Changing Seasons, Refreshed View

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Look, I am about to do something new; even now it is coming. Do you not see it? Indeed, I will make a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:19 CSB

Nothing says “autumn” better than weekend football. Since Rutgers and Princeton played the first college football game in 1869, football has dominated the months leading up to winter. Football is a benchmark of the cooler months and gives you something to do on Thanksgiving Day. You might be interested in knowing that the value of a touchdown started at four points, increased to five in 1898, and then six points in 1912. Field goals went the other direction starting at five points until it was reduced to the current three points in 1909. The NFL didn’t mandate helmets until 1943 and the longest NCAA Division 1 winning streak is still owned by the OU Sooners at 47!

In the other gardens

And all up in the vale,

From the autumn bonfires

See the smoke trail!

Pleasant summer over,

And all the summer flowers,

The red fire blazes,

The grey smoke towers.

Sing a song of season!

Something bright in all!

Flowers in the summer,

Fires in the fall!

Robert Louis Stevenson captured the changing season in his poem, Autumn Fires. Two little words on the calendar yesterday, Autumn Begins, marked the end of one season and the beginning of another. Some of you will be rejoicing as you pull out your sweaters and light a fire in the fireplace. Others will moan at the thought of brisk cool morning walks and dark evenings. “The heat of autumn is different from the heat of summer. One ripens apples, the other turns them to cider.” (Jane Hirshfield, The Heat of Autumn)

The changing of seasons may bring different reactions but one thing is certain, it doesn’t stop the change. “Fall has always been my favorite season. The time when everything bursts with its last beauty, as if nature had been saving up all year for the grand finale.”— (Lauren DeStefano, Wither) I don’t know if you identify with Ms. DeStefano’s statement but the season changes can be a powerful reminder for us of God’s presence in the changing of life’s seasons.

Changing seasons reassure us of God’s control. “You set the boundaries of the earth, and you made both summer and winter.” –Psalm 74:17 There is a great assurance in knowing that if God can set the boundaries of the seasons, then he can set the boundaries of our life. You may feel like you are in the midst of uncontrollable circumstances but as you see the falling of summer leaves you know God is sufficient to take care of your problems.

Changing seasons reassure us of God’s provisions. “As long as the earth remains, there will be planting and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night.” Gen 8:22 Only in God do we ultimately find lasting fulfillment and satisfaction. Without God, no amount of worldly wealth can fill a person’s soul. George Swinnock, an old Puritan writer from yesteryear said it well, “God is a satisfying portion. This world may fill a man, but can never satisfy him….David tells us that if the Lord is your portion, this fountain runs freely to full contentment….If a man were crowned king of the world to enjoy the treasures, honours, and pleasures that all its kingdoms can yield; if he had the society of angels and glorified saints as friends, and could enjoy all this for the duration of the world, yet without God, he would be unsatisfied.”

Changing seasons reassure us that God is always with us. “but he never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts.” Acts 14:17 “He found himself wondering at times, especially in the autumn, about the wild lands, and strange visions of mountains that he had never seen came into his dreams.” (J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring)

“For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest. A time to kill and a time to heal. A time to tear down and a time to build up. A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance. A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones. A time to embrace and a time to turn away. A time to search and a time to quit searching. A time to keep and a time to throw away. A time to tear and a time to mend. A time to be quiet and a time to speak. A time to love and a time to hate. A time for war and a time for peace.” –Ecc 3:1-9

Solomon was a keen observer of life, the changing seasons of nature, and most importantly of people. He had been to the top of the mountain of wealth, success, and power but finally learned that life without God was meaningless. He wrapped up his discourse of life with the beautiful testimony that “God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end.” (3;11) As the seasons change each year, we get to witness beautiful masterpieces to remind us that there is a time for everything. For everything, there is a season!

LORD, let us enjoy the changing landscape of autumn as trees drop their leaves, birds migrate south, and the mornings bring a chill in the air. Autumn reminds us that change is hard but there is beauty even in the changes. As we meditate upon the changing nature of the world around us, may it serve as a reminder of your unchanging presence and love for us in our lives.

God is great!

Finding What Is Real

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My purpose in writing is simply this: that you who believe in God’s Son will know beyond the shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life, the reality and not the illusion. And how bold and free we then become in his presence, freely asking according to his will, sure that he’s listening. And if we’re confident that he’s listening, we know that what we’ve asked for is as good as ours. I John 5:13-15 (the Message)

This week, I came across a profound question in my reading: “Have you ever wondered why oranges are often sold in those strange red net bags?” Well maybe a bit less than profound, and if you are like me, really hadn’t given any thought to it. According to the writer the reason why “it’s a sneaky trick used by food producers and supermarkets to fool your senses and (Hopefully) make you buy more fruit.”

The red mesh creates an illusion that the oranges are more colorful and thus tastier than they will be at home. The colorful net downplays the unripeness of the fruit. The same principle applies to lemons which are put in yellow bags to enhance their natural color. “The principle is based on the confetti illusion, a visual phenomenon where the perception of colors is strongly influenced by its surrounding context.”  (Tom Hale)

Hale further quoted Psychologist Karl R. Gegenfurtner who released a study in i-Perception, “We conclude that color assimilation alone provides a strong effect on color appearance, turning the greenish looking orange into a beautifully orange one…Looking around in typical supermarkets, it is easy to see that fruits and vegetables are typically packaged in nets that are of the color of perfect exemplars…The paper explains that the confetti illusion is based on the principle that our brains are programmed to process peripheral vision and color perception.”

