A Minute In It

A little time in the Word every day changes you. Take a few minutes and ask yourself a few questions. Where do I think my help comes from? My strength? Do I trust that God is vigilant and faithful? What does God protect me from? What has he guarded me from in the past? Do I believe these promises?

I look up to the mountains;
    does my strength come from mountains?
No, my strength comes from God,
    who made heaven, and earth, and mountains.

He won’t let you stumble,
    your Guardian God won’t fall asleep.
Not on your life! Israel’s
    Guardian will never doze or sleep.

God’s your Guardian,
    right at your side to protect you—
Shielding you from sunstroke,
    sheltering you from moonstroke.

God guards you from every evil,
    he guards your very life.
He guards you when you leave and when you return,
    he guards you now, he guards you always.
Psalm 121 (MSG)

What Must I Do?

At this the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. Mark 10:22 (NLT)

This text is taken from the story about the rich young ruler.  In summary, he came to Jesus and asked what he needed to do to have eternal life. Jesus said, "Keep the commandments." He replied, "I already do." So Jesus challenged him to go deeper and sell everything and follow him. The young man grew sad and walked away.

Often when we look at this story we focus on the fact that he was really rich and we don't apply it to ourselves. We say "Have you seen my bank account? I won't have that problem." And this is where we miss the point.

Our 'thing' may not be riches. It may be status. It may be the security of our stuff. (You can still be focused on your material possessions even if you are not rich.) It may be your job, your marriage, your healthy lifestyle or your image. We could have debt coming out of our ears and still try to keep up the facade that we are fine. We are fooling ourselves if we think this story isn't about us. We all have something that we cling to that makes us feel better about ourselves and puts Jesus in second place...or third....or fourth....

You see at the very heart of the story there is a man who is following God. He feels like he's doing all the right things and he very well may be, but then Jesus shows up and says "Let's take it to the next level." The next level can look like a lot of different things. You may lose that job that gives you security or be stripped of your health. You may have your image tattered by lies or have your marriage fall apart. The 'next level' is the place that you have come to the end of yourself and you have to rely on Jesus.

It's a scary place and if it was left up to us, we won't go there. We will, like the rich young ruler, walk away and choose not to dig deeper into a relationship with Jesus. That's why when we earnestly pray and ask God to take us deeper, he will allow the pain. He will allow the hard path. Because he knows that it is only when we hold on to him and him alone will our faith grow.

I feel sad for the rich young ruler. I feel sad because the only satisfaction he knew was what he could do on his own power. The experience of going deeper with God is so much more exhilarating. To see things happen that you can't explain, to know and trust in that relationship more than anything you can see with your own eyes, that is true power. I don't ever want to walk away from the invitation to be part of that.  How about you?

She Gets On My Last Nerve

The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. Mark 12:31 (NLT)

I don't like her.  Really. There aren't many people I can say that about. Most of the time, I like folks. And of course, if I don't, I steer clear. But in this case, I don't like her and I have no choice but to be around her. Do you know how stressful that is if you are a Christian? In order to maintain my Christian composure I need to be anywhere else but in the same vicinity. If we could be in the same vicinity but no one spoke, that would be fine but she talks incessantly. Here is this person getting on your last nerve and you can't distance yourself.

I wish I could say that every response out of my mouth was sweet as honey. Not. I wish I could say the thoughts of my heart were uplifting and full of love. But they weren't. What I was praying about was her leaving. Seriously. So, after staring at my unhappy, unkind self for a few days I went to my knees. Not jut to pray that she would leave but to ask God if there was growth in this for me.

Of course there was. God always wants our growth. I began to think about what it means to live your life reflecting God's love. And then, I began to wonder if Jesus ever disliked anyone. He disliked the Pharisees. He was always at odds with them. But why? Because their method was leading people away from God not towards him. They were causing the people harm for their own gain. But as he was confronting them, I believe his heart was for them. You see, even if Jesus didn't like what they were doing he always, always wanted them to turn and give their heart to God.

As I pondered this, I realized that I am not going to like everyone all the time. But, how I respond to them is something I can control. As I say that, let's get one thing clear. I can't control how I respond to them on my own. If left to my own humanness, I would still be a grumpy, sarcastic, unkind person. I have to keep looking at Jesus. I have to keep looking at the heart he has for everyone. I have to long for that kind of heart and pray that God will change mine to look like that.

One of the definitions of the Greek word love is to have a loyalty towards. I may not actually like this woman, but I can be loyal to her as a child of God. I can treat her with the same respect and kindness that God has shown me. I can pray to see her as God sees her so that eventually, my heart for her will reflect his.

