One night a man had a dream. He dreamed he was walking along the beach with the Lord. Across the sky flashed scenes from his life. For each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand: one belonging to him and the other to the Lord.

When the last scene of his life flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of his life there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in his life.

This really bothered him, and he questioned the Lord about it: “Lord, You said that once I decided to follow You, You’d walk with me all the way. But I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don’t understand why, when I needed You most, You would leave me.”

The Lord replied, “My precious, precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial and suffering, when you see only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”

—Author Unknown

Dream the impossible dream. All dreams that come from God seem impossible at first. However, do not forget that all things are possible with God.

Deuteronomy 31:8: Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”

— NLT

When you feel discouraged, take heart: God’s promise to never leave you or abandon you is always there to get you through your troubles. Why is it that we tend to turn to Him as the last resort when He is always faithfully by our side? Are you afraid of your future? Are you afraid to go after your dreams (Maybe even to dream your dreams)? Are you afraid to believe that you can achieve your dreams? Do you ever feel lonely? Do you ever feel like what you are going through you are going through alone? Do you ever feel like you were stuck in a pit with no way out? Reread the above verse, Deuteronomy 31:8. What does this verse do to your fears or feelings of loneliness?

Psalm 23 can be such an encouragement in times of trouble! Take a fresh look at this famous Psalm (read it today, do not wait) and be comforted that God has walked with you, not only during the good times, but through your bad times as well. Do you ever feel like you are in a pit and your dreams have no chance of ever coming true? Don’t quit in the pit. Always remember that the dream never dies, just the dreamer.

Remember that God is always with you leading you, guiding you and protecting you. You are never alone. Don’t quit when you’re in the pit. You only lose if you quit. Don’t be afraid to dream the impossible dream and live each day to accomplish it. Continually encourage yourself with the Word of God.

Tony Guadagnino is the pastor at Christian Love Fellowship Church, located at 801 SE 10 St., Deerfield Beach, FL 33441. For more information, call 954-428-8980 or visit www.clfministries.org.

Reprinted from 3-31-2011

They always say that time goes faster and faster as you get older. They always say that we should enjoy our children while they are small because the time goes by very fast and it is gone before you know it. I never really understood those statements until I had my own children, and I started getting older.

My wife and I did not start our family until we were in our 30s. And now (just a few years later —haha) our son is 19 and our daughter is 17. Our son is entering his sophomore year at Bradley University in Illinois and our daughter is in basic training at Fort Jackson for the Army. Both of our children are out of high school now and following their dreams, and I just think – WOW! As a parent, I want the best for my children. I want them to do well and be successful. I want them to be safe from all the bad and evil things that are in the world today. But, I do not want to be their God and make all of their life’s decisions for them. I want them to learn and grow and be able to take care of themselves so when mom and dad are not around they will know how to make wise decisions and do the right thing.

Matthew 7:9-11

9 You parents — if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead?

10 Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not!

11 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask Him.

— NLT

As my wife and I began to raise our children, it was then that I began to realize how much God truly loves us. The very same way that we love our own children is the same way that God loves His children. God wants the very best for us. God wants us to do well, and learn as we go through life and get educated so we will make the right decisions. God wants to protect us from the bad and evil things in this world. The Bible teaches us that safety is not in the absence of danger but in the presence of the Lord.

2 Corinthians 6:17-18

17 Therefore, come out from among unbelievers, and separate yourselves from them, says the LORD. Don’t touch their filthy things, and I will welcome you.

18 And I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the LORD Almighty.

— NLT

The same way we pray and hope that our children listen to us and make the right decisions when opportunities come is the same way that God feels about us. God wants us to listen to Him and make the right decisions when the opportunities come. The best ways I have found to learn from God is by reading your Bible, praying and going to church. There are also benefits for our children to obey their parents and do what they are told to do. We have benefits of obeying God and by doing what He has asked us to do. As we pray for our children to be happy, healthy and holy, let’s also pray for ourselves as well.

Tony Guadagnino is the pastor at Christian Love Fellowship Church, located at 801 SE 10 St., Deerfield Beach, FL 33441. For more information, call 954-428-8980 or visit www.clfministries.org.

An experiment was once undertaken by researchers seeking to determine the effect hope has on those undergoing hardship. They used lab rats for the project and divided them into two groups that were placed into two separate tubs of water. One group was left in the water and within an hour had all perished. The other group was taken out of the water for short periods of time and then returned. They were able to last for over 24 hours. The researchers determined that it wasn’t the periodic rest but the hope of rescue from the water that kept the second group of rats swimming longer.

