The Seed of Hope

EVERYTHING...

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. JAMES 1:2-4 (NIV)

During one of his Sunday messages a couple of months ago, Church of The Highlands Pastor Chris Hodges shared with the congregation that each morning he asks God to give him whatever He has for him that day.

His message stuck with me, and I made a decision to do the same each day. At some point during my morning, in the midst of all my other “rituals” (prayer, meditation, thanking God for another day, etc.), I would ask God to give me whatever He had planned for me on that day. And for the next several weeks I did exactly that!

A couple of weeks in I realized that I had only been asking God for the “good stuff”, which I guess is human nature for the majority of us. I mean, who wants to ask for “bad stuff”? But then I started thinking about it…

In the past few weeks I’ve reflected on and shared some of the more questionable times in my life…situations that I’ve been in…things that I’ve done…crap that I’ve been through. While I’m not proud of many of these things because they weren’t in keeping with being a good Christian, I’m grateful for the fact that I survived them. And while I’m no saint, I’m proud of the man that God has allowed me to become.

A work in progress…

I’m of the belief that God is constantly molding and shaping us into what He wants us to be, and pointing us in the direction of what He wants us to do. I’m talking about finding our purpose and fulfilling our destiny. It is said that we’re products of our environment; that is to say that who and what we are as adults is a result of what we were exposed to as children. It makes perfectly good sense to follow this line of reasoning, but I’d like to take it one step farther.

I believe that we are products of every day that we’ve lived before this one. You see, what I am right now is the product of all that I’ve been through in life up to and including this very moment! And while I may not have enjoyed the entire journey, the life that I am living today and the relationship that I have with God has made it all worthwhile.

What if?

One morning I posed the question, “What if I asked God to give me everything, good and bad, that He has planned for me today?”

And that’s exactly what I did…

Dear God, I want You to give me everything that you have for me today. Everything. The good and the bad. Please, please, spare nothing that You have for me, and I thank You, Father, for whatever it is.”

Perhaps you’re sitting there thinking, “Only a fool would ask for the bad stuff. Are you nuts?”

Perhaps.

But here’s the way I see it. With every obstacle that I overcome…with every challenge that I face…with every lesson that I learn…I become a better Christian. And I draw ever closer to a full relationship with Christ.

What is a full relationship with Christ?

I don’t know, but that’s what I’m seeking. I do know that the more I walk with Christ, the more that I want to walk with Him. The more I know about Him, the more that I want to know about Him. The more I feel His presence in me, the more that I want to feel Him. Do you get what I’m trying to say here? My appetite for Christ…for God…for the Holy Spirit, is insatiable.

You see, my life has never been more complete. I’ve never been happier…never enjoyed the gift of life…never lived for this moment, this day, this life, my life…until I found the unparalleled joy that I found in Jesus! And I know that it’s only the beginning! It’s only been three years since I was born again, six months since I was Baptized in the Holy Spirit, and six weeks since I was Baptized a second time! (You’ll read about that one soon.)

This post wasn’t gonna be about runnin’ after Jesus, but at this very moment I’m lead to urge you to do exactly that. Run after Jesus, with all that is in you! Go after Him as if your life depended on it…in many ways, your life does depend on it. This is the way I see it: having Christ in your life every day will make your life on earth more full, more rich, more complete, than you can imagine…once you experience what I’m talking about, and you will experience it, nothing, and I mean nothing will stand in your way.

That’s where I am right now…

Nothing is going to stand between me and God. Nothing.

Some tests come from God. Some tests come from the devil. Some of them are easily overcome, while others bring us to our knees in despair. Some of them just flat-out knock us on our rear ends! It’s not how many times we get knocked down that matter, but how many times we get back up. (And I’m gonna let you in on a little secret here…God will help you get back up every time…just take His hand and ask Him for help.)

I’ve told you this before, and I’ll tell you once more…The Seed of Hope is not a platform for me to stand on and tell you how peachy my life is. I get knocked down a lot. In fact, I spent most of this past week on my knees, trying to get back up again. I finally made it, but it wasn’t because of my intestinal fortitude, or anything that I can lay claim to. You see, God has seen fit to put some amazing people in my life! Their words snatched me up off of the carpet and put my focus right where it should have been all along: off of myself and directly on God. It’s like I was saying…God always provides me with what I need to get through whatever it is. And with the passing of each test, the overcoming of each obstacle, I get closer and closer to Him.

