Question 10: What area of my life am I holding back from God? What am I afraid of?

Money. I seem to have no problem trusting God in all other areas of my life. Money and finical issues seem to be where I loose trust. "Will it really be alright if I sacrifice this?" I always ask that question.

It is really the one area I should trust more. I am not good at handling the fiances. It stresses out my wife a lot. I should really just hand it over...but...I'm afraid.

Afraid of what? Afraid of not having enough when I need it. Afraid of just not having enough.

I really try to keep up with tithing and giving a little more in other areas. One time I had forgot the checkbook. I was sitting in church thinking 'I can't tithe this week. I don't have the checkbook.' Then I thought what about the cash in my wallet? I argued with with myself that I couldn't use that. I needed it for a trip we were taking and I didn't get paid before we left. Then the thought 'Trust God' came to me. But I could not bring myself to put the cash in the offering. I did not trust. The next day at work I got a back pay check I was not expecting. It was like God telling me "See, I will provide. Just trust Me."

I know I should trust more in this area. I will try harder and pray for God to help me.

Question 9: Since God knows what is best, what areas of my life do I need to trust Him more?

The answer is simply all areas. If I or anyone else could just turn over our entire life to God what a different world this would be. But it is part of our fallen human condition that we try to control everything.

My main focus right now is to trust God with my job situation, where I live, and how I should serve. Those things are in my prayers every day.

As C.S. Lewis said "The more we let God take over, the more truly ourselves we become - because He made us. He invented all the different people that you and I were intended to be. It is when I turn to Christ, when I give up myself to His personality, that I first begin to have a real personality of my own."

Question 8: What could I start doing today as if I'm doing it for Jesus?

My job my job my job. This is the one I should dedicate to Jesus everyday. I pray every morning during the pledge and moment of silence. My prayer is: God bless everything I think, do, or say so that I have you guiding my every step.

It is so easy to get distracted and forget where your mind should be focused. So easy for my pain to start and get frustrated. So easy to just get caught up in everything.

I will make a great effort to start doing my job for Jesus today.

Question 7: How in my daily life can I become more aware of Gods glory around me?

I think I do this quite often. I love living in the desert and looking at the stars. The universe is so massive it shows how big God is. He knows every star by name.

The mountains, the oceans, the wind, snow, and rain. How it all works together. How we are the only planet the exact distance from a star to support life as we know it. The universe declares His truth so no one has an excuse. This could not be an accident.

Question 6: Since life is a temporary assignment how should I start living my life?

The words of John Wesley go through my head when I hear life put in these terms. "Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can."

So since life is a temporary assignment I must try to live up to John Wesley's standard. I have started doing this to a small extent by serving in ways that I can. I am working very hard to not miss an opportunity to serve when they present themselves.

What has happened to me recently that I now know was a test from God and what are the greatest trust God has entrusted me with?

The class I had for the 2008 - 2009 school year was a great test for me. I had a group of girls in that class that had some serve emotional problems. I spent a lot of time dealing with the personal issues and the back biting. By the end of the year I had a strong emotional attachment with the entire class and learned a lot about my classroom management.
This year it has been reported to me that those girls have grown a lot and are doing much better. So together as a group we grew. They helped me become a better teacher and I was there when they needed a caring adult role model.
My greatest trusts are the family the Lord has given me. The classes of kids I am entrusted with every year. The talents God has given me. Everything I have is because of Him.

Question 4: Considering everything in life has eternal consequences what is the one thing I should start doing and the one thing I should stop doing?

What is the one thing I should stop doing? I have spent more time pondering this questions than the others. I think maybe it is because I am afraid to admit my faults or weakness. Pride is something we all fight. I kept going back to where you spend your time, treasure, and talent is where your heart is.
My talent I use in my job, with my family, and I serve with it within my church. I would like to write more because it is the talent I enjoy the most and is very therapeutic for me.
My treasure I have gone through phases in my life where I have used it very well to help and serve others. Although I have never been very good at managing my treasure. So I need to start manging it better and using it better.
And my time is the most important. Time is the only thing that once is is spent you cannot get it back. This is the one area I really need to improve on. It seems to be an easy fix because there is an area in my life I could cut back on greatly and that cut would supply me with a lot of time. That one thing is T.V. watching. It is so easy to come home from work and fall exhausted into a chair and spend 3,4,5, even 6 hours in front of the T.V.
The T.V. is not bad or evil. Many good and educational things exist in the medium. But it is about choices and limits. If I cut out a 1 hour news program how much writing could I get done? If I cut out one half hour middle of the road sit com could I volunteer somewhere? And the hardest for me one 3 hour football game how much playing could I get in with my kids?
So my simple answer is to stop using my time on things that will not matter in eternity so I can focus on serving and helping others.
How am I going to do that? 1: Cut back on my t.v. watching by not adding any new programs to my regular schedule and cutting out the marginal ones. 2: Find a management tool for the family fiances. 3: Pick one program outside of my church to donate my time, talent, and treasure to.