Time

"Time flies when you're having fun."
"Time waits for no man."
"Where does the time go?"

Its Labor Day weekend. Already. As I get older time seems to be moving at an accelerated pace. Summer is over. When I was a kid summer seemed to stretch on forever. The days were long and we packed so much into each one. We played ball. Any kind of ball, it didn't matter. Baseball. (I was terrible at baseball.) Football. Basketball. We swam and fished and went and spent our hard- earned nickels, dimes and quarters at Doc's Corner Store. (If you had a whole dollar you were rich.) Most days were just that. All of it.
School ended in early June. Labor Day and the start of a new school year wasn't even a blip on our radar. Summer was as close to an eternity as I could imagine.

Those are just memories now. Maybe its age, or maybe everything is just so vastly different in this day we live in. But it sure seems as if time is rushing by at an unprecedented rate.
I hope this Labor Day weekend we can slow things down a bit. I'd kind of like to do some of that "kid stuff" again.

The Goodness of God

I've been thinking a lot this week about the goodness of God. Not as some deep, hazy, hard-to-figure-out theological concept. But as a fact. A fact that is true in my life every single day for as far back as I can remember. God has been good to me. I am the most blessed man you know (or don't know, if that be the case).

But here's the thing: Why? Why has God been so good to me? I'm certainly not deserving. Oftentimes I forget to be thankful. Yet, He is good. It's His nature. It's the character of God to be good. It's really not about me (or you) at all. That's why David the Psalmist could say with great confidence:
"Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life"




Just the latest example of
His goodness toward me -
Olivia Grace

Peace

"The devil never rejoices more than when he robs a servant of God of his peace of heart."
~ Francis of Assisi

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7

Being Right With God

"To be right with God has often meant to be in trouble with men."
~ A.W. Tozer

Wonder and Awe

I had a visit the other day from the little boy who lives across the street. He came without any inhibitions or fear. What he did come with was an incredible sense of wonder and awe. He wanted to know what I was doing, how I was doing it, and why. He asked about everything that came into his sight line. "What's that?" "What does that do?" "How does this work?" He seemed to marvel at the simplest things. A saw hanging over my workbench. A box. A bug. But he saved the best for when we stepped inside for just a moment. With eyes wide like Christmas morning he exclaimed, "Wow! I've never seen this before!"

I think this is the child-likeness that Jesus said we must have in order to enter into the Kingdom of God. Somehow in our grown-up world we've become jaded - incapable of wonder and awe. We call it maturity and think it's a good thing. But all we've really done is to lose the innocence through which we used to see life.
To become a little child again is to recapture the surprise and wonder we once had as we viewed reality. Do you remember the excitement of catching fireflies in a jar? Now we don't even notice these incredible, luminescent creatures. Do you remember finding the coin under your pillow the day after you lost your first tooth? Or the fascination with thunder storms on hot summer afternoons? All of the wonder and awe seems to have been relegated to the past; to a childhood that was so long ago.
To be all that Christ requires for us to be, we must somehow recapture our capacity for wonder and our willingness to express it as we confront all of the realities of life. We've got to get over ourselves enough to say, "Wow! I've never seen this before!"

I'm really glad the little boy from across the street came by to visit.

My Kitchen, My Life (part 3)

Suppose that, while my kitchen is in the midst of a complete renovation, I show up univited at your house with tools and materials in hand. When you inquire as to what I'm doing I say, "I thought I'd come by and remodel your kitchen. The last time I was here I noticed that it needed some work. Your cabinets are outdated, the plumbing fixtures aren't what they ought to be, and the paint color is aweful. Just thought I'd come by and fix it for you."

Rediculous, huh? But isn't that what we do to one another? While our own lives are a virtual construction zone we spend our time and efforts trying to fix someone else's life. While the Lord is doing a great, but far from complete work in our own lives, we intrude into the lives of others bent on seeing change. When will we realize it's not our job to renovate our neighbor's kitchen? When will we decide that the same Master Builder that is working in our own kitchen can handle our friends' kitchens as well?

I'll tell you what I've decided to do. When I come by your house, I'll come as your friend, and not your contractor. Rather than look for all the things that need work in your kitchen, I'll just sit at the table and enjoy your company over a cup of coffee. I'll leave the paint, and the tile, the cabinets and the countertops to you and the Lord. He's much better at all of that than I am anyhow. And I'm sure you'll be much happier with the results.

"... first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye."

Today I'm back to sanding cabinet doors. Come on by, I'll put a fresh pot of coffee on.

My Kitchen, My Life (part 2)

Still thinking about the work of remodeling our kitchen. It really does, in so many ways parallel what the Lord is doing in my life. It's a complete home makeover.

Here's what strikes me today about such a comparison. If it's the Lord doing this great work of change in my life, what does that make me? If He's the craftsman, the master builder, what am I? And the answer that comes to me is this: I'm the totally incompetent, bumbling helper; the guy who breaks things, and drops things, and ends up in the way most of the time. The guy who is usually causing more work by his clumsiness.
If He is Michelangelo, I'm a four year old with a box of crayons. If He's Frank Lloyd Wright, I'm a kid with his first set of building blocks. I'm the Three Stooges - Curly, Larry and Moe all wrapped into one.

