Just Do The One Thing

In the book of John, Jesus friend and follower tells the story of one of the remarkable healings Jesus performed. As I listened to the sermon Sunday and read through it again today I think this might be one of the best stories in the Bible to direct and encourage parents, particularly Moms because I think we do guilt better than Dads do. Have a look at this what happened as Jesus walked into Jerusalem, past the spring fed pool that was said to have healing powers whenever an “angel stirred the waters”…

^3-4 Here a great number of disabled people used to lie down.

Among them were those who were blind, those who could not walk, and those who could hardly move.

Can you relate to seeing a multitude of things that need attention. You have the ability to address them and put things in order. You have the skills, and if you sleep less and work faster, you could actually put more on that list that you love to check off showing that you have accomplished more than Wonder Woman on a good hair day. In the life of a Mama, there is never time to be bored and never a day without chores and responsibilities call out to us. For some of us who have a bit of a Savior Syndrome, we even look outside our homes to come to the aid of others. It is the right thing to do, right? Jesus came to serve and we are told to be like Jesus. So, moving through life, full throttle, with barely time to sleep, we seek to accomplish as much as possible in the course of a week.

Let’s see how Jesus handled this invitation to serve a multitude of people who clearly were in need…

 ⁵ One person was there who had not been able to walk for 38 years. ⁶ Jesus saw him lying there. He knew that the man had been in that condition for a long time. So he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”

I have read this story many times, but when the pastor pointed this out Sunday, it was the first time I had connected the dots to reveal Jesus problem solving skills. In the midst of great need, Jesus didn’t pull out His notebook and make a list of all the needs. He didn’t even delegate to his followers. He simply allowed God to move Him toward the one who He was to heal. One. Holding within Himself the power to do miraculous things, Jesus slowed His pace, likely spoke to His Father about the situation, then let His eye rest on the one lame man God pointed out. I imagine there is much more to the story that John didn’t write down. There was likely a conversation in order to Jesus to discover that the man had been lame for 38 years. And, do you know what I see?  Jesus listened to his story. He took the time to sit and listen rather than rush through so He could get on to the next healing.

Parents, teachers, grandparents, caregivers… when we take the time to listen to God, we are directed to the task He has laid out for us. When we busy ourselves continually, we are choosing to do what God has planned for someone else and may never get to be the gift we were created to be. Maybe you have high energy and maybe you CAN do a lot for others and for your own family, but that doesn’t mean you SHOULD. Stop and listen and let God direct you to the mission He created specifically for you. And let go of the guilt for not fixing everyone and everything. You weren’t called to that! You are human, not divine. Remember that!

I get it! It is so easy to operate on auto pilot and rush through life attacking this, solving that, conquering all the obstacles that are perched on your path. But, sometimes you need to just STOP AND LISTEN. Remember that every time you say YES to something, you end up saying NO to something else… even if that something else is a casual family dinner or extra cuddles at bedtime or a date with your spouse. All those things that seem to easily get shoved aside in our hectic culture, may just be the things that God is waiting for you to do in order to shape you into the person He created you to be.

Don’t forget, God didn’t say, “BE BUSY and know that I am God.”  He said, “Be still and know that I am God.” Slow down. Listen. Be a good follower. Fulfill God’s plan for YOU, not for someone else.

Just STOP!

I told a friend the other day, that if God gave awards for being busy, she would get first place! She jokingly replied, “He doesn’t?” I think that is the way many people envision God – as the taskmaster that is keeping score and we measure our success by our level of exhaustion. We somehow feel that filling our calendar and over-extending ourselves is much more righteous than spending time at the feet of Jesus, honoring Him with our presence and our attentiveness to His Spirit connecting with us, speaking to us, directing our days.

I have come to realize, sometime in this past decade, that busyness is a toxic form of idolatry. Our calendar is our idol and the more it is filled with our color-coded activities, the more false contentment we find until we literally become a slave to activity, trapped in a world we can’t find our way out of. We confuse serving others with serving God. Those are two totally different things.

Here’s an observation that I hope you will ponder long and hard. God doesn’t need YOU to get things done. He is GOD, for heaven’s sake! He is all powerful and all-knowing and all-wise and will get things done with you or without you. BUT, He made you for a purpose and wants to use you for that task. The only way to determine what that task is, is to STOP and listen. I totally get praying while folding laundry and praying while driving or doing dishes. I get starting the day saying good morning to God and ending it with a prayer of thanksgiving for another day. Those are great practices. But, they don’t stop you in your tracks and cause you to simply quiet your soul and LISTEN.

