In Pursuit Of What?

        As summer dawns and school lets out, what will you find yourself pursuing in the coming weeks? A great tan? More relaxation time? Tasks marked off a list? Being kind to others ALL. DAY. LONG? More time in prayer? The best bargains online? Catching up on the real lives of others on social media? Eating right? Exercising more? Getting the junk drawer organized? Sticking to a Daily Devotional til the end? Being a good parent or spouse? Chances are, you are like me and that list of things I’d like to accomplish before I say goodbye to this world is very lengthy. It seems that human nature bids us to chase after something a little bit better than where we are currently… in a variety of areas… because we have come to understand that fulfillment is not a destination, but a journey.

        Last Sunday Ed Haines shared a great message regarding our pursuit of Jesus. He isn’t running from us or hiding from us. He is laying a path before us every moment of every day, but our “LIST” of what we should be pursuing is usually based on our family of origin issues or our mental and emotional health or whatever this world tells us we should have or become and has nothing to do with what God has planned for us. I would encourage you to listen to his message here: https://thecreekonline.net/media

       Paul reminds the first century church in Ephesus about the need for us to get rid of the way we are living, which may be fine according to the world, but not according to the plan created for each of us.

“Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God – righteous and holy.”

At my house, there is a hamper full of dress-up clothes that my granddaughters love to wear. They don’t just put on one bedazzled outfit and wear it to play for a bit. They put it on, come upstairs and parade it in front of us and then go down and hop out of it and into another one for their next walk down the runway. At the end of the day, there is evidence of the speed with which the change took place. The carpet is littered with their glamorous sequined garb from one end of the basement to the other. As I read this portion of scripture, I picture the quick change operation, and their delight as they rip off the old one, anxious to try out the next. If only we could do that with our worldly attire – cast it off in a hurry, in pursuit of what God has for us because we know that what He offers is so much better!

The places we go and the people we spend time with may be the very things that are keeping us from the renewal that God’s Spirit wants to refresh us with. Perhaps it is the things we are watching or reading. Maybe it is the way we spend our down time. Or the hobbies and recreation that we have chosen to fill our calendar. Whatever it is that is keeping you from full out pursuing a stronger relationship with God, it isn’t worth it. It will keep you empty and feeling cheated by the deception and lust that drags you down. Sin of some sort is a temptation to all of us, but it never pay the reward it promises. It simply leaves you experiencing a void in your life that can only be filled by the One who gave you life and purpose.

As summer begins and our schedules get crazy, I suggest that you put away those winter clothes rather than putting your summer clothes on over them. That would be ridiculous, right? Well, no more ridiculous than leaving the old sinful nature on when God is giving you new clean garments to wear that fit this season of your life. As you pursue Him, may you find Him transforming your attitudes and actions. May you discover this new nature that makes you righteous and holy and draws you closer and closer to Him and His plan for you.

Guilty!

I have asked this question plenty of times, but here I go again…lf you were put on trial for being a follower or Jesus, would there be enough evidence to convict you? And who do you hope would be on the jury?

How about your co-workers? Do they see that you actually KNOW the One you claim to serve? Would they be surprised to hear that you profess to be a follower of Jesus? Do you words and actions prove to your clients or customers or co-workers that God is guiding you daily? Do they see an integrity and value system that would pronounce you guilty or not guilty of being a God follower?

What about that person in other car experiencing your road rage? What if they were on the jury? Would they automatically claim the verdict of not guilty because if you were following God in that moment, you would certainly not have reacted as you did.

Would your parents and siblings do better as your defense attorney or the prosecutor?  They need your love and acceptance, but often get your brutal honesty, judgment or cold shoulder as you avoid them because they are so difficult and annoying. Do they see and feel loved by you as if the love of Jesus was flowing through you to them?

Do your children know that you are growing closer to God every single day? Do they see you in the Word, hear you speak to Him? Watch you meditated in silence listening for His guidance? Do the kids know that your values spring from your relationship with Jesus? Do you talk about Him at home and teach them about His love and the abundant life He has to offer? If they sat on the jury, would they determine that you are guilty of following Jesus or not guilty?

Here is a really tough one… Your husband. What does he see every single day? Does he hear you praising and thanking God for guiding and protecting you, or does he witness worry and fretfulness? Do your attitudes and words and moods reflect a connection with the One who promised to never leave you or forsake you? Does your language ooze love? Are you carrying blessings into your home with words of endearment and encouragement? Can he tell by the honor you show him that you are yoked with and learning from God daily?

And gentlemen… would your wife submit a guilty verdict… knowing beyond a shadow of doubt that you are a disciple of Jesus Christ by the way you love and honor her above yourself? Would she say that the way you make Jesus the priority in your life and in your leadership at home makes it apparent that Jesus is LORD of your life?

You and I and everyone I have ever known are broken. We are human and tend to be selfish and arrogant enough to believe that we can do this life pretty well, follow the rules, be better than most other people and come out pretty close to what pleases God and then someday find ourselves in heaven. But that is NOT what Jesus taught. It is not taught by any of the New Testament writers. Jesus taught that we can be convicted of being His follower by the LOVE we demonstrate to Him and others (Matthew 22:37-39). Everything is hinged on our ability to love and, frankly, we don’t do that well on our own. It’s just a human problem. Plain and simple. That’s why we have to take His yoke every single day and learn from Him. Connect with Him. Walk with Him. Listen to Him.

