How to Get out of a Rut - Techie Style!

Are you a gadget guy or girl? Ever felt like you needed an extra boost to get your day going? Not a caffeine high that comes and goes but something more consistent and life-giving I have some easy steps that you can start taking TODAY!

Life can get super busy sometimes, leaving little to no time (or energy) to take care of what's most important to us. We knew we needed to switch it up and recently started taking some new supplements to help us get closer to our fitness goals.

After taking them for a little over a month, we have more energy, focus and we're building lean muscle from our workouts.  But we didn't want to stop there. In order to get spiritually in shape and out of a rut, we started applying some basic principles to our spiritual life to get our spirit man in shape also.

And since we're always on our phones or glued to social media, here's 5 Ways to Get out of a Rut and Get Your Spirit Man Going - Techie Style!

1. Download the Youversion Bible app.

This is a great way to make sure you're getting a fresh slice of your "daily bread." My wife shared a cool idea of taking a screen shot of your Daily Bible verse and saving it as your screensaver on your phone. That way she can read and meditate on it every time she picks up her phone. And if you're like us, we use our phones a lot. Try it here for free.

I've been experiencing the reality of this scripture more lately.

2. Create a Praise and Worship Playlist.

What's cool about this is that you can have your favorite songs scheduled in the order you wanna hear them. There are times when you keep hearing certain songs and want to play them over and over. I didn't know how to do this, but just saw a great tutorial on how to create a YouTube Playlist here.

3. Check out Podcasts.

I have to thank my bro, Devin Bruce, for reminding me of this one. He and his bride, Hannah, will be celebrating nine months of marriage soon, and one of the ways they cultivate their marriage is by listening to Marriage Today with Jimmy Evans podcasts. If you're a runner, cyclist or looking for something edifying to listen to while you're in the gym, podcasting is a great option. Once again, there are so many free ones to choose from some of your favorite authors, speakers, musicians, etc.

4. Write out your prayers.

This great idea came from another great brother and friend of mine - Mark David Goins. We were talking about ways to develop our prayer life, and he said writing his prayers down allowed him to express what was really in his heart. You can write them down in a journal or even on Post-It Notes like this.

I just tried this today and whoa...

5. Engage in Biblical community.

As great as it is to spend quiet time alone to think and process things, it's just as important to connect with other believers in and outside of church. I was encouraged by yet another brother (Do you see a theme here?), Aaron Heeg, about cultivating the community at my job. It was a simple truth but really impacted my heart. Most of us spend the majority of our day at work. Why not share the Gospel of Jesus Christ by showing love and kindness to your coworkers?

What are some other ways you can get out of a rut? I'd love to hear your thoughts and ideas.

The Love Walk Confessional Part 1: Overcoming Cynicism

Walking in love is a daily journey from the moment you open your eyes until you close them at night.

The purpose of my blog has been to show "life" behind the scenes, behind the music, the stories that help shape melodies, songs, albums and movements.

I'm starting a new series called "The Love Walk Confessional" capturing moments from life's journey specifically as it relates to our love walk.

Part 1 hits a sore spot. Read on to learn more...

This weekend, I had the opportunity to connect with my peeps at Church on the Rock's Young Adult Ministry - Inspire, led by Boost 101.9's Neal Hopson and his wife, Kim.

Me and the homie, Neal Hopson from Boost 101.9FM

I asked my wife to pray for me before I left the house, and one of the things she prayed was that hearts and minds would be open to the message that God had given me. I drove to the church and meditated on that.

"What is my message?" I thought. "A message of love, of course!"

I know God has given me a message of walking in love. And honestly, I thought I was doing a good job of that. But the Holy Spirit has a way of revealing what's really in our hearts. And it's not always pretty.

Hebrews 4:12 says, "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart."

Neal asked me to sing "That's When You Love" right before the guest speakers, Mark & Nikki Supak, who serve as Youth Directors at Church on the Rock. I was elated to share my heart through song and hear their message.

