Listen and Believe

Are you able to listen when there are multiple distractions? I have difficulties 'filtering' out sound, conversations, or music lyrics when I am really trying to concentrate. I was never one of those students who could study with the most popular band's music blaring from the stereo in the background. I also know I don't do well where there are multiple distractions. My desk faces the wall, not the window. My computer desk is free of papers and the like because it would just distract me during my quiet time each morning. When I travel, I find a quiet spot, take my coffee and sit a while with God, listening as he shows me things in the scripture. Remove the distractions and we might just find ourselves able to 'listen to the message' God wants to bring into our lives today.

“I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life. “And I assure you that the time is coming, indeed it’s here now, when the dead will hear my voice—the voice of the Son of God. And those who listen will live. (John 5:24-25)

Listen and believe - both are active components of faith. We cannot have one without the other. When we actually do all we can to eliminate the barriers to listening, we might just find that God has been saying something to us all along that we have been missing because of all the 'noise' the world places in our way. As Jesus is facing the criticism of the religious leaders, he is also aware there are some in the crowd, his disciples included, who are willing to 'press past' the distractions of the 'loud critics' to hear the truth. We need to be willing to be like those who 'listened and believed' that day. As Jesus said, we can be assured we will find life when we listen.

Whoever imagined that life was linked to listening? We might not always want to listen, but in hearing what he says we make a choice to live. Hearing is the beginning of faith - it plants a seed of hope that begins to take hold the more we listen and obey. Jesus isn't just calling for his children - he is imploring them to turn away from the distracting criticism of those who do nothing more than put up roadblocks in their path. Distractions will always be there in this life, but when we do the best we can to manage them, God will help us lay hold of the things he desires for us. We must listen and believe - allowing what we hear to remove all our doubts. In the face of doubts and criticism, don't give into those 'distracting forces'. Press into God and listen. What he says next may just set your free to live in a whole new way. Just sayin!

The realm of God's best

So the Jewish leaders began harassing Jesus for breaking the Sabbath rules. But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, and so am I.” So the Jewish leaders tried all the harder to find a way to kill him. For he not only broke the Sabbath, he called God his Father, thereby making himself equal with God. So Jesus explained, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing. In fact, the Father will show him how to do even greater works than healing this man. Then you will truly be astonished. (John 5:16-20)

Criticism will come from all areas in our lives, but when those who should know better than to criticize us do it, it hurts and might even get us a little upset. Jesus has just healed a lame man, doing countless other miracles we may not even know about, and the religious leaders begin to harass him for 'breaking the Sabbath rules'. If you are anything like me, you have broken more than a few 'rules' in your day. The rule needs to make sense in light of the need that exists. For example, speed limits keep us safer on roadways, but does the rule to 'have your trash can out on the curb by 0500' make sense if the truck consistently doesn't come before 0700? As long as the can is there, the trash is picked up, I don't always follow that 'rule'. Was healing the lame man on the Sabbath a 'breaking of the Sabbath'? As Jesus says, we don't limit when God will move in a person's life - we go with it and see the wonderful things he will do when he does!

The leaders set out on a mission to consistently intimidate Jesus with their threats and accusations. In turn, he sets out to consistently be about his Father's work, regardless of the day of the week! When we operate in the realm of God's best, we aren't going to be intimidated by the accusations of those who don't grasp what God is doing. Jesus' response to them says it all: "I am doing only what I see my Father doing." What would happen if we were to be so 'engaged' with God's plan that we were guilty of doing only what we see the Father doing? I think this world would be 'lit up' with the glory and majesty of God! The truth of the matter is that we have to be close enough to the Father that we can actually see what he is doing, and this is where we find ourselves struggling sometimes. We just aren't all that 'close' to him - drifting hither and yon without really knowing that our gaze has shifted.

The threats of our enemy will abound - sometimes using those around us that we might desire to receive encouragement from instead of their threats and accusations. I don't know how Jesus always dealt with the accusing eye and flapping tongues of these 'resisters of the faith', but he did. I do know that the Holy Spirit within can help us look beyond their tongue flapping and hurtful words to see that their hearts aren't in the right place at the moment. When we realize that, we can look beyond their words and hurtful actions and model the actions God desires to have displayed to the world. Will they understand our boldness? Not likely, but they cannot really 'resist' such a faith. In the realm of 'God's best', we won't succumb to their intimidation because God's presence is always with us, and he is about to bust open the gates of heaven right before their eyes. Just sayin!

Content to just lay there?

I am going to ask a tough question today, but if we are truthful on this one, we may just realize a healing at the end. How long are we willing to live WITH our troubles before we ask God to get us out of those troubles? For some of us, it has taken us a long, long time to come to our knees, admitting we have been dealing with this 'trouble' longer than we ever should have. Trouble in the form of bitterness, anger issues, hurt feelings, or attitudes of deep regret and shame. While we are living WITH these 'troubles' we are 'hoping' for something to be different, but we don't really come out and aggressively seek our deliverance from them! It is time to admit we have been living 'with' them for way too long and we need God's help to finally move us from our 'placement' INSIDE those troubles.

Inside the city, near the Sheep Gate, was the pool of Bethesda, with five covered porches. Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches. One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?” “I can’t, sir,” the sick man said, “for I have no one to put me into the pool when the water bubbles up. Someone else always gets there ahead of me.” Jesus told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” Instantly, the man was healed! He rolled up his sleeping mat and began walking! (John 5:2-9)

"I can't" are two words Jesus can deal with, but until we utter the ones that admit we actually want our healing, we aren't really ready for it! We might not be able to get ourselves from our 'placement' inside the trouble, but Jesus doesn't even need to change our 'placement' to begin the healing. He just needs to hear that we know we 'cannot' and he 'can'. Notice that the man was still on his mat beside the waters of Bethesda when Jesus asked him if he desired his healing. He had to admit he had no one to carry him to the water, but that didn't stop Jesus. Jesus told him to get up 'from where he was' and be healed. I think we might somehow believe our deliverance from the troubles we have endured for so long will require us to 'move' from here to there. Jesus just asks us to get up!

Too many of us stay right where we are, INSIDE the trouble we have endured a long time, making all kinds of excuses for why we cannot move FROM there. For this man, he remained paralyzed on his mat, beside the pool, with no one to carry him from here to there. For us, it could just be that we have lived with all this anger, bitterness, or feelings of deep hurt all because we think we have 'no one' to move us from here to there. The truth is that the 'one' who needs to move is us and we just haven't moved from being 'flat on our backs' to our knees in humble acknowledgement of our deep need. We just lay around in our 'self-pity', never realizing our healing is right there in front of us.

If we want our deliverance from INSIDE that troubling stuff today, we might just need to confess our need and stop making all the excuses for why we cannot be healed. Jesus gave some very specific actions the man needed to take - 'admit you need healing', 'get up', 'pick up your mat', and 'walk'. Our healing begins with confession - not the list of excuses. Our next actions should reveal we desire the change more than anything else in the world - get up and walk! We may have weak or wobbly steps at first, but when we finally move from our back to our knees, we may just be surprised at just how 'strong' that position make us! Just sayin!

Not impressed with our arguments

The official pleaded, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies.” Then Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!” And the man believed what Jesus said and started home. While the man was on his way, some of his servants met him with the news that his son was alive and well. He asked them when the boy had begun to get better, and they replied, “Yesterday afternoon at one o’clock his fever suddenly disappeared!” Then the father realized that that was the very time Jesus had told him, “Your son will live.” And he and his entire household believed in Jesus. This was the second miraculous sign Jesus did in Galilee after coming from Judea. (John 4:49-54)

Come now! Have you ever asked God for something so desperately? This father was earnest in his request, knowing his boy's only chance for surviving whatever illness had overtaken him was for the healing touch of Jesus. I imagine if I had of wanted Jesus to come with me to my house, lay hands on one of my sick children, and he just told me to go back home without him, I might be a little disappointed. Why? Jesus didn't do as I expected! This is often the case with Jesus - we have something in mind as to how he should work out a situation in our lives, but he has a totally different plan. The plan he had isn't bad, it just didn't meet our expectations! Maybe we need to see that Jesus moves on our behalf, but our part may be to respond in obedience to whatever it is he asks of us. 