Letting go of our will and drive to be the best by our own definition and emptying our minds of the lies we believe about earning our way to heaven, and replacing what is false with the wholeness and purity of His love, is transformational. His love in us, overflowing to others will get us convicted of being a follower of Christ better than the best sounding prayer or the most scripture memorized or the most incredible adherence to a code of ethics.

Court is now in session. All rise! And may the JUDGE and the jury find us all guilty of following Jesus by His lavish love overflowing to our spouse, our kids, our neighbors, our community, our co-workers and even to perfect strangers who cross our path.

Heaven Now

In the past 2 years I have lost both of my parents. Their earthly bodies wore out and they left us here missing them. As much as I miss them, I know they are in a better place. Heaven is real, but it isn’t just a place to long for when we leave this earth. Here’s how I know...

Dad loved deeply with the kind of love that impacted so many people in so many ways. He put his heart on the line, vulnerably risking everything to love without limits. He learned to empty himself of his own thoughts and be filled with the thoughts of Jesus. Because he allowed himself to be vulnerable, he could live for others, rather than himself. And because he trusted Jesus to place His yoke upon him, he was constantly learning from Jesus how to love a little bit better and live a little bit richer life. Every time we were out in public and someone told him, “Have a good day,” he would always, ALWAYS respond with, “Every day you get is a good day.” And he meant every word of it. In the last month of his life, his body was too weak to take care of himself and he hated the thought of be a burden, but he graciously accepted what he couldn’t change and still found joy and shared it with others, with every ounce of strength he had left. Dad enjoyed heaven in the midst of his struggles, every day that I knew him.

Mom was different. Life was always a struggle for her and she would never claim to have found heaven on earth. Because of the scars in her childhood that never healed, she struggled to be vulnerable enough to love freely. She feared wearing the yoke that Jesus offered to help her synchronize her life with His, because she didn’t trust fully that He had a better plan. She liked to play it safe and not take the risk of loving and being hurt. She was a very good person, but she was never truly at peace until she knew that she only had days to live. She would tell everyone that the adage, “Old age is a privilege denied to many,” is a lie because her mind and body were so tormented with pain that life on earth was not a privilege to her. She read constantly trying to find the answers and discover the peace that God promises, but it always seemed to elude her. She read her Bible, memorized scripture, wrote in her journal, went to church faithfully and physically did the same things that Dad did as a follower of Jesus, but those things didn’t change her the way they changed Dad, and she didn’t experience heaven until she left us.

I feel very privileged to have the parents I had. Neither were perfect, but I learned so much about following Jesus from watching them. They taught me that our history has an impact on who we become. Dad’s childhood was scary. His family struggled with extreme poverty through the Great Depression.  He was no stranger to hunger and the ridicule of classmates because of his old and tattered clothing. His 3 older brothers all left to fight in WW2 leaving him behind as a youngster running from the war that was under his roof, a dangerous and mentally ill mother. Fearing her, he took to the streets finding anyone willing to play basketball with him. He became a talented athlete, but  didn’t make the basketball team, because his family was too poor to buy the uniform and his mother too unstable to risk having her at the games. His history impacted who he became. But it didn’t take heaven from him.

Mom was raised in a more affluent family, never wanting for anything. Except love. Her father wanted a son and she was the third daughter. Her memories of him were littered with angry outbursts and severe punishments. Her vague memories of her mother, who died when mom was 12, were tear brimmed eyes filled with sorrow. She had a step mother who was kind and gracious and cared deeply for her, but she missed her mom and Neva could never replace her so she unleashed her anger and resentment on the woman who tried so hard to give her a better life. Her history impacted who she became. She didn’t find heaven on earth, though she longed for it continually.

Watching Dad, I discovered that he was celebrating the joy of heaven and walking with Jesus while he was still living. Watching Mom, I witnessed the “hell on earth” that she often used to describe her life.

Why were they so different? Why did the struggles of their childhood impact them in such different ways? Why did one see glory while the other saw gloom? I’m not a psychologist, but it seems apparent to me that Dad learned to define himself by who God said he was, not what the classmates said or the coach said or his mother said. Whereas Mom defined herself as the failure her dad said she was. “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,” Jesus said. Connect with Me so that I can show you where to step and who you will become. Dad took that yoke. He allowed God to transform him into the man he was meant to be. Consequently, Dad began to experience heaven before he left this earth.

This may be a lot of babbling. Mother’s Day causes me to reflect… and cry a bit. I am sad that life was so difficult for my mother. No matter what she read or what we did or said, her joy was never sustained because her thoughts always centered on what she lacked. She lacked the yoke that would direct her steps into the peace of knowing who she was in God’s eyes. She had to leave this earth to escape the pain of life.

One thing I believe with all my heart is that we must allow God to transform the way we think (Romans 12:2) if we are to begin to experience heaven and the presence of God in our lives here and now. If we are to discover victory over the mess of our past, we must think differently and then we will begin to feel a transformation take place inside of us. As those feelings change, so do our behaviors and our words and our lives. We begin to let go of the person we have been defined as and embrace the person we were created to be. And when that happens, people begin to see heaven in us and gravitate toward us rather than running the other direction.

If we want to experience heaven inside us now, three things must happen.

First, we must see that doing life on our own is futile because we are all a hot mess.

Second, we must trust that His yoke is not a burden, but when placed upon our shoulders our steps become easier and our footing more secure as we learn His ways.

Third, we must learn to see ourselves and others through the lens of the Creator so that we can freely love as He loves, give as He gives and draw others to Him.

