Tag: leadership

Need Direction?

I know that if I drive in the eastern direction, I’ll eventually get to the east coast. Maybe. There would be obstacles that would make me go north or south on the journey. I might even have to double back a couple […]

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4 min
5 years ago

January 17, 2020

Tagged Bible, faith, goals, inspire, leadership

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I know that if I drive in the eastern direction, I’ll eventually get to the east coast.

Maybe.

There would be obstacles that would make me go north or south on the journey. I might even have to double back a couple of times. Mountain ranges, detours, swamps, and traffic. I might take a side street to bypass traffic. Then there is weather: snow storms, flash flooding, tornados, and maybe a hurricane.

Even if I knew to head East, there are things outside my control that could cause delays, confusion, and ultimately getting myself lost.

There would also be things that would make me stop that would be in my control…like BoJangles. I’d get distracted every couple of exits to get more fried chicken the closer I went back home.

Remember when Mapquest came out? You could type in the address on the internet and it would give you step by step instructions. You would print it out and have an updated map….until there was a road closure, then what? It was updated all the time.

GPS came out but then the problem with those is they would get outdated and were very expensive. You could later subscribe but then you would lose the signal.

You could always ask for directions, but you will get five different responses from five different people. I would get my youth pastor lost all the time because I told him how to get to my house by the amount of fields, sizes of trees, and the tobacco barns. It made sense to me but confused him!

Needless to say it was easy to get lost when I first started driving. Now, it’s hard to get lost! I plug my iPhone in the car, go to the google maps app, type in my destination address, view map, setup the phone on the dashboard, and we are off! Google will give me alternate routes for anticipated traffic. It will give me a heads up on severe storms. It advises road closures. It literally is my life line while I’m driving from point A to point B.

All this to say, are you using google maps to get you to where you need to be? Are you using the latest technology available or are you stuck in 1995 printing out old maps? Are you crossing your fingers that the guy at the corner store knew what was he was saying when he told you to take the third left after you pass the CVS on the right? I know the majority of us would use google maps or the equivalent so that we wouldn’t get lost, period.

Why don’t we do that with everything else? Why don’t we ask the creator of the universe His thoughts? Maybe find out what His directions would be? Maybe we do, and we get the word to do something and we take off to do it. But then we don’t get updated info for the next steps. When I’m driving I want to know when to turn to avoid any delays. I want the same in my life, I want to have the most accurate info available to me and that’s God! Plus like google maps, if I do miss my turn He redirects me to get back on the right course. God wants to guide us in every step we take!

If you haven’t yet, talk with God to get your directions today. It’s never to late to get back to where you need to be.

The Voices

ROBBIE, YOU CAN’T DO THAT! YOU AREN’T GOOD ENOUGH! YOU AREN’T QUALIFIED! YOU AREN’T READY! YOU MESSED UP! I’ve heard those voices before. I’ve heard people say them to me. I have also heard my own voice in my head repeat those […]

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7 min
5 years ago

January 15, 2020

Tagged Bible, cysticfibrosis, dreams, faith, goals

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ROBBIE, YOU CAN’T DO THAT! YOU AREN’T GOOD ENOUGH! YOU AREN’T QUALIFIED! YOU AREN’T READY! YOU MESSED UP!

I’ve heard those voices before. I’ve heard people say them to me. I have also heard my own voice in my head repeat those to myself late at night. The late night is the toughest for me because my thoughts tend to get loud when everything else is quiet.

I know I’m not the only one….right? How do we drawn out the “No’s” in our life? How do we cope with the physical and internal nay-sayers?

The answer is so simple but forgotten: By seeking Jesus.

Bartimaeus grew up blind, living on a corner downtown. We will call him Bart for short. He didn’t have a lot of cash or friends. Actually he was probably a beggar and considered unworthy through the customs of the land since he was blind. He heard “No” a lot through the years. Negativity was all around him. He was sitting alongside the path of the Messiah that faithful day (literally). Jesus was big news and miracles where happening everywhere He went. There was a crowd that formed like a parade on the streets following Jesus. You would have thought Ryan Seacrest was there at Times Square New Years Eve with the amount of people flooding the streets. It was packed everywhere with people needing their own miracles or to witness one, and the disciples had their hands full trying to do crowd control. Bart could hear people’s excitement. The energy was contagious. He was probably being pushed around amongst the crowd stampeding to see the Messiah. But…he wanted to see Jesus too…maybe just maybe…Jesus could heal him. But where is he, and he wondered how could he get near Jesus.

He decided to cry out to Jesus. Maybe if he screamed, his voice would some how get to Jesus’ ears. It was a long shot but he had to try….

“Son of David”.

HUSH BART yelled the couple behind him.

“Son of David…please”.

BART SHUT UP, HE IS BUSY yelled the guy beside him.

“Please have mercy”.

BART HE DOESN’T CARE ABOUT YOU.

“Please”.

SOMEBODY GET HIM QUIET. The crowd started yelling back at him in anger.

Just then he’s gets pushed and falls backward onto the people behind him….but with tears he cries out one more time as loud as his brokenness would allow.

“Son of David, please have mercy”.

