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Does TIme Heal?

For those who read this blog and don't know: I no longer am employed at VLC. I am currently seeking employment. Prayers needed and much appreciated :-)

Anyways, today, someone said they have missed my blogging. I said 'thank you, I missed it too." They followed it up w/, "why has it been so long, you haven't blogged for 2 months?" My reply- "plain and simple, I didn't want to air our what we were going through." I had to keep it in my journal & not write publicly. So for those of you who read this regularly, sorry for the lapse of blogging.

Anyways, to the point of this blog: Some people says 'time heals everything.' I don't nessarilly agree w/ that statement.

In the past, I have held onto issues and hurts for years, time never healed it. Maybe I would forget about it from time to time, but until I really dealt w/ it, forgave and asked for forgiveness, it never really went away. Sadly, I know people that have held onto hurts or wrongs for 50+ years, just basically eating them alive. 

I personally pushed down issues, tried to forget through alcohol, and had held onto to family hurts for years, but then forgiveness, grace and mercy came into play and healed.

I think forgiveness, mercy and grace heals everything! Some things are never forgotten, BUT forgiven. I think if we forget everything and try to suppress the things we go through, the same situations and issues may arise in the future, equalling the same outcomes. Reasoning:  Because we have forgotten and suppressed those feeling & issues and not forgiven or asked for forgiveness.

Forgiveness, grace and mercy heals.

That's just my opinion. I don't think any of us can go wrong w/ forgiveness!

For comments, please log into  www.ryancook.net  and leave a one under the comments tab.

-Peace

My Prayer

I was just looking through one of my journals from a couple months back. I wrote out a prayer that I prayed, after I prayed it, I never looked back on it until now. Glad I did, because I prayed it again today and wanted to share it. This is probably only the 3rd prayer I have shared publicly on this blog.  It's a little personal, but my life's an open book, so here it is:

"God- I love you. I worship you. I think you. Thank you for my family, the weekend. Thank you for sobriety. Thank you for my job.

I need you!

I want you to have my life. Stir my heart in desperation for you. Keep my heart yearning for you, desiring you. Help me to never lose sight of you.

Please make my heart desperate for the things you are desperate for. Open the eyes of my heart to see & minister to the hurting.

Fill my soul w/ the love you have. Help me love people like you do. I need your love today. Move and shake my life anyway you want! Open my eyes, open my ears, open my mind, open my heart.

All that I have is yours, you have truly blessed me. Hold onto me and never let me go. Even when I am not nice, when I don't deserve to live, please see me for who I am, Your child.

God, all the things that hurt me late at night, all the thoughts of the past, take them away. Help me not forget where I have came from, but not to think on it to long. Take the bad desires away from me.

Help me to dislike the things you dislike, God, let me not be bound by anything!

I love you, let your will be done in my life.

God, today- blow my mind! Let me see just a glimpse of your love to people, grace, forgiveness, passion, justice, judgement, power, healing,awakening, salvation,strength. Amen!"

Thanks for reading.

www.ryancook.net

How to Discover your Destiny

While I was reading today, I came across 8 steps to discover your destiny. Although, I know step processes don't always work, ie; 4 easy steps to lose weight. 5 steps to financial freedom and so on, I thought these were pretty close to a good 'step' program. Good stuff:

• Think about the desires of your heart, not what someone else wants you to do, or the fleeting fantasies of your mind- Ps. 37:3-4
• Determine what stirs your passion, drive and zeal- John 2:17
• Know what gifts and talents flow naturally through you- Rom. 12:4-6
• Seek counsel from mature friends, both Christian and non-christian and leaders- Prov. 11:14; 18:1
• Listen to the witness of the Holy Spirit in your spirit- Rom. 8:14
• Understand what you can or can't give yourself 100% in order to accomplish it- 1John 3:16
• Know what produces good fruit in your life- Matt. 12:33
• Follow the peace of God inside you- Col. 3:15

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The Lady in the ER

A couple days ago I had another spleen scare. My doc had some bad results from an ultra sound. He called me in and sent me for blood work and CT scan. God healed my spleen from the time of the ultrasound until the CT scan! The CT scan results showed an alive and functioning spleen, which is amazing in itself, chance were low after the procedure.  I thank God for His healing!

There is another issue from all the internal bleeding and clotting, but God is able to heal that too. I have faith!

Don’t take me wrong for the next few statements I am going to make. I am thrilled for the healing. I believe God sent me there to show me that He is healing me. I am thankful that God is still in control and has given me a 2^nd chance to live, and that is sooo cool, it’s all in His hands.