The same power that hope holds for unthinking rodents is found to be present in the lives of cognitive humanity. If there is one faint flicker of hope in the greatest of challenges, we will fight to survive and more than likely emerge victorious. Someone once declared that “hope is the poor man’s bread.” It is what keeps us living and longing for a better day. Life and experience have proven the veracity of the maxim that “where there is a will there is a way,” and there are many persons whose lives are a testament to the invincible power of hope.

Famed Austrian psychiatrist, Viktor Frankl had studied the theories of Sigmund Freud and Alfred Adler. He followed in their footsteps, examining life and human behavior. His experience in Hitler’s concentration camps led him to postulate his own ideas about the basic drive in human beings. Having lived through and survived the terror of the camps, he rejected Freud’s pleasure principle. Victims faced an abundance of pain and suffering in the camps but never any pleasure. He similarly rejected Adler’s idea that power was man’s basic need. In the camps, they were victims of the cruelest behavior, and the idea of power was inconceivable.

Frankl surmised that what had enabled people to survive the concentration camps was hope. They believed that life had meaning, and that one day their difficulties would end allowing them to live purposeful lives. We can lose many things in life and still find a way to live and the strength to go on, but, if robbed of hope, we lose the very will to exist. Death inevitably steals our loved ones, but we persevere. Money and material things are fleeting, and we learn to hold them loosely. Illness diminishes our health as we grow older, but we manage to survive nonetheless. To live without hope though, is to live in an unending nightmare unable to awaken to a more calming reality.

Psalm 27:13 (KJV) records King David’s conclusion about his life and experience with God. “I had fainted unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” It is a powerful proclamation made from the perspective of review and relief. David is convinced that had he not possessed hope when facing an unnamed crisis, the outcome would have been disastrous.

He offers us encouragement to similarly entrust our lives to God’s oversight and intervention. We will all face fainting circumstances, the kinds which bring fear and claw away at our confidence and security. But powerless though we may be in the face of adversity, we have an all-powerful ally who responds to faith in those who look to Him.

Hope cannot exist in a vacuum, it does not thrive in an empty space. It is inextricably linked to the knowledge of possibility and the awareness of help. The lesson of the lab rats and the concentration camp survivors is that hope must be placed in someone or something greater than the individual and more powerful than the difficulty.

David identifies whom our hope and expectations should be placed upon. May we never lose our hope, for God is always available.

Bishop Patrick L. Kelly is the pastor of Cathedral Church of God, 365 S. Dixie Hwy., Deerfield Beach, FL 33441. 954-427-0302.

Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises.— James 5:13 (NLT)

No one is exempt from going through bad times, but please do not forget that we have many good times also. Whether everything is great or it totally stinks, God should always have our attention. Last Sunday when I went to church, I knew I was in for a great day. How could I not be? I was in God’s House, the “Happiest Place on Earth.” However, as I looked around at this happy place, I started to think. In this happy place, there was a crying child, a man who just lost a family member to Cancer, a young woman going through a divorce and a preacher that felt each of their pain. I couldn’t help but think, even in God’s House, the happiest place on earth, there is still suffering and hurting people. Check out Psalms Chapter 20 (Awesome):

1 In times of trouble, may the LORD respond to your cry. May the God of Israel keep you safe from all harm.

2 May he send you help from his sanctuary and strengthen you from Jerusalem.

3 May he remember all your gifts and look favorably on your burnt offerings.

4 May he grant your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans.

5 May we shout for joy when we hear of your victory, flying banners to honor our God. May the LORD answer all your prayers.

6 Now I know that the LORD saves his anointed king. He will answer him from his holy heaven and rescue him by his great power.

7 Some nations boast of their armies and weapons, but we boast in the LORD our God.

8 Those nations will fall down and collapse, but we will rise up and stand firm.

9 Give victory to our king, O LORD! Respond to our cry for help.

— Psalms 20 (NLT)

For some, our happiest place is with our family and friends, or taking a walk on the beach. We cannot escape suffering; no matter how hard we try, we are not exempt. Sometimes, suffering is used for correcting; sometimes, it is used for God’s glory; sometimes, it is used to build our character, and sometimes one person suffers for another’s benefit. Yet, there are times when we really don’t understand why others or we ourselves are suffering. Like Job from the Bible, we must seek to trust God and endure because we win when we do! We have a happy place found in the presence of the Lord. If God could hear Jonah’s cry from inside the whale, then I am sure he can hear your cry. One thing is for sure: if we are suffering in any way, then we should be praying and talking to God a lot. What do you think?