The official was told to return home - without Jesus. In so doing, he meets up with his servants who bring the terrific news that his son was well. Return alone - this is what Jesus told him. The official wanted Jesus to come with him, but Jesus had actually gone before him! We never know when Jesus will expand our faith, but we can pretty much be assured he doesn't always do it with the 'easy stuff' in life. Our faith is expanded in the 'hard stuff' and even in the 'harder stuff than we have endured before'. I marvel at this man's willingness to do exactly as Jesus asked. Maybe it is because I tend to give Jesus a little grief from time to time, kind of 'arguing' with him about what he asks me to do. He couldn't be clearer, but his plan didn't meet my plan, so I guess I drag my feet a bit at times. How about you? Are you a foot dragger at times?

Remember this - God isn't impressed with our arguments. He is moved by our trust. This official had to trust that Jesus would 'take care' of his boy, even if he didn't do as he expected. There is something God wants each of us to learn when he tells us to 'go and see'. It is that his presence is everywhere - his power is all powerful - his plan is more than sufficient to meet ALL our needs. We may want to drag our feet a bit today with something he is telling us to do, but when we do, we only delay what he wants us to show us in that moment. As the official heard the words, his son was healed. He heard, took it to heart, and went home. We may not see the immediate result of obedience, but it as we take the first step 'toward' the thing he asks of us that our need is met. Just sayin!

Flee the burden

Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!” When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days, long enough for many more to hear his message and believe. Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world.” (John 4:39-42)

Many believed because of what the woman shared - others believed because of what they heard him and believed. Just imagine what would have happened if the woman had not shared what happened at the well, harboring all that she had experienced just for herself. Others who were ready and waiting to receive their Messiah might have missed the opportunity. There is something quite powerful in sharing what Jesus has done in your life, but there is something even more powerful in coming to the conclusion that you need him in spite of what you have done in your life. This woman, married five times, living out of wedlock with another, likely had a lot of shame in her life. She came alone to the well, at noonday - not first thing in the morning with the rest of the women of the township. Something 'set her apart' from her peers - we will probably not know what it was for sure, but it is likely she was not very well respected in her town. Yet, when she encounters Jesus, and he encounters her, she immediately runs back to tell everyone what she had just experienced. This is likely the 'freedom' of newfound faith!

No longer encumbered by her past, she was 'free' to share her future - a future that would be lived at the feet of Jesus, in the Kingdom of God. I think some of us take our newfound faith, packing up all the baggage of our past, and try to somehow live out this life of 'freedom' while carrying the baggage we should have left behind. All that shame, probably too great for any of us to realize, left at the well. She didn't take it all back - she fled from it! Maybe there is a lesson for each of us there - freedom from our past might just require us to 'flee from it' instead of picking it back up again. If you have ever caught an 'ugly creature' in your home, like a scorpion or spider, you don't play with it, you scoop it up in covered container, run outside, shake it out of the container as fast as possible, and then run back inside! Why? It didn't belong in the freedom of your house, and you don't want to stick around long enough to be its next victim! Our past will attempt to make us its 'victim' as long as it can, but Jesus tells us we are no longer victims of sin - we are free to live a new life in him!

We are never truly free until we leave that stuff behind. The woman left her water jar at the well - running back to the village - no longer afraid to be with them. There are 'jars' we need to leave - not just empty and carry around with us. Whatever they are, today is the day to not only leave them, but allow Jesus to break them once and for all, so they can no longer be of use in 'carrying our burdens' any longer. When he gives you that freedom, and he will give you that freedom, go and tell others what he has done. You might just see others laying down their jars of burden, fleeing far from them, and right into the arms of Jesus. Just sayin!

Not where, but who

It isn't where we worship - it is who we worship. It isn't about a place - it is about the heart. This Samaritan woman came to draw water from a well, but I doubt she expected this encounter with Jesus. She knew the prophets had predicted the Messiah to come, but did she know she'd encounter him at the side of the well? She just went there daily to draw the water and return to her duties back in the village. Today, she would not only be challenged by someone who knew her past, but she was being challenged to have her future changed for the better. That is how it is when we encounter Jesus - our past might have been a challenge for us, but our future doesn't have to be!

“Sir,” the woman said, “you must be a prophet. So tell me, why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here at Mount Gerizim, where our ancestors worshiped?” Jesus replied, “Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem. You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews. But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:19-24)

Here or there? This way or that way? These have been questions we focus on so much at times, but Jesus merely focuses on the heart. He got right to the truth with this woman. She needed 'living water' - eternal life. He offered it. Yet, she questioned him a bit more - not really recognizing him as the Messiah, but feeling he must be a prophet because he could tell her things about herself that he could not know otherwise. As the story goes on, his disciples join him and find him talking with a Samaritan woman. In their 'theology' that was not acceptable because the Samaritans 'worshipped' differently, accepted 'mixed marriages' between Jews and the 'people of the land', and adopted the ways of 'unholy' worship that were common in the culture of the kings ruling the land. 

We don't see this woman's 'conversion', but we know something happened that day because she ran back into town, told everyone what happened to her at the well, and as a result, many Samaritans welcomed him into their lives. We may come from different backgrounds, look a bit different from each other, and even have different perspectives on 'how things should be', but the truth is that when Jesus is welcomed into our lives, none of that matters. He asks us to believe in him, accept his gift of eternal life, and then begin to follow him. Will our 'worship' change when we do? Perhaps it will, for some more radically than others. What changes is our heart. We aren't the same after Jesus exposes our heart and begins the actions of changing our heart, so our 'method' or 'place' or worship might not be the same either! 

Whatever stands in the way of us following Jesus will begin to matter very little when grace does its work within us. We may not know how radically Jesus will change our lives, but when we welcome him in, we will be changed. Just sayin!

Him more...me less

Imagine being the 'new kid on the block', drawing crowds of seekers from all around, only to find out the 'debates' over your legitimacy are mounting just as your ministry gets started. This is what Jesus encountered as he set about on his earthly ministry. His disciples are with him, he is baptizing people just across the way from where John the Baptist has been at work for a while already. John's followers - his disciples - enter into a debate over 'ceremonial cleansing' with a Jewish man. We might not realize just how easily the enemy will use someone to question what we are doing, whether it is legitimate any longer, or which 'way' is right. It is good to see that John's disciples immediately come to him to seek clarity - to get their understanding of what John was doing expanded in light of what Jesus was doing. Any time we begin to do things for the Kingdom of God, the enemy of our souls will send someone to oppose those actions. Why? Satan is never threatened by stagnant Christians - he is only threatened by those who are taking action as God directs!

John’s disciples came to him and said, “Rabbi, the man you met on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you identified as the Messiah, is also baptizing people. And everybody is going to him instead of coming to us.” John replied, “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.’ It is the bridegroom who marries the bride, and the bridegroom’s friend is simply glad to stand with him and hear his vows. Therefore, I am filled with joy at his success. He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less. (John 3:26-30)

Notice the response of the disciples of John - 'everybody is going to him instead of coming to us'. Isn't it just like us to get a little twitterpated when our 'popularity' or 'draw' seems to wane in light of something else God is doing through another? John is immediate in his response - almost a 'kind rebuke' of sorts. He actually responds with a heart of understanding - he knows he was only paving the way for the Messiah's arrival and is more than willing to 'bolster' Christ's 'success' across the river. It is a truly wise person who realizes and accepts when God is bringing up another who will become 'greater' while they will become 'less'. Imagine if John had of been prideful or arrogant. He might have found ways to deter people from seeking the Messiah if he was, but he wasn't. In fact, he knew his purpose was to point the way - not to become the way.

God always looks for faithful servants, and he will bless their work greatly. A faithful servant knows when they are called, but they also know when it is time to see the work they have been engaged in 'evolve' to the next level. The message to us today is to be faithful in what God has called each of us to do. Be engaged with those he puts in your path - encourage them to seek God in every way imaginable, then step back and see what he does when they do! God may not ask us to be about the same work throughout our entire lives, but when he gives us a task to do, we are to do it heartily and with a committed purpose. When he tells us it is time to let it go, he always asks us to do so gracefully and with prayerful support of what he is beginning to do through another. Just sayin!

Hues of Grace

 “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.” (John 3:18-21)

As a wee child, Dad would warn me against getting too close to the open flame of a campfire, flames licking up this way and that, with tiny embers bursting free from the logs. His worry was that I might be burned, but I wanted to see more, feel the warmth and hear that crackle firsthand. I would approach with caution, though, for the very thing that drew me closer was also the very thing I knew could change me forever. I wonder if this is what is like for those who see the light within us, but also know that light has a power to change those it enters? Maybe there is a little 'trepidation' in approaching the light because there is some awareness of the extreme power of that light!