I believe most of this visit to the hospital was for a girl named “Marie” (name has been changed) Marie works in the ER admitting offices. Renee and my relationship w/ her started 6 weeks ago.  She was the first person we saw on my first visit to the ER. She was kind & nice, but as we looked into her eyes, we knew she was missing something.  We all hit it off.  For some reason, she thought we were ‘cool’ pastors, (not so ‘cool’ in the ER, LOL) So after the 1^st visit, Renee and Marie exchanged numbers and we were off.

The next night when I was dying, we went back to the ER. We asked for Marie by name. She came out not expecting to see us again, but here we were. God is so cool how He plans things out and aligns our schedules!!  If you ever forget, remember His timing is perfect.

So Marie got us taken care of quickly and rushed into a room.  A couple days later, after the spleen procedure, I was resting in a bed, Renee by my side (yes, she was actually by my side in the bed, she was tired of sitting in the chair) when in comes Marie.

We were totally shocked she came to visit. We had just met her a few days prior, in the ER of all places. She said even though works there, she has never even been to the floor I was on, and added, she had never came to check on any of the patients she admitted. Something was drawing her in.

I think Renee had texted her once since then and we had continued to pray for her. So Tuesday evening while we where waiting for test results, we were strolling the halls and decided to go ask for her. We bumped into Marie in the hallway. I can’t begin to explain the look on her face, loneliness, scared, confusion, not sure what step in life to take next.... The second we started to talk to her, she teared up. She is going through some hard stuff in her life right now. We all exchanged a few words. I think she was still in shock that we remembered her name or that we cared. Renee stepped up to hug her, Marie tried to hold back the tears, but it wasn’t working too good. Renee encouraged her that things are going to be OK and that we have been praying for her. She was at work and had to go, but asked us to be praying for her. 

I love how God works. We do not know her from Adam. She does not have a relationship w/ God. Just a girl we met while at the hospital. We don't know anything about her life, except for what she has told us, that she is hurting. 

I believe w/ all my heart, this is the main reason we were there was for Marie. God is starting to move in her life and has allowed our paths to cross.

One of my prayers is for God to let me cross paths to help someone find a relationship w/ Him and to use me in anyway possible, it doesn’t matter, this whole thing is bigger than us, bigger than you could ever imagine. I challenge you to do the same, ask God to let you cross paths w/ the people you need to cross paths w/. Whether it’s for ministry purposes, job markets or just friendships, He cares and wants the best for you, more than you do.  He knows us and our needs better than we know ourselves!

www.ryancook.net 

This IS What MOP's is About

This letter was emailed to me from our MOP's (mothers of preschoolers) leader. MOP's is close to my heart because my wife Renee got our MOP's group up and going for the first 2 years. 

Kim's experience is what MOP's is about. What reaching out is about. What letting people see Jesus in us is about. What seeing people as Jesus see's them is about. It's about living out your life and walk w/ Christ in a way that others see and want what you have. Check out this awesome letter:

To all my MOPS moms,

I was never very girlie. I caught spiders, frogs and snakes and asked to keep them. I wrestled and played football. I didn’t wear makeup until I was 16. I bought my first “pretty” bra when I was 20. Slowly I learned it was ok to just be a girl.

Years passed and at 25 I moved here (to Grand Junction) I met Sara (a steering team member in our group) and came to MOPS. Here I found beautiful, strong women. They weren’t prissy or elitist. I didn’t feel like an outcast because I wasn’t “girlie”. Quite opposite. I was encouraged. I became more and more comfortable with attempting to be fashionable. I learned it was perfectly fine for me to like lace and flowers and even pink. And I liked feeling accepted as me, but encouraged to grow. All from women that I was sure, at least in my mind, would have never given me the time of day.

Mops has changed my life. This group has changed my life. Sharing our stories gave me strength and let me know that I wasn’t a bad mom for being frustrated, I wasn’t a bad person for not being perfect all the time. Being around positive women, sharing coffee and decorating picture frames somehow brought me peace. I could leave energized and enlightened with new ideas on how to help my family. I wasn’t stuck alone in my four walls anymore. I had a place to go where I was understood.

When I first moved here, I didn’t pray anymore. I didn’t like religion or church or any organization affiliated with church. I remembered God but didn’t know how to fit HIM into my life. I was uncomfortable even having a religious conversation. I had never even prayed with my kids. Slowly, MOPS helped me remember. MOPS gave me a positive interaction with a church group. I saw a group of happy, healthy families, church goers who weren’t hypocrites. People that put positivity back into religion for me.

My children pray every night. They pray before meals. I pray as I lay down to sleep. And when all answers are exhausted my children hear “Because that’s how God made them”.

If you had met me three years ago, you would not have heard me say those words.

I am grateful to all of you for helping that change.

