Category Archives: Being What God Created

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The Curves In the Road (Why Life Is Not An Easy Road To Travel)

Let the journey begin. Even with ice still stuck to my windshield, I’m boldly pushing forward on my trip. Expectations of seeing lots of pretty countryside, the radio is blaring “Life is a Highway…… I want to ride it…. all night long” by Rascal Flats. All seems to be good, well, until I come to this….

Oooops. Now the road is very icy and there before me is the dreaded CURVE!!! Which means I’ve got to slow down, quit playing air guitar and beating my dashboard like it’s my drum set, and concentrate on keeping it between the ditches. Well, this curve is stealing some of my fun time on my journey, but so far so good. I’ll be glad to get by this curve. Well, I whoop this navigational obstacle only to be met with this……

Another CURVE!! Surely not another one. I conquered the first curve easy, but this one has even more ice on the road (and tracks where a couple of cars slid off during the night). Uh Oh! Better slow down even more and like it or not, my mood is changing from bad to worse. It’s a little nerve wracking, a little spooky being this close to the edge of a dropoff, but looks like I’m going to pull through. (Where are all the other cars that are usually out now?) You know, I get to thinking. Hmmmm. If I’ve had to take right curve after right curve after right curve, pretty soon I’m gonna be right back where I started!! Surely not huh? If I see one more curve sign, I’m gonna………wait. Up ahead there’s a sign. Is it? Can it be? Oh no……

Another curve AAGGHHHHH! Well, at least it’s turning the other way. Hey, I thought this trip would be easy, straight and narrow, full of fun sights and the radio playing my favorite songs. But nooooooo. Like it or not I feel my mood changing from happy, easy going,……. to well ANGRY!!! IF I see another blessed curve in my path I think I’ll explode. Shouldn’t of said that, cause guess what’s up ahead……….

By now, I know what you’re saying,……… “Bless his heart”. But what I’m saying is ahhhhh is “Well, bless MY heart!” Now what? Siri is telling me which way to turn. Do I listen to Siri? Nope, Cause I’m a Man so I make the decision totally because I’m a man! I take the shortcut that I’ve heard about (which will turn out to be wrong……..I know,… “bless his heart”)

There now has come a time on my journey where there are no more curves to face. But this is what I face ahead of me.

Well now that’s just nice! No curves, no ice on road (much), but I can’t see doodly in front of me because of the FOG. What next? Honestly by now I will admit to you that I have become angry. Angry at the weather, angry at myself (for taking short cuts and wrong turns), even angry at….. well, I’ll go ahead and admit it,….. I’m angry at God! I mean c’mon man, I’m just trying to have a fun journey in life. What’s next? I’m ready! Bring it on! And then I see this…….

Uh oh! Maybe I should take away what I said about being mad at God. “God, I was just irritated and frustrated,….. I’m not mad…. at YOU anyways….we good…. we tight….. Help me through this Jesus! ” I got to tell you that I even shouted out, ” Hey Jesus take the wheel!” Why? well, it’s a good country song! I like the girl who sings it! Honestly, right about now I could use a little supernatural help. Cause a few of those boulders ahead of me have rolled down the steep side of the hill and are in the middle of the road. With my luck, as I nervously zig zag this canyon road another big rock will hit me and add another dent to my already beat up Toyota Tundra with its already eight dents and fender benders. Hey, it’s not that funny, my truck just has ahh….. character.

And then it happens. That spiritual tap on your shoulder feeling. That feeling you get when you know God/Jesus is fixing to say something to ya. (have you ever felt it? Hmmm)

You (and I) have that “uh oh I’m in trouble” feeling. We know we probably deserve any punishment that’s coming. Instead, I hear this spiritually. “Dan, I’m not going to take the wheel. I don’t want to fix your problem with curves. I want to fix YOU.” It’s Jesus talking to me I have no doubt. (Have you ever had Jesus talk to you? Hmm) He continues. “I’ll fix you if you’ll let me. There will always be curves in your journey of life. You keep your eyes on Me,…… and on the road cause I’m still letting you drive.” 😉

So what was becoming an angry and even angrier trip became a true REAL life teaching moment for me. IF I (and you) turn my Eyes upon Jesus, then the things of Earth grow strangely dim. (Hmm sounds like a song).

A good friend of mine posted something on that dreaded platform Facebook that very day. It said, “Why be angry at the darkness of the world when you are holding a flashlight……. which is Jesus”………Bam! That’s it right there. That’s what I needed to hear. I’m thinking, well my friend? Well, bless his heart. No seriously I hope God truly blesses his heart, cause these words truly blessed me in my present journey.

Normally in my writings, I place a scripture here that I felt spoke to me and hopefully you. But not today. I want you to seek Jesus yourself. How or what would you need to do to feel that “spiritual tap” on your shoulder? Maybe you will read your Bible, Maybe just pray, Maybe go outside and yell at God, But do what you need to do to communicate to God. Well, what ya waiting for? Do it. He’s waiting to hear from you.

