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Archive for December, 2008

Dec

Letting go of 2008 :)

By chuck 4 Comments

Categories: All Message

Bring on the New Year!

Happy New Years Eve Friends,

This is it, the last day of a very challenging year. Are you going to be able to let go of the failures and shattered dreams of 08 in order to move into 09 with FRESH VISION? Letting go is so important. Life can be very discouraging at times. And no matter how hard we all try to do things so perfectly with our lives; we still make so many mistakes.

Without a doubt, this past year has been challenging for every person throughout our land. For some of us, 2008 did exactly what it needed to do. It brought the discomfort we needed to aim for a far BETTER WAY OF LIVING. We came through this fire with a beautiful compassion for our fellow man. We’re coming out with a new attraction to spiritual things. More and more of us are recognizing how difficult life can be when we drift through life without a nearness to God. We see the futility of materialism and the danger of self reliance. Overall, the experience has been favorable… and I personally thank God for a very beautiful year!

Naa naaa nanaa… naa naaa nanaa… hey hey hey, goodbye! Oddeeeeoooooss 2008! Thanks for the lessons, thanks for the blessings… thanks for the humility and a new desire for the most important things in life. 2008, you’ve enlightened us… and tonight, we’re moving on!

This is it… one more day to look back and learn whatever you were supposed to learn from this year. Only hours left to meditate on your 08 progress. One more day to compile it all together and doodle out a lively plan for next 12 months! I’m commanding you to LET GO of 2008 before your head hits the pillow this night! LOL! Seriously, let it go… because tomorrow, a NEW YEAR BEGINS!

We love you guys so very much. We pray for you each and everyday. Because of you, there is still a light shining in the earth… a warmth in this wintry era! No matter what’s ahead for the nations of the earth in 2009, let us each aim for the most MEANINGFUL YEAR of our lives!

I’ll chat with you next year! Have a super New Years Eve!

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Dec

Take Nothing Except Your Faith

By chuck 3 Comments

Categories: Journal & Message

Coree the Giant Ice King

Happy Eve of New Years Eve Everyone!

Had a phenomenal day yesterday! God I love my family! We went ice skating in Charlottesville and had an amazing time. Coree played tag with these two little professional skater kids. At least they seemed professional! These kids were amazing… and Coree humored them so well! It warmed my heart to see the smiles Coree put on their faces as he gave it everything he had and 20 plus minutes to tag them back. I pray that your holidays are still going well. Even if you are back to work, take time each day to make life FUN!

This morning I read something about faith that cranked me up! Jesus called his 12 disciples together and he gave them spiritual authority. With this authority, Jesus sent the 12 out 2 by 2. He told them to go through the region with this spiritual authority… to heal the sick and rescue people from the control of demons! What an EXCITING mission! It’s the very same mission Jesus gave to the church and still available to each of us today!

What’s cool about this rescue mission… is that Jesus sent them out with NOTHING except their FAITH! Here’s exactly what Jesus said to his 12 disciples…

“He (Jesus) told them to take nothing with them, except a walking stick-no food, no travelers bag, no money. He told them to wear sandals but not to take even an extra coat.”

Yesterday, I mentioned how political correctness has stolen away the influence of our voice. Today, I’m suggesting that we go back to our roots and pick up the FAITH that our forefathers used to MOVE MIGHTY MOUNTAINS and do impossible things! Mountains will still move and miracles will still happen… for the man or woman who FULLY RELIES on Jesus for everything!

God will provide… he will protect… he will give us great success, when we BELIEVE for it. Maybe we should try to live more like Jesus told his disciples to live when he sent them on this rescue mission. Certainly, we must do the natural things… like work hard, and dedicate an balanced portion of our attention to the 9 equities of our lives. I’m just wondering how much better things would go for us if we demonstrated similar faith. Could we get the same results if we placed far more emphasis on the part of our success that God brings to the table?

Have another super day my friends! God bless you all! Chat with you tomorrow!

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Dec

John the Baptist and Political Correctness

By chuck 11 Comments

Categories: All Message

john-the-baptist Happy Monday Friends!

Make sure you check out yesterday’s blog, and record a few comments on your 2009 New Years Resolutions!