I have always been fascinated by illusionist’s or magicians’ shows, watching closely to see if I could figure out how they did what they did. The acts of David Copperfield, Penn and Teller, or Siegfried and Roy can’t help but leave you mesmerized. The greats, such as Harry Houdini and Howard Thurston, changed the entertainment scene with their shows. Illusionists are masters of diverting your attention from reality, thinking what is, isn’t really. Smoke-and-mirrors tricks, sleight-of-hand card tricks, flashing lights, and bursts of fire all draw your attention away from what is real.

Unfortunately, the illusionists of life are not always limited to a 30-minute routine on stage. We are exposed to master illusionists in life similar to the red nets that oranges are bagged in to create a false reality.  The same things happen daily in our world.

I watched bits of both political conventions over this last month and occasionally I felt both parties had illusionists on the stage. You realize what you see is not always reality, but a perception of reality. Often it comes down to what we want to see.

“Illusions are false perceptions, and delusions are when we believe those perceptions. A delusion is when we are under the spell of an illusion, under the spell of a lie that is perceived as truth.” (Joe & Erin Pinto)

Politicians can be master illusionists, telling us what we want to hear or what we think we want to hear. Advertisers have been masters illusionists for years telling us if we do this exercise or routine, we can have an amazing body; if we eat this food, we can get rid of unwanted fat or improve this health problem; or if we…. you name it. The illusion of beauty, success, or power fills our social media accounts daily.

So, what is real? What is only an illusion? Satan uses the same set of tricks that a great illusionist would use, to divert our attention from what is real, what is truth, and what is God-centered. We read in Matthew 4 of his attempts to divert Jesus with his sleight of hand, creating an illusion that would lead to death. The same tactics that Satan tried to use against Jesus, he uses today against us, tempting us in the areas of physical needs, spiritual shortcuts, and success or power.  The great thing though is that Jesus opened Satan’s playbook and showed us how to understand the deception and what to do.  Verse after verse in Matthew says, “The Scriptures say, For the Scriptures say, The Scriptures also say, For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the LORD your God and serve only him’”.

“Sometimes, things in this life aren’t what they look like. For us to see past the illusion, we have to get our eyes on Jesus and off the false evidence. The enemy wants to get us to focus on the problems, the current circumstances—on the giant, on the waves, on the army.” (Will Cooper, COO of Samaritan Ministries)

When David Copperfield, Penn and Teller, or Harry Houdini finished their shows, they put away their props and went about living real life. The illusions they created were put into a crate or folded up for the next show. As we face troubles, anxiousness, or doubts, we can let them become overwhelming in our lives or follow Paul’s advice about the temporary illusion we are facing. Scripture says, “So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.” 2 Corinthians 4:18 NLT

When the final curtain is drawn and we no longer watch the fleeting illusion of life, only then will we get to experience and see the real story! “Turn my eyes from looking at vanities; give me life in your ways.” Psalm 119:37 NRSV

God is great!

 

The Gift of Summer

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Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind. Ecc 4:6

“Spring being a tough act to follow, God created June.” (AI Bernstein)

Spring was anything but relaxing if you lived in the path of a busy tornado season or had kids in school. Memorial Day unofficially marked the beginning of summer when theoretically the pace of life slows down as kids are out of school, church activities get reduced and the days are longer. Theoretically was the word I used, reality tells a different story.  The days of yesterday, when you lazily stretched out on the grass to watch white, fluffy clouds move overhead seem to be a fairy tale or at best, the figment of someone’s imagination.

For those who live in the North American region, June famously welcomes the return of those mystical little creatures called Hummingbirds. These unique little birds return after a restful vacation in South America after a long winter. Flying thousands of miles, they return to the same geographical area each year, and being gifted with amazing memories, they remember every flower and feeder they’ve visited. They are true lovers of sugar as they go straight for the glucose. These little birds eat more than twice their body weight daily, so, they are not good role models if you want to lose weight.

Hummingbirds’ survival depends upon their staying in a nearly constant state of motion. These little “charmers,” (that is what a group of Hummingbirds is called), hover over their food with wings fluttering at 50 times per second and heartbeats racing at 1,260 times per minute. There is just something relaxing about watching hummingbirds dart in and out at their feeder.

God made the hummingbirds to be in a constant state of motion but he didn’t make you or me that way. God’s final stroke to his creative masterpiece called creation was simply “rest”. The other acts of creation have the description “And God saw that it was good” but on His final act of creation He didn’t call it good, He called it “holy.”

What a difference this one day of rest should make in our rhythm of life.  “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so, on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.” (Gen 2:2-3) John Lubbock writes, “Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer’s day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.”

You can name a lot of reasons but somehow we tend to live with a hummingbird mentality, always in constant motion. Instead, God offered a model or better yet, a God-given gift of rest. Somehow, we have been convinced that to survive we have to be in a constant state of motion. The Psalmist reminds us in Psalm 74, “But God is my King from long ago; he brings salvation on the earth…The day is yours, and yours also the night; you established the sun and moon. It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter.”