Friend, there is power in finding stillness in your life. It is in the quiet that God’s truth begins to over-ride the lies we have believed about who we are. We discover ourselves and our gifts and our purpose as we meditate, actively listening for God to speak to our soul. The psalmist says it well:

“Be still and know that I am God.”

Psalm 46:10

He follows that with something we seldom read… “I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” Are you catching that? God isn’t honored by our activity, but by our stillness. It is in the quiet that we submit to Him, allowing Him to transform us into His image and that is what will ultimately bring Him honor.

Now, let’s bring that home. How does stillness before God look in our culture where we run our families ragged (or they run us ragged)? How can we make the active decision to be less active in a culture that applauds activity? Discerning the right activities and placing limits on the amount of time we are willing to invest in extra-curricular activities is key. Learn to take a stand and not allow so much “go” that there is not time to “grow.” If there is no time to talk about how God is working in your life and in your home, then something needs to go! Period! You are the one who has been given the responsibility to make sure that your kids know God and if you don’t have time to honor Him in your home, you are failing the most important test for a parent. It isn’t about being at every practice or being in every sport or helping every elderly neighbor. Showing them God involves teaching them to meditate and ask questions and sit silently waiting and listening. It is taking time to discuss daily the attributes of God with them in an age appropriate way. I recommend starting when they are too young to understand you. Develop that habit in yourself and keep it going throughout their lives.

Finally, let me add that God is described in many ways throughout scripture, but my favorite is GOD IS LOVE. So if I find that I am not a reflection of His love; that I am easily angered; that I am jealous or prideful; that I am resentful; that I am judging; that I am not listening well… I know that I am in desperate need of more time, sitting quietly in His presence, being shaped in LOVE. It is there that He holds up the mirror and shows me the dark places where He needs to shine His light and bring about transformation. Your spirit is the true litmus test of your godliness. When you are struggling with any attitude or behavior that isn’t LOVE personified, STOP! BE STILL! And reconnect in quietness and meditation, allowing Him to shape you into His image of LOVE and show you how to slow down and grow up.

A Bedtime Prayer

08132019 Bringing it home

There is a picture from my childhood of a shepherd holding a lamb, which I later came to see as a metaphorical image of Jesus and me… or you. The lamb is small and needy and defenseless and the care giver looks down at it as if that lamb is all that matters in His entire world.

That picture became my view of Jesus; filled with compassionate strength and the safe place I needed to find myself in order to make it in life. It is for that reason that I love the picture I see and the sentiment I feel each time I read or recite Psalm 23. It tells us, not only of the gracious protection of the Good Shepherd, but also helps us see ourselves as He sees us. We are easy prey for the hungry predator and we are in need of guidance if we are to make it from this life to the next unscathed.

I can think of no better passage of scripture for you to recite to your child and plant in their mind than Psalm 23 on a level they can understand….

The Lord is my shepherd. He gives me everything I need.

…so there is no need to worry about anything because He takes care of me
²     He lets me lie down in fields of green grass.

He knows that I need rest so  I can relax, knowing that He chose this place for me
He leads me beside quiet waters.

He gives me what I need in the quietness of His presence
³     He gives me new strength.

And I can do whatever He asks of me because He has provided all I need
He guides me in the right paths   for the honor of his name.

When I follow His plan, He is overjoyed with my obedience
⁴ Even though I walk    through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid.
    You are with me.

Even in the dark and when I am lost or confused, I know that God is right beside me
Your shepherd’s rod and staff    comfort me.

I can trust God to protect me with His power and direct me with His wisdom

⁵ You prepare a feast for me    right in front of my enemies.
You pour oil on my head.

It doesn’t even matter if something is scary to me, because I know God is still there giving me more than I need and lovingly and extravagantly caring for me
    My cup runs over.

⁶ I am sure that your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life.
And I will live in the house of the Lord    forever.

You give me more than enough and You always will as I live my life with You and for You.

Praying scripture over your family is a great practice. They don't need to hear God's Word spoken at church once a week nearly as much as they need to hear it spoken from your lips multiple times a day. Kids are often fearful. Life is big and there are many unknowns that rattle them. You can bring them the comfort of the Good Shepherd by praying Psalm 23 with them every night to remind them that they are a precious lamb in need of a shepherd... and so are you!

Make sure they know that being a grown-up doesn't mean we stop needing our Shepherd to guide us. Every. Single. Day.

Hurry!