Anything less than that leaves us longing continually for a life we cannot find on this planet. I long to be the follower, the disciple of Jesus, that is daily learning and growing closer to Him, allowing Him to transform me by changing the way I think and feel and behave. I want others to see a glimpse of heaven in me. May it be so!

Choosing Heaven

Did you ever get bogged down in what different people believe about what the Bible teaches about salvation and eternal life? It’s easy to do. You listen long enough to enough different people and all you have is a lot of conflicting opinions so you don’t even know what you believe about where you stand, spiritually speaking. Some operate from a list of Do’s and Don’ts. Some say there is a minimum requirement for our salvation. Some indicate that there is a special prayer to pray. Others believe that once you are “in” you’re there for life and others feel that you can walk away from the agreement you made to follow God. But, what did Jesus say about eternal life and how it is to be attained?

John records the words of Jesus' prayer for His followers in John 17 where He states that eternal life is simply knowing God.

“And this is the way to have eternal life –

to know you,

the only true God and Jesus Christ,

the one you sent to earth.”

So the real question is, how well do you know God? Do you spend time learning and listening to Him? Jesus also said in Matthew 11:29  “take my yoke upon you and learn from me.” If you hope to truly know God, you need to be yoked to Him, experiencing His movements and not resisting, but falling in step with Him as you learn the rhythm of His ways. If you aren’t in the Word, reading and learning; if you aren’t in a fellowship of believers who are growing and worshiping together; if you aren’t making a daily commitment to follow Jesus and take His yoke and place it on your shoulders, then you can’t expect to truly know God.

As parents, how are you helping your kids to know Jesus? Do you talk about what Jesus said? Do you show them what it means to walk with Him? We all want heaven for our kids, but maybe what we should be striving for is not hoping to get them into heaven, but getting heaven into them. Jesus said that the Kingdom is within us and we can offer them a bit of the heaven on earth now by the way we live our life and share His teachings with them. We can’t ensure that they will follow Jesus, but I believe that they have a much stronger chance of choosing Him if they have watched what it means to connect to and move with Jesus in our day to day lives. If we are making decisions based on our fatigue or our history rather than on our relationship with God, they may learn our rules and expectations and even acquire good moral values, but that doesn’t direct them to God. Making your life an example for them of walking with God is so important if you want them to do the same.

Mom and Dad, is heaven your primary goal for your children? If so, then make God the number one priority in their lives. Don’t keep pushing family worship to the back burner because they need to be loyal to their team and not miss a game. Don’t remain silent about spiritual issues because you don’t understand the Bible in its’ entirety, but keep learning and digging and growing and sharing as you grow. Consider how many hours your child is awake each week and write down the hours you are guiding them to invest in different things. How does connecting with God measure up to connecting with sports or studies or chores or playing video games?

We live in a culture that teaches us to be devoted to our team or our sport and not let them down. Can we not take a stand against that philosophy and tell our team, right from the start, that our family values worshiping God together on Sunday and will not be playing in Sunday morning games.  Perhaps if we took a stand, the world would see the value of following and worshiping God. Perhaps our children would learn that Jesus is a priority over all else. Investing our time and energy and money into our physical bodies without considering the cost to our soul leaves us unbalanced. That lifestyle is taught nowhere in scripture. We are mind, body and spirit and must develop in all those areas to find balance and health and possibly heaven. Of all the things to neglect, please don't let it be the spirit that connects your child to their Creator and their purpose.

God gave these kids to YOU to raise for His glory. Not to the coach. Not to the school. Not to their friends. Begin today to put some heaven into them by openly following God in your home and showing them how to do the same. Be bold. Be kind. Be yoked to the only One who really knows how to navigate through life here with heaven right inside our hearts. Who wants to wait if you can have heaven right here and now?!?

The Empty Tomb Isn't Empty

Have you ever felt hopeless? In a situation where you have no control to resolve a difficult or scary situation? Perhaps a loved one who is ill or a vehicle sliding on the ice rapidly toward you? A relationship that feels like it is crumbling and you are powerless to fix it? A weariness in your mind, body or spirit that feels like a darkness coming over you and you can’t stop it?

The followers of Jesus found themselves feeling the deepest sense of hopelessness as they stood by and watched their Friend being beaten and crucified. They saw the One that had come to bring life to them have His own life taken in the most gruesome manner. They saw their hope shattered into a million pieces right before their eyes and were powerless to stop it.They were just beginning to believe that He was the Son of God. Surely He could have stopped it if that were true.

I believe every ounce of hope was torn from the deepest part of their hearts and they were left in a miserable state of hopelessness. Even though he told them what was going to happen and tried to prepare them, His words were obscured from their mind as they watched the brutal crucifixion occur. Hope was so lost that none of them expected Him to conquer death and arise to speak to them and actually spend time with them. Jesus’ resurrection was as much a surprise to them as it was to those who didn’t believe that He was the Son of God.

But Jesus did come back and before He ascended to heaven. He promised that He would be with them, that He would never leave them, that His Spirit would live within their hearts and they would have power. Power that overcomes the darkness of hopelessness and brings light into our blackest despair.

Is there a darkness that has stolen your hope? Are you finding difficulty believing that it can be better? That your marriage can recover? That your financial crisis will improve? That your health will be restored? That your children will work through this difficult stage? May I remind you that there is hope because Jesus is ALIVE! His Spirit in those who believe and choose to follow Him has power and provides wisdom and transforms us as we learn to hold on to what we cannot see.