Living at full speed can be physically draining, emotionally taxing, and spiritually deadening. Slowing down opens our soul more fully to God’s presence. David understood how the soul needed rest and God’s desire to give his children. “He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.” (Psalm 23:2-3a)

“The reason speed does violence against our souls is because our souls were meant to be tended to. There’s a preciousness, a tenderness to our souls that requires a slow observation. And so, when we’re living at this chaotic pace, we don’t give our souls the opportunity to rest, to breathe, to receive the nutrients from God that we desperately need.” (Rich Villodas)

Summer months can be a reflective time to focus on God’s gift of rest. “So, they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place.”—Mark 6:32. Summer months can bring something magical if we simply slow life’s pace down to spend a little time reflecting, pondering, or meditating. “It was June, and the world smelled of roses. The sunshine was like powdered gold over the grassy hillside.” (Maud Hart Lovelace)

The summer evening harmony of crickets, cicadas, and laughing children relaxes the soul and welcomes a place where you can “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him” Psalm 37:7a

The warm balmy summer evenings give you a place to release your problems and anxiety as you are reminded, “The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land.” (Song of Songs 2:11-12)

The same summer months that bring the hummingbirds also bring the weeds in the garden and seemingly never-ending mowing. What you do with it becomes the question. Margaret Guenther reminds us, “Our waiting on God, then, requires ongoing attentiveness if it is to be more than an empty exercise in passivity. When we pay attention, our awareness is sharpened.”

Summer! What a great time to spread your blanket on top of the freshly mowed grass and spend a little time just pondering this beautiful creation of God. “A heart at peace gives life to the body,” (Pr 14:30a)

God is great!

 

 

God of Wonder

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The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy. Psalm 65:8

You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples. Psalm 77:14

“Wonder is the heaviest element on the periodic table. Even a tiny fleck of it stops time.” Last Monday would seem to have proven Diane Ackerman’s quote when a large swath of the United States stopped what they were doing and looked skyward to take in the solar eclipse. April 8 was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the 31.6 million people who found themselves living in the pathway of totality. This narrow corridor of about 115 miles wide through the heartland of America allowed residences and visitors to experience a few minutes of total darkness in the middle of the day. Eclipse totality happens in a particular spot on Earth roughly once every 400 years, give or take a year.

This unique phenomenon caused schools to be out for the day, workers to take longer midafternoon coffee breaks, and major networks to send their TV personalities to cities on the route of totality to report on the events. A common thought shared by the media personalities was what a great shared experience witnessed by the people. Others reported on this particular conspiracy or what this eclipse meant for the future of mankind.  However, what was missing in most of the commentaries was simply amazing wonder. Have we lost the sense of wonder? When did we lose our sense of wonderment?

Wonder began with the words, “In the beginning God created the heavens the earth. (Gen 1:1) God is a God of wonders and even a casual reading throughout the Bible showcases God’s wondrous acts. It is hard to read Scripture without being overwhelmed by the wonders of God.

Jesus lifted the little child on his lap and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven,” This has layers of applications but I think one that is often overlooked is the beautiful reminder of keeping alive curiosity and questioning, just like children. “What was wonderful about childhood is that anything in it was a wonder. It was not merely a world full of miracles; it was a miraculous world.” (G.K. Chesterton)

Children are the keepers and givers of wonderment. The least little thing found on a walk with a child creates excitement and lots of questions.  The thing leads to a litany of why and how questions that flow into an easy conversation. “Childlike faith is opening our eyes to the wonder of seeing our God everywhere and whenever He shows us a new dimension, choosing to add that to our worldview. In doing this, our capacity increases and we grow up into His image. This kind of faith is okay with God’s revelation being a run-on sentence that at times seems like a contradiction.” (Chuck Ammons)

Monica Parker author of The Power of Wonder uses the term “wonderbringers,” finding anything that brings you wonder. “People who embody the wonder trait of curiosity tend to be more engaged, infuse more excitement into meeting new people, and are more likely to seek and build on what they learn about a person.”

Somewhere along this journey of life, wonderment is lost to the gritty details of life, the hurry-to-get-it-done lifestyle, and the curiosity of simply asking why. David captured the wonder of God as he wrote,

“All your salvation wonders are on display in your trophy room. Earth-Tamer, Ocean-Pourer, Mountain-Maker, Hill-Dresser, Muzzler of sea storm and wave crash, of mobs in noisy riot—Far and wide they’ll come to a stop, they’ll stare in awe, in wonder. Dawn and dusk take turns calling, “Come and worship.”   (Psalm 65:5-8 The Message)

There is no argument that the eclipse was a spectacular occurrence. However, what is even more stunning is waking up every day living with wonderment knowing God is a God of wonder and amazement. People begin to see us as the very essence of a dictionary definition of wonder, “arouses awe, astonishment, surprise, or admiration; a marvel.” Oswald Chambers wrote, “You will never cease to be the most amazed person on earth at what God has done for you on the inside.”

“We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done.” (Psalm 78:4)

“They knew so much but forgot to wonder,

Busy with thoughts, their world went under.

