Have you ever found yourself thinking that it’s been a while since God has done anything “cool” for you?  Or perhaps more spiritually, that you haven’t seen God move in a discernible way lately?

Well, the truth is that God is always working in the world, doing amazing and miraculous things.

Now perhaps, God is moving in our lives, but we are just too distracted by our own desires to see Him working.  But for today, we’ll suppose that God really hasn’t done a lot of visible things in your neck of the woods here lately (I say visible because He is undoubtedly doing things behind the scenes).

If that’s the case, here is my suggestion.  Consider praying this prayer…

God, I know that you are doing amazing things today.  Please put me in a place where I can see where You are already working so that when You are finished doing the miraculous I can rejoice, too.

This prayer will work.  I promise you.

But let’s be clear, I am not recommending that you ask God to bless you outright because He’s been “holding back” on you lately.  I’m encouraging you to ask God to guide you to a place where you can see and be a part of what He’s already doing.  He’s already working.  You’re just asking Him to let you be a part of it so that you can give Him glory when He’s done.

So, this past month, I was out of the country on a missions trip in Belize.  We had an amazing time taking part in the ministry of missionary Dan Weaver and building an addition to the MANNA Feeding Center that our church supports there in the Valley of Peace.

While I was away, I learned four key factors that contribute to the experience of a successful trip.  While there are certainly other factors beyond the four that are mentioned here, these four are vital and are the responsibility of each individual team member.  Other factors involving the missionary to be visited and the resources that must be secured are important, but they go beyond the responsibility of the individual team members.  These four keys must be embodied by each team member in order to have the most successful trip possible.

Key #1: Prepare Spiritually
This shouldn’t surprise anyone. But, it deserves first priority here.  We should not expect God to bless when He has been excluded from the preparation for an event.  We must depart on missions having a proper relationship with God.  So, do the tough work

Key #2: Know Your Role
Every team member has an important role to fulfill.  Not everyone has the same role, but everyone has an important role.  You must find yours and embrace it.  Depending on the trip, the roles will vary, but in general you will need a team leader, a driver, a carpenter, a heavy lifter, a techie, a mom, an evangelist (not in the televangelist sense), a problem solver, an encourager, a server, and the list goes on.  God assembles teams with the needs of the team in mind.  Find your role and love it!

Key #3: Watch Your Attitude
Crazy things happen when you leave the country.  Things don’t happen overseas the way that they happen here.  And since you can’t always expect the unexpected, it is incredibly important that the team members watch their attitudes carefully.  Don’t be the person that loses it!  Be part of the solution. Encourage one another.  Have fun. Don’t let bad attitudes ruin the trip.  That’s exactly what the enemy wants. Don’t help the enemy…they’re doing just fine on their own.

Key #4: Remember That It’s About God…Not You!
The purpose of a missions trip is not to advance your agenda or your name and fame.  It’s not a vacation.  It’s not an opportunity for you to add to your “I’ve been there before” list.  It’s about God and advancing His kingdom.  It’s about spreading His name and fame.  That is your task.  Let nothing distract you!

2010 Missions Trip to Belize from Palmetto Avenue Baptist Church on Vimeo.

By no means am I one of those Apple fanatic (You know who you are).   I mean, the only Apple product I own is a second generation iPod Nano…which was given to me by my brother.  It was broken at the time, and I got it fixed.  I’m content right now with my Windows Quad-core, Netbook,  and Phone.  That said, I do think pretty highly of Apple products.  They’re well-made…just expensive.

This past week though, I came across an impressive video featuring the new iPhone 4. And, while I am not an Apple user, I am someone who puts together a lot of videos, and I can applaud quality stuff when I see it.  That said, check out this video which was shot and edited entirely  on the iPhone 4. Impressive!

The guys over at Church On The Move put together this video for Father’s Day.  And, although Father’s Day has come and gone, we can still all enjoy this clip that pays tribute to dads…in a pretty humorous way.  Enjoy!  I’m sure some of you dads out there can identify with this video.

Dad Life from Church on the Move on Vimeo.

