I remember when I was a little kid, my dad and stepmom decided to go to a haunted house while we were out of town on vacation. As we walked down this loooooong, daaaaark, spooooooky, scaaaaaary... (ummm, you probably get the point) hallway, we entered a room with what looked like 100 doors. It was up to us to decide which door to enter through as we embarked on our adventure. As my dad stood there making up his mind on which way he would take, that I was sure would lead us to our death, I made a decision that would alter my future. I chose my door, THE EXIT DOOR! No joke. I seen the exit door and ran. On my way out, I even passed Frankenstein, who was catching a smoke while on his break from killing people.

Recently, while reading a Bible story book to my four year old, I ran across the following statement about people's opinion of Jesus:

"But some thought that he should have stayed put in the carpenter's shop."

That spoke volumes to me. There come a point with Jesus that he had to leave the carpenter's shop. That day that he seen the exit door. Now, there wasn't anything wrong with the carpenter's shop, because there were many valuable things learned in the shop. Luke actually states that "Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man." That shop was very important. But, if he had stayed in the shop, where would we be now? He may have went down as the greatest carpenter that the world has ever known. I'm really glad he decided to leave and go toward the cross rather than out back to the lumber pile.

Regardless of who you are, is it time to ask yourself, "Should I stay or should I go?" Should I stay in the comfort of what I know really well? Or should I go into the place that really makes me uncomfortable? Quite honestly, the place that smells with fear. If I stay, I may be the best at what I'm currently doing. If I go, I may fail. People may talk about me. Some people may even wish for me to fail.

"Your time in the carpenter's shop has changed your life, but your time spent afterward will change others."

This is not a message to encourage you to quit, but to change how you do it from here on out. Your time in the carpenter's shop has changed your life, but your time spent afterward will change others. They accused Jesus of being out of his mind and even possessed by the devil himself. I assure you that when you make that decision to leave the shop, you will find resistance. Now is the time that God will use your "shop" experience to break satan's hold on others. So be encouraged, because every battle you face from here on out is worth someone else's victory. Be strong!

Are you facing a tragic event in your life right now? Are you still feeling the effects of an unfortunate event or series of events that have happened over the last several years? If so, I want to take some time to encourage you in getting through these tough times. One thing that every human being has in common is that we are guaranteed we will go through times of trials, tragic events, or unfortunate circumstances. As a matter of fact, we usually see more change during those times than we do any others. The question is, is it the change we long for? Or is it the change God desires to make in our lives?

Our church, along with the entire country, looked back with heavy hearts yesterday as we remembered the events of 10 years ago. As we looked back in remembrance, we also looked at facing personal struggles as well. I shared a few things that God's word encourages us to do that I would like to share with you.

Remember where you dwell

Psalm 91:1 says, "Whoever dwells in the shelter of the most high will rest in the shadow of the almighty."

That's a powerful scripture and if you get time you should read the entire chapter. Think of the benefits of living and resting in that place. Most of all, having God's authority in the tough decisions you are faced with right now.

Never Forget

In particular don't forget God's covenant with you through these tough times you are facing. It's healthy to remember our past when we have a healthy vision for where we are going. It's not ok when we let our past blot out our ability to have a vision. It makes us bitter, regretful, and angry when we focus on our past. Always remember that God's promises are promised to you.

In Genesis, Noah and his family had just faced one of the most tragic events the world has ever known. We decorate our nurseries with the beautiful pictures of Noah's Ark, but I don't think those were beautiful times. Almost all of man kind drowned to death. Noah was on a boat for a long time...WITH ANIMALS. Most of us would struggle with being with our immediate families that long as well. But then we see Noah and his family coming off the boat and figuring out where to go and what to do. Have you ever felt that way?

Genesis 9:12 says, "And God said...". My prayer for you as you face tough times in your life, possibly even tragic events, that you have a 9:12 moment. That God speaks! Not only does he speak, but he speaks louder than any of the other voices and noises in your life. It is not the event that will bring about great changes in your life, but it's the decisions you make after the fact that will bring about those changes. It's your response to what is going on. I pray that you will make your decision in the rest of the shadow of the almighty. I pray that you will make your decision based upon "God said" rather than what you or someone else said. The event will bring about change, but that change will be based upon how you react.

We want to answer your toughest questions. Submit your question about God, the Bible, life, culture or anything else and we'll do our best to answer the most popular questions. You can submit them through this blog or through our website, which is lhchampton.com. At our website, just go to "The Big Question" tab and submit your question. We will be posting each message to our website, so if you're not from our region you can still participate.