And in losing wonder, she said with a sigh,

A universe of dreams passed them by.” (Lyra Brave)

LORD, let us be like children who live in a world of aliveness. May we awaken each day to the possibilities you have for us, to enjoy the spectacular as well as the mundane, to see with eyes open to the world you created. For we know “because of Your great love we are not consumed, for your compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

God is great!

Journey Toward Eternity

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Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. John 17:1b-3 NIV

The iconic engineering masterpiece, The Golden Gate Bridge, spans the one-mile-wide strait connecting San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean. The American Society of Civil Engineers recognizes it as one of the Wonders of the Modern World. The bridge is an internationally recognized symbol and is described in Frommer’s travel guide as “possibly the most beautiful, certainly the most photographed, bridge in the world.” (Wikipedia)

Millions of cars, trucks, bikes, and walkers have traveled across the bridge since it opened in 1937. Though famous internationally, it is also famous for the number of people who have committed suicide on the bridge.  Harold B. Wobber became the first person to commit suicide by jumping over the four-foot rail less than three months after its opening. Since then, over 1,600 people have committed suicide with an additional unknown number whose bodies were not found.

Former California highway patrol officer Kevin Briggs has become known as the Guardian of the Golden Gate. When Briggs finds someone preparing to jump to their death, he engages the person in conversation with some simple questions about their plans for the following day. He has been able to talk more than two hundred people from taking their lives. (article in Denison Forum)

The Golden Gate Bridge is easily identifiable for its beauty, but it becomes a symbol of death to those without hope. The Cross of Jesus is even more easily recognizable throughout the world. The cross designed as an instrument of death became a symbol of hope and life because of Easter.

Lent has provided us time to slow down in our spiritual journey to refocus upon the coming days of Easter. It has provided opportunities to sit and reflect upon our hope in Jesus. It is a hope not built on shifting opinions but on the rock-solid promises of God.

Jesus’ journey toward the cross would bring life to us but not without great cost to him. The pain and bodily suffering of the cross had to be indescribable for him yet just as horrendous was the pain of rejection and betrayal that he had to endure.

The pain of a kiss. Judas had sat under his teachings, watched the healings, and fellowshipped with Jesus yet rejected the kind of Messiah that Jesus would become. “And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus.” (Luke 22:4). The pain of that midnight kiss must have weighed heavily upon Jesus. “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” (Luke 22:48)

The pain of a rooster’s crowing. Peter had become one of Jesus’s trusted inner circle members. Peter had pulled the net onto the boat overflowing with fish, stood on the mountaintop with Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, and watched as a little girl was raised from the dead yet that morning spoke the words, “I don’t know him!” Can you imagine the pain of these words to Jesus? Also, the pain in Peter’s heart as he heard  “the rooster crowed” and then seeing as “The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter.” (Luke 22:61)

The pain of a yelling crowd, “Crucify him! Crucify him!” The crowd! Men and women who had listened intently to his words, many had eaten fish and bread with him on the mountainside and just days before, had been willing to cry out, Hosanna! Only now to hear, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!”

Yet the greatest pain of all is the silence of His Father. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” The gaping wounds, the nail-punctured hands and feet, the humiliation or the mocking words couldn’t compare to the darkness and emptiness of his Father’s silence.  “The more painful our suffering and thus the less we understand why God allows it, the more we need to trust it to his compassionate care.” (Jim Denison)

The lament of Psalm 22 would minister to Jesus’ soul that dark and godless afternoon. The words of this holy Psalm would express his desolation of God being far away and yet the consolation of feeling God’s presence, even on the cross.

Charles Spurgeon beautifully captured the richness of this Psalm on the cross. “Psalm 22 may have been actually repeated word by word by our Lord when hanging on the tree; it would be too bold to say that it was so, but even a casual reader may see that it might have been. It begins with, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And ends, according to some, in the original with It is finished.

Before us, we have a description of both the darkness and the glory of the cross, the sufferings of Christ, and the glory which shall follow. Oh, for grace to draw near and see this incredible sight! We should read reverently, putting off our shoes from our feet, as Moses did at the burning bush, for if there be holy ground anywhere in Scripture, it is in this psalm.”

The cruelty of the cross has been transformed into a symbol of living hope with the words, “It is finished.” The cold isolation of a grave has been transformed into living life with the words, “He is not here; he has risen.” These symbols of death have been transformed into a living faith with the climax of this powerful prayer, “Our children will also serve him. Future generations will hear about the wonders of the Lord. His righteous acts will be told to those not yet born. They will hear about everything he has done.  (Ps 22:30-31 NLT)

“Christ breaks through to you, not in those places where you are strong, where your skills are well-honed and developed, but precisely in those areas in your life where you know failure or weakness. For it is there that you come close to the power of the Cross. It is precisely there that God is waiting to meet you, long to offer you forgiveness, strength, and renewal, to live and work not in your own strength, but in the strength of Christ.” (Geoffrey Tristam)

Easter!  He is Risen! This is the reason why I can end my blogs each week with the words,

God is great!

Go Quickly and Tell His Disciples by Hanna-Cheriyan Varghese

Living in the Presence of God

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The LORD replied, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?” Exodus 33:14-16 NIV

Do you know what your pastor/priest/minister is doing right now? Sunday mornings are pretty easy but the rest of the week is anybody’s guess; studying, praying, visiting, or golfing. You probably didn’t guess he was behind the steering wheel as an Uber driver, unless your pastor is bi-vocational. Yet, behind the steering wheel is where you would have found Lyman, South Carolina pastor Jeff Hickman using a rideshare app. Hickman makes 10-20 trips a week and started his Uber ministry to identify the needs of his community. Hickman started the ministry as a practical way to live out the church’s vision statement: “Everybody has a Name; Every Name is Important.”