As we all know, light has a way of illuminating a path, but when we close our eyes to light, the darkness still exists on 'inside'. There is a drawing power that exists within each of us - a testimony that actually helps others see a bit more of God and a whole lot more of what grace in action really looks like. I actually think some shy away from the light within us because they are afraid it will transform their lives, believing the darkness they know is better than the light they don't know. Darkness becomes a comfortable place, not really requiring any real 'exposure'.

Light actually travels in a straight line - no wonder God uses light as a symbol of the life we are to live. It has an intensity that can brighten or grow dimmer by the minute. It can be 'interfered with' by putting something over it, in front of it, or pointing it in a different direction. Although it travels in a straight line, it is possible for light to be dispersed or hidden. God uses each of us as beacons of light - allowing that grace within to shine forth, but sometimes we attempt to hide it, don't we? A scientist may desire the brightest of lights, but an artist appreciates all the various 'hues' created by light with varying intensity.

God is definitely an 'artist' when it comes to light, for he brings out the 'intensity' in just the right way that others will be drawn to it, finding pleasure and goodness in it. Rather than focus on how 'bright' our light shines (in our own estimation), let us allow God to bring out the 'hues of grace' from that light within, drawing those who have been way too familiar with darkness into its basking glow. God can do more with one 'hue' of his grace than we will ever do by 'telling' someone we have the light. Just sayin!

A light cannot be hidden

There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. Jesus replied, “You are a respected Jewish teacher, and yet you don’t understand these things? I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen, and yet you won’t believe our testimony. But if you don’t believe me when I tell you about earthly things, how can you possibly believe if I tell you about heavenly things? (John 3:1-2, 11-12)

As we might already be aware, just being a part of a religious movement doesn't make us right with God. Nicodemus was a Jewish religious leader, and he still didn't recognize the Messiah when he was in his own hometown. As a matter of fact, he was so 'intimidated' by what the other leaders might think, or what his fellow townsfolk might believe about him, that he came to Jesus under the cover of nightfall. He was curious, drawn by something he wasn't sure about, but wasn't willing to be 'outed' for his curiosity to those he worked and lived with each day. We might be afraid to admit we are 'curious' about Jesus, but even if we come under the 'cover of night' into his presence, we can be assured he will reveal himself and his purpose, and his grace will fill our lives. 

The thing we may not realize about Nicodemus is that he somehow managed to have this moment with Jesus, probably asking questions, seeking clarity because he was beginning to see something in Jesus that made him think he was no 'ordinary guy'. Jesus was very kind to him - taking time to speak with him, letting him ask questions, and probably even 'challenging' his beliefs a bit. Jesus is always willing to help us with our 'questions' - to help us move beyond any point of unbelief into a place of committed faith. We know something happened for Nicodemus that night that began to cement his faith because he was willing to openly stand up before his group of colleagues later on when Jesus was being badgered and criticized by his fellow religious leaders. We also know he provided the 'burial spices' for Jesus - something that would have cost him not only financially but would have opened him up to ridicule by his fellow leaders. 

When Jesus begins to 'cement' the truth about who he is and what he is about to do in our lives, we might just find that we are willing to 'stand up' - becoming 'open' about our beliefs where we might have been a little too intimidated to stand boldly before. I think God gives us truth - brings us into places of understanding - not so much so we can 'cement' it in our minds and hearts, but so we can stand up and stand boldly within that truth. We might seek his truth and wisdom under the 'cover of darkness', but Jesus reminds all of us that a light cannot be hidden. When truth is given, it is meant to become a beacon that draws others toward that truth. Just sayin!

A melding process

Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in him. But Jesus didn’t trust them, because he knew all about people. No one needed to tell him about human nature, for he knew what was in each person’s heart. (John 3:23-25) Have you ever been guilty of acting one way, but 'feeling' totally different than you were acting? It is like the little kid that sits down because he is told to, but everything inside of him is 'standing up'! Many believed Jesus just because they saw the miracles - the good stuff attracted them to him. Yet, despite the overwhelming proof that he was 'no ordinary carpenter guy', they didn't place their 'trust' in him. Is it possible we can 'see' and not 'believe'. The old adage that 'seeing is believing' may not be 100% accurate - many see, far fewer believe!

As a matter of fact, Jesus would show himself 'post resurrection' to some who didn't believe until they saw. Thomas was among the "I need to see it myself" kind of guys. He followed Jesus throughout his entire ministry on this earth, but still needed to 'see' before he could fully 'believe' in his heart. There was a guy in the Old Testament (Gideon) who told God he'd 'step out in faith' if God met two 'tests' - no dew on the fleece he left spread outside one night, dew all around on the ground and then dew on the fleece, but no dew on the ground around it. We 'see', but we don't always believe! We ask for 'proof' time and time again, don't we? It is a very good thing that God isn't put off by our failure to trust him when the 'proof' is right there before our eyes.

Trust seems to be an elusive thing for some of us - it is like we cannot trust 'fully' until we can 'fully appreciate' what is right there in front of us. We need to 'understand it' before we will trust it. Truth is truth, but somehow, we make it less than truth until we can manage to wrap our heads around it. Looking back at our passage again, we might find just a bit of encouragement there because it says, '...many BEGAN to trust in him.' Trust may not come 'immediately' and 'fully' but require a bit of time in order for us to fully be 'persuaded' and 'come to full faith'. In the time between 'seeing' and 'believing' or 'hearing' and 'trusting', a lot happens at the core of our thoughts, emotions, and spirit.

Our emotions sometimes need to be 'melded together' with our thoughts - for we can 'think' one thing, but our emotions can be all over the place. God speaks to our spirit - knowing our thoughts and emotions will somehow catch up! He knows us - how we are made, what helps us understand truth, and when we are most open to receiving it. We can go through life 'seeing' all manner of truth, but when our spirit begins to interact with truth, our lives are changed. God isn't after 'gawkers' - he is after followers. Those who will commit to the journey, press in when it gets rough, and allow truth to 'meld' our spirit, mind, and emotions. Trust is 'formed' when the 'melding' process is allowed to be completed. Just sayin!

Empty Vessels

John's gospel records a wedding celebration attended by Jesus, his mother, and a few of his early disciples. You may know the story, but as the celebration went on, the wine ran out. In those days, the host of the celebration would have been devastated to realize they had 'under-planned' for such an event. Weddings were a big deal, with most likely the majority of the community celebrating such an event. So, how did the host 'run out' of wine? We don't know the 'why', but we know he would have suffered great embarrassment if such a thing had of been known to those in attendance. I wonder how many times we have been saved from 'great embarrassment' when our 'wine jugs' ran dry because of our 'under-planning'?

Standing nearby were six stone water jars...each could hold twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled, he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed his instructions. When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over. “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!” (John 2:6-10)

Sometimes we glance over this story of the 'first miracle' of Jesus, but there are some definite truths here that we should likely ponder a bit. First, we see the jars. The jars were empty, but they were readily available. The wine had been stored in some other form of 'wine jugs' or 'flasks'. These were empty water jugs that were used to hold water for 'ceremonial cleansing'. Jesus always uses what is available to him. If we remain available, though we are 'empty' right now, he will use us for his glory. Second, we see the obedience of the servants. It was immediate and without questioning. Availability is one thing - unconditional or unquestioning obedience is another! Jesus asks us for both.

We may not always know what Jesus is about to do in and through us, but when we respond with obedience, we can be assured he will do great things. We may not see what he is doing, as these servants likely did not have any idea the water was about to become wine, but if we are bold enough to do as he says, when he says it, we are positioned to see great things happen! The servants knew they had brought him water - they also saw the reaction of the host when he tasted the 'fine wine'. Imagine carrying a jug of about thirty gallons of water to Jesus, then taking a scooper of it to the host, only to see something 'transformational' happen between the well and the sip! 

Jesus is all about doing 'transformational' thing in us - he is also using us to do 'transformational' things by being living testimonies of his power and grace. How? By taking the steps of obedience he asks. The best for the last - this speaks volumes about HOW God often works in our lives. We see little hints of what he is doing - small changes occurring - but then at some 'end point' we realize how HUGE of a work he has done. Available servants, willing to respond in obedience to the 'weirdest' or 'silliest' of things he might ask will see his glory revealed right in front of them. What was once empty is now filled with much more than we ever imagined possible. Just sayin!

A fixed gaze

He found Philip and said to him, “Come, follow me.” Philip went to look for Nathanael and told him, “We have found the very person Moses and the prophets wrote about! His name is Jesus, the son of Joseph from Nazareth.” “Can anything good come from Nazareth?” “Come and see for yourself,” Philip replied. (John 1:43, 46)

One of the most amazing things we see in the life of Philip is this immediate transition from being just one to 'follow' Jesus, to being one who went out and invited others to follow, as well. He immediately went to his friends and acquaintances - telling them about the one he had met, what he was teaching, and just how much they needed to come 'see for themselves'. In other words, he got excited about his purpose!