God/ Jesus is waiting to hear from you, then he’ll know you are in a better place to hear from Him. You’ll hear Him say “I don’t want to fix your problems,…… I want to fix you. Really and truly, I want a relationship. I want a living loving relationship with you my child. Then the fixin’ will happen on it’s on.”

You guys are all on a spiritual journey. We face and will face curves all the time. I know ,I know, we all can’t help but think, “if I just get around this curve, then everything will be OK. But what shows up AFTER you face the curve?…… another curve.

My prayer for you,…… and me. “Dear Jesus, I’m sorry for getting angry and for all those other shortcomings in my life. I feel that maybe I need to forgive myself as well. Help me to face the curves and danger zones in my journey. I want to see the whole road but I can’t see because of the “curves” going on in my life. But I’ll accept that you want ME and not just my problems to fix. But Jesus, you’ve got to help me. I need you in my life. I get it. I don’t need you to “take the wheel”. I need you to TAKE ME JUST AS I AM. I think now I can get that true peace and joy in my life “and turn that radio on wide open” 😉

When we turn our eyes to Jesus (which means using him as your “flashlight”), we start seeing the big picture. WE still may not know what lies ahead, but we’ve got Jesus in our heart in a truly living loving way. Then you know what the journey looks like before us? Well here is a small sample.

Our journey as God sees it. (and now maybe a little more how you see it.)

Here’s my phone number 601-832-8567. Call me. Somebody got “tapped on the shoulder” spiritually today. I’ll ride with you on your spiritual journey (even if your vehicle has dents and fender benders) I can’t do anything for you my friend. But I talk with someone and pray to someone for guidance and directions………and it ain’t Siri……… It’s Jesus, “MY FLASHLIGHT”!

See Ya!! Dan Ainsworth wilderness preacher

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Merry Christmas! God With Us!!!

A Colorado “Wilderness” Manger scene! Do you see the Bighorn Sheep? How about the Elk/Deer? What’s that other animal behind the manger? A Fox, a coyote, maybe a mountain lion?….. You tell me.

All these “animals” were made from scrap pieces of firewood. Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder I guess. As I was moving the scrap wood one day, I thought to myself, this piece looks like a fox with a bushy tail. Hey, there’s a scrap piece of firewood that looks like a bighorn sheep. (I looked really hard, but couldn’t find a bear or an alpaca in the scrap pile 😉 )

You’ve seen all kinds of manger scenes over the years. They usually have Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus. Most of the time there is a camel, or donkey, or some wise men and maybe even an angel or two. I’ve even seen an manger scene with a cowboy and his horse kneeling in front. Oh yea, and the one where Santa Claus is kneeling in front of the manger. (Not sure how my theology friends deal with that one.)

When I was just a child our church (Shout out to Goodwater Baptist Church) had a LIVE nativity scene. We dressed up as Mary, Joseph, Wise men, Angels, etc.etc. AND WE USED LIVE ANIMALS!! I vaguely remember our mule getting scared and pulling one of the posts down. Seems like some angels fell from the rooftop,……screams,… chaos, spilt hot chocolate…some of ya’ll will have to fill me in on the details. Ha!

In the Colorado Wilderness we don’t have camels. But we do have elk. In this wilderness, we don’t have sheep (like in the Bible), but we do have Bighorn Sheep. In the Colorado Wilderness we don’t have what’s in other parts of the world, but we do have Baby Jesus!!!

“Behold, a virgin shall be with child and shall bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel” (which being interpreted is, “God with us”). Matthew 1:23

Now that’s a Merry Christmas right there! The story is such a mystery! But somehow in God’s Divine way of thinking, He chose to send our Saviour Jesus Christ into this world as little bitty baby. Born in a little bitty stable, lying in a little bitty manger. I got it figured out. God did this so that my little bitty brain could understand that even though God is all knowing, all powerful, and all EVERYTHING,….. He still wanted to be WITH itty bitty me!

If you can see a fox shape in a culled scrap piece of firewood, I’m thinking that you also can see that God wants to be WITH you! If you “see” a sheep or a deer in my wilderness manger scene, I’m thinking that you just look at those pieces of wood an well, there it is. No need to analyze, compare, measure or take a DNA test. You just look and say, “I believe that looks like a fox”!

God chose to send Jesus to Earth as a little bitty baby. HE did this because He wants to BE with You. Such a strange way to wave the world. You can be with God simply by believing in Him. Such a strange way to save your own life.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16 Now that’s Merry Christmas right there!

Maybe you yourself need to “Kneel” in front of your own manger scene and tell God that you believe and are thankful that He wants to be with us. God is with us! He’s with us in the good, and the bad. His overflowing peace, joy, and Love is there with us. I wish all of you a Merry Christmas!!