Over the past few mornings I’ve noticed a few things about John the Baptist while reading in the New Testament. Here are a few clips from the book of Mark 1:4-6…

“This messenger was John the Baptist. He lived in the wilderness and as preaching that people should be baptized to show that they had turned from their sins and turned to God to be forgiven. People from Jerusalem and from all over Judea traveled out into the wilderness to see and hear John. And when they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River. His clothes were woven from camel hair, and he wore a leather belt; his food was locust and wild honey.”

In today’s world of tolerance, people like John the Baptist are labeled as haters. His message was way too strong for the people of his day… not deluded enough for many of them to desire it. He was fearless in the face of his persecutors. His presentation style was not “rockstar” at all. He would not have been considered culturally relevant… was not a trained entertainer. He spoke raw truth straight from the Gods mouth. John was Gods prophet preparing the way for the earthly ministry of Jesus, the savor of the world!

John was despised far more than he was cherished. He was only “popular” because he was so controversial. Sinful people gnashed their teeth at John right up until the moment they chopped off his head to shut him up. Despised of many humans… yet Jesus testified of John, that there was no prophet to ever walk the earth who was greater than him!

When I read about John, I acknowledge how political correctness has domesticated the prophets of this hour… so much that we really have no voice… no influence in today’s world! So many of us have become far too NORMAL… we fit in to our godless setting so perfectly… and nobody is really hearing our messages anymore. I wonder what would happen if the prophets of our day became like the prophets of old… not fearful of anyone or anything except the God to whom they belong.

I long for a day when every Christian breaks off the chains of their domestication… and runs wild again! A time when society is turned upside down again! A time when we are heard, and appreciated because of the power of our undiluted message… a message that has the ability to fix the very real problems of our day!

Wow… that’s a heavy message for Christmas vacation huh? Call me strange… but I love the passion it stirs! Have a super day… chat with you tomorrow!

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Dec

2009- Nine Equities Life Management System

By chuck 18 Comments

Categories: Announcement

Update: Click here to read or print the 9 equities handout

Good Sunday Morning Everyone!

Church begins at Destiny Family Center in ONE HOUR! Today, I’m going to take our people through my “2009- Nine Equities Life Management System”… its gonna be amazing!

If you cant make it in person, watch the service LIVE on our webcast… and if you can’t do that, watch the archive sometime this week. Just head to www.destinyfamilycenter.com and join in with us on our New Years Resolution Service!

After the service, come back here to this share your personal goal setting thoughts with the rest of us. With your permission, some of these comments will be read live at next Sundays service.

Thanks for participating… your setting yourself up for the year of your life!

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Dec

Now That’s A Servant! :)

By chuck 3 Comments

Categories: Journal & Message

Happy Saturday Everyone!

All fattened up from the holidays? Exercise is the solution! Put on your walking shoes… do a little stretching, and walking, or jogging… maybe go on a hike… and trust me, you will feel so much better for it! So, phone up a friend and get outside… take in some fresh air… get your heart rate up and your blood circulating. Awaken those sluggish happy endorphins… get on your SMILES everyone… we’re only a few days away from a NEW YEAR!!!

This morning I read something in the book of Matthew about the beauty of serving others! When the story picks up, Jesus wasn’t far away from his crucifixion. He had to be thinking about what’s ahead for him and how he would be demonstrating the most unfathomable act of service ever lived out. He had to be contemplating the impending agony he was about to undergo while shouldering the sins of the entire world, and the horrific violent actions humanity was about to hurl upon him. This was undoubtedly, a painful and sobering moment for Jesus.

It was during a holy moment like this one that Jesus was approached by the mother of James and John. She asked the wrong question at the wrong time! Her request… “(Jesus), In your kingdom, will you let my two sons sit in places of honor next to you, one at your right hand and the other on your left?”

Can you imagine what you’re thinking if you’re Jesus right now! You’re suiting up in the most humiliating garment of servant hood ever worn by anyone before you… and a lady walks up requesting fame and honor for her two sons. What was she thinking? The very same thing all the rest of us spend way too much time thinking about.

At this request, Jesus looked over at James and John and asked if they would be willing to drink down the same cup of suffering that he was about to drink. Then he prophesied that they would drink the cup indeed. And after this short dialog, Jesus explains a beautiful eternal principle.

But Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

This Christmas, I thank God for the beautiful example of servant hood our family witnessed through Emily’s brother David! Emily and I reminisced on the ride home from Richmond about how noticeable this has been to us. For the past few Thanksgivings and Christmas’, Dave has slipped away undetected to clean the entire kitchen… never mentioning one word about it!

This is beautiful to me and it’s exactly what Jesus was talking about. The greatest among us is the servant of all! I thank God that he pointed this out to me and used David’s example to bring about more servant hood in my own life! My prayer for all of us today is that we could enter into the beautiful world of service to others. The most fulfilling days of our lives will be those days when we spend ourselves blessing other people.

Don’t forget CHURCH TOMORROW!!! Yippppeeeeeee! Come to Destiny Family Center at 10am… or watch online if you can’t make is! See ya then!

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Dec

The Battle of the Waffle Makers :)

By admin 2 Comments

Categories: All Journal

Jeff & His Belgium Waffle Mix

Good Morning Everyone!

I hope you all had a super Christmas. Mine was amazing! I’m so thankful that my kids still cherish the holidays now that they are so grown up. Yesterday, I noticed how much they were in the moment while with each other, with Emily and me, and with all the rest of their relatives. There is nothing greater than knowing that your kids WANT to be with you… and they are having the time of their lives in your presence! As I get older, I cherish these moments!

I have to tell you guys about something VERY funny that happened to us yesterday. We were in Richmond with Emily’s HILLARIOUS family! Every time we get together, there is non stop laughter all day long! The wit of the Wall family is absolutely off the charts! Yesterday, it was at its best for sure.

Emily’s brother Jeff was grinning as we walked through the door… as he does every year. His little mind was already working away; scanning the entire situation, searching for the bloopers… it’s a very scary thing to fall prey to a grinning Jeffrey! On from Jeff, I glanced over my right shoulder and there is Emily’s brother Wayne… we shake hands, he cracks a little smile, his mind also very active. I just knew that we were all in for another holly jolly Christmas Day!

Ok, now that you have a little Wall Christmas background… here’s the 2008 situation. It was gift exchange time and everyone was tearing into their gifts… exchanging heartfelt thank you’s and hugs and smiles. We scaled back a little this year and all the attention was on the kids and Millie and Merle (Emily’s mom and dad.) A few weeks ago, Emily and I went on a hunt for Millie’s requested “waffle maker.” She had told us that she wanted the one that flips over after you insert the mix… the kind they have at the hotels. So we found it of course and Emily really felt like she had a winner!

It was finally Millie’s turn to open her gifts from the children. The dogs and Lillian the pig were roaming the floors and sniffing each other… the kids were still fired up at the gifts they had just opened… and I looked over at Jeff, and then Wayne… and they were poised like two hound dogs sniffing for their next victim! I must admit that I was trying not to make any obvious mistakes. I was trying very hard to fly under their radar as long as I could. Emily smiled real big, walked over and handed Millie the special gift we had wrapped for her… just knowing that this was the thing she really wanted!

So Millie unwraped the long awaited waffle maker and expressed her appreciation to us… we felt like real champs for about TEN SECONDS! Then it was Jeff’s turn… he made his way across the living room floor and there it was… the GRIN HAD POPPED! Ught oh… what was he picking up on… was it me? Had I just made a fatal mistake… the one that he would bring up again on family vacation in JULY?

Jeff handed his SUPER SIZED BOX to Millie and glared deviously over at Emily, then to me. This was not good… what had he gotten her that was making him strut so aggressively? Millie ripped off the paper and guess what she found? The GOLIATH of all WAFFLE MAKERS! I mean this thing was GINORMOUS!!! Emily and I looked over at Jeff, like a scolded puppy… and if that wasn’t enough humiliation, he was holding another wrapped gift in his hand about the size of a box of waffle mix! Yup, that’s exactly what it was… the mammoth waffle machine to trump all other waffle machines AND a box of waffle mix!

Who knows how this tragedy came about… some say that Emily’s other brother Dave had told Jeff that Millie wanted the waffle maker, while Millie had HINTED it to us directly. Either way, we laughed about it for the next few hours and the story will live on for many years to come!