Then he was shoved from his back towards the bystanders in front of him. He fell down face first in the mud, defeated.

Suddenly Jesus stops moving. He looks around for that voice that cried out for mercy among the thousands. The crowd closes in a bit and the disciples are confused why they stopped. Scanning the crowd Jesus sees Bart toppled over, behind several rows of people. They were pushing him to and fro like a broken rag doll. Jesus tells the disciples to bring him over. The disciples look at each other and agreed they would bring him over somehow.

The crowd makes a very small opening and awkwardly the disciples sift through it and go to the one everyone was pointing at. Bart heard their whispers “why Bart…not him he’s a simple beggar…of all the people…but he’s blind…”. Bart is helped up with a disciple advising him today is his lucky day.

With help, moments later, Bart is finally standing in front of Jesus. The crowd is silenced both in amazement and disgust. Jesus asks what he needed mercy for and Bart points to his eyes with his hands trembling. “Rabbi, I want to see” with tears falling down. Jesus smiled at him.

Bart’s story is found in Mark 10 (I added a bit imagining the scene being played out). Bart let hope rise within his spirit that day. That hope drowned out everything else. He heard the crowd mocking, felt them pushing him backwards, and probably heard his own voice begging for him to get quiet, and to give up. But he didn’t. He ignored the voices and focused on the one voice that truly mattered. He didn’t stop fighting the voices that said no. He focused on Jesus.

God I hear voices all the time at work with all the negativity. I hear doctors telling me my kids life expectancies. I hear my car making not so funny noises as I drive home some days. I hear the “thanks but no thanks” statements in emails. I hear the inner voice while I’m preparing a lesson for our youth group saying that they will be bored. I hear that I’m not doing enough to share Jesus and I have failed at night. I’m wondering if this blog makes sense. Am I sharing to much? I hear doubt and worry. God these voices are so loud. The voices are my crowd. I am Bart. May you help me shout out louder with everything in me to say “Son of David, have mercy” when these negative voices cry out.

Then it happens. Jesus hears my voice and stops everything He is doing and calls me over to listen to His voice. His voice tells me it’s ok. His voice tells me the truth. Healing sweeps over my spirit. All the voices are silenced but His truth.

If you have the crowd yelling in your ears and spirit today, be like Bart and cry out to Jesus. It may take a couple of cries to build your faith, but Jesus will stop, and He will call you over to Him. In fact, Jesus is anxiously waiting for it.

By the way, Bart got healed that day! That same healing to open his eyes (physically, spirituality, and emotionally) still applies two thousand years later, today.

Cry out louder than the naysayers around and inside you today! Son of David, have mercy.

Waiting To See

We are sitting in the Cystic Fibrosis clinic with My son Josiah. He’s waiting for his monthly check up to get pricked, weighed, prodded, poked, counseled, admitted/non admittance talks, and who knows what else?! I’m waiting to hold his hand and remind […]

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3 min
5 years ago

January 14, 2020

Tagged cysticfibrosis, daddymoment, faith, family, goals

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I posed the question on Facebook today asking how often God gives you the full picture when He tells you something.

Everyone responded: never. I agree! We had a word from God that someday Josiah would be healed from this terrible disease. We got that eleven years ago. Do I know how or when…no, because we can’t see the full picture He is painting. It’s like I’m driving through the fog, but trusting the road doesn’t end…here.

Think about it, from space the earth is round. If you stood on my street, you’d think it’s flat. But we know that’s it round because we can see the full picture. God sees the full picture, but we can’t. It doesn’t mean that there isn’t a picture though.

Think of your favorite Bible heroes. Moses was told to lead his people out of Egypt but God didn’t tell Him about the sea splitting. David was told he would be king one day, but the next week he was still hanging out in a field tending his dad’s sheep. Even the disciples didn’t fully understand Jesus when He told them about the Kingdom coming. They thought it was political when Jesus actually meant spiritual. These Biblical heroes got a word from God but had to trust in it because they couldn’t see the full picture.

Today, live out the promises you received. It might be fulfilled tonight or forty years from now. Trust in the one that gave you the promise and know that He is at work. We can’t see it just yet, but it is all lining up like dominoes. He doesn’t lie!

It’s going to be ok.

Alright, I hear the doctors talking outside our door. Time to turn off the phone and cheer on Josiah. I’m trusting in the dreams God has for us, and trust in yours too.

It’s not over, but only begun!

With Everything 2.0

For a parent of a fighter of Cystic Fibrosis, it is a roller coaster of emotions. Today was no different. Last night I wrote a blog post that talked about trusting God through everything, based on the song “With Everything” by Hillsong […]

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5 min
5 years ago

January 9, 2020

Tagged childrensministry, cysticfibrosis, daddymoment, faith, family

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For a parent of a fighter of Cystic Fibrosis, it is a roller coaster of emotions. Today was no different.

Last night I wrote a blog post that talked about trusting God through everything, based on the song “With Everything” by Hillsong United. I talked about how the words have been in my spirit this week with our family going through it with this flu like craziness. Today, it got amped tenfold.