“There are a lot of people who are struggling with the idea, ‘Does somebody see me? Does somebody hear me? Does somebody even care that I’m alive? Am I valued?’ Hickman said. “And so, this has been an amazing way to let people know that someone cares about you and God loves you.”

“More than merely providing an empathetic ear to the people he encounters, Hickman has been intentional about following up to address people’s physical needs.” At Thanksgiving last year when several expressed concerns over high food costs, his church provided Thanksgiving meals to people who needed a helping hand. (from an article by Dale Chamberlain)

I don’t know about you but in our desire to do something useful for God, we can easily forget to pursue God’s presence above everything else. Occasionally we need to stop and ask ourselves the question, “Have we forgotten to pursue His presence as our most vital need?” The Gospel isn’t a formula you apply to your life, it’s the story you’re meant to inhabit. “The righteous will rejoice in the LORD and take refuge in him; all the upright in heart will glory in him!” (Psalm 64:10 NIV)

“God’s mission to bring liberation to the world has always been accomplished through people who are distinguished, not just because they obey God’s precepts, but because they carry His presence. God isn’t looking for people to work for Him; He seeks out those who long to walk and work with Him. After all, it’s God’s mission that matters, not mine.” (Poppy Williams – Lectio 365)

Ruth Haley Barton in her book, Sacred Rhythms writes, “Your desire for more of God than you have right now, your longing for love, your need for deeper levels of spiritual transformation than you have experienced so far is the truest thing about you.”

We have to get ourselves into a place where we can experience the presence of God. Somehow it is much easier to do stuff for God than to reflect the presence of God in all that we do. We can do stuff but it will look different if we do stuff as we live and work out of God’s presence. David, in writing Psalm 27 said, “One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.” (27:4)

Our behavior should reflect the presence of God. In our current divisive times, it seems so easy to badmouth another person, but worse, we have come to accept such behavior as acceptable. “Mudslinging is an idiom that describes the act of making malicious or scandalous claims or accusations against someone, usually to tarnish their reputation.” (Candace Osmond -Grammarist.com) The writer of Ecclesiastes gave a powerful word on such behavior. “Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.” (Ecc 5:2 NIV) You can’t help but wonder what God thinks of mudslinging.

Prayer becomes a place where we can flourish in God’s presence. Regardless of the hopelessness we may find ourselves in, God’s presence is alive and active. God reminded Solomon in his prayer that even when it looks hopeless, “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (2 Chron 7:14)

Today is a good day to experience, enjoy, and reflect on the presence of God since someday heaven will be filled with God’s presence. “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Rev 21:3-4)

“No work of art is more important than the Christian’s own life…[it] is to be a thing of truth and also a thing of beauty in the midst of a lost world.” (Francis Shaeffer)

“I’m in the very presence of God—oh, how refreshing it is! I’ve made Lord God my home. God, I’m telling the world what you do!” Psalm 73:28 The Message

Loving God, I yield my whole life to You again. Make my life more creative. Make me something of truth and beauty in the midst of a lost and hurting world today. Give me insight today as I write (or whatever you do) that it would be words that encourage and help. Give me a listening heart to you. Spirit of God, fill me and put me to work in whatever You need doing today.

God is great!

Creating Space for Advent

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The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD. Lamentations 3:25-26 (ESV)

Time to relax, put up your feet, and loosen the belt, Thanksgiving is over. Sorry to tell you but the rest is short-lived. The official race has begun toward Christmas! You can’t help but feel a bit of anxiety at the very mention of Christmas, even though you may love the season. Somehow the lists start making lists in your head. How am I going to get all the stuff done? How can I ever get all the presents bought, the cards sent out and the food prepared? The calendar is filling up with this event, that party to attend, and all the Hallmark Christmas movies to watch.  Since Advent is still a week away, maybe we need a pre-advent Advent to prepare us for Advent. Maybe this pre-Advent week can permit us to catch our breath and slow down before the Christmas rush.

92-year-old Alfredo Aliaga just hiked the Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim in October. Hiking 24 miles with more than 10,000 feet of climbing most likely allows a person to slow down and reflect. However, it also puts you into the Guinness world record by becoming the oldest person to complete it.  Maybe your pre-advent slowness will not put you on the Rim-to-Rim but it could open your eyes to the wonders of God as we prepare for the coming Messiah.

British pastor Pete Greig writes, “Isn’t it extraordinary that Jesus never hurried? With just three years to save the world, He still made time for fishing trips, picnics, and parties, which means that He was officially less busy than most pastors.” Finding moments of slowness can allow our souls to catch up with our bodies reflecting that “This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24 NLT)

What if we use this week to find ways to slow down? There is a temptation to go as fast as we can during this month since we have so much to get done. Amid our mad rush, we easily overlook the beauty and joy leading up to Advent. Japanese Christian and theologian Kosuke Koyama calls God, “The Three Mile an Hour God”, not because God doesn’t move fast but because He slows down to our speed.