Too many times we see believers start the journey with such excitement and enthusiasm, but in short order it seems the very thing that 'excited' and 'energized' them so much isn't there any longer. How does that happen? I think it is likely a variety of reasons, but one thing is for sure - God's intent for us is to remain enthusiastic, spirited, and constantly willing to share Christ with others.

Are we all able to learn at the same pace? No, we all learn at our own pace. Christ had those among his followers who saw or heard something and immediately believed it as truth, something they could see done in and through them. He also had those who were a little more 'stand-offish', who needed more 'proof', or simply took a bit longer to 'saturate in the truth' before it really affected their lives. The same is true of all of us - some 'get it' quicker than others, while others 'saturate in it' a bit longer until it finally 'grabs them' and 'takes hold'.

All Jesus ever asked of his disciples is that they be in step with him. That may not seem like a big deal at first, but if you have ever tried to walk in 'lock step' with another for a very long time, you know you can get a bit distracted by what is around you, losing that 'lock step' quite easily. As we learned to march in the military, they told us 'eyes forward' - in other words, fix our gaze on the leader, don't lose sight of him and keep step with the cadence set. 

All Jesus asks is for us to keep step with the cadence he desires for us - the one he sets for us as we step out in faith 'with him'. It could be we don't feel as 'energized' and 'enthusiastic' about our walk with Jesus as we once did, but perhaps a fixing of our gaze on our 'leader' once again, while listening carefully to the cadence he sets, will bring us back to the place where we are brimming over with excitement to 'go and tell', 'making disciples of many', and 'bringing hope to the hopeless'. Just sayin!

Warning, Will Rogers!

“When the Lord your God goes ahead of you and destroys the nations and you drive them out and live in their land, do not fall into the trap of following their customs and worshiping their gods. Do not inquire about their gods, saying, ‘How do these nations worship their gods? I want to follow their example.’ You must not worship the Lord your God the way the other nations worship their gods, for they perform for their gods every detestable act that the Lord hates. They even burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods. (Deuteronomy 12:29-31)

When God took Israel into the Promised Land, he gave these instructions, but what makes them so important for us to keep in mind today? The first instruction we see here is really one of understanding the 'extreme protection' that exists for a child of God. God - the Lord your God - goes ahead of us to drive out our enemy and his evil forces. The place for God in battle is ahead of us, not alongside or behind us. When God is given his rightful place in our lives, the enemy scatters - he cannot exist where the holiness of God presides!

Secondly, there is to be an active 'resistance' of the enemy in our lives - we are to be 'driving him out', not just allowing him to lollygag around us. There is an 'aggressiveness' pictured here - we aren't passive in our beliefs, but rather aggressive in our pursuit. What happens when there is passivity in our walk? We get caught up in the enemy's ploys - we 'blend in' rather than standing out. God has always asked his children to 'stand out' - we live in this world, but we don't become like this world. We don't adopt beliefs and practices that God clearly tells us to avoid.

Third, we must learn to not question God's authority or position in our lives. When God told them to not inquire about their unholy worship practices, it was because he knew there would be a pull toward other 'authorities'. Truth be told, we are constantly being 'sold a bill of goods' when it comes to what Satan wants us to believe about who he is, how he acts, and what his purposes are in this world. He wants to convince us God isn't 'enough' - that we need something more, different, or better - that God is somehow keeping us from enjoying stuff. Don't embrace the lies - this is what God is trying to tell us.

Lastly, God never asks for us to 'perform for him'. He desires a sincerity of relationship - be honest with him, be open to him, and be in love with him. When these things exist in our lives, there is no room for 'performance' - genuine relationship replaces the need to 'perform'. God wants us safe, but we guard against wandering into beliefs and practices that take us away from that place of ultimate safety. We don't 'guard alone', though. We have been given his Word as a weapon, his Spirit as a tutor and guide, and his presence as a place of refuge when needed. Just sayin!

A virtue that begins the action of healing

Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble, but he keeps his distance from the proud. (Psalm 138:6)

Have you ever stopped to consider why God cares for this human race? We get a whole lot of things wrong, but he still loves us deeply. We get all wigged-out at our neighbors, spend our resources foolishly, get involved in things that consume our time way too much, and he still keeps waiting on us to realize just how much we need him in our lives. Though he is GREAT, he cares for the HUMBLE. Those who realize their intentions may be good, but their actions reveal just how badly they can mess things up on their own are never going to be rejected by our merciful and GREAT God. In fact, he will continue to draw them to himself, pouring out grace upon grace, until we finally realize our 'best self' is the 'self' that stops being too proud to seek his presence in our lives.

James 4:6 reminds us that God actually opposes the prideful, but he gives grace upon grace to the humble. Humility is actually the one 'virtue' that every other 'good thing' in our lives is built upon. It takes admitting we need help in order for the processes of growth to actually begin in our hearts, minds, and spirit. For a long time, I believed the old adage, "God helps those who help themselves", even thinking it was part of scripture. I have discovered it is not scriptural at all - in fact, if you understand grace, you will recognize that grace is given to those who admit they can NOT help themselves! We think we need to do something to 'get grace', but we must always remember grace is given freely - without us deserving it at all. We find God's care when we admit we have done a poor job of ruling our own lives and invite him to really take over that rulership.

A word of caution here - we can ask for his rulership without really giving him that place in our lives. If you are anything like me, when things are going well, I might think I can steer my life, but as soon as the proverbial 'poop hits the fan', I realize just what a 'stinky' job I have done at 'driving'! Pride makes us think we don't need to lean in when things are going well, and it makes us vulnerable to attack of all kinds, because PRIDE will always open the door for compromise, failure, and hurts. Humble people recognize their need but aren't too ashamed to admit it to God. They are open to doing what he says, not always what they 'feel'. The truly humble person is open to God's leading because they realize without it, the path will be riddled with all manner of 'messes', 'hurts', and 'life-long hang-ups'. 

True humility is manifest in more than our words - it comes in the actions of repentance. Remembering that repentance is a 'turning away' from what we had previously pursued or done, it carries the idea of doing more than admitting we need help. Maybe God stands with the humble because they willingly admit their short-comings and failures, seeking his help to overcome them. Perhaps part of humility is 'drawing close' to his heart, settling into his presence, and listening intently to his words. How does this relate to humility? It shows we truly don't want to remain in control any longer and are intent on his taking that control for us. Humility is the one virtue that begins our healing. Just sayin!

Just right

Sacrifices and offerings are not what please you; gifts and payment for sin are not what you demand. But you made me willing to listen and obey. And so, I said, “I am here to do what is written about me in the book, where it says, ’I enjoy pleasing you. Your Law is in my heart.’” (Psalm 40:6-8 CEV)

In the Old Testament, sacrifices and offerings were expected. The people would bring lambs, goats, bulls, and even birds or grains to the temple to offer to God. These would be prepared in a particular manner and either consumed on the altar, or parts of the offering would be consumed on the altar, and the remainder would be enjoyed by the priests who served in the temple. Jesus declared this "form" of worship no longer necessary when he offered himself as the "perfect sacrifice" for our sins. Yet, in our worship today, we often find we are still all actively trying to bring some "gift or payment" for sin, thinking God "demands" this of US. We have the illusion that our sins can be "covered over" by something we do or bring to God. 

Nothing we bring to God in the way of "good works" could ever encompass the demands of the cross. We can do our very best and still fall short of being able to live a sinless life. Our "best" is still not "good enough". This is exactly what has become the stumbling block upon which so many who call themselves "Christian" today find themselves tripping over. As long as we are relying upon what we can "bring" or "do", we will always be "bringing" or "doing" something far less than what is needed to find ourselves "forgiven", "grace-filled", and "restored". These are three "tasks" clearly outside of our ability to "do" or "bring" into our own lives! We think God "demands" something of us - but it is simply that we trust in the finished work of Christ on our behalf. That "perfect sacrifice" cannot be added to - we are simply asked to move from trying to "out-perform" what God has already done into the place where we accept his provision and walk in liberty because of it! God doesn't expect us to "do" this "salvation thing" on our own. He stepped in, provided the best and most perfect sacrifice, all so we could enjoy the beauty and majesty of celebrating in his presence. He made a way for our permanent experience of his presence - all through the work of grace.