Around noon, I had tucked in my five year old for a nap who is getting over the same sickness I’ve been getting over. I went to our bedroom to get a nap in, and my cell phone rang. It was Grace’s childcare. This can’t be good.

“Please come. Grace has a temp of 101.4 and withdrawn.” I immediately called my wife and figured out childcare for Levi and Josiah (greatest in-laws a son-in-law could ever have…thank you both!). I got in my car and texted some prayer warriors that have helped to move so many mountains in my life and gave them a 20second text to pray. Reached out to the clinic and they immediately advised to bring her in tomorrow first thing. I buckled the seat belt and sped out of our neighborhood to get Grace. My phone immediately started to play through bluetooth, and it went to my song for this week. I was like, I literally just wrote about have hope through good times and bad…through everything. Ok, God I see you, in this case I hear you.

Again those words:

So let hope rise

And darkness tremble

In Your holy light

That every eye will see

Jesus our God

Great and mighty to be praised

My mind immediately began thinking about the checkin process. Insurance battles. Getting her room. Her crying. IV’s, picline, her meds, sleepless nights, the room. X-rays. CT Scans. The boys. Trade offs with my wife. Work logistics. The wonder if today will be the check out day. I was like NO NO NO NO not again, please not now God. It’s just not fa—-but as I tried to finish the word “fair”, these words came through my speakers but rang like a heated arrow at my spirit:

With everything, with everything (with everything)

We will shout for Your glory

With everything, with everything

We will shout forth Your praise

And our hearts they cry

Be glorified

Be lifted high above all names

For You our King

With everything

We will shout forth Your praise!

Ok God. I get it. So instead of saying, “NO NO NO NO” I immediately gripped my steering wheel and shouted “With everything, with everything, We will shout for Your glory”. As tears started falling I had peace rising.

I got to the childcare center and the teacher was concerned. Grace was sleeping and had so much phlegm. I carried her out and she was so not herself. Grace says hey and smiles to everyone, especially me when I see her. She just melted into my neck, no smiles, and was snorting the whole way home. I got her home, gave meds, and rocked her to sleep. I sang the song to her while rocking her. As she drifted to sleep I told her we were going to see Jesus move today and praise him today for it.

Two hour nap and a breathing treatment later…we have our Grace back. Complete 180. She was dancing with her brother and giving me huge smiles. It’s like she never had 101.4 fever. Still congested but the pale sunken eyes were replaced with that sparkle and smile that only my Grace can give. We still have the appointment at 9am and I know they can say to admit her…and that’s ok. But I’m telling you, she’s better.

“With everything, we will shout for your glory.” It’s so easy to say and sounds great to sing. Every day we are faced with moments that can break us or strengthen us. I believe it is in the “NO NO NO NO” moments that you find your real faith. Trust in God with everything. He reminded me of that today. Regardless what happens next, trust in Him with everything. God loves you.

Thank you for your continued prayers. We are on this great journey together!

With Everything!

It’s easy to say that you will serve God with everything when the bonus is in hand. It’s easy when all the kids are healthy and sleeping through the night. It’s easy when there is no repairs to be made and you […]

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4 min
5 years ago

January 9, 2020

Tagged cysticfibrosis, faith, inspire, leadership, sanantonio

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Is it still easy when you are in fear of losing your job? Is it still easy to serve when kids are in the hospital? Is it still easy when you borrowed money to make a repair on the house that the bank is about to foreclose on? Is it still easy to trust after a relationship leaves you broken? These are some of the “common” stresses, so feel free to fill in the blank!

God never said it would always be easy. He promised He would never leave us or forsake us, but it’s up to us to keep our focus on Him through the good…and the tough times.

These past three days I have been sick. I mean, sick-sick. My body has been fighting a twisted cocktail of Texas pollen and a severe cold. I’ll be the first to admit it, I’m a baby with sickness. I don’t get sick often but when I do it jacks me up! Add that my wife is sick as well. Our five year has been sick alongside me. Our two CF’ers came home today with runny noses and breathing heavy while sleeping. Health wise…this week has been tough for the Bridges. Not a great start for 2020!

In typing that I’ve had a song on repeat in my bedroom for three days (With Everything by Hillsong United). Please click on the link to listen. During every nap I had it playing beside my pillow. It opens with a prayer like anthem:

So let hope rise,

And darkness tremble

In Your holy light,

And every eye will see

Jesus, our God,

Great and mighty to be praised.

God of all days,

Glorious in all of Your ways.

Your majesty, the wonder and grace,

In the light of Your name.

With everything,

We will shout for your glory.

I love this song. As I face another morning in a couple of hours with a sick child and my own cough…I’m still going to serve God. With everything! When I call the clinic tomorrow to setup an appointment to have our CF’ers checked with the looming possibility of admittance in the background….I’m still going to serve God.

Like the song says, let hope rise! God is God when life is easy and when it’s not. He is still there to hold our hand regardless of the season we are walking through. Because of that, with everything I will shout for His glory!

Know that you are not alone. This also means you are not defeated. Temporary setback, sure but not defeated! So whatever it is that is knocking at your faith’s front door, don’t let it in! Let’s shout for His glory and drown out the knocking!

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