Perhaps you are in a season of hurt or suffering right now. In this moment, it may not be clear why your suffering is happening. Your role in this season is to spend time with and reach out to God, knowing that He will help you through this trial with His strength. In this way, at the end of the day, you will be able to rejoice in who God is. James 5:13 says we should pray and praise God during the good times and the bad times. In good or bad times, we better be spending time with God. Try happiness … it is found in the presence of the Lord.

Pastor Tony Guadagnino is a pastor at Christian Love Fellowship Church, located at 801 SE 10 St. in Deerfield Beach. www.clfdeerfield.com.

The recent high profile deaths of Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain have put a renewed spotlight on depression and its connection to mental illness. In the wake of their suicides, it was revealed that both of them were battling depression compounded by an inability to overcome it. It is reported that major depression is a mental illness that affects more than 16 million adults every year. More concerning in is the fact that half of those affected never seek treatment for depression. We should encourage those who seem unable to emerge from the gloom and sadness that threatens all of us to seek a professional counselor for the help that they need. Modern medicines have been developed to adequately address the brain’s malfunctions and help people to enjoy a normal life.

Mental illness is only one side of the issue of depression. However, far too many people are succumbing to depression due to an inability to properly manage their emotions when life becomes overwhelming. It’s not that they are mentally deficient, but that they’ve bought into the idea that money, fame, possessions or achievement will give them satisfaction. The pressure to have more, to accomplish unrealistic expectations or to simply keep up with the proverbial “Joneses” is a never ending treadmill. Worry, anxiety and frustration will push one over the edge if not tempered by a realistic perspective and proper priorities. When what we can have or accomplish becomes our sole purpose for existence. We set ourselves up for discouragement when they fail to satisfy. Someone once remarked that Alexander the Great died in discouragement, having no more kingdoms to conquer.

We have a natural inclination toward a peaceful, balanced existence free from conflict and disorder. Maturity means that we are able to enjoy the good in life, survive and learn from the bad, and to realize that adversity and pain are as likely as joy and comfort. A good mental disposition helps us to navigate the varying landscapes of our progress through life. The peace that seems elusive is possible with the proper attitude and perspective. Isaiah 26:3 offers the Biblical approach to attaining true peace. “You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.”

First, note that God is the primary agent in the verse. Three times, He is referenced as the object around which the action is centered. He both supplies and maintains peace for those who set their minds on Him and trust Him. Next, man is the primary beneficiary. He is the one upon whom God graciously bestows the gift of peace. God makes available what man cannot attain on his own: true peace, perfect peace or peace-peace, as written in the original Hebrew text. The apostle Paul characterizes it “as a peace that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7).

Then, the verse reveals that peace is the primary benefit. Among the many things we seek and desire, peace is paramount. We learn very quickly in life how weak and vulnerable we are. We lack complete control of our existence and are subject to circumstances beyond our control. Peace with God is necessary to finding peace with others and with ourselves. Thankfully, God gives us peace when we subject our thoughts, minds and lives to Him. Finally, trust is the primary condition that makes peace possible. The ability to believe, to have faith in and to rely upon God is required to access His gift of peace. When we give up control of our lives and turn to Him in humble faith, we have the assurance of divine assistance. God, not ourselves, must be placed at the center of our universe. Only then will we avoid the chaos, frustration and depression that follow a narcissistic and selfish existence. In this world of uncertainty and turmoil, look to God and embrace His perfect peace.

Bishop Patrick L. Kelly is the pastor of Cathedral Church of God, 365 S. Dixie Hwy., Deerfield Beach, FL 33441. 954-427-0302.

Why do we love? Do we love because of what we can get out of a relationship or because of what we can give into a relationship? God, our Father, has given us good examples of what a loving father is to be like. We have a Father in Heaven who loves us unconditionally and gives us wonderful gifts. We have a Father who cares for our pains, trials and triumphs. God tells us not to worry and takes care of our needs. God longs to hear from you, His child. Don’t miss your chance to do the very same thing for your Father in Heaven, who loved you so much He sent his Son to die for you.