That doesn't mean any of us is off the hook when it comes to the way we choose to live our lives after we say "yes" to Jesus. We turn away from living in a way which in not pleasing to God and we turn into his open arms. It is impossible for us to live on our own in grace. Most of us will constantly try to add to grace in some manner. This is how silly we are - for grace is perfect all by itself - nothing can be added to grace! What God does for us is help us to turn our ears toward his voice - learning to listen for his direction in our lives. Then he gives us the "want to" and the ability to do as he requests or requires. Obedience is our response to his grace, but even obedience is mostly his "doing" in our lives! A transition of heart is all God is really after - he will work on the rest in the course of time. Wherever it is we direct our heart (mind, will, and emotions), we begin to spend time. Time yields a greater understanding of the one we spend time with. In turn, this deeper understanding begins to bring a closeness which is hard to break. God is helping us lay down our desire to be "doing" stuff to "be made right with him" and settle into what he has "done" in our lives already. Before long, we find ourselves responding as we should because obedience is the outcome of being in his presence and his presence being in us!

So, instead of trying to bring "just the right" sacrifice for God, why not start trusting him to bring the right amount of grace into our hearts which will help us connect with him on a deeper level than ever before? Just askin!

Move That Mountain

What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.” You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless? (James 2:14-20)

Faith without actions is not really faith at all, is it? In fact, faith is revealed in action. Jesus never said, "See that mountain - look at it until it crumbles." He said, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen." (Matthew 21:21) Doubt looks at the mountain and does nothing - faith sees the mountain and sets everything in motion to see it actually moved. That doesn't mean we move the mountain - it means we do what God asks and then see him move on our behalf. Think about the Israelites marching time and time again around the walls of Jericho - God asked them to march, then on the seventh day to praise him with all they had. If they had of just sat there and 'trusted God' to remove the walls, do you think the walls would have crumbled? No, because he asked them to take specific actions and they did! God created us as both physical and spiritual beings - meaning we use all that he created to do as he says. 

God asks for passion, but he also asks for persistence. We persist in prayer, but we also persist in taking the actions he directs until he tells us to no longer take those actions. Lots of us have passion - we get all excited to see something accomplished, but how many of us have the persistence to act time and time again until God is finished accomplishing what needs to be done? We don't act in our own power - we act in his. We are obedient to the things he asks us to do, and we keep on taking those actions, until he tells us to stop. Ever see someone so intent on taking 'good actions', but lacking the relationship with Jesus that should go along with those good actions? Those actions may be all well and good, but they are a little hollow or empty, aren't they? We might think of these actions as 'philanthropic' or 'benevolent'. They are indeed 'good', but there is something missing - faith in Christ. When good deeds are an outflow of this relationship with Jesus, they are never 'hollow' - they are filled with love and grace.

God never focuses on the actions over the heart. He knows the heart innervates the actions, so he focuses on our heart first. When our heart is right with him, our actions are 'faith actions' - they are rich, meaningful, and with specific purpose. God asks us to be mountain movers, but we don't move mountains on our own. If you and I go through life just focusing on doing the 'right things' but neglect the 'right relationship' component of faith, our faith is not really faith - it is religion. Just sayin!

My storehouse is full

“Teacher, please tell my brother to divide our father’s estate with me.” Jesus replied, “Friend, who made me a judge over you to decide such things as that?” Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” “A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’ “Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.” (Luke 12:13-21)

We can all be so 'into ourselves' that we totally miss being there to help another when they are standing right there in front of us. It is truly a sad thing to be so caught up in this thing we call the 'making of a man' that we miss each other's needs. Jesus' clear warning is to guard our hearts and minds against such greed. Greed doesn't just happen - it is an attitude of the heart that comes from continual rehearsal in our minds of the desire to get or be 'more'. Our attitude of heart determines the actions we take, but we can use our actions to act as an indicator of our 'heart's attention and desire'. We might focus on our assets, but God focuses on our attitude. 

Some individuals think they are 'worth more' or can 'do more' because they have huge assets available to them. I think Jesus was challenging us to consider something that has absolutely nothing to do with our assets. He wanted us to see what a right heart can do in terms of meeting the needs of our community, not just a huge amount of wealth. Sometimes we think we have nothing to offer, or very little, because we are comparing ourselves to someone we think has 'more'. As Jesus said, we can amass much in the way of earthly wealth but be so emotionally and spiritually 'bankrupt' in the end. The more we allow Jesus to truly touch the chords of our heart, changing the way we think or look at the world's 'assets', the more we will find ways to share ourselves with others.

The main thing Jesus focused on so many times as he taught was the need for a rich relationship with God. We might not believe there is much 'value' in this deep, ongoing and vital relationship, but God's presence within us makes our hearts full to overflowing. A silo or barn can store up 'things' but a heart in tune with God can store up and GIVE OUT the blessings of God's grace and love. It would be foolish to count upon the filled silo or barn and neglect the one 'storehouse' that God focuses on so intently - the heart. Just sayin!

We all need a purpose

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life. (Philippians 4:6-7)

What is your purpose in life? If you are like me, you spent quite a bit of time in your youth and young adult life just trying to figure that one out. Some of you may not even have a clue yet! It is only after we understand our purpose in Jesus that we can begin to live a meaningful life. Our main purpose in life is to follow Christ with our whole hearts - allowing him to be the central part of our lives. All the other 'stuff' we pursue as some form of 'purpose' in our lives really is an outflow of his grace in our lives.

As this chapter unfolds, we find the reminder: "and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will GUARD your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus”. How does this peace actually help us to walk within the purpose God has for us? When we learn to rejoice in our salvation and actually realize God is always present with us wherever we go and whatever we do, we begin to find peace with what it is we come to realize as our 'purpose' in life. 

As we are reminded, we are to worry less and pray more. I think we spend a whole lot of time 'worrying' our way toward a 'purpose' and far less time than we should 'praying' with purpose. Did you catch that? We spend time 'pursuing' purpose, while God asks us to take time to live within our purpose, communing with him. As Paul goes on within this chapter, he wants us to know all that worrying over things far outside of our control is really serving one purpose - to keep us away from fulfilling God's purpose within our lives. Instead, we are to take those things to God in prayer - worry over nothing, pray about everything (4:6-7)

Maybe we would 'feel' a bit more 'in tune' with God's purpose for our lives if we learned to turn our thoughts toward the things he actually wants us to be thinking about. As we begin to meditate on good and true thoughts (4:8), focusing on godly examples and our own behavior (4:9), we begin to see this is not really about our 'self-man'. It is about him - this daily walk becomes a thing in which we find great contentment and fulfillment. If we are not fulfilled in our daily walk, it could just be a result of us not drawing near to him. Just sayin!

In the ditch?

God’s eye is on those who respect him, the ones who are looking for his love. He’s ready to come to their rescue in bad times; in lean times he keeps body and soul together. (Psalm 22:18-19)

Have you ever needed to be rescued? I remember running off the side of the road on a snowy day and needing someone to help me get my car back up onto the roadway. It took some pushing and pulling, a whole lot of wheel spinning, and a bunch of strength, but we finally did it. When life gets you in the ditch, what do you do? I was fortunate enough to have a couple of kind guys stop on their way to work, willing to get thigh high into the snow, and with a whole lot more muscle than I had. Sometimes we just need to utilize a strength not our own, with know-how better than ours, and see what can happen when we do!

What does respect for God mean? I think it is a combination of us giving up the right to control everything in our lives and then being willing to do what he says, when he says it, as he says it. We might not always have the right answers - although we think if we just remain in control of the circumstances long enough, we will muster through. On the side of the road that day, I wasn't 'mustering through' on my own. I needed the strength and know-how of others to help me out of a real mess. God stands at the ready, but we need to give him the lead and step back. We cannot always demand our own way - relying on our own plans to get us through.

It also means we spend our lives looking to him - turning our attention from all the distracting influences around us toward him. Leaning into his love requires us to be present in the moment, not just when the urge hits us. We need to be ready to serve - just as he is ready to rescue. We might think we don't have what it takes to do what he asks but remember one important fact - God never asks us to do anything that he is not willing to equip us to do. That said, respect for God involves us being willing to be equipped. That means we might have to lay down a few of our own 'self-invented plans' and take up the ones he has for us. 

In the end, the promise is quite clear - he keeps our body and soul together. In other words, when we lean into him, allowing him control of our lives, he isn't just there to 'rescue us', he is there to keep us from running of the road in the first place! Just sayin!

