I AM CHANGING TO blogspot.com this is my final XANGA POST!!!!

my new blog site http://tugtaviano.blogspot.com/

I want you to right now sit back and think of those who have impacted your life, those that you can never get out of your head, those who you have had great times with, you have cried on, skipped school to spend time with, danced with when they never would dance with anyone else, learn from, get a ruler broken over your rear by this person, could'nt wait to hear this persons' voice on the other end of the line, was driven by, encouraged by, loved by, and you can honestly say that if it were not for this person in your life, you would definitely not be the person that you are today......I know alot of those items that you read, you could probably not relate to....but that was Grandma to me......

This Blog site, is dedicated to her, the woman behind my faith, the woman behind my mom's faith. I really want you, who read this to see the severity of the impact that you can have on one individuals life. My grandma was that to me!!!! It has been over 2 years since her battle with brain cancer was brought to an end, and the time was right for God to take her home, or at least that is what He wanted to do. I still cannot bear thinking of life without her, and I wish that it was not real.....that is the reason that I have only visited her grave once since she has passed away.....I cannot think of her being gone....It truly tears me up!!!!! Anyways, this lady was everything to me, growing up, I would act like I was sick, to miss school and just spend time with her, listening to her do her victory song, after beating me in board games, til the end when it hurt so bad to have her at home, and know that she could not play that game with me anymore, because of the effect that this cancer had on her!!!!! When you love someone so much, it is so hard to let go, and I am praying that God will give me that, not that I want to let go, but just that it would be easier!!!!!!!!!!!

Back to the woman behind my faith (sorry I am rambling) but when I talk about this, I have so many thoughts in my head!!!!
In 1 Timothy 1

Encouragement to Be Faithful
3I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. 5I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. 6For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
8So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, 9who has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, 10but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 11And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher. 12That is why I am suffering as I am. Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.

This passage is the passage that I hang on to, I know without a shadow of a doubt, that my faith would not be as existent, if it was not for my grandmother, who passed it on to my mother, and then to me!!! Every day of grandma's life was spent trying to impact others for Christ, even while she had cancer she was witnessing, and if I remember right, at her funeral, one of the nurses that took care of her, trusted Christ!!!!!!!! up until the end she was committed!!!!

I do not want to get rid of my thoughts of Grandma, but I want to be renewed by them, I want to be renewed by the Holy Spirit, I want to be the person that Grandma was to God, a fully devoted follower, with none of her self in the mix, and I may even break out in the victory song from time to time....So as you are possibly gonna start reading these blogs, I want you to know that I am going to do my best to be renewed in Christ daily!!!! What a great way to do this, write a message to others about what is going on in your life spiritually and hope to impact them only by Christ!!!

So in closing what I would like to add, and I know this is really long!!! There is this song that is out by disciple, and I have changed some of the lyrics, as if I would write it to grandma!!!!

The song is called Things left unsaid-Disciple

It's just a matter of time a few years ago
I saw you, you were fine
Remembering what you said
About the book you read
The one that taught you
‘bout the Beginning and the End
Oh how we'd talk
For hours upon end
What I would give Just to do it again
But you're lying there In this hospital bed
Won't you open your eyes And let's talk once again

If you fly away tonight I want to tell you that I love you
I hope that you can hear me I hope that you can feel me
If you fly away tonightI want to tell you that I love you
those were the last words you told me When we were face to face

Well I've been here all night
And I'm watching you Breathe in and breathe out
I wish this weren’t youI wish this was a dream
I wish you’d have life And then it would seem
That there could be hope I could say to your face
If it weren't for you That there would be no grace
That's covered my life You took the time
To speak into my mind And my heartWords of life

If you fly away tonightI want to tell you that I love you
I hope that you can hear meI hope that you can feel me
If you fly away tonightI want to tell you that I love you
those were the last words you told meWhen we were face to face

So goodbye for now
And I'll see you again Some way, somehow
When it's my time to go to the other side
I'll hold you again And melt at your smile
Now all I have Are the ones that I'm with
And you taught me not To take for granted
The time that we have To show that we care
Speak into their minds And their hearts While they're here
And say I love you

If you fly away tonightI want to tell you that I love you
I hope that you can hear meI hope that you can feel me
If you fly away tonightI want to tell you that I love you
those were the last words you told meWhen we were face to face

Don't just stand there, do something?