Sure, the iPhone is totally awesome, but AT&T is totally not.  The thing is, AT&T used to be ahead of the game in regard to service (back when they were Bell South Mobility or even Cingular), but now they are known to be a slower network with spotty service.  In fact, that’s one of  the reasons you no longer hear the “Fewest Dropped Calls” advertisements.  At any rate, a lot more people would buy the iPhone if it were on another network.  Take Perry Noble for example.  He just wrote a blog post about this very issue.  And, his comments raise some really good questions for Christians to think about.

Allow me to share his analogy (Don’t hate on it).  Could it be that sometimes Jesus is like the iPhone and the church is like AT&T?  Meaning, people like Jesus, but they just don’t care for the service (literally and figuratively), which is the church.

Let’s try to be the type of Christians that influence people toward Jesus rather than the type that cause people to take a pass. Said another way, “be a good example of a believer” (1 Timothy 4:12).

Can you believe it?  Friday is here already!  Actually, it’s almost over.  So, it’s time for another set of Friday Favorites.  Twitter was an active part of this past week for me so I’ve decided to return to some of my favorite tweets.  Plus, this gives you a glimpse of some of the people I follow.  Enjoy…and let me know which one is your favorite.

1. leopercer
   “A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and as long as you’re looking down, you can’t see what’s above you.” C. S. Lewis
2. ChickfilA
   @johncmaxwell: Leadership is ab influence & u earn influence by connecting. Connecting is ab others & requires energy. #cfaleadercast
3. johncmaxwell
   Success does not cause failure. Hubris (arrogance) born of success does. – Jim Collins #cfaleadercast
4. johncmaxwell
   The most called-upon prerequisite of a friend is an accessible ear. –  Maya Angelou
5. YouQuotedQuotes
   I had rather do and not promise than promise and not do. ~ Arthur Warwick
6. leopercer
   Thomas á Kempis—”Adversities do not make a man frail, they show what sort of man he is.”
7. YouQuotedQuotes
   The state of your life is nothing more than a reflection of your state of mind. ~ Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
8. YouQuotedQuotes
   Seek First to understand, then to be understood. ~ Stephen Covey
9. YouQuotedQuotes
   He, who moves not forward, goes backward. ~ Johann Wolfgangvon
10. erguncaner
    Faith  Fact: Earth is the only planet in our system not named after a mythical god. “The earth is the Lord’s…” (Ps 24:1)

So, I’ve recently discovered a new business in town that makes me happy.  And so, I was thinking that for this installment of the Friday Favorites I would share with you one of my favorite local establishments.  For those of you who live near me, go and support this business.  For those of you who live elsewhere, I’m sorry.  You’re on your own.  So, here is one of my favorite local businesses.

Favorite Gas Station – RaceTrac
So, my favorite gas station used to be 7 Eleven.  I mean, who doesn’t like a slurpee every now and again?  But now, my favorite is RaceTrac.  It’s not the biggest or newest in town, but there are several reasons I like it most.  First, this summer they’re running a special deal.  Buy a keeper-cup, and you get free refills all summer!!!  What a deal!  That’s what initially got me coming there frequently, but soon I realized there are many other reasons to frequent this place.  Second, they have a slurpee-like frozen beverage that tastes like Dr. Pepper.  It’s awesome!  Third, there are always plenty of employees on duty there.  So, it’s safer, cleaner, and better stocked.  That’s better customer service!  Fourth, my daughter recently needed to go to the bathroom badly so we hesitantly took her inside, expecting the typical gas station restroom… yuck-tacular!  But, to our surprise, it was clean… really clean… even smelled that way.  Needless to say, that left a good impression on my wife.  Fifth, last night I was there getting my free refill (my “freefill”), and one of the workers went out of his way help another customer and me out.  The other guy was buying bottled water… and the worker voluntarily told him, “They’re on sale buy-one-get-one free.”  That’s awesome.  As for me, the ice machine was “hiccupping,” and the guy pointed me to the special iced coffee ice machine and encouraged me to use it.  Maybe, it doesn’t sound like that big of a deal, but get this… the guy was already off the clock, but he still helped us out anyway.  That kind of customer service makes me happy.

So, what are some of your favorite business around town?  I have more to share, but this will have to do for this week.  But I wonder, what makes your favorite businesses favorites?  What qualities do you look for?  And, what steps are you taking at your place of work to encourage people to come back for more?