Which column has the most zeros

 A mean person gets paid back in meanness, a gracious person in grace. (Proverbs 14:14) What does your 'paycheck' look like today? Are you seeing lots and lots of zeros behind that 'grace' number, or more of them behind that 'meanness' number? Mean people aren't exactly the kind of people we want to hang around with on a regular basis, are they? In fact, we most likely want to 'put their lights out' on occasion, wishing they'd just back off and find somewhere else to do their dirty work. We don't always respond in grace toward the meanie, do we? In fact, we might just find ourselves wanting to be a little 'mean' in response!

Why do mean people evoke a defensive response from us rather than a gracious response? It could just be that we see a bit of that same 'meanness' within ourselves! We might not always realize that mean streak exists within us, but when it is revealed, it is time to let God deal with it so that a gracious response is elicited in the face of meanness the next time. Jesus told his disciples that God's kingdom was made up of individuals who actually use the grace of God in their lives to learn to turn the other cheek. (Matthew 5:39) This idea of 'turning the other cheek' is a much harder lesson to learn than just 'letting it rip'. Emotional 'control' isn't accomplished as a matter of willpower - it is accomplished as a matter of Spirit-power within.

When we encounter mean people, who attempt to bring us down through mean actions or words, we can lean into the power the Holy Spirit gives each of us. We never control the other person's behavior, but we can be in control of how we respond to it - especially when we have the wherewithal to lean into God's grace and the Spirit's presence within us. I have found that responding with grace is really the result of the Holy Spirit reminding me that I don't always know the 'deeper issue' within that individual that is causing that other person to respond in mean ways. God's grace might help us look beyond the 'mean act' or mean words', but it could also be that his grace revealed through you brings the other person to their knees. 

I think this is why God reminded his people that they are not responsible for vengeance - he is. He will use the grace we respond with to 'undo' the individual who responds out of meanness and emotional hurt. That 'undoing' of the individual is not our job - it is God's. We might not like the way they are acting but rest assured - God takes note of both their action and our response to it. Let your grace-column begin to overrun your 'meanness-column' and you might just begin to see God's movement in that other person's life a little more each time you do. Just sayin!

We need more than a bellhop

The person who shuns the bitter moments of friends will be an outsider at their celebrations. (Proverbs 14:10) Walter Winchell reminds us: "A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out." Do you have this kind of a friendship with anyone? If you do, count yourself blessed; if you don't, it is high time you ask God to bless you with one! A true friend will never shun your bitter moments - they will love you through them. Yes, I said "through them" because that friend will not abandon you to your folly or your grief.

"True friendship multiplies the good in life and divides its evils. Strive to have friends, for life without friends is like life on a desert island... to find one real friend in a lifetime is good fortune; to keep him is a blessing." (Baltasar Gracian) Multiplied blessings don't come because we 'do life' alone - they come because we do life in communion with one another. God never asked or expected his kids to walk alone, so why is it we are trying so hard not to let anyone see who we really are, where our hurts and hang ups exist?

I think it could be a matter of pride - we think if others see our 'real self' they will not want to be part of our lives for very long. There is something my BFF reminds me about now and again that we all need to hear: "We all come with baggage." Baggage in the form of hurt emotions, disappointments because life didn't work out as we planned, or even the fears that hold us back from pursuing life as God desires for each of us. Regardless of who we are, how 'put together' we may seem - we all have baggage! Get over trying to hide that baggage - it actually needs to be 'unpacked', not hidden!

We all come with a variety of complex emotional 'stuff' that needs to be 'worked through', don't we? If you cannot see it, maybe someone else can and that is why we need each other. We actually help one another 'unpack' that baggage so we can finally get rid of the suitcase of emotional garbage we have been carrying around for years and years - sometimes our whole lifetime. We can give our baggage to a bellhop, but he will not unpack it. 

He carries for us for a while, but he doesn't actually help us be rid of the baggage. A friend actually helps us do more than carry the bag - they help us know when and where it should be emptied. Then they come alongside and help us sort out all the stuff we have in that bag! We don't need the baggage - we need the freedom that comes from finally uncovering what we have hidden within the recesses of those 'bags'. Just sayin!

A heaping helping, please

 Have you ever said of one thing only to act an entirely different way when push came to shove?  We pledge to do one thing, but we do another.  It is just human nature to "preserve" ourself when the times get a little tougher to deal with than we first imagined them to be.  When it comes to loving another individual, we want to save face, come out on top, and not be "found out" for the cowards we really are. When it comes to loving another individual, we are pretty cowardly at times - not willing to face danger, difficulty, opposition, or pain within the relationship.  Face it - relationships can get pretty messy!  When it comes to facing them without fear, we don't do a very good job with this unless we rely upon Jesus within us to actually help us love with the intensity of love he shows us.  We become pretty timid and often are intimidated by the "confines" of love.  Love is truly "messy" business, but it is the "business" we are to excel at!

God stays one with everyone who openly says that Jesus is the Son of God. That’s how we stay one with God and are sure that God loves us. God is love. If we keep on loving others, we will stay one in our hearts with God, and he will stay one with us. If we truly love others and live as Christ did in this world, we won’t be worried about the day of judgment. A real love for others will chase those worries away. The thought of being punished is what makes us afraid. It shows that we have not really learned to love. We love because God loved us first. But if we say we love God and don’t love each other, we are liars. We cannot see God. So how can we love God, if we don’t love the people we can see? The commandment that God has given us is: “Love God and love each other!”  (I John 4:15-21 CEV)

Love begins with God and it ends where it started - with God!  As we ask Jesus to come into our lives, filling us with his intense and unconditional love, we receive "true" love for the very first time.  In serving Christ each day, we are allowing this love to bring us closer to God - experiencing afresh each day the intensity and depth of Christ's love for us.  No one is as close to God's heart as those who serve one another in the love Christ brings to bloom within their heart!  As a matter of fact, it is this service of love which keeps us close to God's heart - keeps our relationship vital, builds strength within it, and draws us closer into intimate fellowship with him.

If we have experienced this "messy" job of loving another individual, we know just how hard it can be to serve when that service seems to be one-sided, or to forgive when forgiveness seems to be demanded over and over again.  Love is not for cowards!  Falling in love with Jesus is not for cowards!  Serving others in the love of Christ is indeed not for cowards!  In fact, there isn't a kind of love worth pursuing which is for cowards - other than this thing we call "eros" love.  That is a Greek term used to describe the self-gratifying love we all possess an affinity toward just because we are human. Eros love is focused on what is in something for "me".  We don't do it, dream it, or move toward it if there isn't anything in it for "me".  Indeed, this type of love doesn't require a whole lot of courage, just the natural instinct to satisfy every craving our minds might conceive!

Two other types of love are spoken of in scripture:  Phileo and Agape, but there is a third type we experience - Storge.  Phileo love is commonly referred to as brotherly love - the type of love we enter into because we are drawn toward someone with common interests.  With Phileo love, we focus on what we have in common and share in personality traits - as when two people are best friends. Storge love is what we might call "family love" - it is based on sharing the same "genes" with another.  Somehow, just because we are "in family" with others, this type of love happens.  Moms take care of babies, babies bond with moms, siblings bond with siblings, etc.  It is just part of human nature to bond in some type of relationship - especially when it is with those we have so much in common with.

Agape love is the one love used to describe God's intensity of love.  It is more than a "natural draw" to another - it is based upon the grace of God and his intense desire to commune with his kids.  Of all the types of love, this is the one which is not natural.  It is something which comes only as Christ inhabits our hearts - it is only possible when one is in relationship with him.  It is this type of love spoken of here, the type of love which chases all worries away. It is the love which binds us together with those outside of our "natural family" and allows us to serve those who may be a little less than lovable themselves! This is the type of love we are to desire above all - and the type of love we are to have govern our thoughts, intentions, and actions.

God places us within love relationships here on this earth, not so much because we need them, but because we cannot learn to love God as he loves us until we are serving another out of the love he places within our hearts. We need another to reveal the intensity of love God has for us, just as much as they need to see and experience this same love from us. It is only as we serve one another that we finally connect with the heart of God. I don't know where you will serve today, or who you will touch, but every action today is a means of serving a heaping helping of God's love upon someone's life!  Just sayin!

Okay, test it again

Endurance is often defined by one's ability to hold out without giving into some impairment or difficulty. In "undergoing" some stress, you are able to come out the other side still standing. Not everything we "undergo" is designed to leave us "standing" - sometimes we need to be in a place that displays a different type of "strength" than being able to "stand". In other words, sometimes the "strongest" place we find ourselves is in admitting our weakest place within! There is something which comes in the times of "trouble" in our lives which has a way of revealing these "weak" spots - and I think God may have just designed the thing we "undergo" to reveal that "spot" so he might help us with that weakness.