Never Changing Word

Just the other week, we took a group of guy students to eat and watch the super bowl at a local restaurant, and as I was sitting in the booth, I realized one thing, isn’t it crazy how the world tries to grab our attention in many different ways.
You see there are so many commercial targeted to so many different audiences, and then what do you know, in a month those commercials will be changed to advertise that product in a different fashion, to reach the same crowd in a different way.  Yet we sit there and give our attention to something that is here today and then is gone tomorrow.  They, the companies spend millions of dollars to communicate their message on Super Bowl Sunday, and now only a couple of weeks later, those commercials you do not even remember!!!!

How often do we give our attention to something that is here today and then gone tomorrow, and then put something that has not changed in ages, on the shelf and not pay attention to anything that it has to say.  You see God has never had to come up with a creative way to market HIS WORD, nor has he had to change it from day one.  Granted there are different translations for readers, but the totality of the scripture has NEVER changed!!! IT is the same today, as it was when it first came out.  It is not the Bible of this year, or the Bible of 1997, IT IS THE BIBLE.  There is no marketing campaign,  it speaks to you in different ways yet stays tehe same!!!!


1 Peter 1:24-25 24For, "All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever." And this is the word that was preached to you. (NIV)

God has no need to invent new ways of communicating His message to the hearts of men and women. Whether the word is written or spoken, regardless of if the word is illustrated with pictures or drama, GOD COMMUNICATES HIS WORD IN THE SAME WAY BY HIS SPIRIT.

1 Corinthians 2:11-13 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. (NIV)

Hearing God Clearly, and Listening...........

2 Samuel 2

David Anointed King Over Judah

    ¹ In the course of time, David inquired of the LORD. "Shall I go up to one of the towns of Judah?" he asked.
      The LORD said, "Go up."
      David asked, "Where shall I go?"
      "To Hebron," the LORD answered.

    ² So David went up there with his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. ³ David also took the men who were with him, each with his family, and they settled in Hebron and its towns. ⁴ Then the men of Judah came to Hebron and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah.
      When David was told that it was the men of Jabesh Gilead who had buried Saul, ⁵ he sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead to say to them, "The LORD bless you for showing this kindness to Saul your master by burying him. ⁶ May the LORD now show you kindness and faithfulness, and I too will show you the same favor because you have done this. ⁷ Now then, be strong and brave, for Saul your master is dead, and the house of Judah has anointed me king over them."

There are a few things that I know will stick out to you, probably the first is that David went up there with his two wives (isn't one hard enough to deal with, just kidding, I love my wife) but I ask you to look past that part, and look at the two things that are very interesting to me in this passage.

1. God asked David to go somewhere, and David went

2. David showed continued kindness and honor to Saul, even though Saul was dead and hunted David like crazy in 1 Samuel.

The first thing with God asking David to go somewhere is to me only unique because of David going immediately.  It does not say that David went a year later, it says that God asked and David went.  The other crazy thing is that David heard God, not that it is crazy, but that He knew it was God.  There are two questions that I want to ask you, and I want you to respond to in your comments. 1.) Have you heard God telling you to do something (an example) and 2.) What was the outcome (did you listen and succeed, or not and fail).

Have you ever questioned if God speaks to us, and when He does, do you truly hear him.

I do not want to talk about myself today, but hear what you all have to say.

The next thing is that David showed kindness and honor to David, even though Saul wanted him dead......

How many times in life have you given up on being the honorable one, and simply just gave the person that is after you .... what they so called deserved.

My statement to this..... Love people until they ask why, and then keep loving them!

Give me your thoughts for this passage

Have a day!

Tug

Know who you are to God!