Pray for me. I'm going to need it.

Different But Loved The Same

After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. And they were shouting with a great roar, “Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!” Revelation 7:9-10 (NLT)

If you look at the news for even a brief minute, you don't have to wait long to hear about the different tensions felt in our world. There is news of racial tensions, religious tensions, news about the upper, middle and lower classes. No matter where you look, there is a lot of focus on our differences.

Recently, my nephew asked about this - not directly, the question was about something more specific - but it made me start to think about these things at a very subconscious level. You see, we are different races, my nephew and I. I am white and he is not so we see things differently. So while I may have noticed these things, I didn't really process it in the same way he does for obvious reasons. 

Suddenly, I came across this verse. And I could see the crowds of people standing together, worshiping God. Imagine it: all different faiths, nationalities, economic levels, and a rainbow of every color imaginable. Praising with our hearts and voices raised and what we see isn't the differences in the folks next to us but Jesus. All we see is Jesus. Because nothing else matters.

Heaven. That's what that sounds like to me. Jesus says we should be living out heaven here on earth. What kind of world would it be if we stopped looking at our differences and start looking at our similarities? More importantly, what if we stop focusing on the stuff that doesn't matter and focus on what does. Jesus.

What kind of world would it be if we all lived our life understanding that Jesus came and died for all of us, not just the folks who were like us?

Don't Just Stand There

Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” Matthew 4:19 (NLT)

Question for you. What would you think of someone who signed up for a gym membership, then every day went into the gym and either stood by the door or sat on the benches and watched? After some time, they got upset because nothing changed. Their muscle mass didn't increase, they didn't lose any weight and they didn't feel any better.

Or what would you think of someone who accepted a new job and every day went into the office and sat at their desk but did nothing? Their knowledge of the new job did not increase. They didn't learn any new skills or intellect and they failed to become part of the team. They thought it was good enough just to come and sit at their desk. Then, they wondered why they got fired.

We read these scenarios and laugh. It is ludicrous to think that you can make a change by not doing anything. It is laughable to think that you can sit and not contribute but expect something different. (What is Einstein’s definition of insanity? To do the same thing over and over again and expect different results.) But, we do this all the time with God.

We say we accept Jesus as our Savior and that we believe and then we go to church and sit there and do nothing. When Jesus called the disciples he didn't say "Come, follow me, and then get back into your boat and sit there." He said "Come, follow me and I will show you how…. (emphasis mine)." He said this, by the way, intending that they would actually do it. There was no way he could grow his church with a bunch of people who just sat.

I'm not saying that you will be saved by what you do. Just like working out in the gym won't prevent you from getting a disease or working at your job will automatically set you up for life. But, if you became a Christian because you knew there was something more, because you believed in the promises of a God who loves you, you wanted something more than a one day a week, let me check the box kind of relationship, then God has a role for you in his kingdom.

So what do you do next? Look around. God is working everywhere. He wants you to help him. Help your next door neighbor or your colleague with something. Look for ways to give of yourself to someone. God will bless what you do. And, just like with the disciples, Jesus will show you how. Keep talking to him. Keep looking for him. He’s got a plan and he wants your help. Go out and love somebody today.

Take Two

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Isaiah 30:21 (NIV)

I was really disappointed. As part of the church prayer ministry, I had organized a silent prayer retreat for my church. A silent prayer retreat is where you go and everyone talks only to God until meal time when you can talk to each other. Keeps you from getting distracted. Why was I disappointed? Because only one person signed up. All that work and coordination to get the location for only our church and just one person was interested. Really? It just so happens that the one person who signed up was one of my best friends, Denise. We'd been super close for years and we were going to get to spend the day together in the county at a retreat with nothing but nature and God. We were pretty excited about a day together. We planned out the trip to the retreat and decided that we would each bring our own food for the day.

That morning as I was packing my lunch, I reached for the paper plate and plastic ware and I distinctly heard "Take Two." I thought “I know I don't have to take two because Denise is bringing her own lunch.” I took one. Then I went to make the food and again I heard "Take Two." Again, I thought "This is silly. I don't have to take two because Denise is bringing her lunch." The third time I heard "Take Two" I began to realize this voice was persistent and maybe, just maybe, God was trying to tell me something. So, I said "Lord, I don't know what you are doing because Denise is bringing her lunch but I will 'Take Two.' I went back and repacked two of everything and more food.