So often, rather than be a contributor to the wonderful work that He is doing in my life, I seem to be getting in the way of what the Lord is trying to do. As He works to create in me what He desires, I can't even seem to hold the ruler without messing it up. Yet He is a patient, loving craftsman. He continues the work in spite of me. And when I spill the paint, or drive the nail crooked, He patiently says to me, "No son, not like that. Here, let Me help."
The work goes on.

The Christian Life

"To grasp the truth of the gospel is to fall on our faces in both sorrow and gratitude. To live as Jesus lived is to move off the floor and into the world."
~ Brennan Manning, The Importance of Being Foolish

My Kitchen, My Life (part 1)

I've been remodeling our kitchen for the past few months. It's a process. New countertops. Plumbing fixtures. Paint. Tile. Refinishing cabinets. The works. I really enjoy it. It's a pleasure to see the progress and to know that by my own hands I've re-made the room entirely. It really doesn't look anything like it did a few short months ago. But I'm ready for it to be finished now.

The work going on in our kitchen is very much like the work going on in my life. There's just so much to do. So many details that need attention. And it seems to take forever. Each part of the project adds to the finished product. Each part makes a difference. Each is important. Typically, between each there is a span of time where we stop the work and marvel at the beauty of what is happening. We "oohed" and "aahed" over the cabinets. We marveled at the raw elegance of the granite countertops. But after each step in the process - and after standing back to take in what we've done for just a few days - the work begins again. I'm ready for it to be finished now.

The Lord is remodeling my life. It's taking a long time. There's so much to do. Like us with our kitchen, He has a plan. And I think, like us, every now and then He steps back and marvels at the work that is being accomplished. And like us, I think He longs for the day when the work is finished. You see, that's the day that we'll stand before Him. We'll be home.

For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

If I Could ...

My wife said to me recently, "If you could just do everything that you preach, you'd be perfect."
Ouch! She's right.
How frustrating to know - even to tell others - how to live according to God's ways, and yet to fall so far short.

Like the Apostle Paul, I find myself in a quandary that often leaves me frustrated and feeling defeated. "For that which I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate."

I can picture Paul sitting at his desk writing Romans 7, his chagrin growing as he pens each word. "I want to do right, but it seems so rare when I do what I know is right. Instead, I keep doing what I know to be wrong." Finally, his aggravation with his own inability reaches a fever pitch, and he writes, "Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?"
Maybe at this point the great apostle walked away. He needed a break. What more could he write? He'd already bared his soul. But as he poured another cup of coffee, he began to think about his own words. Who was he depending upon anyhow? Who was it who died over his sin?
After just a few minutes, he knew he wasn't through. There was more to tell. The answer to his own question had come to him. He returned to the unfinished missive, and wrote these words: "Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other hand, with my flesh the law of sin."
"There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."

I wonder if this struggle of Paul's may have come about because Mrs. Paul (who later became famous in her own right) said to him, "If you could just do everything you preach, you'd be perfect."

Passion

"We must be led by excitement and passion to do that which our sober judgments would not approve in our cooler moments."
~ Abraham Lincoln

Those "Preacher Feelings"

It's Thursday. To most, Thursday is just "the day before Friday". But for me it's different. I've got to preach most Thursday evenings. There are some crazy feelings that come along with preaching. "How can I do this?" "Have I heard from the Lord?" " Am I prepared?" " Will they hear?" " Will they receive it?" " What if I've missed the Lord?" " What if the Holy Spirit doesn't show up?"
It's the tension between mortal and immortal; between perfect and flawed; between powerful and weak.

I don't think I'm alone. Every preacher I know goes through similar stuff. The Prophet Zechariah called it "the burden of the word of the Lord." I've come to understand that it comes with the calling.

The beauty of it all is that moment when I step to the pulpit and open God's Word. All of the uncertainty, and all of the "preacher feelings" melt away. The connection happens. The Word goes forth. God's people respond. And seemingly without fail, someone steps up and says, "Chaplain, that was just what I needed." That's all the reward I need. It's all worth it.

"Burger Skip Day"

I'm playing hooky today. Our niece, Jayme, has come in to town for a visit so I'm taking the day to just hang-out with her. We're going to check out the new US Whitewater Center here in Charlotte.

Playing hooky is a healthy thing every now and again. It keeps you from taking yourself quite so seriously. I've learned that the world does not depend on me showing up. Things run very smoothly without me. (Actually, they run better without me sometimes, proving how unnecessary I am to most.)

When our girls were young we used to take a "Burger skip day" every now and again. No work. No school. Just fun for the whole family. Many get a bit bent out of shape over such an idea. "Skip work? Let the kids skip school? How irresponsible," they say. Here's the way it is: I'm not that important. And the kids were never seriously harmed by missing a day. In fact, they don't remember much at all about those endless school days, but they'll never forget those precious "skip days". Try it sometime.