Hope your day was as FUN as ours! And I hope that the rest of your holiday is blessed! Even if your holiday cheer is a little late getting started… there is still plenty of holiday left! The Bible says that laughter is like medicine… so don’t be grinchy when there are a million reasons to laugh your head off during this Merry season! Love you guys, chat with you tomorrow!

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Dec

Another Beautiful Christmas Has Come :)

By chuck 8 Comments

Categories: Journal & Message

Merry Christmas Friends!

I’m up praying and reading my Bible before my family awakes and our beautiful day TOGETHER begins!

It’s so quiet in my family room this morning. All I can think about right now is how much I love my family… and how much I thank God for them! Any moment now, Heaven will come running down the stairs yelling, “It’s Christmas everyone!” She will go back up the stairs to wake Coree up… she’ll stick me with walking the dogs… AND Lillian the pig! I will go in to the bedroom and have the pleasure of viewing Emily’s Christmas morning smile. She is the most fun person in the entire world to spend Christmas with! Emily is worth a million gifts to me!

I’m so happy to be a Christian on Christmas day… every year, it means so much more! Where would I be without my savior? Truly, I am a firebrand snatched from the flames of hell… and the savior of the world has saved my life! Today, I thank God for the warmth he brings into my heart… for the way he causes me to appreciate the most important things in life… for the humility he gives that makes me likeable… the compassion I feel for others! He brings all of this to my life!

Think about the “Savior Effect” upon your own life this Christmas Day. How significantly is the savior of the world impacting your beautiful life these days? It’s awe inspiring to consider such things!

From the Balsamo’s to the most amazing blog family on earth… may you have the Merriest Christmas ever! Try not to place too much emphasis on the gifts or lack of gifts laying under your Christmas trees this year. Be so careful not to overlook all the gifts of LOVE coming at you from all your family and friends! All day long, let everyone know how special they are to you… spend lots and lots of time smiling and taking in the beauty of this most wonderful time of the year. God bless you all… chat with you tomorrow!

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Dec

Happy Christmas Eve :)

By chuck 6 Comments

Categories: Journal & Message

"Lillian Balsamo"

Happy Christmas Eve Friends!!

Announcement: The pig has decided she doesnt want to be called Cinderella… so we have changed her name to “Lillian!”

Sorry for the very late post today. My computer was almost broken beyond repair… and thanks to my new friend Ibrahim from india, it is in recovery!

Wow… you guys are really loving Lillian huh? Thanks for all the comments. The pig jokes are rolling in! I must admit that yesterday morning was a very stressful time here at the Balsamo residence! We actually got on the phone and started searching for someone to take her off our hands. We even worked out a deal with Heaven that we would get her a puppy if she would let us sell the pig. She agreed, but only for a few hours.

As the day went on, Lillian proved just how badly she wanted to be in this family! She’s has not gone to the bathroom in the house… not even once! After she figured out that we were going to take her outside at potty time, she hasnt even gone in her pig palace. I know its hard to believe, but this gal is already potty trained!

Emily and I gave Lillian a bath yesterday to help her smell better. Since she came out of a barn, she stunk like a pig! The bathing task was a memorable experience… Lillian jumping straight up in the air and doing backflips… and squeeling like we were turning her into little sausage links! But after day one, Lillian is going potty outside and she smells like a rose… maybe she can stay. I did say maybe!

On a Chrismas note… the Balsamo’s wanted to wish all you guys a very Merry Christmas Eve! We hope you have the time of your lives hanging with all your special people! Whatever it takes, express your love as passionately and creatively as you ever have before. All over the world, people need love this year much more than ussual!

I read the book of Matthew this morning and came away with a beautiful FEELING. It’s the desire for more HUMILTY in my life! I realized while reading, just how humble Jesus is… and all I can think about since then is how much I want to be like Jesus this Christmas! When this came over me, I rolled over onto my knees and prayed, “Please God, help me not to be self absorbed over the next few days. Please help me to make a very big difference in someones life… by all means possible.” Pray this prayer and aim for the best Christmas of your life!

Thats it for today… we will chat tomorrow!

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Dec

Cinderella Balsamo… Our Newest Potbelly :)

By chuck 18 Comments

Categories: All Journal

"Cinderella Balsamo"

Happy Tuesday Blog Pals!