The tomb held no body centuries ago, but in that emptiness, hope overflowed. The empty tomb is still full of hope for those who need Him today. There was no body, but that cavern of emptiness was filled with a hope that gives life. So, even though you may feel defeated, there is hope because in conquering the grave, Satan was defeated. Satan is the thief of all hope, but he can only take your hope and your joy if you give it to him. Hold on to hope and hold on to Jesus. He didn’t go to the cross for nothing. He went to the cross for you. And He is very much alive for you. The empty tomb is full of hope. 

What Does Love Require

Hours before Jesus was arrested and taken away from His followers He, knowing that His crucifixion was eminent and His work with these men was drawing to a close, was still teaching them perhaps one of His greatest lessons. He did not tell them how to speak to the masses eloquently or be more charismatic in order to win the people in the crowds. He did not tell them how to memorize all He said and did or the scrolls of law in the synagogues. In fact, it wasn’t so much what He told them, but what He showed them that was remarkable. John recounts the story…

³ Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power,

and that he had come from God and was returning to God;

⁴ so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing,

and wrapped a towel around his waist.

⁵ After that, he poured water into a basin and began

to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

This was God in a human body with all the power needed to command Heaven and Earth to bow down and worship Him, but instead, He took the place of a servant and washed the dirty, dusty, stinky feet of His followers. And when He was finished He said…

¹⁵ I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.

¹⁶ Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master,

nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.

¹⁷ Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

I’m pretty sure we all know what is means to serve others in love because we generally expect it from our spouse! I have been serving the church for a lot of years and have heard the cases of many couples who don’t feel that their partner is loving them as they need to be loved. One is putting much more effort into the marriage than the other and when there is no pay off for their hard work, eventually they are ready to call it quits! We have a pretty high standard when it comes to our expectations.

Jesus has the solution. Serve as He did. Nobody expected the Teacher to be the one to wash the grime off of their feet. But He Did. And then told them that He had set the example for them to follow. In essence He said to them, “I don’t have to serve you. I could create an entire staff of servants to serve all of us. I could command you to wash my feet…But, I served you because I love you. Now you go do the same. Show your love by serving.

Let’s bring that home. Do you ever feel like you are giving all that your partner needs and wants and they are not receiving your offerings? Perhaps you are serving them in the manner in which you desire to be served and aren’t even close to meeting the needs they feel as you serve them. Maybe you don’t think he should need that so you don’t freely offer it. Perhaps you don’t feel comfortable saying that to her so you remain silent. Can you explain to me how that is serving your spouse in love? Guess what? You don’t get to determine what they desire from you or what they need in order to feel loved. You are simply asked, by Jesus himself, to serve them in love.

Jesus service went all the way to the cross because of His unfathomable love for us. 

What does love require of you?

Live IN Love

How do you know that you are loved? Words of tenderness? Actions? A look? A special touch? A gift? An act of service? Words of affirmation? Quality time together? We may each answer differently and it may change from day to day, but one thing is certain, love isn’t something you proclaim one time and then walk away assuming that person will always feel loved. Love is something that you cultivate and build and grow over a span of time. Without that effort, a loving relationship soon turns into no relationship at all.

A short time before Jesus went to the cross he told His followers that He loved them before He knew them. God’s love is eternal with no beginning and no end and Jesus said,

“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.”

And then he follows that with,

“Now remain in my love.”

How does one “remain” in a love that has been given freely? Jesus goes on to explain…

^10 “If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love,

just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love.”

What He doesn’t say is, “If you do a long list of chores, I will love you.” He has already proclaimed His love that we could never do anything to earn. The way, however, to swim in the sea of His love and soak it in and feel it deeply is to do what He did… follow the way of God. And why is it important to Him? Because He wants us to experience the joy that comes as a result.

^11’ I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.’

So, what is this command of God that will supply this joy? He tells us…

^12 “My command is this:

Love each other as I have loved you.”

Let’s bring that love home for a minute. Do you love your spouse as Jesus loves you? With no conditions? Will you love them on those days when they don’t get it right and leave you feeling unloved? Will you love them even if they don’t seem to return your love in a way that feels warm and fuzzy? Jesus loved us just like he loved His followers 2000 years ago, when they fell short, when they fell asleep on the job, when they failed and betrayed Him. When we are nothing but a hot mess, He loves us… AND that is what He is asking of us. To love without conditions.

That’s hard! Since love is such an investment for us, mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually, it is only natural to expect something in return. We don’t like the idea of sacrificing day after day with no pay off. But, Jesus addressed the idea of sacrifice in the very next verse…

^13 “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

He knew what they didn’t. His life was about to be required of Him. He knew that it was necessary in order to reconcile God and humanity. That was the plan from the start and it was about to come to pass. He was about to demonstrate the meaning of love with 2 boards and some nails. “Love each other as I have loved you.” He made the ultimate sacrifice to demonstrate His love. He showed us the picture of a love that gives.

I think that is why Jesus said you can’t claim to love Me if you don’t love others (1 John 4:20). You cannot possibly live in the love He freely offers if you don’t offer the same love to others…at least as much as is humanly possible. It would be like trying to build a relationship with someone with different customs and traditions who speaks an entirely different language. You may like the way they look or the idea of being in a relationship with them, but without communication of some sort, a relationship cannot be built.

If you are feeling like your relationship with Jesus isn’t growing and thriving, then look no further than your relationships with others to discover what the problem may be. You can’t live in His love if you don’t love sacrificially. When we learn to love deeply and freely, we begin to experience the joy that God intends for us. 