“If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in Heaven give good things to them that ask Him?” Matthew 7:11 (KJV)

I don’t know about you, but Father’s Day really conjures up a lot of conflicting emotions for me. I am blessed to be the father of wonderful children. I am also equally blessed for having a good father in my life. I was not the best kid and I was not the worst kid either. While others judged and even pronounced me a failure, “My Dad” just kept on loving me. I attempted to run from that love, but like the “hound of heaven,” he would not let me get away. His influence in my life cannot be overstated. “My Dad” — he really loved me. And, by the way, I turned out okay (crazy, but okay)! I really don’t know if we can love our kids too much. But, I do know that love needs to be expressed and valued. Your children — regardless of their lot in life or their adherence to your desires — need to know your love for them is constant and secure. You can love them and not support the lifestyle they have.

“The Lord is like a Father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear Him.” Psalm 103:13 (NLT)

So, if you are a father, turn the tables on your kids on Father’s Day. When they tell you how special you are, make sure they know how you feel about them. You might even say, “Son/daughter, I love you!” There is no doubt in my mind that my dad knows how much I love him. It is also nice to say why sometimes. Some of you may not have a pleasant memory of your father or you might not have any memories at all. This may be the time to start down the road to forgiveness and/or reconciliation, or it may be a chance to thank others in your life that have offered fatherly wisdom to you and tell them why you appreciate them. I can’t help but feel slightly convicted, for when have I shared this kind of a moment with my Heavenly Father? Maybe your prayers often reflect more of what you want and less of how wonderful the Lord is, or more of what you need and less of how thankful you are for what you have.

Father’s Day is almost here. Plan to tell your father why you love him and appreciate him. Also, if you have children, make sure you tell them that you love them and why.

Tony Guadagnino is the pastor for Christian Love Fellowship Church, 801 SE 10 St., Deerfield Beach. www.clfdeerfield.com.

I was privileged last week to attend two commencement events at which the speakers offered inspiring messages for the graduating students. A recurrent theme among the speeches was the fact that we can accomplish far more than what some may expect based upon perceived limitations or barriers. Just because you may be at a disadvantage doesn’t mean that you cannot succeed. A challenge will demand one of two responses from you: fear and resignation or courage and determination. We get to choose and thereby control what the outcome will be.

One of the events was a graduation ceremony for students involved in an entrepreneurial program that is designed to give them the necessary skills to bring their product or service ideas to reality. The keynote speaker was impressive. She has been suffering from seizures since childhood but has not allowed it to stop her from excelling in business and entrepreneurship, leading several organizations, and winning awards along the way. She currently serves as president of a foundation that aims to help children succeed in school and in life. She encouraged the aspiring entrepreneurs to be mindful of others as they strove for their dreams.

The other event was a high school commencement at a packed Palm Beach County Fairgrounds auditorium. One of the valedictorians challenged her fellow graduates to not allow anyone to limit their potential. She referenced a fellow student who was told early on that his unfamiliarity with the English language would prevent him from graduating. That student did indeed graduate, with honors! The valedictorian drew inspiration from her grandfather, who had come alone to America as a young man from Panama. He worked hard to establish himself and was able to produce a family and pass along strong values of faith, commitment and dedication. He would have been proud of his ivy-league university bound granddaughter.

It is encouraging to hear such optimism and hope directed to and arising from our youth. A steady diet of news headlines can lead to depression if you allow the world to be defined by media alone. Yes, there is evil and sadness around us, but there is far more good and joy to be found as well. Consider the laughter of an infant, the smiles of a bride and groom, or the excited chatter of graduating students. There is hope and expectation and promise all around us. The challenges that confront us should not be allowed to produce fear in us. They should serve to stimulate the courage to change the outcomes. We can do better as individuals and society, and we should strive to do better.

Jesus challenged His followers to live their lives with a focus on the good. They had turned to God and embraced His light, and, in turn, Jesus proclaimed them to be the light of the world. As they lived in simple faith and followed His instructions, they would be an example and inspiration to others. He further urged, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). God is well pleased when we seek to develop the potential that He has placed within all of us. We should all be inspired to be our best, to live our best, and to produce our best. God stands ready to assist us if we will yield to His way. The wisdom of Proverbs 37:5 advises, “Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass.”

Congratulations to the graduating class of 2018. May God’s hand guide you, and His grace surround you as you pursue your dreams.