“God walks ‘slowly’ because he is love. If he is not love he would have gone much faster. Love has its speed. It is an inner speed. It is a spiritual speed. It is a different kind of speed from the technological speed to which we are accustomed. It is “slow’ yet it is lord over all other speeds since it is the speed of love. It goes on in the depth of our life, whether we notice or not, whether we are currently hit by storm or not, at three miles an hour. It is the speed we walk and therefore it is the speed the love of God walks.” (Kosuke Koyama, Three Mile an Hour God)

Who better to teach us to walk three miles an hour than Jesus? I am sure Jesus had things to do and places to be but by walking three miles an hour, a hopeless and desperate woman was able to reach out and touch him. “And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years, but no one could heal her. She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.” (Luke 8:43-48) If Jesus had been going as fast as we do from one store to the next, the woman, in her physical condition, wouldn’t have been able to catch him.

Jesus could hear Bartimaeus cry for help because he always walked at the speed the love of God walked. “Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” …” What do you want me to do for you? The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.” (Mark 10:46-52) Bartimaeus could now walk at the speed the love of God walks.

Creating space to wander a little this week may be the best preparation for the coming Advent season. Could it be we find space to walk at the speed that God walks? It will not be easy with kids back in school, back to work schedules, weekly routines, and the rush of the holiday season starting. Yet in finding moments where we can saunter a bit, especially outside, we will enjoy a refreshed and restored soul. Henri Nouwen writes, “We have to fashion our own desert, where we can withdraw every day, shake off our compulsions, and dwell in the gentle healing presence of our Lord.” (from The Way of the Heart)

The late Calvin Miller wrote, “It’s the road that defines my day, and yet it isn’t. I know where the road is going, but I have lost all interest in the scenery. I know if I could meet some of my fellow travelers around a campfire, we would likely become good friends. But I am shut up in that modern monastic cell called the automobile. And there I listen to Christian music. And there I pray, with eyes straight ahead, for all that makes a multitasking disciple grow quiet and whole in a buzzing, honking, rubber-on-concrete world.” (from the Path of Celtic Prayer)

Dear Lord and Father of mankind,
Forgive our foolish ways;
Reclothe us in our rightful mind,
In purer lives Thy service find,
In deeper rev’rence, praise.

Drop Thy still dews of quietness,
Till all our strivings cease;
Take from our souls the strain and stress,
And let our ordered lives confess
The beauty of Thy peace. (lyrics Dear Lord and Father of Mankind-John Greenleaf Whittier)

Be blessed as you journey through this week and may you find moments to walk at the speed of God.

God is great!

 

 

 

 

Cultivating a Heart of Thanksgiving

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Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Colossians 3:1 (NIV)

Cultivating a heart of thanksgiving could easily symbolize the lives of Lin and Peter Calvert. These two young, starry-eyed New Zealanders met in medical school and were married in 1949. Friends and family assumed these two graduating doctors would set up a medical practice that would bring them wealth and comfort. Instead, they moved to Papua New Guinea in 1954 with the London Missionary Society to serve at the Kapuna Hospital, a place that would be their home for the next seven decades.

Lin Calvert, better known as Grandma Lin, would literally touch the lives of generations of residents delivering over 10,000 babies during her 60 years at Kapuna, saving countless lives through an aggressive treatment of tuberculosis and encouraging immunization against deadly diseases, such as measles and cholera.  One resident said of Calvert, “She didn’t show partiality toward those who received her love: young, old, rich, poor, foreigner, or local. If Grandma could pour love into a person, she would. Calvert said in a 2019 interview, “Not many people stay 60 years, but the longer you stay, the less dogmatic you get, the less proud you get, and the feeling is, it was all God anyway who did it. All the good bits were him.”

Grandma Lin was buried next to Peter on the grounds of the hospital where they had devoted their lives. Fellow doctor Neil Hopkins said of Lin Calvert at her funeral service, “She was wholeheartedly devoted to honoring God and living for Jesus through the enabling power of the Holy Spirit.” (Erin Foley – author of Kapuna: How Love Transformed a Culture)

The Calverts most likely could identify with the answer that Richelle Goodrich gave to the question, “What are you most thankful for?” Goodrich replied, “Being too blessed to have any hope of answering that question.” The Calverts learned that cultivating a heart of thanksgiving was life-changing.

November has become the placeholder between Halloween and Christmas or so it seems. Halloween has dominated the month of October with Christmas seemingly starting on November 1. Americans spent approximately $12.2 billion on Halloween this year and spending forecasts for Christmas are projected to reach $1.1 Trillion. Yet during November’s busy days, somewhere between the Christmas trees, football games, and lavish feasts, you can find the one day officially set aside by law as a day to give thanks.

Though Thanksgiving is most often identified with the United States, it is not the only country that has set aside a day to be thankful as numerous other countries have a similar day to give thanks. Setting aside one day sounds great but it should not be the only day devoted to Thanksgiving. The other 364 days should be filled with thanksgiving.  Countless Scriptures can be found encouraging you to daily cultivate a heart of thanksgiving in your life.