My friends, be glad, even if you have a lot of trouble. You know that you learn to endure by having your faith tested. But you must learn to endure everything, so that you will be completely mature and not lacking in anything. (James 1:2-4 CEV)

Since most think of endurance as the ability to push beyond the "weak spots" in life, it stands to reason we will attempt to "get beyond" whatever it is we are "undergoing" by whatever inner strength we can muster on our own. We think we can somehow avoid coming face-to-face with the weakness we are trying so hard to ignore. Guess what - no matter how hard we try to ignore a weak area, eventually the stress put against that weak area will cause that area to be exposed! Deny they are there all you want, but those tiny areas now become quite translucent and imminently ready to pop!

Our weaknesses have a way of being discovered - not so much in the times when all is going so perfect for us, but in the times we are "stretched" to what we may feel is "beyond" our capacity to endure any more. Most of the testing we undergo is not "in the quiet time" - those moments when we are alone with God and he kind of has us under the "microscope" in the quietness of our personal time with him. Nope - the majority of the testing we undergo is right smack in the middle of living life. Those times of "stretching" soon reveal the areas not previously recognized where we need God's help to replace our weakness with his strength. The stretching brings evidence we are not as strong as we might have thought we were! In fact, we begin to realize we not only have one weak area, but multiple! This is were the opportunity comes for most of us to attempt to conceal the weak area(s). We somehow think if we just "hide away" the weaknesses so no one sees the them, no one will know it is there and we will escape the scrutiny of having that area "exposed".

We might get a handle on the internal pressures, effectively "shutting off" anything else trying to come "in" - but we cannot control all the things coming at us which knock us around a little on the outside! We soon realize if we don't ask God's help to deal with those weak areas, we are about to quit or give int something we didn't want to! I don't know about you, but instead of "proving" I can endure, successfully cut off the flow of what gets inside, and then cleverly manipulating to "cover up" the weaknesses inherent in my character, I am choosing to have God test all the "weaknesses" in my life! Just sayin!

Discovery Required

No one can oppose you, because you have the power to do what you want. You asked why I talk so much when I know so little. I have talked about things that are far beyond my understanding. You told me to listen and answer your questions. I heard about you from others; now I have seen you with my own eyes. (Job 42:1-5 CEV)

There are always going to be things in life we have "heard about", but have never seen. If we are to be perfectly honest here, we have heard about a whole lot that we don't understand, but we just accept it as fact. If we take everything at face value which we see or hear, we will sometimes form some pretty wrong opinions of others, jump to conclusions about the issues, or get ourselves buying into something that will just rob us of things we hold dear. We often jump to conclusions based on what we hear, but never take the thing we hear about and put it to the test. In turn, we just "react" to the thing we hear and then we might find we are off-base in our understanding. We need both - hearing and listening; discovery and understanding.

Some people "talk a great deal" about what they know very "little" about. Just spend about 20 minutes one day scrolling through the posts online and you will find a great deal which may have your head spinning. It is a truly "prolific" period in terms of our "media" opportunities, is it not? We can post almost anything and in short order, it can go "viral". Why? People are hungry for the "scoop" - they just don't take time to investigate the facts behind the latest "rant", "fad", or "hype". Diseases like COVID19 or CDiff are not exactly beyond my understanding, as I have some basic microbiology classes and understand the basics of how viruses and bacteria find hosts, replicate, and soon cause devastating disease of mass proportion. I have a "working knowledge" of disease, but I cannot say I understand more resistant strains of these "bugs" any better than I understand the basics of the original disease. I "do" understand the principles of disease, how to protect myself and others from "contact" with potential disease, and the best infection control practices I have learned over the years. This is what I can speak to - but maybe not all the details of the actual disease I am protecting myself and others against.

Job is in conversation with God and at this very moment recorded for us for all time, he admits to what we all have a tendency to do on occasion - we talk about things which are beyond our present understanding. In time, we may come into fuller understanding, but if we just hold onto what we believe to be true and never expand our knowledge of the subject at hand, we may have either a "flawed" impression of the truth, or we may never get to the "full" truth. It is indeed God's intent for each of us to become students of the truth - to accept small bits of truth, but to go on to discover the fuller and deeper meaning of truth in our lives. Without this growth, we are always living with something less than the "bigger picture". God's view is infinite - ours is finite. Yet, even in our "finite" view of life, God gives us glimpses into truth beyond our means of discovery - asking us to embrace it and put it to the test. God never accuses us of wrongdoing when we put truth to the test.

"Don’t believe everyone who claims to have the Spirit of God. Test them all to find out if they really do come from God. Many false prophets have already gone out into the world, and you can know which ones come from God. His Spirit says that Jesus Christ had a truly human body. But when someone doesn’t say this about Jesus, you know that person has a spirit that doesn’t come from God and is the enemy of Christ. You knew that this enemy was coming into the world and now is already here."   (I John 4:1-3 CEV) Learning to speak about what we have clear and certain knowledge of is important because then we can identify when we are being "fed" something which is untrue or not quite on the mark. We can "judge" the spirit of a man by the spirit which indwells him, so we are told to test those who "claim" truth - not just accept it at face value. We can hear a great deal "about" God from others - coming into a revelation of what is true of God for ourselves is quite different. We can hear about - or we can discover for ourselves. The choice is ours. Just sayin!

Refashioned Lives

Always be glad because of the Lord! I will say it again: Be glad. Always be gentle with others. The Lord will soon be here. Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. Then, because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel. (Philippians 4:5-7 CEV)

Gladness comes when we take pleasure in something. I like to find the perfect photo - the bee on the flower, leaf floating on water or maybe even the look of having caught a first fish on the face of a young child. It brings me pleasure to catch "just the right" moment. Gladness is a sense of heart where one experiences joy or pleasure. Gladness and happiness are very similar emotions - both based on finding pleasure in something or someone. Pleasure is really the capacity to enjoy what it is you have found. Our passage suggests a reason for gladness - because of the Lord! Simply put - we are possessed by him and he is re-purposing our lives. This should bring us great pleasure, for it brings him ultimate pleasure. 

His whole life has been dedicated to the purpose of finding lost lives, those cast off into the landfill of sin, and plucking that life from the place of rubble and rubbish. In taking up that life, he begins the work of re-crafting that life from one image to another. Jesus takes our lives and refashions them to resemble something other than what they once were. In so doing, beauty is produced - beauty that fills his ears, eyes and heart with praise! Jesus reminds us we are designed to be gentle giants. In essence, we know greatness simply because greatness dwells within us in the presence of Jesus. Although his presence brings access to great "power" within, he reminds us to be gentle with each other. Why? Love is his mode of operation - not the sword! Disciples are known by their love, not by the sword they carry!

We are to become stewards of prayer. A steward manages another person's property, acting as the "agent" of the other person. In reality, we are stewards of all Jesus gives us in his re-purposing of our lives. In turn, he calls us to lift both our own needs, and those of others in prayer - in reverent trust of the one who has re-created us for his purposes. We "steward" a life given back to us at the point of salvation - no longer demanding control, but realizing the one who owns our lives now has the right to ask us to live it for his glory and honor. In turn, he reminds us to stop worrying about things and people - instead, we are to bring them before him in prayer - as stewards of his grace, love, and mercy.

We are called to give thanks. When something is refashioned into something of usefulness, what is produced is a thing of purpose and beauty. We may not realize the original any longer because the "re-purposed" has more beauty than the original! Jesus makes our life which was once so confined to produce something of a beautiful melody for him in the form of thanksgiving, praise, and worship. We are called to think and feel differently. "Re-purposed" lives don't think the same way they once did. In fact, there is an exchange of thinking which occurs when we give our lives over to Jesus. Our thoughts begin to center on him, and in so doing, our emotions begin to be ordered into a new way of responding. Inner peace is a result of the melody of his grace and love played sweetly from the inner core of our being.

We may not see much we are glad for today simply because all we can see is the rubbish pile we have made of our lives. Herein is the beginning of our life's story - the damaged becomes new again - not in its former state, but in a new and glorious re-created, re-purposed life. A life fashioned by the hands of Jesus - to be used for his glory and honor. Nothing quite brings gladness in the same degree. Just sayin!