Bishop Patrick L. Kelly is the pastor of Cathedral Church of God, 365 S. Dixie Hwy., Deerfield Beach, FL 33441. 954-427-0302.

Something we all do every day is fail God. Even though it is the goal of every follower of God to live our lives perfectly as He did, the Bible tells us that we all sin and fall short of God’s glory. It also says that if we say we don’t sin, we are a liar. So accepting the fact that we all fail God at times, I want to focus on how we respond when we fail. Listen to me closely; you will never be able to live this life victoriously until you learn the proper response when you fail God.

The most important thing you can do when you fail is to accept responsibility for your actions. We are masters at blaming others when we fail. Man has not really changed since the Garden of Eden. When Adam failed, he blamed Eve. When God confronted Eve with her failure, she blamed the serpent. When you take responsibility for your failure, you become sorry for letting God down and go to Him with a broken heart asking for forgiveness.

None of us is immune from sin. That is why God gives us His special promise in 1 John 1:9. It tells us if we will confess our sins, He will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We must trust His Word, know He has forgiven us and move on to fulfill our purpose of serving and glorifying God with our lives. We are no good to God when we allow our sin to strangle us and to paralyze us.

The devil loves to use our sin against us, to hold it over our head. However, the Bible says that when God forgives us, He not only forgives, but also forgets. If God forgets, then we need to as well so that we can move forward and live victorious, productive lives for the Kingdom. Jesus tells us in John 8:44 that Satan is a liar, that he is the father of lies. When he speaks, he speaks his native language, lying. One of the lies of the devil is to use your sin against you, to tell you that you are no good. He will tell you that you are not worthy of God’s love and grace.

We try our best each day to live like Jesus. We are all faced with the temptations of this world. We are all faced with the traps the enemy lays for us. From time to time, we all fall into sin.

How we respond to our sin is critical. Running from God is a natural response, but the wrong one. We quit reading the Bible, quit praying, quit going to church, which makes us an even bigger target for the enemy. Instead of running away from God, we must run to God, accept responsibility for our actions, and have the guts to say, “I sinned.”

What I want you to understand today is not if we sin, but when we sin, what our response must be. When you fail, you must accept responsibility for your sins and ask God for forgiveness, and move forward with your life.

God has much for you to do. He has a great plan for your life. Let me assure you today that He loves you. Whatever you may have done doesn’t change that. Our failure does not change God’s love for us!

Tony Guadagnino is the pastor at Christian Love Fellowship Church, located at 801 SE 10 St., Deerfield Beach, FL 33441. For more information, call 954-428-8980 or visit www.clfministries.org.

Great Britain’s royal family has been receiving a lot of media attention lately. Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 92nd birthday on Saturday, April 21. A concert featuring numerous artists and thousands of adoring subjects was held in her honor as she continues to enjoy the prestige of being the longest reigning monarch in British history. In addition, the world had been anxiously awaiting the arrival of Prince William and Duchess Kate’s third child. On Monday, April 23, they announced the birth of a son at St. Mary’s Hospital in London. The latest royal addition is fifth in line for the throne behind his grandfather, father and two older siblings.

Prince William’s younger brother, Harry, is set to marry actress Meghan Markle at Windsor Castle on May 19. Their storybook romance and impending nuptials have drawn comparisons to the courtship and wedding of Harry’s parents, Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana, in 1981. It seemed as if the entire world paused to watch that ceremony, which was televised from St. Paul’s Cathedral.

Many people feel that Meghan’s good fortune is more akin to that of actress Grace Kelly, who wed Prince Rainier III of Monaco in 1956. The talented actress left Hollywood behind to assume the role as a sovereign of Monaco after a brief courtship with Rainier. Their ceremony at the time was touted to be the “wedding of the century.” To be wooed and wed by a Prince is the stuff that fairy tales are made of; but these accounts are real.

There is another form of royalty watching going on. The recent observance of Easter, where Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus, brings to mind the beliefs concerning His second coming. Numerous verses of scripture confirm that He will return one day. Revelation 22:12 relates His promise to the apostle John, “And behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” Apostle Paul wrote, in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first.”

A Pew Research Center survey found that most Christians expect Christ to return soon. Another poll discovered that a large number of believers feel that we are living in the “last days,” or “end times,” which signal the return of the Lord. Jesus predicted, in Matthew 24 and 25 that certain events and behavior would indicate that His return was near. Many believers think that those indicators are undeniably apparent in our modern world. The Apostles Creed, which documented the doctrinal beliefs of the Church, states that He will return to judge the living and the dead. Many Protestants hold to the scriptures that refer to His reign over a kingdom and look forward to a time when He will rule on earth as King of kings, and establish lasting peace.