If you feel like your marriage is growing cold, 

don’t focus on what you aren’t getting, 

focus on what you aren’t giving. 

and learn to live in love

so that your joy will be complete.

The Way

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled…You know the way.”

No, we don’t know, Lord. We don’t know the way.

“I am the Way...

Love me and obey what I have taught…

Don’t be afraid.

Just follow and I will give you peace.”

From John 14:15-27

Have you ever lost your child? Maybe temporarily in a Department store or in a large crowd? It is horrifying. We want them to stay near to us so that we can keep them safe and when they wonder away, even if they don’t panic, we do because we know the potential danger they are in.

When I look at the things Jesus said to His disciples, I often see them through a Mom’s eyes. That’s just the kind of eyes I happen to have. In His unfathomable love, He doesn’t want us to wander away into danger. Yep, I get that. He wants us close in order to keep us safe, even if we don’t recognize the danger around us. Makes perfect sense to me. He wants us to be like sheep who recognize the voice of their shepherd and follow him through the gate to a safe place. It is His voice that keeps them safe. Sheep aren’t smart creatures, but they can recognize the voice of the one that cares for them and they know to follow that voice and not that of a stranger. Sometimes kids aren’t as smart as sheep and are easily enticed by the wrong, deceitful voice.

In another place, Jesus tells his disciples that we are to take His yoke and learn from Him. As a pair of yoked oxen works together and moves together, they accomplish much more than they could alone, feeling the rhythm of each other, moving together as one. Walking with Jesus, yoked to Him, we will learn to walk in the way He planned for us. That is totally what I want for my kids. I want them to see Jesus as wanting to make their way better, not burdensome.

When Jesus is closing in on His final days with His disciples and warning them of what is coming, they feel the panic of trying to remember all they have been taught and the terror of doing life without their leader. How will they know what to do and how to do it when He is no longer walking by their side leading them? Jesus basically let them know that He wasn’t going to be able to hand them a roadmap or devotional or textbook that would keep them on the right path. Instead he simply stated that if they really wanted to keep their feet on the right track and follow the path God had ordained for them, they must remember one thing… “I AM THE WAY.”  How many unnecessary lectures have my kids heard because I wanted them to get it right? Perhaps I just needed to point them to Jesus… and since they can’t see Him, I needed to be the Jesus follower that they could see.

As a parent, we want our children to follow Jesus. We want them to find their purpose. We want them to recognize the voice of the Shepherd and find their way to the Gate. We want them to know the path that God wants them to take. But, how do we raise them in such a manner that they will believe the statement Jesus made when He said, “I AM THE WAY?”

The answer is simple, but not easy. If we are going to help them to understand that we believe God’s Word is TRUTH and the Jesus is the WAY to God and the WAY to life and the WAY to heaven, then we simply must begin to live as though we believe it. We have to spend time sitting at our Savior’s feet and listening to His voice. We will only recognize it if we already are familiar with His teachings. We see heinous crimes on the news and hear the defendant claim that they heard God tell them to commit that crime. We know it isn’t true because we know the character of God and God wouldn’t tell them to do something contrary to His nature. The more you read the Story of God that we find in the Bible, the better you know the character of God and the better you know Him, the more you recognize His voice.

When you are yoked to Jesus, you walk in step with Him. You love as He loves. You forgive and show grace as He does. You care for the “least of these.” You learn His ways and then you know where to put your foot next… one step at a time. When you live life like that, your kids learn the value of being yoked to Jesus. They see the freedom in letting go of the fear of the unknown and the joy of walking in step with the One who designed the life that was planned for them.

What happens in your home on a regular basis that demonstrates to your children that you believe Jesus is THE WAY?  It may be easier to teach them the way that you feel is right or to believe what you say is true. The effective and Godly way, however, to show them THE WAY is to walk in it, confidently knowing that He is a faithful and trustworthy Father. He is a loving and compassionate Shepherd. He is who He says He is. He is the Way.

Ultimately your kids have a free will, just like you. You cannot force them to follow Jesus, but if you complicate the way to walk with Jesus, they will just be bewildered. Live it out and keep it as simple as A B C D…

Admit that you need a Guide in life.

Believe that it is the One who came to die so that you could live.

Choose to be yoked to Him and learn of Him.

Disciple your kids as Jesus did His followers, so that they can find their way as they walk in step with THE WAY.

Leave Her Alone!

I had some tests run last summer and one of them randomly uncovered a cyst in my sinus passage which meant that I needed to see an ENT. So, after the ordeal of finding one that my insurance would cover I drove an hour to South Bend, with my invalid father, was misdirected by my gps, got lost, finally found it, drove around the parking lot for 5 minutes waiting for someone to leave so I could park the car, took Dad’s wheel chair out of the trunk, got him unloaded and ran (if you can call my quickest movement running) through the pouring rain, found the directory, got to his office, muddled my way through the kiosk that wasn't responding to my wet fingers as I tried to check in, finally someone called me up to the desk and tells me that I am now 10 minutes late so I would have to reschedule.

I took a few deep breaths and I rescheduled. I then went through the same ordeal a few weeks later (only I didn’t get lost this time), and waited an hour to see the doctor that couldn’t wait 10 minutes for me. When he came into the office, he immediately said, “Doctors often find these cysts in an MRI and send patients to see me, but they are nothing to be concerned about. I just have to see you as a professional courtesy because you were referred to me. I’ll see you again in 6 months.”