Know who you are to God

1 Samuel 16:1-13

    ¹ The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king."

    ² But Samuel said, "How can I go? Saul will hear about it and kill me."
      The LORD said, "Take a heifer with you and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.' ³ Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what to do. You are to anoint for me the one I indicate." 

⁴ Samuel did what the LORD said. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town trembled when they met him. They asked, "Do you come in peace?"

    ⁵ Samuel replied, "Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Consecrate yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me." Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.

    ⁶ When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD's anointed stands here before the LORD."

    ⁷ But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."

    ⁸ Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, "The LORD has not chosen this one either." ⁹ Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, "Nor has the LORD chosen this one." ¹⁰ Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, "The LORD has not chosen these." ¹¹ So he asked Jesse, "Are these all the sons you have?"
      "There is still the youngest," Jesse answered, "but he is tending the sheep."
      Samuel said, "Send for him; we will not sit down ^[a] until he arrives."

    ¹² So he sent and had him brought in. He was ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features.
      Then the LORD said, "Rise and anoint him; he is the one."

    ¹³ So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power. Samuel then went to Ramah.

Today I write you, sitting here knowing that God has something in store for me, and you, yes you , the person who is reading this, just wondering if God will ever use you.  You have been looked at your whole life as the little brother, the little sister, the outcast, the person that is picked last on the playground, never hired for a job that you desire, and you are sitting back wondering what God, and if God is ever going to do anything with your life.

To me this is a question that is so vividly addressed in this passage above. Here is David, the youngest of the brothers, doing possibly a job that none of his brothers wanted to do, and yet he is the one that was being desired by God to become the person that was anointed as King.

So many times in our lives we get down on ourselves, and we are quick to point out that God is not using us, when merely we are the ones who are not ready for God  to use us.

One thing in this passage that I see, is that David was out watching the sheep, while his brothers were getting interviewed or looked at for being the next king. You never hear of David being jealous, or even see him with an ounce of hatred, or despise against any of his brothers. In fact, he was out in the field, one that was not his ultimate calling, and serving at that time as if it was.

He was focused on the task at hand, but yet I know he was sitting back patiently waiting for God to use him.  He knew in his mind what people thought of him his whole life, but yet knew what God could do through him.

What I want you to see in this blog is simple, but yet possibly the most difficult thing to do in life.

Hurry up and wait!

By the statement hurry up and wait, I mean this.  Focus on your personal relationship with Christ, by diving into the word, prayer, and a deep personal relationship with Christ.  Make the choices that you know are right in life, in everything.  Secondly, by developing a personal relationship with Christ, you will know who you are to God, and do not even think that God does not have something in store for you, because I guarantee you are wrong. And finally, when Christ calls you to do something, you better do it, and do it as if your life depended on that alone. (David was called a man after my own heart, by God)

Now just a snip of where I can relate to this

As many of you know I was a youth pastor for six years at North Park Community Church, and as of today I have not been in the ministry for approx. three months. I am now a sales rep/graphic artist for a company in Ada, Oh, called SAY Security, and honestly is the best secular workplace that I could have ever asked for (and to some this could be their ministry).  I am out here tending my sheep, so to say, doing what Christ has required of me at this time, to pave the way for what He is going to ask me to do.  I am striving so hard to be the person I need to be, both at the work place, and at home.  I know what God has called me to do however, and that is to be in full time ministry with the emphasis on youth ministry. I know that all of these other people are getting interviewed, and given positions in churches that look amazing, but is not what God has in store for me and my family.  I know that someday, and someday soon, God is going to call me back into the ministry, and I desire, that this will be the place that God wants me and my family to serve for a LOOOOONG time.  I know that I look like David in mans eyes, I know that people are worldly over qualified than that of myself, but I know who I am to Christ and last time I checked, in verse 7 in stated this  ^7b The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."

God knows the next ministry that HE has for my wife and I is going to bust at the seams, because this will be the one that HE has directed us to!

So please be praying for my next ministry, and let me know if there is anything that we can be praying for in your life!