Right Paths Require Right Directions

Accept correction, and you will find life; reject correction, and you will miss the road. You can hide your hatred by telling lies, but you are a fool to spread lies. You will say the wrong thing if you talk too much—so be sensible and watch what you say. The words of a good person are like pure silver, but the thoughts of an evil person are almost worthless. Many are helped by useful instruction, but fools are killed by their own stupidity. (Proverbs 10:17-21 CEV)

When we are correcting something, there is a substitution for what is wrong or inaccurate. We are making an adjustment in order to increase accuracy or reverse a trend in a particular action. We could also think of correction as the punishment we receive which is intended to put us back on the right course. The idea is that of "substituting" one behavior for another in order to get a different outcome is the most accurate definition. If we continue doing the same thing, we will always get what we have always gotten! So, correction is designed to help us do something "differently" in order to change the outcome.

We think we can fix ourselves, but we got into the mess because we had blinders on, causing us to only see what we wanted to see; or we were so "open minded" we forgot to really think through what we were doing in the first place. We need to have the blinders removed - so we sometimes need someone on the "outside" of the mess we are in to actually help us see where the blinders have limited our focus. We also need someone to clearly delineate the path for us to follow, because the one we have been choosing is just riddled with messiness!

Fools are tripped up by THEIR OWN stupidity - not the stupidity of others! We sometimes think we can put the blame for our missteps on others, but truth be told, we took those steps on our own! When "useful instruction" comes our way, it takes quite a brave man or woman to actually embrace it and turn away from the folly of our ways. Bravery is the willingness to challenge the norm - to dare to be different from what we have always been. Bravery stands up to the wrong we have created in our minds and dares to think differently. Most of our missteps in life are simply because we have embraced some type of "errant' belief. In turn, we act upon that errant thought pattern, and we find ourselves "missing the road" we should actually have traveled!

Sometimes we just choose the wrong way - either because of our own lack of investigation into the pathway we are traveling, or because we have given into some form of peer pressure and just idly go that way. When I am lost on the roadways on some journey I am on, I don't just drive round and round. I pull over, look again at the map, and then ask directions. What I am doing is referencing "truth" (the map) and getting counsel (asking for directions). We all need to stop on occasion to be sure our actions are in alignment with the Word of God and to check our steps with others who are in intimate relationship with Jesus. In turn, we often will save ourselves many a misstep!

So, learning to "tune in" a little more to our thoughts, allowing the Holy Spirit to "right" them when they are getting a little too "free form" will save us a whole lot of idle wandering down roads best left untraveled in the first place! Just sayin!

Almost there

Thomas Edison reminds us, "Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up." God reminds us, "...let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up."  (Galatians 6:9) How close are you to giving up on something right now? We have lots and lots of dreams as we are growing up, but how many of them are really fulfilled in the course of time? It is quite likely that some dreams get put on the back burner, while we go about pursuing other things that present themselves as 'more important' for that season of our life. Do we ever get back to those dreams? I daresay some of them are never revisited, while rare few others are finally pursued at some point. Truth be told, we might not realize just how close we were to a breakthrough when we decided it was time to give up.

Giving up is really a means of escaping something that is kind of hard and maybe even a little fearful. Sometimes we are even afraid to fail - to allow others to see we are human, just like them. Fear keeps us from pursuing things to the end sometimes, paralyzing us and keeping us from moving forward, despite the desire to see a dream realized. If we have been guilty of giving up on something, is it possible to pick it back up and run with it again? I believe God's grace allows fresh starts time and time again. If God tells us to pick it up again, then we can be assured he will be with us when we do! Will it be easy to 'start over' when we have abandoned something? No, definitely not, but will God be there to help us pick up the pieces and make right choices as we move forward - definitely!

The harvest comes at a specific time - not just because we want to see it. We have to put in a whole lot of work prior to harvesting the reward, don't we? It may be that fear isn't what is holding us back from doing what God asks, it could be we are just a bit 'lazy' in our faith. We don't want to invest ourselves quite at the level God asks us to invest. That makes us not only lazy, but stingy! Have you ever notices how God won't allow us to be lazy? He somehow manages to 'stimulate' our faith, little by little, until we are moving toward that goal once again. He brings us to the place we make the investment, maybe not all at one time, but somehow, he gets us there! 

Giving up is not really an option - God asks us to persevere - to continue on, take hold, and stand against adversity. What appears to be way to big for us to realize, or to hard for us to attain may just be the thing he is calling us to do right now. Wouldn't it be a shame to quit right at the apex of our victory? Just askin!

A come and go kind of guy?

God doesn’t come and go. God lasts. He’s Creator of all you can see or imagine. He doesn’t get tired out, doesn’t pause to catch his breath. And he knows everything, inside and out. He energizes those who get tired, gives fresh strength to dropouts. For even young people tire and drop out, young folk in their prime stumble and fall. But those who wait upon God get fresh strength. They spread their wings and soar like eagles, they run and don’t get tired, they walk and don’t lag behind. (Isaiah 40:28-31)

At times, we might begin to wonder if God is getting tired of all our 'asking' and 'seeking'. Here we are, day after day, asking him for the same stuff to happen, such as the salvation of our children, the restoration of a relationship that has been in the dumps for years, or the increase of our finances so we aren't living paycheck to paycheck. If God were human, he might just get tired of us asking and seeking, but we must always remember he isn't human! He is divine - he is the Creator of the universe and the Lord of Lords. He is exalted over all and all that exists is because of his power. 

We grow weary of the same 'old fight', but God knows when that weariness creeps in and we are in need of a bit of a rest. He also knows when we are growing weary in asking, beginning to take less and less enthusiasm in asking, and he reminds us of his goodness, grace, and power. Why? God wants us in step with him, not lagging even one step behind. Yes, we may grow weary, but he revitalizes our faith and restores our hope. Waiting upon him is the place of renewal - the place where we find our greatest strength.

God doesn't come and go - keep that in mind. He is ever-present, even when we might not appreciate his presence with us. He stands when we are unable to stand any longer. He goes before us when the way seems unclear, or the path riddled with all manner of hostility. He breathes new life into us when all of this world's pressures and problems have weighed us down so badly that we feel as though we could not take another breath. He stands - we rise up. He comes along side - we move forward. He brings peace - we are renewed and strengthened for the journey ahead.

I have always enjoyed this passage of scripture. I find myself going there when I am a little weary from life's demands, or disillusioned by the delay in some answer I am seeking. It stands as a reminder that God isn't a 'fly-by-night' guy - he is there even when I may not sense his presence with me. He finds small ways to let me know he is above all the pressures I am feeling and has prepared a way of escape where I most need it. How about you? Been feeling a bit 'pressured' and 'weary' lately? Bring yourself to the foot of the cross and find all the goodness of his rest, restoration, revitalization, and revelation he has prepared for you. You won't ever leave his presence the same way you came! Just sayin!

Carrying a False ID?

Do you regularly carry some form of identification with you, especially when you leave the house? Most of us have a driver's license, passport, or identification card of some kind. Some have that information in their smartphone, while others carry a wallet full of identifying information. Is it that tiny card you carry that really identifies who you are? Is it possible to carry a bit of 'false identification' with us? Yes, there are many people who produce such 'false IDs' because there is both a demand for them and a profit to be made. It is possible we may be carrying some sort of 'false identification' with us apart from those cards that could be carried in our wallets. That 'false ID' is the one we carry along with us because we feel shame for our past - identifying with our failures and not the hope we are given in Christ Jesus.

And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him. (Ephesians 1:13-14)

When we believed, there was an exchange of identification - we came into a new family. We moved from the family of unbelievers into the family of believers. We took on a new image - Christ's image. We took on a new character - Christ in us, working through us, creating new desires and passions. So, why do we continue to carry around that false identification of 'sinner', 'unclean', 'impure', or 'unholy'? We are none of these things if we have said 'yes' to Jesus. We are identified as his own - we carry a new identification - the presence of the Holy Spirit within us.

When we identify with our sinful past and not with our redeemed present, we are likely doing so because of some element of shame we have internalized due to our past sinful indulgences. When we have done 'dishonorable' things, it is not uncommon to experience bad 'feelings' about our actions. Keep nursing those feelings long enough and you actually begin to identify yourself as whatever that sin is. This is shame - identifying with the sin because we regret over and over again the sinful actions we have taken. There is a lot to be said for grace, but one of the very precious things we can know about grace is that we are no longer identified with that sin.

We have been given a new ID, but we might just hold onto that 'false identification' for a while because we don't trust we will 'live up to' the new identity we have been given. The truth is that we probably won't live up to it in our own power, but that is why we were given the Holy Spirit - to help us live 'beyond' that previous identification! Just sayin!