When I was a kid there was a sign in Dr. Bahr’s office behind the receptionist that read, “The hurrier I go, the behinder I get.” It was the 60s, when all the technological breakthroughs were happening, enabling us to put more on our calendars because we could work faster and get more done in less time. In the late 1960s a study was done by the U.S. Senate because of the increased productivity created by computers. Due to these great technological advances they determined that, by 1985 people might have to choose between working 22 hours a week, 27 weeks a year, or retiring at age 38! Obviously that didn't happen. Instead, with the extra time, we simply found more to do. This desire to achieve and accomplish more created an interesting phenomenon in the human body; an illness, if you will. There is an actual medical condition called Hurry Sickness and is defined as:  “a continuous struggle to accomplish more things and participate in more events in less time, frequently in the face of opposition, real or imagined, from other people.” It’s really a thing!

In our society we seem to feel like we have to Go! Go! Go!  We are unfulfilled if we aren’t moving at all times, accomplishing something for someone and feeling guilty or lazy when we sit still. Among the “Christian community,” we have learned to rationalize busyness as a pseudo spirituality. There is a world to reach and limited time to do it OR there is a whole Bible to learn so we send our kids to every camp and VBS and religious experience within 25 miles of our home. If we embrace the athletic culture, we lean toward having our kids in multiple sports so they can find what they are best at, signing them up in more than one league or sport at a time so they get more practice and pushing them to perform on a daily basis in addition to their school work and responsibilities at home.

The phenomenon that I have observed is that the household responsibilities get pushed to the background. I suppose that’s because we are seldom home and nobody has time to come to our house so the mess is unknown to the world. Apparently we assume that our kids will magically figure out how to scramble an egg, fold their own laundry, live by a budget, put away their own belongings and maintain a vehicle when they become adults. Many kids today are not being taught to manage their life and accomplish the daily activities that will turn them into self-sufficient adults because there simply isn’t time for that. We aren’t actually in our homes long enough to do that, so rather than teaching them to pick up after themselves and use a vacuum, we work more hours in order to afford a housekeeper to carry that responsibility and instead of teaching them to prepare a proper meal, we make a less healthy choice and drive through and eat fast food.

Ancient, God inspired writers instructed their contemporaries to share their history, their heritage, their journey with God with their children. We see these instructions throughout the entire Bible. Are you allowing a restful rhythm in your life to provide quality time teaching and guiding your kids or is your life filled with go there, do this, accomplish that? Truly, the pace of your life matters and you are the one in charge of that pace. Other people/our culture/ life’s circumstances don’t have to determine the pace of our life in the manner that we are allowing it. This crazy fast pace prevents us from taking the time for the meditation needed to truly know God.

Knowing God takes time. In our culture, time is at a premium because we have become convinced that being busy equates with being godly, being good, being healthy, being compassionate, being humble and sacrificial. Yet, nowhere in God’s story do we hear this taught. There is no place in the gospels where Jesus teaches his disciples to hurry up and do more so that they can please God. On the contrary, we hear the message that we are to slow down; to draw apart; to meditate on His statues; to listen, to be still.

I have always believed that the Church’s role is not simply to transmit the truth of scripture to children, but to walk alongside parents, supporting them as they do so. I also feel compelled to shine a light on the path you are on to make you aware of the danger ahead on the road you have chosen.

After a few days at camp with children, age 6 – 12, seeing the medications they are on and hearing them talk about their anxiety disorders, I am convinced more than ever that our hurried pace has interrupted the rhythm God intended for His creation. It has actually been documented that a hurried life has been proven to increase addiction, stress, anxiety, depression.  In nature, God's intended rhythm is not defied. In the animal kingdom there is a strict adherence to it. We see it in the stars of the night sky,  the waves of the ocean, the changing seasons. It is only in humanity that we continue on the path the Eve set for us, believing that we can do life just a little bit better by our design than by God’s. 

Would you consider stepping back and looking through the windows of your family’s future as if you are being directed by the famous Dicken’s character, the Ghost of Christmas Future, and peer into the result of your busy, hectic, lifestyle to see the end game? Can you see the results of the anxiety your pace may be creating? Living in your vehicle running children here and there, sustaining them on fast food and lunchables? 

I have lived that over-achieving lifestyle, believing that “I am what I do.” I know where it leads and I wish I had time to recreate my youth. But, since I don’t, I hopefully pass on some advice to a younger generation while there is still time for you to create a heritage of learning and knowing and resting in the truth that God compels us to Be Still in order to truly know Him and to be yoked to Him in order to find rest. Allowing time to sit at His feet and learn of Him gives us “permission” to slow down and become who God intended from the beginning.