I say all this because before I say goodbye, I want to say thank you. Thank you for every part you’ve played in my journey. For helping me become more feminine, for offering advice when I was at wits end, for playing and talking when I wanted someone to hang out with. Thank you for helping me find God again.

I won’t promise to remember all your names or all your faces. I will promise to remember the good you’ve helped create in me and the wonderful 3 years we’ve shared. You will all hold a special place in my heart.

ryancook.net

Snoring Contest

After a hard day of playing music, attending church and xbox, I found these guys hiding out.....

For your viewing please....

your welcome,
www.ryancook.net

Feet on the ground

Long time, no blogging. What can I say, it was 2 weeks ago today I was released from the hospital.  After a couple super busy weeks, I am finally getting my bearing and feel like writing again.

On March 28th, I went to the ER after a quad accident and on the 29th I was admitted into the hospital w/ a ruptured spleen, internal bleeding, 4 broken ribs and a huge hematoma. My blood crit level was at 20, (average person 46) so I was near death and didn't even realize it. I am glad I hurt enough to go back to the ER.

Since being released, it has pretty much been non-stop, (w/ tons of extra help) moving into our new building.

Last night I looked into the mirror and much of the external swelling and bruising has dissipated, mostly inside bruising and swelling is left and believing in the healing of the hemotoma. 

God is merciful and full of grace. He has been healing me through this entire process!! I have to thank all those that have prayed for me and my family the last few weeks. I am indebted to my wife, who has been by my side and my pillar this entire time and helped me through this trauma. My wife and kids rock!  As well as thanking God for a great boss.

So there you have it, that's what has been going on the last few weeks. 

I am super excited about the grand opening of our new church, VLC, and will write more about the process in the future.

Until then, stay frothy!

www.ryancook.net 

God is Still God

Wow! I just watched this video that New Spring along w/ Zac Smith put together.

This story is amazing, crazy, & inspiring all wrapped together. The most amazing part of this video is the last 20 words. Those are some moving words!

After watching this, it makes me want to be a better father, a better husband and a better person and I hope that it doesn't take cancer to make me realize that. Zac is an inspiration!

The Story of Zac Smith from NewSpring Media on Vimeo.

ryancook.net

if only...... Significant

I was reading the other day, yes I do that from time to time :-), and ran across an article about being significant, worth and meaning.

I was not surprised by any of the responses, in fact it made me think about it a little more.

Here are some of the responses:

• If only I could be more disciplined and lose all this excess weight….then I would feel more significant.
• feel completely confident in my own skin…
• seize the opportunity and show who I am
• Be a better wife, mother, housekeeper, friend, daughter, sister…Child of God,…
• If I could only make my in-laws care about me genuinely..then I would feel more significant.
• If I could only have a life 100% free of the devil and his tricks, then I would feel more significant.
• Be who I know God has called me to be in ministry instead of living in the depression of my failure’s
• leave my hang ups behind and go full steam ahead following God’s plan for my life
• kill the demons that I can’t seem to get away from and live successfully as ME, and not a clone of someone else
• If I could only get *that* job, then I would feel significant, important. Until then I continue to feel useless.
• If I could only (make some money) and not be “just a mom” I would feel more significant. ugh. 

There are false beliefs – beliefs that lead us to believe our significance comes from things and people within the world. It doesn’t. I have personally struggled w/ this for many years. Trying to please others to feel significant, do something that would "wow" others, but I have come to the conclusion that in the big scheme of things, none of that matters. As long as you are exactly where God wants you to be, that should be enough. He will take it from there and add to you.

My significance comes from God alone and nothing else. If I base my significance on my acceptance in Jesus, and dedicate myself to pleasing God, my confidence will be unshakable. My strength will be spiritual.

I’m here for a purpose. God’s purpose. That’s all the significance I need.

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If you are in a funk, you may want to try this....

I snagged this from a friends post- If you're in a funk or rut, these are some great ideas to get your wheels turning.. 

-Pray out loud.

-Write your prayer out.

-Read your Bible out loud.  Start here.
-Apologize to someone.  Even if it’s not primarily your fault.
-Talk to someone you trust.  If you don’t have someone, hire a professional.
-Rest.
-Exercise.
-Start eating better.
-Drive around listening to a sermon.
-Turn up some worship music really loud.  Shut the door.  Sing along.
-Go back and do the thing you know you were supposed to do.
-Get organized.
-Repent.
-Encourage somebody who would never expect it.
-Get back in church.  Serve somewhere.
-Quit complaining.
-Go on a date with your wife.
-Tell somebody thank you.
-Give some money away.
-Call on the name of Jesus.
-Remember how far He’s brought you.
-Realize that He’ll never ever leave you.

Just a few ideas to get you started.

You can take it from here…

www.ryancook.net