Dear God, I want You to give me everything that you have for me today. Everything. The good and the bad. Please, please, spare nothing that You have for me, and I thank You, Father, for whatever it is. I will praise You and glorify Your Name before all men for the good You have blessed me with, and I will tell the world of the Your wisdom and grace that I have drawn from the bad.

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.     JAMES 1:12 (NIV)

See you next week!

Gettin' in The Game

I’ve never made a “bucket list”; you know, a list of things that I’d like to do before I kick the bucket! I imagine that when the movie The Bucket List was released in 2007, thousands, if not millions of people grabbed pen and paper and began to make their own list. Perhaps you have a bucket list, tucked away in your mind, on a sheet of paper, or perhaps in your computer.

Oh, there are several things that I’d like to do before I die, including driving from I’ve the U.S. East coast to the West coast in my new Corvette (which I don’t have yet), spending a couple of weeks in Australia, and visiting a South American rain forest. I’d like to do all of these in the company of my wife and best friend, Jackie. Time will tell if God has any of them planned for me.

There’s another thing that would most assuredly be on my bucket list. I’ve tried to do this one before; in fact, I’m constantly in search of it. Ah, there’s another of those mysterious “its.” I often refer to it as being anything of importance that is missing in my life. “Pretty broad stroke of the brush”, you may be thinking, in my definition of it. But I’m not alone, you know; the rock group Queen released a song titled I Want it All (and I want it now!). It is also the title of a book written by Stephen King. I guess it was missing from their lives, too! Perhaps I should suggest to Steven Spielberg that he make a movie called The It List!  

I’m sorry…back to the subject of this post.

It has proven to be very elusive, largely do to the fact that I can’t purchase a ticket for it, or mark it on my calendar as a “save the date” kind of thing. For the longest time I didn’t even know if it existed…come to think of it, I’m still not sure that it does.

So just what is It?

The it to which I’m referring is, quite simply, peace of mind.

In referring to peace of mind, I’m not talking about being concerned with or worrying about situations that I face in life. I’m talking about the manner in which I approach every aspect of my life…

A couple of months ago I was sitting in the “break room” in the back of our hair salon having a conversation with Steve Good, a sales manager with one of the vendors that we deal with. We were talking about the salon industry in general, and more specifically about our salon, Salon M². It seems that while many hair salons are struggling to keep their doors open, our salon, against all odds, continues to grow at a remarkable rate. Knowing that I would give all the credit to God, Steve didn’t bother to ask why I thought we were growing.

There was one exchange between the two of us that I’d like to share with you:

Steve: So Sam, what is your “vision” for your salon? What would you like for you and your team to accomplish in the future?

Never missing a beat, I responded “I want to own the best and most profitable salon in Birmingham. Best being defined in not just what we do, but the manner in which we do it. And most profitable being defined as every member of my team making a good living.”

Steve: “What do you use as a yardstick to measure your success? How do know if Salon M² is one of the best and most profitable salons?”  

Me: “There isn’t a yardstick…and I have no way of knowing if we’re where I want us to be. So every day I come to the salon determined to make our salon the best, because regardless of what we’re doing in comparison to other salons, I don’t think that we’re there yet. In addition, there are a few members of our team that are struggling to live comfortably. And because of that, I’ll keep pushing, and mentoring, and urging, and doing whatever it takes to make my vision for this salon a reality.”

Later that night…

I was recalling my conversation with Steve, and I realized that in many ways I hold myself to the same standards that I hold our salon to. Come to think of it, they may be even more rigid. And again, I don’t have a yardstick to measure my success in life. Oh, I don’t mean success in terms of dollars and cents, material possessions, titles, awards, or anything else that we tend to use as benchmarks.

I’m talking about being a good Christian, and being a soldier of Christ, and being a light that shines, and being bold in my faith, and being a prayer warrior, and being a good mentor, and using the gifts that God has given me to reach out to others. I’m talking about being the very best that I can be in everything that I do; every day. Why aim so high?