When we got to the retreat location, I came down with a huge headache. The retreat location had a huge southern style porch to it so as Denise went off to explore nature and talk to God; I lay down on the porch to try to get rid of my headache. As I was laying there willing my headache to be gone, I heard footsteps. I wondered if someone else from church decided to come but as I looked up a woman walked across the porch that I didn't know. I said hello and she proceeded to walk across the porch and sit down on a chair.

I asked why she was there. Turns out she didn't know the place was rented for a private event and she wanted to come pray. Well, it's not like we were overly crowded or anything so I said OK. Her name was Elizabeth. I explained we were doing a silent retreat so we both sat in silence. Actually, I laid there in silence. Slowly, as lunchtime rolled around, my headache began to go away and Denise showed up. 

We asked Elizabeth if she wanted to join us for lunch. She explained that she was moving north to pursue a God thing (sorry, I don't remember the details). She had packed her house up and didn't have any food with her. I smiled. God knew she was coming. God knew she would be hungry and God told me to bring enough food to provide for her. We all ate together and then went back to praying. Elizabeth did move north to pursue her calling and we still keep in touch. Denise and I are still besties.

I am so thankful that God talks to us in ways we don't expect. I am still, after all these years, super excited that I got to watch him provide for one of his kids and I got to be a part of it. I know people think God doesn’t talk today, but he does. We just have to be open to listening for that Voice that is intervening on behalf of his kids all the time. I want to hone my listening so when I hear that Voice I simply say "Take Two, got it. Done."

Opportunity Knocks!

“Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate. I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’ Matthew 25:24-25 (NLT)

The story of the talents is the story of a Master who gave three servants an opportunity to use a gift he'd given them. To the first servant he gave 5 talents (375 pounds) of silver. To the second servant he gave two (150 pounds) and to the third servant he gave one (75 pounds).

When he returned, the first and second servants had worked the gift they were given and grown it. The third buried it. You have to wonder what he might have been thinking. Did he say "Well, they got so much and I got so little, whatever I do with it won't matter." or "I don't know much about this sort of thing, I'll just keep what I have." or "Man, this is scary and risky. I am afraid so I'll take the safe route." The Bible doesn't tell us all the things going through his mind but it does say he blamed it on his fear of the Master.

Made me wonder....what gift has God given me that I am not using because of fear? Really, most of the excuses we come up with have to do with fear. Here are some:

• That is not my strength (which is often heard as "That's not my gift.") That sounds like a fear of everything. What does that mean? If God has given you the opportunity, he will give you what it takes to do it.
• I don't know how. I have used this one. Not only did I not know how, I was not trying to know how either. Could this be the "lazy" Jesus calls out in the parable?
• It is too risky. This could be translated as "I am really comfortable with my life right now and I don't want to risk losing anything." Do we honestly think what we currently hold is better than what God has in mind?

I wish I could say I was beyond reproach when it comes to using the opportunities God has placed before me. I know I am not. What drives most of us is fear. Most of us have a healthy dose of it and it controls us. Each one of us could look at what we've been given, identify where we are not using it as God intended and be the servant with one talent.

I don't want to be that servant. I want to be the servant with the 5 talents that used them all! I want to hear Jesus say "You did good. I am proud of you." WOW! Can you imagine? But, in order to do that, I have to place my fear aside and say "Yes, Lord." whenever he calls. I need to remember that it's not my abilities that will make this successful, but his power.

How about you? What are you afraid of? Can you get past it and embrace the opportunity God is giving you so you too can hear "Well Done!"?

What Day of the Week Are You?

........a time to laugh. Ecclesiastes 3:4 (NLT)

I think Monday gets a bum rap. Everyone complains that Monday is coming and everyone laments that it is here. What if we looked forward to Monday the same way we look forward to Friday? What a great day it would be! No matter what happened, it'd be OK because it's Monday!

Probably not going to happen, I know but thinking about this made me think about Christians. Are we living our lives as "Monday Christians" or "Friday Christians"? When people talk to us, do they walk away with the feeling of "Oh Man, it's Monday. Life is awful and I wish I could go back to bed." or "It's Friday! It's Friday! Life is amazing and I can't wait for tomorrow!"

True, there are times when things are not laughable and we do need to address those. Ecclesiastes 3 talks about there being a time for everything. But that's not what we are talking about here. What we are talking about is the general way in which you live your life.

Which day of the week do you reflect to those around you?  Are you a Monday or a Friday personality? Whatever day of the week - laugh. God created you to laugh and he tells us to do it. Most importantly, as you do it changes you and reflects the joy of the one who created - who created you to laugh.

He will once again fill your mouth with laughter
    and your lips with shouts of joy.
Job 8:21 (NLT)