse that is etched in the bell.  That seemed to be a good verse to share today as we continue to celebrate.

proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants.  Leviticus 25:10

Get out there today and proclaim liberty, but remember to use it for good.

16Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. 1 Peter 2:16 (New International Version)

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Relevant Today but not so much later

Represent Take 2

Feedburner was down today, so no early morning feed!  Maybe now?

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Daily Post

Represent

Today I will haul my geek bag downtown one last time before I return home and trade in the cell phone, headsets and laptops for barefeet,  sand and oysters.  Yep, I will be taking the week off from this crazy world, following an example set out by our Savior himself:

31Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” 32So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place.  Mark 6:31-32 (New International Version)

Next week there will be some treats in store for the Buffet, as I know just because I am resting that the remainder of you are still out in the world, training and buffeting yourself each day.  So here is a little video that may keep you going.  Its by Weezer.  Evidently this song is the theme song for our tension loving soccer team, and since they go up against Ghana tomorrow, I thought it would be appropriate.  Its called Represent.

The chorus here is very interesting

You know it
It matters how you play the game
It matters that you can take the pain
You don’t wanna lie, steal or cheat your way to the top ohhh
It matters what your people think
You represent your family
But that’s just one more reason to see that it matters whether you win or lose

Well, as much as I like soccer, and as much I want the US to win. ( I did by the way take a run around a section of cubicles with my hands in the air screaming GOOOAAAALLL after the 91st minute goal on Wednesday)   As much as that’s true.  There’s only one thing where it does matter if you win or lose, and that’s a life full of love and the spirit,  given over to our Savior.  That’s how you Represent!

34Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 35For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. 36What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? 37Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? Mark 8:34-37

Enjoy the Week.  Cheer for the Yanks, and Represent!

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Daily Post

Building with Wisdom

Yesterday I wrote about standing up, and then I traveled downtown to the office and gathering with my fellow geeks for the all employee meeting.  Since this was scheduled during the USA-Algeria game, I had to position myself where I could be in a place to casually check my phone for progress of the game.  However, to my demise, I was in a place where the camera was almost always pointed towards the section I was sitting.  So, the World Cup had to wait.  ( And I am sure glad that Landon didn’t wait any longer then the 91st minute!)

Anyway, some of our sales guys were talking about how IT effects our sales processes, which was actually very interesting, and then he says something that really impressed me.  He says, “this morning when I was reading the Daily Buffet..”.  Man that would have been awesome.  No, he says “this morning, when I was doing my daily devotional, the verse was from Proverbs 24.”  Then we went on to talk about the Proverb and to apply it to some of the things he does each day. I was so impressed that in Corporate America, in front of a worldwide audience, he would mention his daily time with God in such a casual manner.  That’s standing up.  I hope this gives you a little bit of motivation today to stand up and build your house with wisdom and understanding.

1 Do not envy wicked men,
do not desire their company;

2 for their hearts plot violence,
and their lips talk about making trouble.

3 By wisdom a house is built,
and through understanding it is established;

4 through knowledge its rooms are filled
with rare and beautiful treasures.

5 A wise man has great power,
and a man of knowledge increases strength; Proverbs 24:1-5