Cultivating a heart of thanksgiving reminds you to keep your focus on God. “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.” (I Chron. 16:34) It is so easy to become discouraged and fearful as the daily onslaught of news brings a sense of hopelessness. It is only through your focus on God that you can maintain a sense of hope and courage. Focusing on God through thanksgiving and praise allows you to reorient your thoughts and most likely your priorities. Jim Elliott wrote, “I pray for you, that all your misgivings will be melted to thanksgivings. Remember that the shadow a thing casts often far exceeds the size of the thing itself (especially if the light is low on the horizon) and though some future fear may strut brave darkness as you approach, the thing itself will be but a speck when seen from beyond. Oh that He would restore us often with that ‘aspect from beyond,’ to see a thing as He sees it, to remember that He dealeth with us as with sons.”

Cultivating a heart of thanksgiving brings peace. It is through this cultivated heart of thanksgiving that peace dominates your life. You courageously say, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” (Colossians 3:15) G. K. Chesterton wrote, “I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.”

Cultivating a heart of thanksgiving brings joy. Paul writing to the believers in Thessalonica, encouraged them to “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (I Thess 5:16-18 NIV) Lydia Brownback writes in her book, Joy: A Godly Woman’s Adornment, “How can we help what we feel? We just can’t muster up joyful feelings; that’s true. But we can rejoice, which sooner or later leads to joyful feelings. Rejoicing is not a feeling. It is joy in action. It is the humble willingness to offer God praise and thanks in all things, regardless of how we feel at the moment. “

You may not be able to change the tone or focus about Thanksgiving as the busy preparation for Christmas overwhelms you pushing Thanksgiving Day out of the way. You may find Thanksgiving Day is overshadowed by lots of activities and events out of your control. However, with a bit of effort on your part, you can begin cultivating a heart of thanksgiving even amid the craziness.  Thomas Merton wrote a poignant warning that “those who are not grateful soon begin to complain of everything.”

I hope you find as you cultivate a heart of thanksgiving, the gift of rest and joy. Warren Wiersbe writes, “The Christian who walks with the Lord and keeps constant communion with Him will see many reasons for rejoicing and thanksgiving all day long.”

“For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the word of God and prayer.” (I Timothy 4:4-5)

God is great!

 

 

Life on the Roller Coaster

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The LORD is near the brokenhearted; he saves those crushed in spirit. Psalm 34:18 (CSB)

Deep down you knew it was stupid but you did it anyway. What is that? Walking down a platform, letting a total stranger buckle you into a metal car, and hearing the words, “Keep your arms inside the car!” You just paid good money to spend the next minute of your life going up and down the tracks of a roller coaster. Roller coasters – the iconic symbols of amusement parks around the world. The brainchild of LaMarcus Thompson who designed and built the first roller coaster which opened on June 16, 1884, at Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York. For a nickel, the riders could scream and yell as the cars reached the breathtaking speed of 6 mph.

Fast forward a few decades when the Kingda Ka opened in 2005 becoming the tallest and fastest rollercoaster in the United States reaching a height of 456 feet and traveling at a max speed of 128 mph. For 50 seconds the riders get to experience terror, thrill, and whiplash in their bodies as they are plummeted and jotted through the tracks of Kingda Ka.

Once the attendant bolts you into the car you know the experience will quickly end. Even though your roller coaster ride will create inner turmoil, there will be an end when you step back onto the platform. Unfortunately, life can often resemble a roller coaster ride!

There are days when you feel like you stepped into a roller coaster car and before you could settle, you were flying through one turn to another. The emotions and stress seem to overwhelm your inner soul. Last Saturday brought the excitement and joy of celebrating our youngest granddaughter’s first birthday only to find myself this last Friday standing at the gravesite of my brother. Life seems too often filled with roller coaster days, weeks, and months.

Jesus anticipated that many of our days would feel like roller-coaster days. During his watershed sermon in Matthew (Chapters 5-7), part of his message was to encourage his followers not to worry but to trust God. If God can provide for the birds of the air, you can know you are more valuable to Him than any creature of nature. Jesus closed the section with the words, “Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matt 6:34)

For most of us, we can ride the roller coaster and get off, even if our heads are spinning. We take to heart Paul’s word in Philippians “Don’t worry about anything… (Phil 4:4-7), or Peter’s encouragement to “cast all your cares on him, because he cares about you.” (I Peter 5:7). David who lived a roller coaster life was able to write, “Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never allow the righteous to be shaken.” (Psalm 55:22)

However, there is a growing segment of the world that is finding it hard to get out of the roller coaster car. Issues of mental illness, traumatic stress, substance use, hopelessness, chronic pain and illness, social isolation, or feeling like a burden to others plague an increasing number of people annually. For many the only way off of the roller-coaster is through suicide.

Dr. Kathryn Butler writes, “For millions of people across the U.S., and multiples of that number globally, the horror of death seems a better alternative than the slings and arrows of this life…As stewards of the greatest message of hope in history, churches are uniquely positioned to minister to those grappling with thoughts of self-harm.”

The problems that confront people leading to the hopelessness of suicide are not new societal issues. One of David’s leading advisors faced the reality of what was coming and scripture says, “When Ahithophel realized that his advice had not been followed, he saddled his donkey and set out for his house in his hometown. He set his house in order and hanged himself. So, he died and was buried in his father’s tomb” (2 Samuel 17:23)

September was National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month in the United States and the UN World Health Organization (WHO) declared September 10 as World Suicide Prevention Day. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there is one death by suicide every 11 minutes. Every segment of society confronts suicide but there is an alarming growth among our nation’s children and teenagers.