“Dear Jesus, I thank you that you came to Earth to be with all us itty bitty folks. Thank You. Happy Birthday Jesus! I pray for those out there who are dealing with whatever “bad” things that are happening in their lives right now. I ask for the comfort you give, the peace that comes from you, the forgiveness that is needed. I’m so glad that you came to BE with us! WE love You. Amen.”

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Dealing With The Fear and Hate **(language warning)

Two young ladies, in their early thirties, pony tails bouncing, dressed in fashionable “exercise clothing”, wearing those expensive “walking shoes” and wearing those ear pods to listen to their music, are ahead on the trail. It’s pretty obvious they are from the big city, and I’m guessing out for a day hike in nature. Behind them is this sixty year old man, disheveled, wearing work clothes and boots, probably smells of the chainsaw that he’s been using to clear downed trees in the area. The older guy picks up something from the forest floor and begins chasing these attractive young ladies. Is this me? Well, let’s just say “I have this friend” 😉 Let’s listen to what the conversation is between the two girls. The old guy is close enough that he hears the conversation as well. It goes like this………

“Hey, you know the old guy that we passed on the trail back there? I think he’s following us.” The the other young lady dressed more in blue than in the pink her friend is wearing, removes her ear pods and says, “What did you say?” Pink tights says, “That old man is following us!” The blue tights girl turns around and sees the old man behind them. “OMG you are right! What does he want?” She turns around again and this time the old man is waving something at her. “We need to get out of here! This is creepy!”, Blue says, as her voice begins to show fear. Pink tights girl turns around to look for herself. The old man yells something at her which she doesn’t understand. Now she is gripped with fear. Pink says, “He’s getting closer,…..let’s jog a little ways, he won’t run after us”. Pink tights and blue tights begin jogging the rocky trail…………. and so does the old man.

Now both ladies are feeding off each others fears. They know they are in the wilderness on this part of the trail. There is no phone service here in this area. They stop jogging but continue to walk. “What do we do?” asks Pink to her friend. Blue replies, “I’ve got a can of bear spray in my pack! Reach in and get it, but hurry cause he’s getting closer!” The old man is probably only 100 feet away from the two young ladies now.

Pink reaches in and grabs the bear spray. Both young ladies stop and turn to face the old man who is only about 50 feet away now. He tries to say something to them, but they cut him off. Blue yells, “You better get the Hell out of here! My friend has bear spray and if you come any closer she will use it on you!”

These two young ladies are scared to death! Again the old guy tries to say something but the girl screams at him once again………..”I SAID FOR YOU TO GET THE HELL OUT!!!!!!……………. and you know what? He did. This is how he did it.

He threw an object to them as he said, “M’am, you dropped your keys”. Sure enough it was a keyring with three keys and a car door remote on it. He immediately turned and walked away from them back down the trail, shrugging his shoulders not understanding what the big fuss was about.

Blue tights saw the key ring land about 5 feet from her. She immediately looked into the pocket of her pack. There was no key ring to be found. The old guy truly had found her keys. Both girls breathed a sigh of relief and shared a moment of nervous laughter. “Thank you sir! Sorry! Didn’t know what was going on! Thank you!” The older guy was by now long gone back down the trail. But he heard what the young ladies said.

This example is so spot on with what is going on in the world today. Allow me to explain. You and I who are believers hold “the keys” to a world that is going down life’s trail. When we try to share these keys, the keys of the Way, the Truth, and the Life with Jesus Christ, we become the objects of fear and hate. People are afraid of Christians. Why? Because they truly don’t know us. They are filled with preconceived ideas. We are different. We have something they don’t have. We have and hold the keys!

So literally we are here to “get the Hell out of……people” Let’s Love the Heck out of people, pray the Heck out of people, and throw the Heck out of all our keys God has given us to people we come in contact with on this spiritual journey. How do you and I do this? God has given us our own set of keys. Keys of hope, love, forgiveness, protection, etc, etc, on and on. Well shoot, God has given me so many “keys”, I feel like the high school janitor with his 37 keys on his belt! And,…… And the most significant thing is that God has also given His “keys” to everyone. They are just too busy to notice. They are too hurt to see. They are so full of hate and fear that they CAN’T get the “Hell” out of their lives long enough to grab God’s amazing gifts that are free for the asking. Sadly they have lost their way as well as having lost their “keys of life”. So,next time you feel like someone is wanting you to get the “Hell” out,……… by all means do it! For their sake!

Matthew 5:10 – 16 the Message version “You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom.  “Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.  “Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You’ve lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage.

 “Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.

So literally we are here to “get the Hell out of……people” Let’s Love the Heck out of people, pray the Heck out of people, and throw the Heck out of all our keys God has given us to people we come in contact with on this spiritual journey.

“Dear Heavenly Father, first of all Thank You for helping me find my keys. Help me to share You and your Love to all those people who for some reason or another are telling me to get the Heck out. I am so thankful for this Christmas season that’s coming up. Be with all who may be reading this. Give us protection, give us strength, and give us opportunities to throw YOUR keys to those that need them. Amen”

See Ya! Dan Ainsworth wilderness preacher