Urgent Blog Site Announcement: the www.chuckbalsamo.com version will undergo quite a few changes over the next few days. These changes will add more features to the blog site and make your experiences far more enjoyable. Until then, you can still visit www.chuckslife.wordpress.com for the original version… and yes, the snow is still falling there!

Long and MEMORABLE day yesterday… yes it was! Now I can see why God told the Israelites to stay away from these creatures. We drove all the way to Kentucky for this? Have we lost our minds! We finally made it to the Chevron Gas Station where the drop was going to be made… we arrived a little early, so I cleaned the inside windows of the suberban and listened to Heaven go absolutley hyper active as her curiousity had reached its all time pinacle!

The pig lady hadn’t told us what kind of vehicle she was driving, and she hadn’t given us a cell phone… so we stood on lookout for an old farm use pick up truck. Then, to our utter amazement, vvvaarrooooooooommmm! In came a NEW BABY BLUE MUSTANG up on two wheels… out stepped our petite pig breeder, all decked out like she was on her way to the Greenbrier! She popped the trunk, passed us our little piggy, collected the cold hard cash, gave us a few farming tips, and off we were… heading for home with the worse buyers remorse of our lives. Not Heaven of course… she kept saying, “isnt she so cute…. awww, look at her daddy… i love my cute little piggy!”

She eats like a PIG! Loud and sloppy… just like me! I must say that she’s not as cute and cuddly as we were hoping her to be. Oh yeah, she has a cute snout and maybe a cute curly pink tail… she has an attractive grunt and an adorable squeel when anyone picks her up for the first time. I’m just not sure thats enough for me to deem her a cutie yet.

Right now, she is in a very LARGE storage shelter IN THE MIDDLE OF OUR FAMILY ROOM. What have we given into! She’s only been here one night and she taking over already! All morning long, while I was trying to read and pray… all I could hear was grunt grunt grunt! Then when I politely requested for her to PLEASE grunt more quietly, she gave me that look like she was HUNGRY! So I gave her the food dish and… slop slop slop slop slop… slop slop slop slop slop… “please, chew with your mouth shut CINDERELLA!” Yeah, that’s what Heaven is naming this happy hog… Cinderella Balsamo!

Have a super day everyone… Cinderella and I spent lots of time grunting and praying for you guys and gals this monring… have fun, chat with you tomorrow!!

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Dec

Road Trip… Going to Pick up Heavens Pot Belly Pig

By chuck 6 Comments

Categories: Journal & Message

picture-017 Happy Christmas Week Friends!

Church was so much fun yesterday! Then all afternoon Heaven, Emily and I googled our little fingers off, searching for Heavens one and only Christmas present this year. She’s been practicing her Bible College “Principles of Faith” skills all year… and once again, I am powerless under the influence of her amazing faith!

Just like the time she wanted her porky little pug and we told her no way… she prayed and confessed Ming-Me right into our home! No matter how hard we tried to keep our palace nice and quite with one tiny chihuahua guard dog, Heaven would not settle. She was polite and happy and absolutely irresistible!

I even remember one night about a year before Ming Me became a Balsamo… we were at a late night prayer meeting. To spruce things up that night, I purchased a big beach ball and had people come write their prayer requests on the ball with a sharpy marker. Then, after all the requests were written down, we threw the ball to each other. Every person who caught the ball had to look at the request they first noticed. Heaven was in that meeting and longing for one thing! My turn was up… and out of nowhere the ball was thrown to me! Guess what request my eyes first fell upon? Heaven had snuck up and written, “God, please tell my daddy to give me a Pug!” That put me in a real predicament! I must admit today, how happy I am that God answered Heavens prayer! Ming-Me Balsamo is an amazing young lady!

So, here we go again… Heaven has worked her magic once more! We are on our way to Kentucky to meet the pig lady… and if all goes well, we will add another creature to our family this afternoon!

Luke 18:1-8 says this, “One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up. 2 “There was a judge in a certain city,” he said, “who neither feared God nor cared about people. 3 A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute with my enemy.’ 4 The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people, 5 but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’” 6 Then the Lord said, “Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. 7 Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man^[a] returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?”

Faith moves mountains! Who knows how many good things in life are right now well within our reach… if we will learn to have the persistent faith of our teenage daughter?

That’s it for today… I will post pictures tomorrow. Oh God be with us! LOL

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