Do you want to get more out of your personal bible study time?  Have you ever wondered how it is that some Christians, pastors, or bible study leaders seem to be able to identify so much more truth in God’s word?  Well, there’s a three step process that can put you on a path to understanding and applying God’s word to your life.  This will help you to be a doer of the word and not a hearer only (James 1:22).

Here are the three steps of inductive Bible study:

1). Observation: What does it say?
This first step is a simple one.  Read the text carefully a time or two in a Bible version that you can understand.  (There are many great versions and translations available.  The one that I use personally and recommend is the NET Bible.  If you want to know why I like this one best, ask me some time.)  As you read, look for the following things:

1. Are there any commands?
2. Are there any promises?
3. Are there any repeated words or phrases?
4. Are there any results or conclusions (look for therefore or so that)?
5. What is the main idea of the passage?

2). Interpretation: What does it mean?
This can be a challenging step, and it’s the one that people sometimes fail to carry out correctly.  To perform this step, you may need to seek out a few Bible study tools (commentary, concordance, etc.).   But, don’t get too intimidated at this step.  Simply, consider the following questions:

1. Are there any terms, words, or phrases that need to be defined?
2. How does the passage fit into the broader context of the chapter & book?
3. What was the author of this book trying to say?
4. What did the audience understand the author to have been saying?

3). Application: What does it mean to me?
Now, it is time to apply the timeless truth of the passage to life.  Though all of the Bible may not be written directly to us, it is certainly written for us.   And, we must ask a few questions to learn how this passage should change our lives:

1. What attitude does this passage instruct me to have?
2. What action does this passage instruct me to take?
3. What does this passage instruct me to believe?
4. What does this passage instruct me to avoid?

At this step of application, also look for the How and the Why.  In addition to telling us what to do, believe, and avoid, the Bible also frequently tells us how and why to apply the truth of the passage.  So, look for that.

Certainly, this is not an exhaustive guide, but it should be a great start to helping you learn more from your Bible study time.  So, try taking these steps sometime this week, and let me know how it goes.  And of course, feel free to ask me any questions that arise from your personal study of the Bible.

It’s that time again.  This Friday brings the third installment of the Friday Favorites series.  Each Friday you’ll find a listing of some of my favorite things.  I try to mix it up each week, but I have so many favorite tweets that I have to share more of these with you.  So, here are some of my favorite tweets from April 2010.

1. hughballou

   Success is going from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm – Abraham Lincoln

2. JWill85

   When the people around you, limit God’s work within you, it’s time to get up and move – @stevenfurtick

3. erguncaner

   “Beware of men who have strong convictions, but no compassion.” – WA Criswell

4. leopercer

   Listening to gossip and accusations simply encourages ungodly behavior like sleeping with pigs encourages one to get dirty!

5. leopercer

   “A lie consists in speaking a falsehood with the intention of deceiving.” – Augustine

6. leopercer

   “Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.” – Thomas A Kempis

7. leopercer

   “God sends no one away empty except those who are full of themselves.” – D. L. Moody

8. YouQuotedQuotes

   The best way to cheer yourself is to try to cheer somebody else up. – Mark Twain

9. johncmaxwell

   On keeping it simple: If u can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it enough. – Albert Einstein

10. johncmaxwell

    Connecting is not about YOU. It’s hard to find common ground w others when the only 1 you’re focused on is yourself.

So, which of these is your favorite?  And then, is there a type of favorite you’d like to request from me for next week?

As I told you last week, each Friday I’m running a series of posts that shares some of my favorite things… it’s kinda like Oprah’s Favorite Things episode… only different because no one walks away with cool, free stuff.  But, you can walk away with a snippet of knowledge, and that should be valuable.  Anyway, without further ado, here are my three favorite quotes about friendship. Enjoy!

1) “You are who you hang around.”

2) “Show me your friends, and I’ll show you your future.”

3) “Choose your friends wisely…you become what they are.”

So, what are your favorite quotes about friendship?  And, what do you think about mine?

*To my knowledge, the originators of these quotes are unknown.  If you happen to have a source for me, please let me know by leaving a comment.