God is here for those who find themselves on a roller coaster ride and for those who can’t seem to get off of the ride. God reaches out with hope as the Psalmist captures in Psalm 147 when he writes, “He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.” (v3)

Frederick Buechner writes, “What Genesis suggests is that this original self, with the print of God’s thumb still upon it, is the most essential part of who we are and is buried deep in all of us as a source of wisdom and strength and healing which we can draw upon or, with our terrible freedom, not draw upon as we choose…The original, shimmering self gets buried so deep that most of us end up hardly living out of it at all. Instead, we live out all the other selves which we are constantly putting on and taking off like coats and hats against the world’s weather.”

Helping someone find their “original shimmering self” may not be easy. It takes time as we learn to listen, to pray, and to care for people in their deepest places. Reaching out a hand to help someone step out of the roller coaster car is part of being a soul friend. There may come a time when we need to sit with someone and encourage them to text or call 988, the suicide prevention number that is open 24/7.

“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the whole earth. He never becomes faint or weary; there is no limit to his understanding. He gives strength to the faint and strengthens the powerless.” (Isaiah 40:28-29)

Together we make a difference because we have a God who can!

God is great!

 

 

 

The Small Stuff Makes A Big Difference

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Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand. Zechariah 4:10 NLT

Sorry, our ice cream machine is broken. If you’ve been to a McDonald’s for the sheer pleasure of an ice cream cone or a McFlurry, more likely than not, you have probably heard these words. You only wanted a small thing but left with a big disappointment. Therefore, before you make your drive to McDonald’s, software engineer Rashiq Zahid created the website, mcbroken.com so you can check to see if the ice cream machine is working. If you’ve never encountered a McDonald’s ice cream machine that is broken, count yourself lucky, as opposed to blessed, which is another story. As I write this devotion, according to mcbroken, 14.52% of ice cream machines are listed as broken, including the one in our little town. If you live in Dallas then you are even worse off since 26.98% of their machines are down.

If you are interested in the backstory on why McDonald’s ice cream machines are broken, you can look it up since my focus is not on ice cream machines but on the small stuff that makes a difference. So, the next time you say, “I just wanted an ice cream cone!” then know you are in good company.

However, it is the small stuff that often leads to frustration, anger, or disappointment. The late Richard Carlson understood well the frustration, anger, and disappointment of small stuff when he published his book, “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff…and It’s All Small Stuff: Simple Ways to Keep the Little Things From Taking Over Your Life.”  He wrote, “When you let go of your expectations, when you accept life as it is, you’re free. To hold on is to be serious and uptight. To let go is to lighten up.”

This is true to a point until you realize that the small stuff can make a big difference if used correctly. There is a powerful concept in aviation called, The 1 in 60 Rule. The bottom line, for every 1 degree you are off course you will end up being 1 mile off course after traveling 60 miles. This doesn’t sound like a problem unless you leave JFK in New York flying to Tokyo, Japan, then you will end up in the middle of the ocean and probably low on fuel and most likely crashing. A small drift has a big impact!

“On March 28, 1979, a sightseeing flight crashed into a mountain in Antarctica, killing all of the 279 people on board. An investigation determined that the crew had not been informed of a two-degree correction made to the plane’s flight path the night before, causing the plane’s navigation system to route them toward Mount Erebus instead of through McMurdo Sound.” (Jeff Haden, U.S. Veterans Magazine)

The small stuff can make a big difference. “A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit.” (Proverbs 15:13) Eliud Kipchoge created a new world record in 2019 by being the first person ever to run a marathon in less than two hours. Kipchoge trained hard, and maintained an incredible speed but had a unique strategy, he smiled as he ran. He didn’t smile to show his confidence or camouflage his fatigue but he simply smiled to help him relax and maintain positive energy and spirits. Mother Teresa said, “I will never understand all the good that a simple simile can accomplish.”

According to CBA Wellness Pooja Chugh, “The power of a smile must not be underestimated. A smile shares hope, affection, and peace. A smile has the power to bring light in the darkness, to bring positive energy in the day, to reduce stress in life, and to bring greater happiness in the world.”

The small stuff can make a big difference. “A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.” (proverbs 17:22) “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” (Leo Buscaglia)

The small stuff can make a big difference. “You are my God, and I will praise you; You are my God, and I will exalt you.” (Psalm 118:28) “In positive psychology research, gratitude is strongly and consistently associated with greater happiness. Gratitude helps people feel more positive emotions, relish good experiences, improve their health, deal with adversity, and build strong relationships.” (Harvard Health Publishing, Aug 14, 2021)

The small stuff can make a big difference. Jesus had told his disciples about the power of the small stuff in the parable of a mustard seed. “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” (Matt 13:31-32). It was the small stuff that made a spiritual difference when Jesus compared their faith to a mustard seed, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matt 17:20)

I will admit there are days it is easier than others not to sweat the small stuff. Yet even on those days when the ice cream machine is broken, you can say, “This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it.” (Ps 118:24 NLT).  The small stuff of a simple smile, a caring touch,  an encouraging word, or even buying your friend an ice cream cone, really can make an impact on you and others.

God is great!