I tell you this story to illustrate what a colossal waste of time looks like. It is frustrating. It is always frustrating going from Doctor to Doctor looking for answers that nobody can find, but this experience was nothing more than a ginormous frustrating waste of time… except for the fact that I was with my Dad. When you get to be with someone you love, having quality conversations, laughing at the ridiculousness of it all, finding something new to see, finding the plumbing store that he set up for the Chizm’s, just being with one you love is never a waste of time.

There is a story in John 12 about Mary, a dear friend of Jesus “wasting” expensive perfume on him. This was the same Mary who “wasted time” sitting at his feet when her sister was doing all the cooking. Jesus knew he was coming to the end of mission on Earth. He was spending time with his friends, eating a meal when Mary comes in a pours the equivalent of a year’s wages on the feet of the Master that she loved with everything in her. It was the custom to have your servants wash the feet of the guests reclining at your table… with water. Mary was not a servant and she did not use water. And, to take this action to an even more intimate level, she dried his dusty, dirty feet with her hair. The best thing she owned and an intimate part of her being in their custom, was given to Him without reservation. It was meal time and she should have been in the kitchen. Being at the feet of Jesus appeared to be a big waste of time AND a big waste of money.

Mary’s actions were shocking and risky and unrestrained. She put it all out there to show her love for the One she knew would lay down His life for her. There was no way to honor Him at a higher level than that. And for her actions, she was shamed. The “wasted” perfume could have been sold to feed the poor. That was Judas’ argument against her. Certainly the compassionate Jesus who cared for the poor would call her out for that huge act of wastefulness.

I have had some struggles with Jesus response. “Leave her alone. She did this in preparation for my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.” Why would a loving Savior who cared about people so much that He came to die for them, place His sweet feet above the needs empty tummies of others? It doesn’t match the character of Christ that I have come to know over the years. So what am I not seeing?

Could it be that it really doesn’t matter what we do for others, if we aren’t doing it as a sweet offering to Him?  There will always be people to serve. There will always be needs. There will always be jobs to do and money to earn and children to teach and sick to attend to and houses to clean and on and on and on… but if we refuse to put ourselves out there and offer our very best… the best of what we have and the best of who we are… to Jesus, then all our good works are worthless.

Is your marriage struggling even though you are reading books and trying to do and say all the right things for your spouse? Maybe what is missing is that you are doing in for your spouse or for yourself and not even considering Jesus as part of the equation. Without honoring and worshiping Him, you are just wasting your time.

Are your children difficult to understand, control, cope with… even though you are doing the best you know to do for them?  Maybe it’s time to take the focus on all you can give to them and do for them and turn your eyes to the One who gave them to you to raise for Him. Maybe exhausting yourself with their activities is a true waste of your time. What Jesus asks is that you pour your best out for Him so that your kids discover Who is really the center of it all that matters in life. 

Are you pouring yourself out for your career, your team, your friends your education, your family and neglecting the Master who designed the abundant life that is a custom fit for you? If so, you are wasting your time.

As Easter approaches I would like to suggest that you take some time to give the very best hour of your day; the very best energy of your day; the very best cognitive thoughts of the day… not to the things that the world sees as valuable, but give it instead to Jesus.

I can’t even imagine what it must have felt like for Mary, in that time in history, in the part of the world where she acted completely inappropriately and took a huge risk for the One she loved with all her heart, to hear the Master say, “Leave her alone.” Such validation. Such vindication. Such complete understanding of the gift she was freely offering Him.

Are you willing to put yourself out there for Him, even when the world says that you're wasting your time? I would like to be there when you do and hear Him say to those who are critical… “Leave her alone!”

That's Why You're Here

Think back over the last 48 hours. Two days of your life. They are forever gone and there are no do-overs. Make a mental list of the things you accomplished. No doubt your lists will all differ. Some will be long lists. Training children, reading them stories, bathing them, dropping them off and picking them up from practice, tidying the house, doing a few loads of laundry, packing lunches,  helping with homework or being the constant reminder that it needs to be done (along with picking up their things and getting their backpack ready for school), fixing dinner, making a shopping list, preparing dinner, running errands… and all of this after an 8 hour day of work! One day runs into another and before you know it a week has disappeared in another flurry of activity.

For others the list is shorter. After a busy day at work, you come home, pop a frozen dinner in the microwave, flip on the TV and relax a bit while scrolling through social media to “connect” with friends, while your kids are in their rooms doing the same thing.

Some do less than the first list and some do more than the second list. Often the people in the first list are in go-mode from early to late every single day of every single season. If they took anything off their To Do list, they would feel guilty or responsible for the doom that surely would cause the Earth to spin backward if they ever slow down. There is an underlying feeling that there will be a reward at the end of life for the person who stayed the busiest and they dare not allow someone else to out-busy them and walk away with the title, World’s Busiest Mom. After all, they make sacrifices every single day to insure that their children get to participate continually in a sport or club or activity that will keep them well rounded, develop their skills, and stay out of the mayhem that will most assuredly suck them in if the perpetual motion stops. Living in this constant chaos feels good because it makes you a martyr for your family.

Both of these scenarios are grave exaggerations (I hope) of what your last 48 hours actually looked like. If you are that busy, you won’t even see this blog because, after all…who has time to read and meditate and listen to anything that might inspire you to slow down and look at the habits you are instilling in your children with all the hustle and bustle. If you are that “chill,” you won’t open the blog because you are more interested in the drama and intrigue in the lives of others than creating and improving your own life.