Because during the first 53 years of my life I didn’t take aim at all; I always settled for less. And quite honestly, I accepted what I got with a lot of bitterness. And get this: I wasn’t bitter with God, or with life, or with the people in my life. I was bitter at myself for not having the right stuff. Well, it wasn’t that I didn’t have the right stuff…I had it, alright, but I didn’t know it.

“It’s your turn.”

Imagine a football player sitting on the bench waiting on his turn to get in the game. Well, I’d been sittin’ on the bench all my life, and I figured that’s where I’d be for the rest of my life…on that bench, watching everyone else, waitin’ for my chance, but not really believing that it was gonna come.

When I awoke one morning in August of 2005 it was as if God had tapped me on the shoulder and said “Okay, Maniscalco. You’ve been waiting a long time for this. I’m gonna give you a little shot of courage and put you in the game. Here’s your chance. I’m putting the ball in your hands. Let’s see what you do with it.”

Well, if you haven’t figured it out by now, I took that ball from God, got used to the feel of it, and took off running. First, in our business. Then in my personal life. Then in my walk of faith. Then in sharing that faith with others.

And an amazing thing happened! The harder and faster I ran, the better I got at it…and I received more opportunities from God to get into the game, using the gifts that He had given me.

And something even more amazing happened!

God began to shower me with His blessings, in our business and in my relationships with Jackie, with other people, and strangely enough, myself (yes, we all have relationships with ourselves…I’ll save that for another day!). And in the midst of all of these blessings I became a better Christian, a better follower, and a better leader. God has allowed me to become a better man.

At the end of the day, when all the votes are counted, and all things are considered…

I guess that I’m not really chasing peace of mind, after all. I live to serve God…I love being a Christian, a light that shines, a channel of His peace, and a soldier of Christ. I love being bold in my faith…writing about Him…talking about Him. My life been enriched beyond measure by His constant presence, and I want people to know of His goodness. I want to be the best person that can be, not for myself, but for Him.

I’m runnin’ with that ball, and I’m not gonna stop. Ever. Don’t want to, either; I’m having too much fun!

When the game clock of my life is winding down, and I cross that goal line for the last time, tired from the running but grateful for the opportunity, I’m gonna give that game ball back to God with a smile on my face and joy in my heart! And then I will come to know peace of mind.

“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!                                                                     MATTHEW 25:23 (NIV)

See you next week!

Bangin' On God's Door

I’ve received several e-mails asking where I got the idea to launch The Seed of Hope, and why I did it. I guess it’s time for me to tell you this story…

This past September I was in a bit of a funk. Business in our hair salon was a bit off, we’d just found out that our son Brian and his wife Christina wouldn’t be making the trip from Virginia to be at home for Christmas, and I hadn’t received any invitations to do presentations for Redken (the hair care people). And most importantly, I was passing up opportunities to share my faith with others (which I rarely do). I remember thinking “This must be what quicksand is like; the more I try to get out, the deeper I get.” I wasn’t depressed, but the spirit and passion that are my constant companions were nowhere to be found.

Jackie and I planned on spending a long weekend at our lake house (about forty-five minutes from our home in Birmingham), and I hoped that the time away would get me back on track. Before leaving, I quickly scanned my collection of books, looking for one that may give me some insight. My eyes settled on Don’t Leave God Alone, a book that a friend had given me months earlier. I’d never taken the time to read it, because I spend time with God every day in prayer, so I didn’t really think that I needed it.

We were at the lake house from Friday evening through Sunday evening, and I had a lot of time for prayer, meditation, and soul searching. Unfortunately, none of it worked, and I came home as bad, if not worse, than before we left. 

Monday morning.

Our salon is closed on Mondays, so I was able to spend the next morning and a majority of that day in my “prayer chair”, still searching for answers. Late in the afternoon my thoughts turned to the book, the one that I still hadn’t read; it was still in my travel bag. I retrieved it, sat down, offered a quick prayer asking for clarity, and began reading…

Thirty pages in, and I had already gotten the message (actually two of them) that this book held for me:

God wants to have a daily relationship with us.