Mark & Nikki Supak - Inspire Guest Speakers

Let me just say the whole night was awesome, from the praise and worship by Jai and her band to the DJ, to meeting and greeting everyone, but the Word rocked me to the core. I was challenged and changed forever.

Mark and Nikki spoke so passionately about relationships and how it's important that we should constantly become "the one" for our spouse or future mate. They went on to mention that it was about having the right perspective concerning our relationships, embracing those seasons of preparation and maintaining purity.

Mark shared an amazing story that really hit home. He mentioned that there was a time in his old church where they had about 4 youth pastors in a short amount of time. There was a new one there, and Mark was just fed up. He mentioned how he'd become so critical and cynical of the guy, the service, what was wrong with it and so forth. He went on and I felt that check in my heart. "Oh no...this is me (I said to myself). I've become this person."

I began to pray and ask the Lord to heal me from this. I don't want to walk around with a chip on my shoulder just because some things hadn't changed in the timing in which I wanted them to. (Sidebar: Shoutout to Nikki Supak for speaking on the season of preparation. Whew! I hope they recorded last night's message because you guys gotta hear this thing in its entirety.)

Malachi 3:3 says, "He will sit like a refiner of silver, burning away the dross, He will purify the Levites, refining them like gold and silver, so that they may once again offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord."

This is exactly what the Lord is doing inside of me. He is refining me by exposing what isn't like Him. Cynicism and love are like oil and water. They don't mix.

How could I sing about walking in love and hold this in my heart? I can't, and I won't.

So my personal challenge is to:

1. Acknowledge that this cynicism is here but it doesn't have to stay.

2. Ask the Holy Spirit to show me the root of it and aggressively pull it up.

3. Feed my spirit with the Word of God and renew my mind daily by declaring the truth.
4. Find ways that I can serve God and others.

5. Walk in love.

After reading this blog, is this something that you're currently dealing with? What are your confessionals? What steps are you taking to walk in love? I'd love to hear your feedback. Feel free to share your comments below.

Never Judge a Book by Its Cover

I was a vagabond, emotionally, for years, desperately searching for love and acceptance.

I had so many voids that longed for attention, and I spent countless hours finding what I could to fill them.

Over the years, God used several people to sow seeds of love and encouragement but one conversation, in particular, became a destiny defining moment.

We used to sing a song at my church called "Never Would've Made It" by Marvin Sapp, and it resonated strongly in our congregation. 

A few weeks after leading the song, one of my good friends invited me over to talk about music but the conversation got real when he asked me why that song meant so much to me. 

I was going to give him my typical, generic response, but I heard the Lord say clearly "It's ok to talk about it."

I shared with him that I was molested as a kid, and it scarred me for years. I grew up with a distorted view of my identity and what real love was. 

I didn't trust anyone, not even myself. I was holding onto so much hatred and unforgiveness but pretended as if everything was ok. 

I felt like I was damaged goods and that no one would ever love me the way I wanted to be loved. 

I believed the lies of the enemy that said I would never get married and never have any children of my own. I was in a self-imposed prison but longed for freedom.

That day, I opened up and shared my heart in a way I'd never done so before. 

He told me he understood the pain I was going through and shared that he, too, was molested as a kid. I was floored! He didn't look like a typical "victim." That's when I learned "never judge a book by its cover."

That conversation was life changing and freed me up in ways I couldn't explain. I didn't have to hide my scars anymore. I could finally be free just like I heard so many preachers and singers say. 

That conversation was also fuel for writing this album. I set out on a mission to let the world know that there is a love greater than your past and loves you unconditionally. 

No longer would I walk under the moniker "Hurt people, hurt people." No, this was where the "hurt and the Healer collide."

If you've carried this "dirty little secret" all your life, I've come to set you free with these three words: God loves you. You are NOT the product of the past. You are free. You are healed, and you are LOVED! 

Happy Independence Day! :)