So for you middle of the road people who are taking the time to read this and have considered the last 48 hours of your life, I have one more request. Take that list and lay it before the One who made you for a purpose and ask Him what needs to be added or taken away in order to accomplish the mission that is waiting for your obedience. Now, slow down and listen.

Do you love children? There are so many that need to be loved, tutored, taught, trained, helped, fostered…

Are you drawn to the elderly? You could change their week so much by going to visit them for a couple of hours.

Do you have skills to assist young adults with budgeting their time and money and teach them the things that nobody else has taught them?

Are you mechanically inclined? There are likely people in your area about to lose their job because their car isn’t dependable.

Do you love being outside? There is probably a yard nearby with leaves to rake or branches to pick up or grass to mow or shrubs to trim and you could provide that blessing.

Maybe you are amazing at finding coupons and rebates and sales and save so much when you shop that you could take some quality food to someone living on ramen noodles.

Is baking your “therapy” but you don’t dare eat as much as you make? Bake a loaf of bread or cookies and take it to whomever the spirit points out to you.

Do you love to organize? There are dozens of people who would love to have you wade through a mess that is overwhelming them.

You don’t have to look very far to see needs, but you do have to slow down and listen to determine where God wants you to use the gifts he has given you. Jesus told His followers that whatever you do for those in the deepest need, is a priceless gift to Him. He has asked us to be generous with the gifts we have. After all, He is the One who gave them to us.

There is someone who needs you today. God will point them out to you. If you rush in without consulting Him, you may find that your resources of time and energy and money are spent in the wrong place. Make sure you take the time to be directed by His Spirit.

You have taken the time to read this. Now, what will you do with it?

Will you slow down enough to listen and discover who that person is that God is calling you to bless?

Will you use the talent and time and resources He has given you to be a blessing?

I pray that you will allow enough margin of time and resources to listen and obey, because, after all….

That’s why you’re here!

The Heart/Brain Connection

“Penny for your thoughts.” 

“What’s going on in your head right now?”

“What were you thinking?!?”

We have probably all had those questions asked of us. Maybe when we are staring off into space, obviously not connecting with our current surroundings. Perhaps our body language is telling a story when our lips are not saying a word. Or, we have just been caught doing something ridiculously unwise. It makes people curious when our actions or expressions indicate our head is somewhere else, so they ask about it.

It isn’t just our head, or thoughts that drift off to a far away place. Sometimes it is because of an issue in our heart.  Where is your heart when it fixed on the things that trouble you? The things you cannot control? The loved ones who are in need? The starving children of the world? The lost souls around you? The desires that overwhelm you? Is it fixed on that person that has taken your heart and wrapped it up so tightly that they have taken control of your world? Is your heart focused on pleasure? Is it focused on climbing to the top of your game? Is your heart controlled by the things of this world or the One who created you for the next world?

Physiologically speaking, the heart is necessary for life. When it stops beating, blood stops circulating. When there is no blood carrying the nutrients and the oxygen to the brain and other organs, life ends. Interestingly, the brain is the organ that experiences injury faster than any other organ once the heart stops.  The brain keeps all of our systems functioning, so it is essential for life to continue. It is possible for the heart to begin to beat again through the administering of CPR or the use of a defibrillator, but it must be done quickly, because the brain function, once it has stopped, will not return without a miracle.

I am not a science person, but, knowing that little bit from sixth grade science class, helps me to grasp the connection of our thoughts and our hearts on a spiritual level.  When our spiritual heart (the place God’s Spirit desires to inhabit) and our mind (the center of our thoughts) has a “blockage,” spiritual death is a certainty. Not only does this cause spiritual death for the person whose “heart” has stopped communicating with the “mind,” but it causes a huge bit of confusion for the world who is watching. Those who claim to follow Jesus are living with the same moral standards as those who do not.

It stands to reason, then, that there is some force at work to derail the signals from God’s Spirit in the heart of those who believe. Thoughts that are contrary to the Truth of His Word begin to take on a life of their own, separate from the guidance of the Spirit. There is something confusing the signals from the Spirit of God to alter the thoughts that grow in our minds. It’s not the guy in the red suit with horns and a pitchfork. We are far too smart to fall for the lies that he might use to steer us in the wrong direction. Oh, to be sure, it is the Evil one, but when we begin to believe that Satan is easy to identify and his lies are simple to see, we have fallen for the oldest trick in the book. The slick deception that began in Eden and caused the fall of humanity is still at work today. He appears to be our friend… to want to assist us and make our life richer, more exciting, more like the people around us. He doesn’t wear a DANGER sign or begin his conversations with a warning. That’s why we see people who claim to be followers of Jesus; who claim to have the Spirit of God living in them; who claim to be “Christians” living according to the standards of the world rather than according to the standard set for us in scripture. The standard that God gives us in order that we might discover the true abundance He has for us.

If you have not invited Jesus Christ to be LORD of your life, then this isn’t for you. But, if you have decided to be a follower of Jesus, then you have invited the Spirit of the Living God to guide and direct you; to live within you; to draw you into a relationship with Him that is eternal. If you have decided to follow Jesus then you are on your way to discovering the DESTINY that God has for you…the PURPOSE for which you were created…the ABUNDANCE that overwhelms…the HOPE that restores…the LIGHT that directs and the LOVE that transforms.

SO….

