Author Archives: Russ Dam

Contentment

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Russ Dam| 1 Comment
By Russ Dam | July 9, 2010

1 Timothy 6:6-10

6But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. 10For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

One could almost say truer words have never been spoken. I’ve read these verses before, but I sure wish they would have come back into my memory during these past two weeks. One of our boys who came to us a couple years ago has been dealing with the sin of envy and it put him into a deep depression.

It is amazing how quickly we can forget where we came from so to speak and to simply take for granted everything that we have in our lives currently. I watched as this child went to a friend’s house for a couple days and upon his return, his attitude, demeanor, and overall outward personality had vanished. You see, when he is unhappy, he shuts down. Stays in his room, refused to talk to anyone, etc. It often makes it very hard to learn what the core issue of his problem actually is. This time after a week and a half, it turns out that he was envious of another child having cable tv in their room. He no longer cared that he has a computer with internet, an xbox, no set bedtime, a room to himself (a huge commodity in our home!), and etc. All the privileges that he had earned or been given no longer meant anything to him as all of a sudden, all he could see was what he didn’t have…

Deuteronomy 5:21

21 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. You shall not set your desire on your neighbor’s house or land, his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

“OR ANYTHING THAT BELONGS TO YOUR NEIGHBOR”

wow… Envy is a powerful emotion. We all deal with it in different ways. I’d  like to think I’m happy with what I have, but I know that there are times I see something that someone else has and I think, that would be sweet! But I don’t let it take ownership of me. If you allow your desire to take over your life, you’ll see what just happened with this young man. He quit talking to people. He quit caring about his rooms appearance (a big issue for him). He went out of his way to make sure others knew he was annoyed and he wasn’t going to let anyone enjoy things while he was depressed. He forgot all the blessings that he already has… they were no longer enough. Thats what envy can do to you. It can and will drag you down. It’s not pretty.

When you see that next must have gadget, stop. Think about all the things you have been blessed with! Is that next little thing really that important to you? Is it really a “must” have?

I continue to pray daily and thank the Lord for all he has blessed me with! I pray that he’ll show me patience not just for myself, but to be able to help those around me realize the true blessings in life and not the gadgets. I pray for strength against envy and the other “deadly” sins and the knowledge that the Lord will provide me with what is truly a “must” have. -amen

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Posted in Bible, Bible Study, Discipleship

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God's Freewill

Posted on March 10, 2009 by Russ Dam| 2 Comments
By Russ Dam | March 10, 2009

I wonder sometimes as to God’s choice of giving us freewill. Perhaps it’s because I deal with so many who choose not to use it wisely. Drugs, Alcoholism, Child Abuse… a combination of all three.

Last night, I got to see a ten year old boy told that his Mom had died. He wasn’t told how and he didn’t ask. In fact, he really didn’t react much at all to my amazement. She overdosed on drugs. There was a history of drug use, its one of the reasons I know this boy. God loves us so much that he gives us the choice of loving him back. That never ceases to amaze me! Why would he do that? Does he feel no pain? no loss? no rejection? If we are in his image than does that go for the full range of emotions that we run through as well? The hurt that must be felt when he sees a child born into a family that loves their vices, sometimes, more than their children.

Perhaps God has in some way sheltered this boy from his loss. He didn’t cry, he didn’t act sad, he just sat there. And when his Dad was done talking to him, he simply asked to go outside to play football.  I haven’t been through anything like what this boy has been through already at age ten. I have no doubt God brought him out of danger when he was taken from his home. Maybe God is letting him know that he is loved and things will be OK. Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could all hear God say that sometimes. I know I could stand to hear it… alot.

“Lord, We thank you for the time on earth that you do give us. We thank you for our friends and loved ones. We even thank you for our freewill. We ask that you watch over us daily, lead us away from the temptations that come before us. Continue to be with this young boy, Lord. Even though he isn’t showing it, we know he is grieving at least some. Continue to give him your love, strength, comfort, and protection. Because we know with you Lord, his life can be one of greatness! We ask for these things in the name of Jesus. Amen.”

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Posted in Prayer, Religion

Your calling… can you hear it?

Posted on January 24, 2009 by Russ Dam| 1 Comment
By Russ Dam | January 24, 2009

I’m sitting here in a waiting room for the surgery center at children’s hospital. A place you would think would be filled with nervous, upset parents demanding answers to all sorts of questions. But its not. I see people smiling, joking around. Talking with people they don’t know about each other’s children. The staff walks by and makes little comments here and there. Parents beam proudly. 

The staff at this hospital is amazing. They smile, laugh, joke, and show nothing but a positive attitude. They seem to be able to put the parents at ease with nothing more than a knowing glance. I even watched as they had to call maintence because the main door to take the kids back to the ready room refuse to open. The light would turn green as they waved their badges over the keypad, but the door refused entry.  How can any person show such patience in what has to be a high stress environment. There is so much going on at a quick pace, people going everywhere, but if one parent asks a question, the three closest nurses stop to see if they can help with an answer if needed. (I’ve seen this twice already).    All I can say is you must truly love your job to be able to work here!

I’d say these folks have heard their calling.  Can I say that they are all Christians and God brought them to this place? To be realistic, I’d have to say no. There are no crosses on the wall, no scripture written on posters.  But I can feel God’s love here thats for sure! I pray that God allows me to show such patience and love in my job. I feel comfortable in my current position even with the daily tests that come my way, from a yelling teen to a 10 yr old in surgery. I don’t handle the stress as well as the people here thats for sure. It is something I must still work on and pray on. I know in time, God will show me the way.  I’m trying to listen, but sometimes the noise can be really loud.

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Posted in Current Events

Where to Begin… again?

Posted on November 13, 2008 by Russ Dam| 5 Comments
By Russ Dam | November 13, 2008

New Beginings. Thats pretty much our goal isn’t it?

Yesterday, I wrote my first blog. On the ultimate scale of things, it was extremely meaningless. A couple comments from friends said that it was good. I thank them for the encouraging words! But, that first one has been lost to a simple mistake. No harm done. In fact, it got me thinking… (uhoh)

We are all born into sin. Sin is an everlasting battle between God and satan. But God loves us so much that he gives us a choice. A choice to follow him. When our own children grow up, they leave the house, and we pray that we have taught them enough that they will make correct decisions throughout their life as they continue to grow, free from our direction. (proverbs 22:6) We love our children and sometimes the thought of them being on their own can be very scary. But yet, they are set free, free to make their own choices. God gives us the ultimate choice. Follow him, or continue to live in sin, but pay the eternal price. By choosing to follow Him, we are born… again. A new Beginning.

A bit more involved, and I can’t even begin to express how much so more meaningful that opportunity is to us than my opportunity to be able to write my first blog… again.

Take a moment, give thanks to God for letting us make choices, for new beginnings, and for second beginnings. I know there have been many times in my life that I’ve been given a second chance at something. From something as simple as a blog, to something as complicated as a marriage. I pray that I don’t waste those opportunities. (ephesians 5:15-16)

Russ

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Posted in Religion