Creatively Sharing the Word of God

This is an awesome website. Check it out:

http://thebricktestament.com/

Who thinks of this stuff?

Immovable

I like words. For one who preaches, and teaches, and writes a little bit, I suppose that would be important. Today I like the word "Immovable".

When something is immovable it is, according to the American Heritage Dictionary:
1) Impossible to move. 2) Unyielding; steadfast.

Immovable is such a descriptive word. Have you ever tried to move something that is immovable? It doesn't move. No matter how much time you spend or how much energy you exert, you can't do it. Why? Because it's immovable.

Immovable is a part of the call of God. The Apostle Paul wrote (1 Corinthians 15:58):
"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord."

Be Immovable.

Get the Message Right

Faith

"... faith is the gaze of a soul upon a saving God."
~ A. W. Tozer

The Kind of Faith I Want

In Acts 20 the Apostle Paul was on his way to Jerusalem. By his own words, he did not know what was going to happen when he got there. He did have a sense that it wouldn't be good (Acts 20:23):
"... the Holy Ghost witnesses in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me."

Trouble. Trials and tribulations were awaiting the apostle in Jerusalem. But rather than run away, he faced it head-on. He went anyhow. His words are words of faith - the kind of faith I want. He said (Acts 20:24):
"But none of these things moves me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus Christ,
to testify the gospel of the grace of God."

"None of these things moves me." I like that. What faith! What confidence in God!

How opposite we seem to live.

How Many Is Too Many?

I heard somewhere that there are now over 750 churches in Charlotte. And it seems that there are new ones popping up every week. Churches meeting in school auditoriums, and movie theaters, and shopping centers. We even have new churches meeting in exisiting churches when the exisiting churches aren't using their facilities. My question is: Why?

Are there that many different ways to "do church"? Do all of these new churches have something that other churches don't? Something so new and unique that we've just got to have another house of worship?

Maybe I'm missing something, but it seems to me that the body of Christ in Charlotte is working overtime to reach the reached.

Satisfied?

"My people shall be satified with My goodness," declares the Lord.
Jeremiah 31:14

Ran across this verse of Scripture in my reading today. Felt convicted.

No Place for an Entitlement Mentality

And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me." Mark 8:34 (NASB)

Jesus called those who would follow Him to a life of self-sacrifice. "... he must deny himself, and take up his cross ..." But, somehow, an entitlement attitude has found it's way into the church today. It's that attitude that says, "Because I follow Him, He must bless me at all times, and give me all that I desire."
That is diametrically opposed to the command of Christ. It's the polar opposite of "deny himself, and take up his cross".

Simply put: You cannot deny yourself and take up a cross with a sense of entitlement. You cannot believe in sacrifice and entitlement at the same time.

Bourne

Yes, I'm a big time fan of the Bourne series.

Just saw The Bourne Ultimatum. It's the best one yet.

A Favorite Verse

Here's one of my favorite verses of Scriture. It's Philippians 4:8 (NASB).

Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things.

If you'll allow me a simple paraphrase: Don't assume the worst. Instead, think good thoughts.

As I minister among the inmate population I find myself sharing this little bit of wisdom from Paul's pen over and over again. It's good advice.

An Odd Thing to Say

Picture Jesus and His disciples in a boat on the Sea of Galilee. As they make their way from west to east, their expertise is evident. They were fishermen. They knew how to handle a boat, how to take advantage of prevailing winds, and how to read the currents. They were in their element.
As the disciples toiled, Jesus stood in their midst giving orders as any good leader would do. But I'm wondering what they must have been thinking as Jesus gave His commands. The Bible says (Mark 8:15):
And He was giving orders to them, saying, "Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."

What an odd thing to say in a boat. Not what any good sailor would expect to hear. Leaven? Seems like something you'd hear in a kitchen, not in a boat. Leaven of the Pharisees? The leaven of Herod? What was He talking about?

I think He was cautioning them about religion and politics. "The leaven of the Pharisees" was Jesus' warning to His disciples against empty religion. Don't get caught up in meaningless religious practices. Don't follow the Pharisees and their heartless observances. It's deadly.
By the same token, "the leaven of Herod" is a warning against the foolishness of politics. Don't waste your passion on the temporal things of man. Don't let earthly governance cloud your view of eternity. It's just as deadly.
Religion and politics will hinder you on your journey. Religion and politics will take the wind out of your sails, and set the currents against you. They may cause you to miss your destination.

So many today seem to be substituting religion and politics for relationship with Him. Many are just doing religious things. They endeavor to appease God with hollow observances.
Many others are striving for trivial political causes. They're more conservative than Christian. More right wing than righteous.

Our Lord's warning would seem to be as appropriate today as it ever was. Be wary as you journey on. Beware of those things that can so easily alter your course. For those of us who choose to traverse this life with Christ, religion and politics are still as harmful as they were two thousand years ago.