Shove the intruder out! He doesn’t care about your heart. He just uses it to short-circuit your thoughts. Give the place of honor back to the Spirit of God so that your mind can be focused on what is true and right and noble and good. Let your thoughts wrap securely around the love that will hold you tightly in the darkest of times and give you peace and hope and confidence. Allow the Spirit to direct you to the people and the places where you can grow to be what you were created to be.

IF…

You have lost hope or lost your focus… if you continually struggle in your finances, in your marriage, in your job, with your children, among your friends, in your relationships… take a good look and you just may discover that you are not making decisions according to the Spirit of God, but according to the Deceiver. You can’t follow both. Totally and completely give God your heart so that He alone can direct your thoughts… then the actions will follow that will reflect a healthy heart and mind.

Can Contentment Cry?

Have you ever noticed that some people are born with natural agility and physical strength to be graceful and strong and athletic. On a good day I can walk without stumbling on a pebble. Some people were born with a natural beauty and can be stunning in jeans and a sweatshirt, ponytail and no make-up. I missed that gene. Some people have a great mind and can learn and remember with ease. Nope. Not me! I think a good day is remembering to take my grocery list or knowing where I parked my car. And when both happen on the same day, I know that God must truly be directing me! Other folks are born into affluence and  have the resources to shop top quality stores and replace broken things rather than repairing them… again and again. Where’s the fun and challenge in that, I ask you? Thrift shopping is like going on a treasure hunt! And the thrill of making the car last to 300,000 miles just doesn’t compare to the smell of a new car. (I might be fibbing a little on that last one).

Though I fall short in many areas, they don’t compare to what I have. I have a heritage of contentment and that sure does help to balance out what I lack. To be completely raw and honest, I have experienced tremendous sorrow in the past year and a half. I lost my mom and dad. Health struggles have plagued me, keeping me from doing what I want to do. My adult children have seen loss and pain and health issues that I cannot fix. My grandson is in the USAF and somewhere in “the field” learning to survive on nothing but his learned skills and God’s provision.  Some days life is just hard… and I am learning that sorrow is an uninvited guest that shows up at the most inconvenient of times. Unchecked tears flow without warning. My heart aches deeply at the sadness that I feel. Some days I think about my parents, my kids, my loved ones who I cannot help, and I can’t get my thoughts to budge from pictures of them rolling across the screen of my mind, making it hard to do the things that must be done.

YET … in spite of the struggles and the pain, contentment remains by my side. Maybe it’s in my DNA. Maybe I learned if from my Dad who learned it from his Dad. I can’t really explain why one person can live in contentment while yet another struggles a lifetime to find it. But Paul does a pretty good  job. As this first century follower of Jesus came to know the truth that Jesus was, in fact, the Son of God… the Messiah… the Redeemer for all humanity, he learned much about contentment and saw exactly what deprived people of it.  And, by the way, Paul is writing this letter to the people in Philippi while in prison, not a cozy cabana on the beach, (which seems to me to be a more logical place to discuss contentment). Take a look at a few of the truths he shared that give us a glimpse into the source of his contentment…

3:1  Be joyful in all things because it will safeguard your faith.

3:8  The only thing that is of real value is to know Jesus intimately

3:13  Stop looking at the mess of the past, but look to the One who will make something beautiful of the rubble you or someone else created. Look forward, not backward

3:19 With His strength fight the craving of this of earth and focus on setting up the feast in your future true home in heaven.

4:2 You will have disagreements with good people, even when you love them. Settle disagreements so that you can keep your focus on your mission of promoting the Truth and Love that are the foundation of your faith.

4:4  Rejoice some more. Let your heart be filled until it overflows with all the joy He gives.

4:5 Be considerate of others

4:6 Trade worry for prayer and trust God to supply what you truly need.

4:8 Direct your thoughts to focus on truth.

4:13 Remember, God supplies the strength you need to build a life of contentment.

4:15 Be generous and give to those in need.

Whether you are seeking contentment with what you have or who you are with or what you are doing in life, all of these truths will help you to find it. On the flip side, here’s what life looks like without following Paul’s advice …

Complaining

Pushing Jesus, as your Guide, to the back burner

Wallowing in the guilt or injustice of the past

Running to what the world says will bring joy

Fighting to win at any cost

Having a chip on your shoulder

Maintaining a “me first” mentality

Working longer and harder to get what you want, ignoring those who need your time

Believing the lies Satan tells you to keep you miserable

Living totally in your own strength

Holding tightly and selfishly to everything

I don’t know about you, but I think I will continue to follow Paul’s advice and go for the win in the contentment column. After all, being grateful is better than complaining; knowing Jesus intimately is better than seeing Him only as an icon. Looking forward is better than living in the past. Feeding my spirit is healthier than indulging in what my human  nature craves. Resolving disputes is better than allowing bitterness to grow. Gratitude makes what you have, enough. Being kind matters.  Fear is crippling, but trusting God brings freedom. God’s truth sets me free, when Satan’s lies  have me tied up in knots. God can provide much more than I can on my best day, and giving is truly better than receiving.

Contentment can come along with sorrow, but cannot co-exist with self-pity and selfishness. It comes when we realize we are not enough, but we have open access to the ONE who is.

Stop hanging on to what you can’t keep and grab hold of the truth that Jesus is what you need and you can trust Him with all you have. Never  let the message of the world cause you to lose your grip on the TRUTH that you are loved by the ONE who made you for a purpose and longs to bring you to the place where that purpose if fulfilled. There is where you begin to find contentment.