When you add the verses that refer to the Church as a bride and Christ as a groom (Ephesians 5:32 and Rev. 19:7), you understand why many believe that a royal wedding is in the Church’s future. To some it may sound like the stuff of fairytales. To numerous believers though, it is a soon coming reality as certain as the events we are observing among the royals of Britain. To remind themselves of this certainty, the first century believers used to greet each other with the word “Maranatha,” the Lord is coming. The question is, are you watching for His return?

Bishop Patrick L. Kelly is the pastor of Cathedral Church of God, 365 S. Dixie Hwy., Deerfield Beach, FL 33441. 954-427-0302.

When you discover that nearly 80 percent of NFL players are either bankrupt or in a financial hardship within three to five years following their career playing football, and that 70 percent of lottery winners become broke, it’s only natural to wonder what happened? While it may seem that a proverbial straw broke the camel’s back, the truth is, whether financial ruin, a plane crash or even an overnight success, it’s never just one thing. Compounded factors, often the little things, added over time become that final piece of straw.

For the NFL players it begins in high school — if not before — as special treatment erodes personal responsibility. Similarly, lottery winners are statistically poor money managers prior to their windfall. It’s a poor decision hours before the crash or the years touring in dive bars and on college campuses before the breakout hit trends on iTunes. We know this, and in “the real world,” we accept and plan for this truth.

Yet, for many, as it applies to matters of faith, we’re waiting for some big, miraculous moment to launch us into action. We gaze longingly at the doers vastly impacting the kingdom and we think they must be special — confusing capacity for faithfulness. And so, we wait upon the Lord neglecting to do our part.

That’s not to say that there aren’t legitimate times to be patient. However, we can’t use spiritual sayings to justify inactivity. In doing so, we’ll miss the powerful and unique ways God wants to use our lives to complete His plan.

For me, my move to Texas was a culmination of little decisions to be faithful — and it didn’t even start with me. I have my family to thank. Because of their faithfulness, I learned to seek and nurture a relationship with God, one that would provide the confidence needed years later to depart my profession as an airline captain and begin working full-time with students. I had to embarrassingly choose to miss a friend’s wedding for financial reasons, but doing so led to chance encounter with an athletic director and school administration who hired me as a coach and teacher. In the classroom I felt called to start a youth ministry.

Then, a choice had to be made: stay as a teacher or go accept a full-time ministry position. God called me to the latter. And in a season of assessing my own personal ministry impact, God revealed a new direction that would draw upon my leadership as a captain, communication skills as a national itinerate speaker, content development and facilitation of such as a teacher and decade of mentoring — [to leave the church at Deerfield Beach as Youth Pastor] and to serve at a thriving church in Lubbock, Texas.

Even in my abbreviated tale, it’s apparent that I did not gather my life and spontaneously decide to move west on a whim, but again, years of a faithful pursuit and obedience led me to do so.

Here’s the kicker: I’m not special. while I might have different gifting and skills, or capacity, they aren’t better or worse than yours. We each can find joy and contentment knowing that we experience game-changing momentum toward reaching the capacity of our calling by abiding in the little things faithfully. God has an incredible plan and purpose for your life just as He does for mine, and they’re both equally exciting and Kingdom-altering because, in the end, it’s not about us. However, the difference will be in the choices we make: whether to treat faith like a lottery, hoping for that big break, or by deciding here and now to live a life worthy of our calling by investing in the seemingly insignificant spiritual disciplines that give power to our prayers, bring wise counsel into our presence and give us the assurance of God’s trustworthiness.

I sign off with this challenge: What is God calling you to today that has the potential to manifest itself into something unimaginable later, to become your Texas? No matter how small it might seem, never underestimate God’s ability to use the ordinary for the extraordinary. Say, “Here I am, Lord,” listen, then go do in faith.

Once the NextGen pastor at The Church at Deerfield Beach, C.J. Wetzler is currently the student pastor at The Message Church in Lubbock, TX. Before transitioning into full-time ministry, CJ was a commercial airline captain and high school leadership and science teacher. He loves to mentor the next generation of leaders and considers himself a fast food connoisseur. For questions or comments, connect with him on social media: @thecjwetzler.