No, I’m not talking about daily prayer, which I think is essential in keeping us connected to God. I’m talking about the kind of relationship that you have with a friend, which includes conversation, fellowship, sharing, and laughter (yes, laughter). It is through that kind of relationship with Him that we come to understand who He is, what He is, and what He can do for us; we come to know Him.

There are times when you just have to tell God the way it is!

Okay, stay with me on this one. The book cited the instance of Moses on Mount Sinai with the burning bush waiting to get his copy of the Ten Commandments. From this point on I’m gonna use the movie (of the same name, which I’m going to assume that you have seen) as a reference point. And I’ll warn you that I’m going to paraphrase a bit.

So Moses (Charleston Heston) is on this mountain, and those following him (the Israelites) were at the base of the mountain having a party…I mean, they were par-ty-ing…a false idol (a golden calf), drunkenness, and adultery…all the wrong stuff!

God gets really mad! And He tells Moses, “I’m going to destroy these people and build you a fine city.”

To which Moses responds, “Come on God, You can’t do that. These people love You. They’re Your followers. They’ve been wandering through the desert waiting for You to show them the Promised Land. They just got a little off course. Have mercy on them.”

Well, we know the rest of the story; God did indeed have mercy on the Israelites, and they did indeed eventually reach the Promised Land. Moses pretty much changed God’s mind about the fate of the Israelites. Or was that part of God’s plan?

Tuesday morning; 5:00

I rolled out of bed and headed straight for the kitchen and my “prayer chair.” I don’t know how long I had been in prayer when I thought about Don’t Leave God Alone.

The next thing I know I pacing in the kitchen, having one of those conversations with God. It went something like this:

“Look God, two and a half years ago I made a commitment to being a soldier of Christ, to do Your bidding, to boldly share what You have done in my life with others, and to walk through any door that You open for me. Well, You’ve opened some doors, and I’ve walked through them, and I appreciate what You’ve done, but I tell You, they’re not opening fast enough, and I’m tired of waiting! I’ve been knockin’ on Your door every day for over two years, and I’m not gonna knock anymore! I’m gonna BANG on Your door! Everyday! I’m not goin’ away! I’m gonna be the fly in Your ointment, a pain in Your side! You put this fire in me, and I can’t control it! So would you give me some clarity as to what I should do, or would You teach me what else I need to learn, or give me a platform from which to speak, or would You point me in the direction of another door, or would You just drop a car on my head and let me forget this silly notion of taking Your message to all nations?”

I realized that I had been on a rant, that it had been directed at God, and that I had actually lost my temper…with God!

Embarrassed and ashamed, I lowered my head and went back to my prayer chair. Just before I sat down I raised my eyes to the heavens and added “I’m sorry I lost my temper, but I meant every word of it.”

Tuesday morning; 11:00

I had an appointment with Jason Fill, the guy that designed and set up the website for our salon. I wanted to get his opinion on some ideas that I had for making the site more attractive and user friendly.

I opened the document folder in my laptop…this laptop…positioned the cursor (arrow) over my proposed changes, and tapped the Enter key.

Oops…wrong document! I had mistakenly opened a journal that I began when this spiritual journey began. I turned to Jason with a look of amazement and said “Dude, I need a website!” Looking at me as if I had lost it, Jason replied “You already have a website.” Shaking my head in disagreement, I explained, “No, I need a website for God.”

Wednesday morning; 6:00

The first thing I did on Wednesday was go to my laptop, log on to the Internet, and with trembling fingers, typed www.theseedofhope.com . Lo and behold, there was a temporary banner announcing The Seed of Hope! Less than 24 hours after my rant, God had opened a door!

How about you?

Is there something that you’ve been asking God for, something that you’re still asking for? Keep asking Him…consistently…persistently…and boldly! If it’s consistent with what He has planned for you, and you keep on bangin’, who knows? He may just be waiting to be sure that it’s what you really want! Maybe that’s part of His plan for you.

The Seed of Hope launched on October 31, 2008. I haven’t checked in a couple of months, but the last time I did there had been close to 2,000 visitors from all over the world. And you know what? I’m still bangin’ on God’s door every morning, asking Him to open new doors for me! Not gonna stop either; not while there are people who don’t know Him.

See you next Monday!